Key takeaways
- Intertek scores 13 of 18 on our rubric and Clear To Load scores 10. Intertek wins on accreditation, booking, report speed and reach.
- Intertek's Indian business began with softlines in 1993. It names softlines labs in Tirupur, Chennai and Bangalore and an ISO 17025 hardlines and toy lab in Bangalore.
- India's NABCB register lists Intertek India as an ISO/IEC 17020 inspection body for garments and home textiles. Clear To Load is not yet accredited.
- Intertek publishes no inspection price. Clear To Load publishes US$249 per man-day, a travel fee by city band and US$99 per order for lab coordination.
Clear To Load vs Intertek at a glance
Disclosure: Clear To Load publishes this page and is one of the two companies compared. Every statement about Intertek comes from Intertek's own website, checked on 14 Oct 2026 and listed under Sources. If anything here is out of date, email hello@cleartoload.com and we will correct it.
| Criterion | Intertek | Clear To Load |
|---|---|---|
| Who they are | Global assurance, testing, inspection and certification group in more than 100 countries | Inspection-only company founded in 2017 in Jodhpur; no testing, certification or sourcing arm |
| India presence | In India since 1993, incorporated 1997, corporate head office in New Delhi; 26+ labs, 32 offices and more than 2,800 employees | Six inspector bases (Jodhpur, Jaipur, Saharanpur, Moradabad, Delhi NCR, Kolkata), with a published travel band for every other city |
| Inspection types | Factory evaluations, pre-production, during production and final random inspection, loading supervision; its India softlines page adds remote inspection and sample evaluations | Pre-production, during production and pre-shipment inspection, container loading supervision, factory audit |
| Laboratories | Own labs in India, including softlines labs in Tirupur, Chennai and Bangalore and an ISO 17025 hardlines and toy lab in Bangalore | No own laboratory; tests go to an ISO/IEC 17025-accredited lab you choose or we suggest |
| Booking | i2Q online inspection management: booking, quotations, real-time updates and reports | Online booking request, confirmed within 24 hours |
| Report | i2Q lists "same day reporting" | Within 24 hours, ending in Cleared to load, Hold or Not cleared |
| Published price | None on the pages checked | US$249 per man-day; travel fee outside Jodhpur (see pricing) |
| Inspection accreditation | On its own site: a global ISO/IEC 17020 accreditation for Intertek GTS (government inspection). India's NABCB register also lists Intertek India (see below) | Not yet accredited; ISO/IEC 17020 accreditation in progress |
Scored on our published rubric
We use the same six-point rubric as our list of quality inspection companies in India. Each criterion scores 0 to 3, from what the company publishes on its own website and, for accreditation, India's NABCB register (checked 14 Oct 2026).
| Criterion | Intertek | Clear To Load |
|---|---|---|
| Accreditation | 2: ISO/IEC 17020 for Intertek GTS, and in India (NABCB IB 027) for garments and home textiles only | 0: accreditation in progress, none held |
| India presence | 2: offices in India; cities served for inspection not named | 3: Jodhpur office and named cities with inspectors |
| Price transparency | 0: quotations only inside i2Q | 2: US$249 day rate published; travel charged outside Jodhpur |
| Booking | 3: i2Q online booking | 2: online request, confirmed within 24 hours |
| Report speed | 3: same-day reporting stated | 2: within 24 hours |
| Reach | 3: more than 100 countries | 1: India only |
| Total | 13 / 18 | 10 / 18 |
The rubric scores what a buyer can check before booking. It does not measure inspector skill or report quality; test those with a sample report and a first order.
Intertek in India: a softlines business first
Intertek says its Indian business started in 1993 with softlines, in a first lab of about 25 people, and was incorporated in 1997 with New Delhi as head office. Textiles are still central. A 2023 Intertek release names softlines labs in Tirupur, Chennai and Bangalore serving South India's textile industry, and a textile training centre in Tirupur. Its India softlines page lists a PPE centre of excellence in Gurugram and inspections of textiles and apparel, leather and footwear, PPE and fashion accessories, plus loading supervision and i2Q.
