What Is CE Marking? A Plain-English Guide

If you make, import, or sell products in Europe, you have seen the CE mark — two stylised letters on everything from drills to children’s toys. But what does it actually mean, and what does it ask of you? This guide explains CE marking in plain English.

What CE marking means

CE marking stands for *Conformité Européenne* — French for “European Conformity.” It is the manufacturer’s declaration that a product meets the EU health, safety, and environmental requirements that apply to it. Once a product carries the CE mark, it can be sold throughout the European Economic Area (the EU plus Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein) without facing different national rules in each country.

The key word is *declaration*. By affixing the CE marking, the manufacturer takes legal responsibility for the product’s conformity. It is a statement that says, in effect: “We have checked this product against the rules that apply to it, and it complies.”

What the CE mark is not

A few common misconceptions are worth clearing up:

It is not a quality mark. CE marking is about meeting legal minimum requirements for safety and conformity — not about a product being well made or high quality.

It is not issued by an authority. For most products, no government body or agency hands out the CE mark. The manufacturer applies it themselves after assessing conformity.

It is not proof of where a product was made. CE marking has nothing to do with country of origin.

Which products must be CE marked

CE marking is mandatory only for products covered by specific EU legislation that calls for it. These include machinery, electrical equipment, electronic equipment, personal protective equipment, pressure equipment, medical devices, toys, and a number of other categories.

Products that fall outside this legislation must not carry a CE marking — applying it where it does not belong is itself a breach. And a product covered by several directives at once must satisfy all of them before it can be marked. For the full picture, see the [complete CE marking guide](/learn/ce-marking).

Who is responsible

The legal responsibility sits with the manufacturer — or, for products made outside the EU, with the importer who places them on the EU market. That responsibility does not end at the point of sale: the documentation behind the CE mark, especially the Declaration of Conformity and technical file, has to be kept and produced if a market surveillance authority asks.

In practice this means keeping conformity documentation organised and current for years after a product ships — exactly the kind of record-keeping a [certificate management system](/features/certificate-management) is built for.

The bottom line

CE marking is the manufacturer’s own, legally binding declaration that a product meets the EU requirements that apply to it. It is not a quality badge and not a certificate from an authority — it is a responsibility you take on, backed by documentation you have to maintain. The next question most people ask is how the CE mark relates to the “CE certificate” and the Declaration of Conformity — covered in [CE Marking vs Declaration of Conformity](/blog/ce-marking-vs-declaration-of-conformity).