All classes · Class 1
Class 1: Chemicals: trademark trends & clearance risk
Class 1 is the 26th busiest of the 45 classes, with 222,097 U.S. applications on record and 11,417 waiting for a decision. Its registration rate of 72% ranks 6th of 45, above the 61.9% average. Filings rose 1.7% in 2025, and are below the 7,438 filed in the peak year of 2021. 63.2% of applications filed from 2015 to 2019 drew an Office Action, the 19th highest share. The word used most in its live marks is "green", in 494 of them.
What it covers: Chemical products for industry, science, photography, agriculture, horticulture and forestry
Words already crowded in Class 1
The words that appear most often in the 83,455 live Class 1 marks. A word that many owners already use gets narrow protection: two marks that share it are usually told apart by the rest of the name. That cuts both ways. A new name built on "green" is easier to fit in, and harder to defend against the next one.
| Word | Live marks using it |
|---|---|
| green | 494 |
| bio | 464 |
| pro | 456 |
| solutions | 427 |
| plus | 399 |
| soil | 340 |
| technology | 316 |
| life | 285 |
| products | 258 |
| power | 247 |
| water | 241 |
| super | 224 |
| grow | 221 |
| technologies | 221 |
| blue | 216 |
Live marks are registered or pending. Words of three letters or more, counted once per mark; articles and company suffixes left out. Rebuilt weekly.
Check before you file. The free clearance risk check finds marks that look or sound like yours in Class 1, not only exact matches. If your mark has a logo, run it through the logo similarity search too.
Easy to confuse with Class 1
Filing in the wrong class means paying again, so check where your goods or services actually belong.
- Chemicals for industry, science and farming are Class 1. Preparations for medical or veterinary use, and disinfectants, are Class 5. Class 5: Pharmaceuticals
- Cleaning preparations for the home are Class 3. Chemicals used inside industrial processes stay in Class 1. Class 3: Cosmetics & Cleaning
Not sure? Describe what you sell to the class recommender.
Wording that got through in Class 1
The descriptions of goods and services used most often in Class 1 applications that went on to register, filed since 2020. Wording that examiners have accepted thousands of times is a safer start than your own: a description written freely costs $200 more per class and is a common reason for an Office Action asking you to rephrase. Check the exact entry in the USPTO's ID Manual before you file.
| Description | Registered marks using it |
|---|---|
| Fertilizers | 1,481 |
| Industrial chemicals | 830 |
| Unprocessed plastics | 499 |
| Fertilizers for agricultural use | 428 |
| Adhesives for use in industry | 412 |
| Chemicals for use in industry and science | 401 |
| Biological preparations for use in industry and science | 395 |
| Plant growth regulating preparations | 393 |
| Soil amendments | 371 |
| Chemicals for use in industry | 343 |
| Adhesives for industrial purposes | 341 |
| Synthetic resins, unprocessed | 337 |
| Organic fertilizers | 324 |
| Chemical preparations for use in industry | 299 |
| Unprocessed artificial resins | 285 |
| Chemical additives for use in the manufacture of cosmetics | 278 |
| Chemicals used in industry | 271 |
| Unprocessed synthetic resins | 266 |
| Chemical preparations for scientific purposes, other than for medical or veterinary use | 262 |
| Unprocessed artificial resins, unprocessed plastics | 259 |
Each application's description split into its separate items, counted once per application. Source: USPTO records. Rebuilt weekly.
What examination did to Class 1 applications
The 30,786 Class 1 applications filed from 2015 to 2019, followed through their file histories. 64.8% of them registered 3.3 points better than the all-class average.
| What happened | Applications | Share | All 45 classes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Filed in this class | 30,786 | 100% | – |
| Drew at least one Office Action | 19,464 | 63.2% | 58.4% |
| Escalated to a final refusal | 3,170 | 10.3% | 8.9% |
| Abandoned for never answering one | 4,461 | 14.5% | – |
| Registered in the end | 19,951 | 64.8% | 61.5% |
Every share is of the 30,786 applications filed. Rows overlap: an application that drew an Office Action and then registered is counted in both.
