Trademark class
What trademark class is retail in?
Retail falls in Class 35, retail, ads & business, and depending on what exactly you sell it can also fall in Class 9 or Class 42 or Class 39.
Everything below is read from the USPTO's own list of accepted descriptions, not from an opinion about where it belongs.
The short answer
Searching the USPTO Trademark ID Manual for retail returns 143 accepted descriptions, and
most of them sit in Class 35. The manual is the list of identifications
the office has already approved, so wording taken from it is pre-approved and settles the class at the same time.
The class follows from the identification you write, so "what class am I in" is really "what exactly do you sell".
How the class system works covers the rest.
You run a store, sell advertising or marketing, or provide business and office services.
120 accepted descriptions in the manual mention retail. For example:
- Retail cupcake shops
- Retail pharmacy services
- Retail drug store services
- Online retail bakery shops
- Retail delicatessen services
- Retail veterinary pharmacy services
- Retail lawn, garden and nursery stores
- On-line retail department store services
- Retail markets featuring {indicate field or type of goods}
- Online retail store services for downloadable digital music
- Retail store services featuring convenience store items and gasoline
- On-line retail store services featuring downloadable electronic books
- Retail store services featuring a wide variety of consumer goods of others
- Retail vending stand services featuring {indicate, e.g., tacos, fruit, etc.}
Software, apps, downloadable content, computers, or electronic devices.
6 accepted descriptions in the manual mention retail. For example:
- Counterfeit money detection light to be used in retail stores and banks
- Checkstands for retail stores in the nature of electronic checkout stations for point of sale
- Wireless transceivers with collection and display technology for the status and tracking of retail goods from the backdoor to the shelf
- Downloadable electronic commerce computer programs for {specify the function of the software, e.g. management of online retail websites, processing electronic payment transactions, etc.} using blockchain technology
- Downloadable chatbot software using large language models (LLMs) for {indicate function, e.g., making hotel reservations, replying to questions from online retail store customers related to consumer goods, scheduling doctor's appointments, etc.}
- Electronic anti-theft system comprised of a bar code scanner that allows manufacturers to temporarily disable electronic goods during the manufacturing process and allows retailers to enable such goods upon receiving the purchase price for the goods
Software as a service (SaaS), app development, IT, design, or science and engineering services.
5 accepted descriptions in the manual mention retail. For example:
- Planning and design of retail premises
- Development of new technology for others in the field of retail store services
- Providing information about planning and layout design services for {specify type of space, e.g., cleanroom environments, interior space of retail business establishments, etc.}
- Providing temporary use of online non-downloadable chatbot software for {indicate function, e.g., replying to questions from online retail store customers related to consumer goods, scheduling doctor's appointments, making hotel reservations, etc.}
- Providing temporary use of online non-downloadable chatbot software using large language models (LLMs) for {indicate function, e.g., making hotel reservations, replying to questions from online retail store customers related to consumer goods, scheduling doctor's appointments, etc.}
You transport, ship, store, or arrange travel for people or goods.
4 accepted descriptions in the manual mention retail. For example:
- Delivery of {specify analog format, e.g., cassette tapes, CDs, vinyl records, etc.} featuring music to retail stores by music distributors
- Music distribution services in the nature of delivery of CDs featuring music to {indicate, e.g., music promoters, retail stores, wholesale stores, etc.} on behalf of others
- Music distribution services in the nature of delivery of {specify analog format, e.g., cassette tapes, CDs, vinyl records, etc.} featuring music to retail stores on behalf of others
- Music distribution services in the nature of delivery of vinyl records featuring music to {indicate, e.g., music promoters, retail stores, wholesale stores, etc.} on behalf of others
Retail appears in 4 classes because what you make, what it is made of and the
service of selling it are separate classes. Pick the descriptions above that match what you actually do.
Retail is a service, so it sits in Classes 35 to 45. Software that delivers a service is often Class 9 or
Class 42 as well.
Retail, advertising and business services: retail store services are here. The class covers the SERVICE of selling and never the goods sold, so a brand that makes what it sells needs the product class too.
The class decides what a registration covers; it does not decide whether the name is available. Relatedness is
judged on the identifications, so a conflict can sit in a class you never looked at:
the same name in a different industry.
Check whether your name is clear for retail
Searches the live USPTO register, including sound-alike and meaning-alike names. First search $2, then $5.
Other things in Class 35
Common questions
What trademark class is retail in?
Retail sits in Class 35, retail, ads & business. That is where the USPTO's own ID Manual puts it: 120 accepted descriptions mentioning retail fall in Class 35. Depending on exactly what you sell it can also fall in Class 9 or Class 42 or Class 39.
Do I have to file in more than one class?
You file in every class you actually use the mark in, and the USPTO charges its fee per class. Selling a product and also running an online store for it is two classes, not one. Filing in classes you do not use is worse than filing in too few: an application has to be supported by real use or a genuine intent to use.
Does the class decide whether my name is available?
No. The class decides what a registration covers. Availability turns on whether someone already holds a similar mark for related goods, and relatedness is judged on what the identifications say rather than on the class number, so marks in different classes can still conflict.
Not what you sell? Search the class finder for your own wording, or
browse all 45 classes.