High-Vis Apparel
Here’s the situation most safety managers find themselves in at least once: an inspector walks the job site, flags two workers whose vests aren’t ANSI/ISEA 107 compliant High-Vis Safety Apparel, and suddenly there’s a purchase order that needs to happen by Monday. The vests looked fine. They were bright yellow, they had reflective strips. They just weren’t certified.
“Bright” and “compliant” are two completely different things. This guide explains the difference, helps you pick the right class for your work environment, and covers the brands GotApparel carries that are actually trusted by crews doing real outdoor work — not just catalog photos.
ANSI/ISEA 107: What the Standard Actually Requires High-Vis Safety Apparel
ANSI/ISEA 107 is the American National Standard that defines what makes a high-visibility garment compliant. It isn’t just about color. The standard specifies minimum background material coverage, reflective tape width and placement, and how those elements combine to make a worker visible in specific conditions.
OSHA references ANSI/ISEA 107 in its construction and general industry regulations. If your crew works on or near federally funded roadways, in active traffic zones, or in any environment covered by OSHA 29 CFR 1926, compliance isn’t optional — it’s the law.
You’ll also see “Type R” on modern certified garments. Type R means Roadway use — it’s the classification for workers near vehicle traffic, which covers most construction and outdoor job site scenarios. When a garment says “ANSI/ISEA 107 Type R, Class 2,” that’s the full certification language a safety officer or inspector is looking for.
ANSI Class 1, 2, and 3: Which One Does Your Job Require?
This is the question we get asked more than any other in the high-vis category, and the answer is simpler than most people expect.
Class 1 is the minimum level — limited reflective tape, minimal background coverage. It’s appropriate only for low-risk environments where vehicles are slow and controlled: parking attendants, warehouse staff away from active forklifts, sidewalk maintenance crews. You will almost never need Class 1 for an active construction or road work environment.
Class 2 is the standard for the majority of construction workers, road crews, utility teams, and warehouse staff working near machinery or vehicles. OSHA requires a minimum of Class 2 for workers near traffic. If your crew is outdoors and near any moving vehicles, Class 2 is your baseline. This is where most of GotApparel hi-vis inventory sits — Kishigo vests, CornerStone safety shirts, Berne outerwear — because it’s what most buyers actually need.
Class 3 provides the highest coverage and is required when workers are directly in or immediately adjacent to high-speed traffic, working in low-light or nighttime conditions, or flagging on active highways. Class 3 garments must cover both the torso and arms, which is why Class 3 options are typically full jackets rather than vests. A safety vest alone cannot satisfy Class 3 — but a Class 2 vest combined with a Class 2 shirt, if the combined coverage meets the total requirements, can achieve Class 3 compliance. This is something experienced safety managers use regularly for crews working in variable conditions.
If you’re not certain which class your specific job site requires, the fastest answer is to check the project’s safety plan or call your site safety officer. OSHA standard 29 CFR 1926.201 covers flagging and traffic control requirements specifically.
The Brands That Matter for Serious Job Sites
Not all high-vis is equal, and anyone who has bought cheap vests that shredded inside of a month already knows that. Here’s how the brands GotApparel carries break down in real-world terms.
Kishigo is the most safety-specialized brand in our catalog. High-visibility is their entire business — they don’t make dress shirts or athletic wear on the side — which means every garment in their lineup is engineered specifically around ANSI/ISEA 107 compliance and field durability. Their Economy Mesh Vest series is the most consistently reordered high-vis product we carry, primarily because the six-pocket construction is genuinely useful on job sites where workers need to carry things, and the mesh stays breathable enough in warm weather that workers actually keep it on all day. Their performance shirt line — including the 9110-9111 microfiber tee and the 9120-9121 flat stitch shirt — is the right call when you want compliance built into the garment rather than layered over it. The Black Series vests maintain full Class 2 certification with a black body and silver reflective trim, which solves the problem for security teams and event staff who need compliance without looking like a road construction crew.
CornerStone brings heavy workwear durability to the safety apparel category. Their ANSI Class 2 and Class 3 shirts and vests are built heavier than the Kishigo mesh line, which makes them the better choice for physically demanding outdoor work where a lightweight mesh vest would fail quickly. The CS401 safety tee and the CS408 Class 3 snag-resistant shirt are two of the most practical options for crews doing active roadwork or utility maintenance in demanding conditions.
Bulwark is the brand you need when high-vis is only half the compliance requirement. For workers in electrical environments, arc flash hazard zones, oil and gas facilities, or any site covered by NFPA 70E, standard ANSI-rated apparel is not sufficient. You need garments that are both high-vis compliant and flame-resistant. Bulwark’s FR high-vis line satisfies both — ANSI/ISEA 107 for visibility and ASTM F1506 for flame resistance. If you’re a utility company or electrical contractor, this is not optional.
Berne is a workwear brand first, and their high-vis line reflects that. Berne hi-vis jackets and outerwear are built for the kind of outdoor conditions where workers need a garment that handles cold, wet weather and maintains visibility simultaneously. Their Class 3 lined full-zip hoodie and hi-vis softshell jacket are popular with northern crews and job sites with unpredictable spring and fall conditions. If your team is outdoors in weather that a mesh vest won’t cut it for, Berne is where to look.
Vests vs. Shirts vs. Jackets: The Practical Difference
The ANSI class tells you the required visibility level. The garment type determines how to deliver it practically for your crew.
Safety vests are the most common choice because they’re fast on and off, layer over anything, and are the most cost-effective to replace. Their limitation is that a vest alone maxes out at Class 2 — it cannot satisfy Class 3 on its own because it doesn’t cover the arms.
High-vis shirts solve the compliance problem that vests create in warm weather: workers take vests off. A mesh vest over heavy clothing in 90-degree heat gets abandoned the moment the foreman looks away. A compliant high-vis shirt stays on because it is the clothing — there’s no separate layer to remove. For summer outdoor crews, this is one of the most practical upgrades a safety manager can make, and it tends to improve actual on-site compliance more than any policy enforcement can.
High-vis jackets serve two purposes. In cold weather, they maintain visibility regardless of how many layers are underneath. And at Class 3, a compliant full jacket is typically the cleanest single-garment solution — arm coverage included, no layering math required.
Adding Your Logo Without Killing Compliance
Every company ordering high-vis in bulk eventually asks whether they can brand the garments. The answer is yes — with one rule that cannot be broken.
Screen printing and embroidery can go anywhere on the body panels of a compliant garment: left chest, front lower body, full back. The one place decoration cannot go is on or over the retroreflective tape. The silver strips on a certified high-vis vest are precisely measured and positioned to meet the ANSI standard. Any printing, stitching, or decoration that covers, overlaps, or borders those strips compromises their retroreflective performance and technically takes the garment out of compliance.
Got Apparel decoration team handles high-vis customization regularly and can confirm safe placement on any specific garment before your order is produced. Call 1-866-217-1729 before placing a decorated order if you’re not certain — it’s a five-minute conversation that saves you from receiving unusable inventory.
Blank orders have no minimum quantity and ship same day on orders placed before 3pm EST. Custom decorated orders require a 6-unit minimum and 7–10 business days production time. Free shipping on all orders over $199 to the continental US.