India's accreditation register, kept by NABCB, lists Intertek India Pvt Ltd as an ISO/IEC 17020 Type A inspection body (certificate IB 027, first issued 5 May 2015, valid to 4 May 2030). Its scope covers final, during production and inline inspection of garments and of made-ups and home textiles, sampling to ANSI/ASQ Z1.4 or ISO 2859-1. Since 14 Oct 2026 our rubric counts the NABCB register for accreditation. This is a narrow product scope, so Intertek scores 2 (only an Indian scope covering general consumer goods scores 3). If you buy garments or home textiles and your contract requires an accredited body, ask Intertek to inspect under IB 027.
When lab testing drives the order
The biggest practical difference is testing. Intertek tests in its own Indian labs; Clear To Load pulls and seals samples during the inspection and sends them to an ISO/IEC 17025-accredited lab you choose or we suggest, then checks the lab report against the goods.
| Product | Intertek lab it names in India | How Clear To Load handles testing |
|---|---|---|
| Garments, home textiles | Softlines labs in Tirupur, Chennai and Bangalore | Samples sealed at the factory and sent to an accredited textile lab; see home textiles inspection |
| Toys and children's products | ISO 17025 lab in Bangalore | Sent to an accredited toy lab for the tests your market requires, such as ASTM F963 or EN 71 |
| Furniture, home décor, candles, food-contact items | Bangalore hardlines lab, which lists these categories | Inspection at the factory; lab tests coordinated where your market requires them |
| PPE | Centre of excellence in Gurugram | Not a Clear To Load speciality; use an accredited PPE lab |
If most of your orders need regular lab tests, one group that inspects and tests is simpler. If tests are occasional, coordinated testing keeps the choice of lab with you: Clear To Load has no partner labs and takes no lab commission. See lab testing coordination and our guide to lab testing for goods made in India.
Price: an inspection with a lab test
Intertek shows quotations inside i2Q but publishes no price on its pages. Clear To Load's price for the same kind of job can be worked out in advance.
Example: a one-day final inspection of bath towels in Delhi NCR, with samples pulled for a lab test. Delhi NCR is in Band B, so the fee is US$249 + US$99 travel + US$99 lab coordination = US$447, plus the lab's own fee, which is billed at cost with the lab's invoice attached or paid by you directly. Pulling the samples during the inspection costs no extra visit.
Ask Intertek for an i2Q quotation for the same job and compare the total. Our guide to inspection prices in India compares published rates.
Choose Intertek if… Choose Clear To Load if…
Choose Intertek if your product needs regular lab testing in India, especially garments, home textiles or toys; your contract requires an accredited inspection body for garments or home textiles; your retailer names Intertek; or you want booking, quotations and reports in one platform across more than 100 countries.
Choose Clear To Load if your goods are made only in India, especially furniture, home décor or handicrafts from Rajasthan, Saharanpur or Moradabad; you test occasionally and want the lab chosen independently; you want the price before you ask; and accreditation is not a contract requirement for you today.
You can use both: Intertek for testing-heavy lines, Clear To Load for inspections at Indian furniture and handicraft factories. See global vs specialist inspection companies.
How this comparison was made
We checked Intertek's own pages on 14 Oct 2026: furniture inspection services, Intertek India, India softlines, India hardlines and toys, its October 2023 India news release, i2Q and the government services accreditations page. We also checked Intertek India's entry on the NABCB register. We used no third-party reviews. Clear To Load facts come from our own company record. We re-check these pages regularly.
Sources
- Intertek: Furniture inspection services (checked 14 Oct 2026)
- Intertek India (checked 14 Oct 2026)
- Intertek India: Softlines (checked 14 Oct 2026)
- Intertek India: Hardlines and toys (checked 14 Oct 2026)
- Intertek: News, 16 Oct 2023, India softlines labs (checked 14 Oct 2026)
- Intertek: i2Q online inspection management (checked 14 Oct 2026)
- Intertek GTS: Accreditations (checked 14 Oct 2026)
- NABCB register: IB 027, Intertek India Pvt Ltd (checked 14 Oct 2026)