How to find the HSN code for your product, and how many digits your bill needs

Your supplier’s bill has a column called HSN, your billing app asks for one, and a trader who buys from you wants it on every invoice. But which code is yours, and how much of it do you write? Copying a code from a stranger’s bill is how many shops end up charging the wrong GST.

This guide explains what an HSN code is, how to read it digit by digit, where the official list lives, how many digits your bill needs, and the mistakes to avoid. We work through the codes of one real-looking shop in Salem. The HSN finder beside the guide follows along: as you read each part, it shows that part’s code.

What is an HSN code?

HSN stands for Harmonised System of Nomenclature. It is a numbering of goods used by customs offices around the world, so that a bag of rice or a phone charger carries the same number in Chennai and in Rotterdam. India uses the same numbers for GST. The code tells the tax office, your buyer and your billing software what the item is, and through that, which GST rate applies.

Services have their own list, the SAC (Services Accounting Code). Every SAC code starts with 99. Goods transport by road, for example, is 9965 11.

How an HSN code is built

A code grows from left to right, and each step is more exact:

Digits	Level	Example
2	Chapter	48: paper and paperboard
4	Heading	4820: registers, account books, note books
6	Sub-heading	4820 20: exercise books
8	Tariff item	4820 20 00: exercise books

The first six digits are the same in every country. India adds the last two. Many 8-digit lines simply say “Other”, which means “everything else under the line above”. That is why you should always read a code’s whole family, not only its last line.

Read an HSN code like an address: chapter, then heading, then sub-heading, then the exact item.

How to find the HSN code for your product

Take Revathi, who runs a stationery and household goods shop near a school in Salem. In October 2026 she is setting up a billing app and needs a code for every item. Here is the method she follows.

1. Start from what the item is made of or used for, not its brand name. An exercise book is a paper article, so it sits in chapter 48.
2. Search the official list. The GST portal has a free “Search HSN/SAC” page that needs no login, and our HSN code finder searches the same list by plain words, Tamil words or digits.
3. Read down the family until a line describes your item exactly: 48, then 4820, then 4820 20 “exercise books”.
4. Check your supplier’s bill. It usually shows the code already. If it matches what you found, you can be fairly sure.
5. Then check the rate entry, the next step.

Revathi’s list comes out like this:

Item	HSN	GST rate	Rate entry
Exercise books	4820 20 00	Nil	Exempt, Notification 10/2025
Account registers	4820	18%	Schedule II, entry 186
Pencils	9609	Nil	Exempt, Notification 10/2025
Steel tumblers and plates	7323	5%	Schedule I, entry 416
Plastic lunch boxes	3924	18%	Schedule II, entry 125
Umbrellas	6601	5%	Schedule I, entry 395

Notice the first two rows. Exercise books and account registers share the heading 4820, yet one is nil and the other is 18%. The heading alone did not settle the rate: the words of the entry did.

How to find the HSN code and its GST rate

Since 22 September 2025, GST on goods follows Notification 9/2025: Schedule I at 5%, Schedule II at 18%, Schedule III at 40%, Schedule IV at 3% for gold and silver, plus a few small schedules. Goods with no GST at all are listed in Notification 10/2025. Each entry names codes and describes the goods, and the description often carries a condition:

• “pre-packaged and labelled” (packed rice and jaggery at 5%, loose ones exempt);
• “of sale value not exceeding ₹2,500 per piece” (clothes at 5%, dearer pieces at 18%);
• “other than fresh” (dried turmeric at 5%, fresh turmeric exempt).

If no entry names your code, the general rule applies: Schedule II, entry 639, goods not specified anywhere else, at 18%. The finder beside the guide shows every entry that names a code, word for word, so you can pick the one that describes what you sell.

A wrong code usually means a wrong rate. If you charge 18% on a nil-rated exercise book, your customer overpays; if you charge 5% on an 18% item, you owe the difference to the government yourself.

How many digits of HSN code do you need on a bill?

Since 1 April 2021 (Notification 78/2020-Central Tax), the rule depends on your turnover in the previous financial year:

For bills to ordinary customers, a shop under ₹5 crore may leave the code out, but writing it costs nothing and keeps your records clean. Writing more digits than needed is never wrong. Revathi’s turnover is well under ₹5 crore, so her bills show 4820 for exercise books. Her billing app stores the full 8 digits anyway, which helps when a trader asks for them. If you are making your first tax invoice, our guide on how to make a GST bill shows where the code goes.

SAC code: HSN code for services

If you sell a service, such as repairs, transport, tuition or design, you need a SAC code instead. They follow the same idea: 99 for every service, then a group, then the exact service. Transport charges, labour charges and service charges are some of the most searched.

Service rates are set by the description of the service rather than by the code, and most services are at 18%. Some have lower rates with conditions, such as hotel rooms up to ₹7,500 a night at 5% since 22 September 2025. Check the rate for your exact service before you bill, and ask your tax adviser when a condition is unclear.

Common mistakes with HSN codes

• Stopping at “Other” without reading the line above it.
• Borrowing a cousin product’s code because it shares a word: a “steel lunch box” is 7323, a “plastic lunch box” is 3924, and their rates differ.
• Assuming one rate for a whole chapter. Chapter 85 alone has entries at 5%, 18% and 40%.
• Keeping a rate from before September 2025. The 12% and 28% slabs are gone for most goods. Our guide to the new GST rates lists what changed.

Questions

How do I find the HSN code for my product?

Search the GST portal’s free “Search HSN/SAC” page, or our HSN code finder, by what the product is made of or used for. Read the code’s family from chapter to tariff item until one line describes your item, and compare it with the code on your supplier’s bill.

What is an HSN code in GST?

It is the number that tells the tax office what kind of goods you sold. India uses the worldwide Harmonised System numbers, with two extra digits of its own, and the GST rate lists are written against these numbers.

How many digits of HSN code are required on an invoice?

At least 4 digits on bills to registered buyers if your turnover last year was up to ₹5 crore, and 6 digits on every bill above ₹5 crore. Imports and exports use 8 digits.

Is the HSN code mandatory for B2C bills?

For a business with turnover up to ₹5 crore, the HSN code is needed on bills to registered buyers and is optional on bills to ordinary customers. Above ₹5 crore, it is needed on every tax invoice.

What is the difference between an HSN code and a SAC code?

HSN codes are for goods, and SAC codes are for services. SAC codes always start with 99, and both lists are on the GST portal.

Where can I find the full HSN code list?

On the GST portal’s “Search HSN/SAC” page, which also offers the whole list as a spreadsheet download. Our HSN code finder searches the same list and shows the GST rate entries that name each code.

Does the HSN code decide the GST rate?

Partly. The rate lists name codes, but they also describe the goods, often with a condition such as “pre-packaged and labelled”. Read the entry’s words and pick the one that matches what you sell.