All classes · Class 4
Class 4: Lubricants & Fuels: trademark trends & clearance risk
Class 4 is the 39th busiest of the 45 classes, with 76,153 U.S. applications on record and 5,549 waiting for a decision. Its registration rate of 65.3% ranks 20th of 45, above the 61.9% average. Filings fell 3.8% in 2025, and are still below the 4,535 filed in the peak year of 2021. 62.2% of applications filed from 2015 to 2019 drew an Office Action, the 21st lowest share. The word used most in its live marks is "candle", in 944 of them.
What it covers: Industrial oils and greases; lubricants; dust absorbing, wetting and binding compositions
Words already crowded in Class 4
The words that appear most often in the 30,430 live Class 4 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 "candle" is easier to fit in, and harder to defend against the next one.
| Word | Live marks using it |
|---|---|
| candle | 944 |
| candles | 519 |
| energy | 390 |
| home | 271 |
| oil | 249 |
| lube | 207 |
| fuel | 198 |
| green | 147 |
| light | 144 |
| wax | 141 |
| scents | 140 |
| fire | 128 |
| power | 127 |
| love | 115 |
| life | 111 |
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 4, not only exact matches. If your mark has a logo, run it through the logo similarity search too.
Easy to confuse with Class 4
Filing in the wrong class means paying again, so check where your goods or services actually belong.
- Candles, scented or not, are Class 4. Incense and room fragrances are Class 3. Class 3: Cosmetics & Cleaning
- Wax candles are Class 4. Electric and LED candles are lighting, Class 11. Class 11: Environmental Control
Not sure? Describe what you sell to the class recommender.
Wording that got through in Class 4
The descriptions of goods and services used most often in Class 4 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 |
|---|---|
| Candles | 5,712 |
| Scented candles | 2,942 |
| Perfumed candles | 1,971 |
| Aromatherapy fragrance candles | 1,525 |
| Candles for lighting | 966 |
| Christmas tree candles | 881 |
| Wicks for candles | 850 |
| Candles and wicks for candles for lighting | 744 |
| Candles for night lights | 662 |
| Votive candles | 651 |
| Wax for making candles | 639 |
| Tealight candles | 629 |
| Wax melts | 616 |
| Tea light candles | 584 |
| Candle-making kits | 574 |
| Scented wax for use in candle warmers | 552 |
| Soy candles | 488 |
| Industrial lubricants | 472 |
| Vegetable wax | 444 |
| Beeswax for use in the manufacture of candles | 434 |
Each application's description split into its separate items, counted once per application. Source: USPTO records. Rebuilt weekly.
What examination did to Class 4 applications
The 11,039 Class 4 applications filed from 2015 to 2019, followed through their file histories. 63.6% of them registered 2.1 points better than the all-class average.
| What happened | Applications | Share | All 45 classes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Filed in this class | 11,039 | 100% | – |
| Drew at least one Office Action | 6,867 | 62.2% | 58.4% |
| Escalated to a final refusal | 1,076 | 9.7% | 8.9% |
| Abandoned for never answering one | 1,858 | 16.8% | – |
| Registered in the end | 7,018 | 63.6% | 61.5% |
Every share is of the 11,039 applications filed. Rows overlap: an application that drew an Office Action and then registered is counted in both.
Of the 6,867 Class 4 applications that drew one, 27.1% were abandoned for never answering or answering late. Of those that did answer, 80.6% 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 4 applications that registered did so within 13 months of filing, and nine in ten within 29.4 months.
- Intent to use. 38.2% reached a Notice of Allowance, with only proof of use left to file. Even then, 45.4% of them were abandoned without a Statement of Use ever being filed, and of the ones that bought three or more extensions first, only 33.5% made it to registration.
- Filing without an attorney. 73.8% of Class 4 applications had an attorney on record, and those registered 67.8% of the time against 51.5% without one. 51% of unrepresented applicants who drew an Office Action never answered it. Your odds in Class 4.
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) | 23,429 | 30.8% |
| Pending | 5,549 | 7.3% |
| Abandoned | 24,531 | 32.2% |
| Cancelled / expired | 22,644 | 29.7% |
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 | 487 | |
| 2016 | 2,030 | |
| 2017 | 2,234 | |
| 2018 | 2,318 | |
| 2019 | 2,581 | |
| 2020 | 3,753 | |
| 2021 | 4,535 | |
| 2022 | 3,628 | |
| 2023 | 3,609 | |
| 2024 | 3,620 | |
| 2025 | 3,483 | |
| 2026 | 2,504 |
Source: USPTO bulk trademark feed. How we count.
International filings in Class 4 (Madrid System)
Where Class 4 marks are designated, and where they are refused
| Country / office | Designations | Provisional | Total refusals | Partial | Refusal rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States (US) | 939 | 98.1% | 25 | 2 | 2.7% |
| China (CN) | 927 | 71.6% | 139 | 349 | 15% |
| European Union (EM) | 910 | 34.3% | 20 | 16 | 2.2% |
| United Kingdom (GB) | 870 | 18.2% | 0 | 3 | 0% |
| Switzerland (CH) | 800 | 15% | 16 | 1 | 2% |
| Canada (CA) | 749 | 93.9% | 148 | 0 | 19.8% |
| Australia (AU) | 697 | 36% | 3 | 1 | 0.4% |
| Russia (RU) | 694 | 49.4% | 46 | 1 | 6.6% |
Most international Class 4 filers come from European Union (1,887), France (1,812), Germany (1,693), Switzerland (818), United States (779), United Kingdom (697).
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 4.
| # | Filer | Applications in this class |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | S.C. JOHNSON & SON, INC. | 1,386 |
| 2 | BATH & BODY WORKS BRAND MANAGEMENT, INC. | 782 |
| 3 | Tyler Candle Company, L.L.C. | 544 |
| 4 | CANDLE CORPORATION OF AMERICA | 539 |
| 5 | EXXON MOBIL CORPORATION | 537 |
| 6 | CASTROL LIMITED | 529 |
| 7 | CHEVRON INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY LLC | 412 |
| 8 | VOTIVO, LTD. | 363 |
| 9 | TEXACO INC. | 359 |
| 10 | Shell Oil Company | 345 |
Recently registered in Class 4
The latest marks the USPTO registered in this class, on 29 September 2026.