What does this light on my dishwasher mean?
Find it by its shape. 1. Pick what you see on the panel. 2. Match the drawing. Each of the 17 symbols here — the refill and water warnings, the programmes and the option buttons — is backed by manuals from at least two different maker groups.
Tap a shape — the symbols that use it appear here.
Arrows, star or tap — 3 symbols
A glass, pot or plate — 3 symbols
Intensive programme (pot or pan)A pot or pan, often with steam or spray lines above it, next to a…Glass or delicate programme (wine glass)A wine glass, sometimes two glasses or a glass and a cup, beside…Pre-rinse or soak programme (drops over a plate)Water drops or a shower falling on a plate, sometimes a single…
Leaf or letter A — 2 symbols
Clock, arrows or half a rack — 4 symbols
Half load (½ or half a rack)A ½ sign, or a basket drawn half full. Whirlpool’s Multizone shows…Quick or rapid programme (stopwatch)A stopwatch or clock with speed lines, often with 30’ or 1h beside it.Speed option (double arrow)A double arrow or chevrons (»), sometimes with a small clock, or a…Delay start (clock or hourglass)The programme is set to start later and is counting down.Explained on its own page →
Plus, heat waves or tablet — 3 symbols
Extra dry option (heat waves)Wavy heat lines rising above a plate, or the words Extra Dry. On…Hygiene or sanitise option (plus or shield)It varies more than any other icon: a plus sign, a shield, a baby…Tablet or all-in-one option (tablet)A rectangular tablet with stripes or layers, sometimes with 3in1…
The machine, a light or a key — 4 symbols
Machine care light (the dishwasher itself)On AEG a square box — the machine — with a sparkle; other makes…Automatic door opening (door ajar)A dishwasher from the side with its door slightly open, sometimes…Light on the floor (beam or dot)A spot or beam of light shone on the kitchen floor below the door…Child lock or key lock (key)The buttons are locked so a programme cannot be changed or started…Explained on its own page →
Before you trust any chart, including this one
No single published standard defines dishwasher panel icons. Each maker draws its own — AEG and Bosch use two arrows in an S for salt and a small starburst for rinse aid, Hotpoint lights a tap when the water is off, Miele writes the message out in words on its display — so every meaning on this page is taken from manufacturers’ manuals.
- The three lights that ask you to do something: the S-shaped arrows want dishwasher salt (in the base of the tub), the starburst wants rinse aid (in the door, next to the detergent), and the tap means no water is coming in. None of them means the detergent has run out.
- Salt and rinse aid are not the same thing. Salt keeps the water softener working and stops limescale; rinse aid helps drying and stops spots. Combined tablets can stand in for rinse aid, but the manuals still ask for salt in hard water.
- Eco is the slow one. On every machine cited it is the programme with the lowest combined energy and water use, and it saves by washing at about 50 °C and soaking and drying for longer — 3 h 10 min to 4 h on the Whirlpool, Hotpoint and AEG machines cited.
- A light can mean two things. On Hotpoint a lit salt light means almost empty and a blinking one means empty; on AEG the heat-waves-over-a-plate drawing only says the drying phase is running, while on other panels similar lines mean the Extra Dry option.
What this page cannot do
- It cannot identify your model or say exactly what a light means on it — which options work with which programme, temperatures and times differ between models of the same make. It tells you what a drawing means on the makes cited (AEG, Beko, Bosch, Hotpoint, Miele, Smeg, Whirlpool); your dishwasher’s manual is the authority.
- Maker error codes (such as E15, E24, E:32 or F6 E1) are out of scope: they differ by make and model and need the maker’s own fault table or service.
- It gives no buying advice and makes no energy or hygiene claims of its own: consumption figures and hygiene wording are quoted from the maker’s manual.
- Symbols only one maker describes are left out until a second maker group’s manual confirms them — for example Miele’s “Check filters” message every 50 programmes, Hotpoint’s 3D Zone Wash and Beko’s IonGuard. The filters still need checking by hand on every make.
Sources
Every document below is a maker’s own manual, fetched and read on the date shown. Makers in the same group (for example Hotpoint and Whirlpool) count as one when a symbol needs two independent sources. Each symbol page lists what its sources show.
- Bosch (BSH group): Bosch — User manual, dishwasher SMV4HVX32E (PDF) Checked 2026-09-26.
- Bosch (BSH group): Bosch — Dishwasher operating instructions 9000 255 656 (older models with VarioSpeed, half load and auto 3in1, PDF) Checked 2026-09-26.
- Miele (Miele group): Miele — Operating instructions, dishwashers with touch display, M.-Nr. 11 831 681 (PDF) Checked 2026-09-26.
- Hotpoint (Whirlpool group): Hotpoint — Dishwasher Daily Reference Guide, 15 place settings with 3D Zone Wash and ActiveDry (PDF, 05/2023) Checked 2026-09-26.
- Whirlpool (Whirlpool group): Whirlpool — Dishwasher Daily Reference Guide, with Multizone, Turbo and NaturalDry (PDF) Checked 2026-09-26.
- AEG (Electrolux group): AEG — User manual, dishwasher FSK52917Z (PDF, Electrolux media library) Checked 2026-09-26.
- Beko (Arçelik group): Beko — Dishwasher user’s manual, BDEN38640FG / BDEN38530FX (PDF) Checked 2026-09-26.
- Beko (Arçelik group): Beko — Dishwasher instruction manual, GB booklet with child lock, half load and combi tablet (PDF) Checked 2026-09-26.
- Smeg (Smeg group): Smeg — Instruction manual: guide for using the dishwasher and the washing programs, 19390674500 (PDF) Checked 2026-09-26.