The EU introduces energy label and Ecodesign requirements for phones and tablets

Starting June 20th, 2025, all smartphones, feature phones, cordless phones, and slate tablets are required to include information about energy efficiency to inform European consumers about the product’s sustainability.

Manufacturers must mention six different properties on the label:

The energy efficiency class of a product

• The battery endurance per cycle in hours and minutes per full battery charge
• Repeated free-fall reliability class
• Battery endurance in cycles
• Repairability class
• Ingress Protection (IP) rating

Mobile phones with touch screens between 4 and 7 inches and tablets with displays between 7 and 17.4 inches are obligated to include an energy label.

This does not apply to slate tablets with a physically attached keyboard or that run on an operating system different from phones, like Windows, Linux, or macOS. Devices with a flexible main display and smartphones used for high-security communication are also excluded.

In addition to the energy label, several Ecodesign requirements will apply to the aforementioned devices. For starters, phones and tablets have to be resistant to accidental drops or scratches and protected from dust and water.

Brussels also requires that these devices be equipped with durable batteries, meaning they can withstand at least 800 charge and discharge cycles while retaining at least 80% of their initial capacity.

Furthermore, manufacturers have to make spare parts available within five to ten working days and for at least seven years after the end of sales of the product model on the EU market. Operating systems should receive upgrades for at least five years after the last unit of a product is produced.

The Ecodesign and energy labelling regulations are projected to save 2.2 TWh of electricity in 2030, a saving of 31% compared to a scenario without measures. By promoting repairability and increasing the lifetime extension of phones and tablets, the EU expects to save up to €20 billion in 2030, or €98 per household.

“As part of the European Green Deal, the European Commission has adopted two regulations for smartphones and tablets, one on Ecodesign and another on energy labelling. Together, they aim to allow EU consumers to make more informed and sustainable purchasing choices and encourage sustainable consumption,” the European Commission states in a press release.

The new policy rules will go into effect on June 20th, 2025. The effects and technological progress of the regulation will be reviewed in September 2027.