Of the 19,464 Class 1 applications that drew one, 22.9% were abandoned for never answering or answering late. Of those that did answer, 82.7% went on to register. If you get one, the deadline matters more than the refusal does: track it here, and put an email address you actually read on the application.
- How long it took. Half the Class 1 applications that registered did so within 13.6 months of filing, and nine in ten within 31 months.
- Intent to use. 39.8% reached a Notice of Allowance, with only proof of use left to file. Even then, 41.9% of them were abandoned without a Statement of Use ever being filed, and of the ones that bought three or more extensions first, only 34.9% made it to registration.
- Filing without an attorney. 83.3% of Class 1 applications had an attorney on record, and those registered 68.1% of the time against 48.3% without one. 55.2% of unrepresented applicants who drew an Office Action never answered it. Your odds in Class 1.
Cohort: applications with a filing date from 2015 to 2019, counted once in every class they claim. Outcome is whether a registration ever issued. Source: USPTO file histories. All 45 classes compared. How we count.
Status mix of all filings
| Status | Count | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Live (registered) | 67,285 | 30.3% |
| Pending | 11,417 | 5.1% |
| Abandoned | 58,987 | 26.6% |
| Cancelled / expired | 84,408 | 38% |
Filings by year (last decade)
How many new applications were filed in this class each year. Excludes records with null filing dates (mostly very old paper backfile).
| Year | New filings | Volume |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 1,334 | |
| 2016 | 5,726 | |
| 2017 | 6,279 | |
| 2018 | 6,018 | |
| 2019 | 6,967 | |
| 2020 | 7,271 | |
| 2021 | 7,438 | |
| 2022 | 6,799 | |
| 2023 | 6,650 | |
| 2024 | 6,876 | |
| 2025 | 6,992 | |
| 2026 | 5,075 |
Source: USPTO bulk trademark feed. How we count.
International filings in Class 1 (Madrid System)
Where Class 1 marks are designated, and where they are refused
| Country / office | Designations | Provisional | Total refusals | Partial | Refusal rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States (US) | 3,145 | 95.6% | 68 | 5 | 2.2% |
| China (CN) | 3,062 | 55.7% | 524 | 745 | 17.1% |
| European Union (EM) | 2,794 | 20.9% | 51 | 11 | 1.8% |
| United Kingdom (GB) | 2,565 | 11.2% | 10 | 9 | 0.4% |
| India (IN) | 2,323 | 51.7% | 465 | 0 | 20% |
| Japan (JP) | 2,274 | 68.6% | 215 | 0 | 9.5% |
| Canada (CA) | 2,273 | 90.6% | 362 | 0 | 15.9% |
| South Korea (KR) | 2,224 | 78.8% | 64 | 2 | 2.9% |
Most international Class 1 filers come from European Union (5,759), Germany (5,154), France (4,054), Benelux (2,854), United States (2,807), Switzerland (2,686).
WIPO Madrid Monitor data (CC BY 4.0); refusals measured on 2019–2022 registrations. Why we count this way.
Most-active filers in this class
The 10 entities with the most trademark applications in Class 1.
| # | Filer | Applications in this class |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | BASF SE | 1,338 |
| 2 | MERCK KGAA | 1,120 |
| 3 | OMS INVESTMENTS, INC. | 1,041 |
| 4 | E.I. DU PONT DE NEMOURS AND COMPANY | 920 |
| 5 | BAYER AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT | 914 |
| 6 | INTERNATIONAL FLAVORS & FRAGRANCES INC. | 863 |
| 7 | BASF AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT | 829 |
| 8 | DSM IP ASSETS B.V. | 824 |
| 9 | Novozymes A/S | 805 |
| 10 | W. R. GRACE & CO.-CONN. | 730 |
Recently registered in Class 1
The latest marks the USPTO registered in this class, on 29 September 2026.