Class 11: Lighting, Heating & Cooking Appliances
Class 11 is anything that lights, heats, cools, cooks, dries, ventilates or supplies water. That sounds technical, but it’s full of everyday products: lamps, kettles, air fryers, fans, showers, toilets and barbecues all sit here. It’s the fifteenth most used of the 45, with 30,720 UK registrations between September 2021 and September 2026, which is about as many registrations as the average class. If your product plugs in and gets hot, cold or bright, class 11 is usually the first place to look.
What class 11 covers
This is the official Nice heading, in full:
Apparatus and installations for lighting, heating, cooling, steam generating, cooking, drying, ventilating, water supply and sanitary purposes.
It’s a short heading built around what things do, not what they look like. That’s why a chandelier, a heat pump, a toaster and a toilet end up in the same class. Each one provides light, heat, cooling, cooking or water. The class covers the apparatus itself; the controls, the furniture around it and the people who fit it are usually elsewhere.
When you definitely need class 11
- You make or sell lamps, light fittings, LED strips, fairy lights or torches
- You sell heating or cooling products, such as radiators, heat pumps, fans or air conditioning
- You sell cooking appliances that heat, such as kettles, air fryers, coffee machines, toasters or pizza ovens
- You make bathroom and water products: showers, taps, toilets, water filters or hot tubs
- You sell barbecues, hair dryers, electric blankets or hot water bottles
When you might need class 11 without realising
A lot of lifestyle and consumer brands end up in class 11 without thinking of themselves as appliance makers.
- Homeware and gift brands. Lamps, fairy lights and hot water bottles, on 777 registrations, are all class 11. So are electric blankets, on 766.
- Outdoor and garden brands. Barbecues are class 11, on 1,225 registrations, and so are pizza ovens and outdoor lighting.
- Cycling and car accessory brands. Bicycle lights appear on 1,824 registrations in class 11, and vehicle headlights sit here too, not with the bike or car.
- Hair and beauty brands. Hair dryers are class 11, on 1,594 registrations, even though straighteners and clippers are class 8.
If your product lights, heats, cools, cooks or dries, it’s worth checking class 11 before you file.
Not sure whether your appliance is class 11 or class 7? The free class tools below show you where businesses like yours actually file, or you can give us a call.
What businesses actually claim in class 11
These are the terms that turn up most often in recent UK class 11 registrations:
| Term | Marks using it | Share of class 11 | How common |
|---|---|---|---|
| lamps | 4,847 | 15.8% | Most use this |
| light bulbs | 2,677 | 8.7% | Recommended |
| LED lamps | 2,530 | 8.2% | Recommended |
| ceiling lights | 2,471 | 8.0% | Recommended |
| humidifiers | 2,151 | 7.0% | Recommended |
| lighting apparatus and installations | 1,990 | 6.5% | Recommended |
| desk lamps | 1,918 | 6.2% | Recommended |
| floor lamps | 1,843 | 6.0% | Recommended |
| bicycle lights | 1,824 | 5.9% | Recommended |
| electric fans for personal use | 1,822 | 5.9% | Recommended |
Lighting leads the class. Lamps is on 4,847 registrations, and most of the top of the table is lighting of one kind or another: light bulbs, LED lamps, ceiling lights, desk and floor lamps. Humidifiers and personal fans sit in among them.
That means a lighting brand is joining the busiest part of class 11. It’s also a class where specific wording helps. Claiming ceiling lights or LED light strips as well as the broad terms costs nothing extra within the class and makes clear exactly what your brand sells.
What class 11 does not cover
Smart controls, sensors and apps are class 9. A smart-lighting or smart-heating brand usually sells the controls separately. Smart bulbs stay in class 11, but thermostats, sensors and control apps are class 9, where sensors appears on 1,725 registrations and downloadable software on 5,410.
Non-electric cookware and utensils are class 21. The air fryer is class 11; the frying pan is class 21. A kitchen brand selling both appliances and pans needs both classes, where cookware appears on 1,873 class 21 registrations.
Installation, maintenance and repair are class 37. A heating, air-conditioning or bathroom business that fits what it sells is providing a class 37 service. Heating equipment installation and repair is claimed on 428 class 37 registrations, and plumbing on 685.
Bathroom cabinets, mirrors and furniture are class 20. A bathroom-interiors company can have its showers and taps in class 11 and its vanity units and mirrors in class 20, where bathroom furniture appears on 3,058 registrations and bathroom cabinets on 1,034.
Where these terms actually live
| Term | Belongs to | Marks using it |
|---|---|---|
| downloadable software | Class 9 | 5,410 |
| sensors | Class 9 | 1,725 |
| bathroom furniture | Class 20 | 3,058 |
| bathroom cabinets | Class 20 | 1,034 |
| cookware | Class 21 | 1,873 |
| plumbing | Class 37 | 685 |
| heating equipment installation and repair | Class 37 | 428 |
Each of these is a separate registration. A mark in class 11 does not cover any of them.
The mistake I see most often
The mistake is treating a fitted system as a single product. A smart heating system or a new bathroom feels like one thing to the customer. For trademark purposes, it’s several.
Take a smart heating brand. The heat pump or boiler is class 11. The thermostat and the app that controls it are class 9. Fitting and servicing it is class 37. A bathroom brand is similar: the shower and toilet are class 11, the vanity unit and mirror are class 20, and the installation is class 37. File only class 11 and the brand on the van, the app and the vanity unit may not be covered.
The practical fix is to list everything that carries your name, including the controls, the furniture and the fitting service, and classify each part. A UK application can’t have classes added later, so it’s worth getting the list right at the start.
Is class 11 the right class for you?
If you make or sell lighting, heating, cooling, cooking, drying, ventilation, water or bathroom apparatus under your own brand, class 11 is very likely yours. If you also sell controls, cookware or furniture, or you install what you sell, look at classes 9, 21, 20 and 37 as well.
Our free class tools build a specification from wording already accepted on real UK filings, so you can see what businesses like yours claim before you commit.
Common questions about class 11
Is an air fryer class 11 or class 7?
Class 11. Appliances that cook by heating are class 11, with air fryers on 1,565 registrations and electric kettles on 933. Appliances that mix, chop or blend, such as food processors and blenders, are class 7. A kitchen appliance brand often needs both.
Is a heated towel rail class 11?
Yes, if it’s heated. Heated towel rails appear on 496 class 11 registrations. An ordinary towel rail with no heating element is class 21. It’s a good example of how class 11 follows function, not appearance.
Which class is a smart light bulb?
The bulb itself stays in class 11, even when it connects to an app. The app, the hub and any separate smart switches or sensors are class 9. A smart lighting brand usually needs both classes.
Are hot tubs and saunas class 11?
Yes. Hot tubs, saunas and sauna heaters are class 11, as installations for heating and water supply. Running a spa where people use them is a service in class 44, and building or installing them for customers is class 37.
About these figures. Last researched 23 September 2026, from UK trademarks registered between September 2021 and September 2026 whose entry in this class is still active. That is current drafting practice rather than the historical register. Terms shown are those most frequently used in that period.
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