Find US, EU, UK, CA, & AU requirements
You do not need to pay any license or other fees to use the CE mark. That said, the purpose of the CE marking is to demonstrate that your product complies with all applicable EU regulations and directives that require it.
Delivering a product to the point where the CE mark can be affixed requires access to standards, design adjustments, documentation, labelling, and testing. These are also the things that can cost money.
This guide serves as a breakdown of the various costs associated with the CE marking process.
Content Overview
FREE CONSULTATION CALL (30 MIN)
Ask questions about compliance requirements- Countries/markets:
.png)
.png)
.png)
- Learn how we can help your business
You will speak with:Ivan Malloci
Consultants
CE marking requires that your product is technically safe and compliant, which may require the involvement of external consultants or engineers. Further, you may also need to get help with the following areas:
- Create documentation
- Write instructions
- Prepare label files
Note that everything below can be done in-house. You are not required to hire consultants to CE mark a product, assuming you can implement it on your own.
1. Research applicable directives and regulations
The first step of the process is to determine which EU regulations and directives apply to your product. This often depends on the following factors:
- Product type or category (e.g., PPE)
- Technical specifications (i.e., input voltage)
- Functionality (i.e., WiFi modules)
- Age group
All information required to make this assessment can be found free of charge via EUR Lex. That said, some companies choose to hire consultants to do this for them.
Cost example: 800 to 5000 EUR per product
2. Buy EN standards
You can only CE mark products that meet relevant harmonised standards. For example, a toy may need to comply with the following:
- EN 71-1: Mechanical and physical properties
- EN 71-2: Flammability
- EN 71-3: Specification for migration of certain elements
Unlike EU directives and regulations (which can be read free of charge via EUR Lex), product standards must be purchased.
Why is this important?
Because standards directly impact the design and functionality of your products. Without access to the actual standard PDF, you may not be able to adjust your design to comply with the requirements that must be met before your products can be CE marked.
You could skip this and go directly to product testing. But you run the risk of wasting even more money testing a product that is inherently non-compliant by design.
Cost example: 90 to 250 EUR per standard
3. Design for compliance
Implementing product standards is often easier said than done. Ensuring that a toy meets mechanical safety requirements, or that a power bank will not suddenly overheat and explode, can require the involvement of engineers and other technical experts.
These usually don’t work for free either.
Cost example: 500 to 10,000 EUR (or more, depending on the complexity of the product)
4. Create documentation and label files
Finally, you need to create documents and label files. The good news is that most of these requirements can be freely accessed in EUR Lex. However, going from legislation text to finished label files and documents is also often easier said than done.
As such, some companies opt for hiring outside help with preparing label and document templates.
Examples include the following:
- Declaration of Conformity
- Technical documentation
- Instructions
- CE mark labels
- Traceability labels
- Warning labels
Cost example: 500 to 3000 EUR
Product testing
The basis for CE marking is that your product is verified to be compliant with the applicable harmonised standards. This, in turn, requires third-party lab testing, assuming you don’t have the necessary equipment and expertise in-house.
The lab testing cost depends on the complexity of the product. Here are a few examples:
| Product | Cost range |
| Toys | 500 to 2000 EUR |
| RoHS (Electronics) | 300 to 1000 EUR |
| EMC (Electronics) | 500 to 1200 EUR |
| Radio frequency (Electronics) | 1000 to 2000 EUR |
| Sunglasses (PPE) | 900 to 1500 EUR |
More than one lab test is usually required to CE mark the product. For example, electronic products often have to be tested according to the RoHS directive and the EMC directive. Thus, the testing cost is dependent on the number of directives and standards that apply.
Notified Bodies
Some products require a notified body to review the documentation and carry out tests of the product. In these cases, not just any testing company will do. Examples of companies that act as notified bodies include:
- SGS
- Intertek
- RISE
- TUV Rheinland
The cost of hiring a notified body depends entirely on the product type, regulatory category, and complexity.
Cost Examples
The table below demonstrates how much the cost to CE mark a toy can differ if you rely entirely on external support, compared to managing as much as possible in-house.
| Process | Low cost | High cost |
| 1. Research applicable directives and regulations | Self-managed | 1,400 EUR |
| 2. Buy EN standards | 240 EUR | 240 EUR |
| 3. Design for compliance | Self-managed | 2,500 EUR |
| 4. Create documentation and label files | Self-managed | 1,500 EUR |
| 5. Product testing | 1,650 EUR | 1,650 EUR |
| Total | 1,890 EUR | 7,290 EUR |
The more you manage on your own, the lower the cost to CE mark your product will be.
FAQ
How can we minimise the CE marking cost?
For starters, you can rarely eliminate the need to have your product lab tested. Second, you cannot get away from the need to pay a notified body if one is mandatory for your product. This, in turn, depends on the applicable conformity assessment procedure.
But, you save a lot of money by managing the following in-house:
1. Identify applicable directives and regulations
2. Find the relevant harmonised standards
3. Implement the EN standards into your design files, bill of materials, and circuit diagrams
4. Create the DoC, technical documentation, and user instructions
Do we need to pay to use the CE mark?
No, there is no license fee or other payment involved for using the CE mark itself.
As clarified in this article, that does not mean that the CE marking process itself comes free of charge. On the contrary, I would argue that it is exceedingly rare that a product can be correctly CE marked at no cost at all.
kindly advise how to become a CE inspector on mobile equipments [mining and fix plant]
In my experience as a CE marking consultant, minimising costs for CE marking is never a good idea, for many reasons. These are some of them:
– A CE marking consultant has experience in this field and knows what to do and how to do it in the correct way. Hence, a consultant will make you save a lot of time and hassles
– Identification of applicable directives and regulations is not so easy as it seems. I saw a lot of wrong CE marking (i.e.: non compliant with law and potentially non safe product) because they failed to identify the correct applicable norms
– The point of view of a third person is always important. For example, during the analysis of risks and safety measures we tend to assume that our product is safe because “we know it well”, but often the products hide risks that designers have not thought of and that are more easily identified by those who not have followed the entire design process and therefore can provide an unbiased point of view.
– Making a mistake in carrying out the CE marking process (which is very common when doing it yourself) involves the risk of accidents, with all that follows (injuries, deaths, lawsuits, damage to the corporate image, fines, going to jail, etc.).
In conclusion, I suggest you to always rely on an expert in CE marking and collaborate following his/her directions and advice.
Hello Daniele,
These are all good points and overall I agree. That said, many companies simply don’t have the funds needed to have a consultant manage the entire process for them.
In these cases, they will need to develop at least some of the needed expertise in house.