Samsung Dryer Error Codes List: Every Code Explained

Every Samsung dryer error code we could verify against Samsung's own documentation — what it means, what usually causes it, and the first fix to try — in one table. Codes differ between model series, so treat your model's tech sheet as the final word.

How to read and retrieve error codes on Samsung dryers

Samsung dryers include a test/diagnostic mode on many models (entered via a button combination such as holding specific cycle pads while powering on — the service manual for the model lists it) that shows stored codes and lets a technician run the motor, heater and sensor checks individually.

The complete Samsung dryer error code list

How to reset / clear error codes on Samsung dryers

Samsung dryer codes clear with a power cycle: unplug for about 5 minutes (gas models: also confirm the gas valve state hasn't changed), plug back in and run a timed dry cycle. Sensor and motor codes that return immediately are active faults — the board tests the motor circuit and thermistors at the start of every cycle.

How to diagnose any Samsung dryer code

Work the problem in this order: (1) record the code exactly, including whether it appears at start-up or mid-cycle — a code at start-up usually reports a failed self-check (sensor, door, motor circuit), while a mid-cycle code reports a process that drifted (airflow, temperature, load sensing); (2) for airflow codes, inspect the whole vent path before anything else: lint screen (wash it — dryer-sheet film blocks air invisibly), transition duct, wall cap and the full run for crushed or lint-packed sections; (3) for heat codes, confirm the drum turns and air moves — heat without airflow and airflow without heat are different fault trees; (4) clear the code and run a timed dry with a small load of wet towels while you monitor: does it heat, does the exhaust blow strong outside, does the code return at the same point; (5) test the monitored component (thermistor, moisture sensor, motor circuit) only after the path and the load are proven good. On gas dryers, anything past the external vent path is a technician's job.

The most searched Samsung dryer codes, in detail

3C — Motor error

3C in Samsung's motor family on the dryer reports that the drum motor is not running as commanded: it may fail to start, stall, or lose its speed feedback. The dryer stops — tumbling and heat without airflow control is unsafe. Mechanical drag (a jammed drum, seized idler or blower obstruction) must be ruled out before electronics, because a motor that can't turn reports the same as a motor that won't. It helps to understand what 'inverter motor' means, because it explains both the code and Samsung's short instruction. A traditional dryer motor is either on or off; an inverter motor is driven by electronics that control its power continuously, and that arrangement lets the control supervise the motor's behaviour rather than merely supply it. When the supervised behaviour does not match the command — no start, a stall, a stop mid-cycle — the control has something definite to report, and 3C is that report. This is also why Samsung pairs 3C with 3E and gives the pair a single line: both are the same report rendered on different model generations. And it is why the washer's 3C, though it shares the number and the motor-family logic, is a different physical conversation — there, the motor drives a wash drum through agitation and spin profiles; here, it drives a belted drum whose support parts (belt, idler, rollers) are part of the motor's working load and therefore part of its diagnosis.

Most likely cause: Drum jammed or belt broken — A broken belt leaves the motor spinning free or stalled against a jammed drum; items can also wedge between drum and bulkhead.

First check: Turn the drum by hand: it should rotate with moderate, even resistance. A hard jam or a drum that spins suspiciously free (belt off) tells the story.

If it keeps coming back: 3C returning under full wet loads but not empty points at drag (rollers/idler) or a weakening motor that fails under torque demand. A 3C that returns after repair usually means the repair stopped one step short. If the belt was renewed but the idler and rollers were left worn, the drag that stalled the motor remains, and the code returns under full wet loads first — heavy loads are the highest-torque work the motor does, so a marginal drivetrain fails there while passing empty tests. If the motor was replaced but the code returns unchanged, the inverter drive powering it was the fault all along. Log which pattern you have; it is the difference between a second visit that finishes the job and one that repeats the first.

