What IP rating is fully waterproof?

What is an IP rating?

An IP rating is a certification proving a product meets a certain standard of water and dustproofing/resistance.

The standards are set by the IP Code, or Ingress Protection Code, IEC standard 60529, (also known as the International Protection Code).

Each classification requires a company to build its product to meet a standard set by the authority and submit it for inspection. The specific requirements depend on each exact code being targeted.

The process requires the manufacturer to pay for the classification/tests to be done, which is why many companies choose to not submit some products.

IP67 vs IP68: What is the difference?

Firstly it’s worth noting that there’s a difference between being waterproof and water-resistant. Waterproof means something is impervious to water regardless of how long it is submerged, water-resistant means a product can stop water entering it to some degree, but not entirely. When we’re talking about smartphones and smartwatches it’s almost always about how water-resistant they are. They can’t survive in water indefinitely.

IP is the name of the standard that was drawn up by the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) to determine how resistant an electrical device is to fresh water and common raw materials – like dirt, dust and sand.

The first digit after IP is the rating the IEC assigned a unit for its resistance to solids. In this case, it’s six – which means no “harmful” dust or dirt seeped into the unit after being in direct contact with the matter eight hours.