Test method
JIS L 1902 antibacterial textile testing
JIS L 1902 is the Japanese Industrial Standard for the antibacterial activity of textile products. It is the method Japanese buyers and Japanese-market retailers ask for when a fabric carries an antibacterial claim.
- Result
- Antibacterial activity valueQuantitative route, calculated against an untreated control
- Routes
- Quantitative or qualitativeWe confirm which one your buyer's specification requires
- Asked for by
- Japanese buyers and Japanese-market retailersUsually the method they name
- Pairs with
- ASTM E3162If the claim has to survive washing
- Turnaround
- 14–30 daysDate confirmed before you ship
The quantitative route in four steps
Drawn as a schematic, not photographed at our bench. The drawings show the sequence; the conditions are the standard's.
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Treated and control
Treated fabric and, where possible, the same fabric untreated as a control.
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Inoculate
The specimens are inoculated.
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Incubate
The inoculated specimens are incubated.
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Count and calculate
The surviving organisms are counted, and an activity value is calculated against the untreated control.
Solid green outline: treated. Dashed gray outline: untreated control. Green dots: the organisms.
What the test involves
The standard covers a quantitative route, in which inoculated specimens are incubated and the surviving organisms counted, and a qualitative route that reads growth on an agar plate. The quantitative route reports an antibacterial activity value calculated against an untreated control rather than a bare percentage, which is why a JIS report and an AATCC report do not read the same way even on the same fabric.
We confirm which route your buyer's specification requires before any sample ships, because running the wrong one is the most common way a textile test gets repeated.
If the claim has to survive washing, the specimens are laundered to ASTM E3162 first and this test is then run on the laundered fabric — the same pairing US brands use with AATCC 100.
We run JIS L 1902 in our BSL-2 laboratory in Bandung, certified annually by the International Antimicrobial Council (USA) and participating in AATCC's PTP4 antibacterial proficiency program.
What you receive
- An independent test report in IAC or AATCC format
- Results per organism, against the untreated control
- A certificate your customers, auditors, and procurement teams can verify
Common questions
My buyer is in Japan. Is JIS L 1902 the only method they will accept?
Usually it is the one they name, but specifications differ by brand and by product. Send us the specification and we'll read it with you — if it also accepts AATCC 100 or ISO 20645, there may be a cheaper or faster route to the same claim.
How is this different from AATCC 100?
Both are quantitative and both compare a treated specimen against a control, but they differ in procedure and in how the result is expressed. AATCC 100 reports a percentage reduction; JIS L 1902 reports an antibacterial activity value. A buyer who asked for one will not usually accept the other's number without a conversation.
Does the result still hold after the garment is washed?
Only if the specimens were washed before the test. Laundering them to ASTM E3162 for the number of cycles your claim needs, and then running JIS L 1902 on them, is what supports a durability claim. Without that step the activity value describes an unwashed fabric.
What samples do I send?
Treated fabric and, where possible, the same fabric untreated as a control. We'll confirm sizes and quantities when you book.
How long does it take?
14–30 days, depending on the method and the current queue in the lab. We confirm the date when we accept the sample, before you ship anything.
Related methods
Not sure which one your buyer wants? Send us the specification and we will read it with you before any sample ships.
Book a JIS L 1902 test
Send us the specification and the fabric. We'll confirm the route, the samples we need, and what the report will contain.