Answer page · Respiratory protection
Ask a merchant for a 'dust mask' and you might get a paper comfort mask or a certified FFP3 respirator — the words don't distinguish, but your lungs will. The terminology trap is worth five minutes, because the cheapest item on the shelf is dressed exactly like the one that works.
The distinction
Nuisance masks — the moulded paper cups sold in DIY multipacks — are comfort products: they take the edge off pollen and coarse dust, carry no EN 149 certification, no protection factor and no legal standing as PPE. Marketing keeps their language carefully vague ('reduces exposure to non-toxic dust').
A respirator, in the disposable sense, is a filtering facepiece certified to EN 149 — marked FFP1/2/3, CE/UKCA'd, tested for filtration and inward leakage, and usable where a risk assessment demands respiratory protection. Beyond disposables, RPE climbs through reusable half-masks with cartridge filters to powered hoods. The tell on the shelf takes two seconds: look for 'EN 149' and an FFP class printed on the mask itself — not the box, the mask. No marking, no protection claim, no place at work.
The trap has teeth because the products look alike: same cup shape, same straps, sometimes the same aisle. Sites that ban unmarked masks aren't being pedantic — they're refusing the theatre version of protection where the real thing costs pennies more.
The ladder
| Product | Certification | Legitimate use |
|---|---|---|
| Nuisance/comfort mask | None | Pollen, decorating at home — never occupational protection |
| FFP1 respirator | EN 149 | Coarse, low-toxicity dusts at low exposures |
| FFP2 / FFP3 respirator | EN 149 | The working ratings — which one, decoded |
| Reusable half-mask + filters | EN 140 + filter standards | Sustained work — vs disposables |
| Powered hoods (PAPR) | EN 12941/12942 | Beards, long shifts, higher factors |
Questions
Not necessarily — 'dust mask' has no defined meaning. Certified respirators carry EN 149 and an FFP class printed on the facepiece; uncertified nuisance masks protect against nothing measurable and aren't legal PPE. Check the mask itself for the marking, not the packaging.
Only if it's a genuine EN 149 FFP respirator in the class your risk assessment requires — many DIY multipack masks aren't. If the facepiece doesn't carry EN 149 and an FFP class, it has no place in occupational use, whatever the aisle said.
On the facepiece itself: EN 149, the class (FFP1, FFP2 or FFP3), the CE or UKCA mark with the notified body number, and usually 'NR' (single shift) or 'R' (reusable). Missing markings mean a comfort product, not protection.
Both sides of every comparison are one click away — or ask a human to settle it for your team.