9C1 — Voltage/power-supply fault

Samsung's 9C family covers electrical supply faults. 9C1 is the supply-voltage member reported on dryer platforms: the control measured incoming voltage (or its own power rails) outside the safe window and stopped. Dryers are the highest-draw appliance in most laundry rooms, so weak circuits, worn outlets and shared loads show up here first. Rule out the installation before the machine. Dryer 9C1 was verified on Samsung's dryer documentation independently of the washer code of the same spelling, and the two dryer sources phrase the fault from its two ends. Samsung Canada's dryer code page files '9C1, 9E, 2E, 9E1' under the heading Voltage errors — 'These codes indicate abnormal voltage supply to the dryer' — and attaches installation checks: confirm the dryer is on its own circuit without an extension cord, and, for electric dryers, ensure proper power cord installation and correct voltage supply; it also notes that voltage errors may occur if the dryer is used outside the country it was intended for, because power grids and regulations differ. Samsung's dryer information page (the Latin/AE edition) lists the pair as '9C1/9E1, 9C2/9E2' with the cause line 'The electronic control needs to be checked' and the instructions to check if the power is supplied properly and check if the power cord is plugged in, then contact a Samsung service center if the code remains. Read together, the two pages describe one event from both ends: the dryer's electronic control is the thing doing the detecting, and what it is reporting is the supply — which is why every published dryer instruction for 9C1 is a power check, not a parts test. The pairing matters too: 9C1 travels with 9E1, and its sibling 9C2 with 9E2, so quote the exact spelling you saw; Samsung's lists treat them as one voltage family with one handling.

Most likely cause: Low or unstable supply voltage — An overloaded circuit, long undersized run, or utility brownouts — the dryer draws hardest at heater-on, which is when dips bite.

First check: Inspect the outlet and plug for heat damage, looseness or discolouration — stop and call an electrician if you find any.

If it keeps coming back: 9C1 at the same daily times suggests utility/neighbourhood sag; 9C1 under the dryer's own heater load suggests its circuit or the board. A 9C1 that returns after the installation has been corrected to Samsung's published standard has changed meaning: the supply story has been eliminated, and what remains is the dryer information page's own cause line — the electronic control needs to be checked. Record the return pattern before the service visit (at power-on versus under heat load, and whether a breaker event preceded it), because that pattern is most of what separates a household-supply problem from a control problem at the visit. Do not keep cycling a dryer that reports voltage faults in the meantime: Samsung's pages treat a persisting 9C1 as a service case, and repeated restarts on an unproven supply protect nothing.

CL9 — Vent Blockage test result

CL9 only has a meaning in one place: the results of a Samsung dryer's Vent Blockage test. Samsung Canada's dryer code page files CL9 in a group headed 'Vent Blockage test results' — 'Clg, Cl9, Cg, C9, C80, C8o, C8, C90, C9o, Ct: these codes appear after a Vent Blockage test' — and Samsung US's Vent Blockage test guide lists 'CLg, Cg, CL9, C9, C80, C8, C90' together as 'the duct system cannot exhaust properly', with cleaning the exhaust vent as the remedy. Samsung prints the first result two ways, CLg and CL9, because on a segmented display the letter g and the digit 9 are near-identical; they are one result, not two codes. Two cautions follow from Samsung's own lists. First, Samsung assigns percentages only to the numbered results — C8/C80 mean about 80% clogged and C90/C9 mean over 90% clogged — and gives CL9/CLg no percentage of its own, so this page does not call CL9 a '90% blockage': that figure belongs to C9/C90. Second, CL9 is not Child Lock: Samsung's dryer manuals describe Child Lock as a panel lock with its own indicator (all buttons except Power disabled while it is on), and no Samsung dryer document displays it as CL9. An earlier version of this entry treated CL9 as an undocumented Child Lock reading; Samsung's published dryer lists contradict that, and the entry has been rewritten. (Corrected 2026-10-28.)

Most likely cause: A clogged exhaust vent run — Lint builds up through the duct run — in bends, in a long run, and at the outside hood — until the test's airflow measurement fails. This is the cause Samsung's result names: the duct system cannot exhaust properly.

First check: Establish that a test actually ran: CL9 is only produced by the Vent Blockage test (empty drum, door closed, roughly a two-minute run on models that have it). A CL9 reading with no test behind it should be re-read carefully — photograph the display; CLg and CL9 are the same result in two printings.

If it keeps coming back: CL9 returning soon after a thorough clean means the restriction is being missed or is re-forming: re-check the outside hood and the connector first (the two sections a quick clean skips), and check whether cycle times are lengthening again — Samsung names lengthening cycle times on a hot dryer as the classic clogged-vent presentation. Samsung also warns that some older models do not reduce heat when the vent is clogged, which is precisely the case where a blockage is a fire risk rather than a nuisance: a dryer that runs long and hot with a failing test result should not be kept in service on the strength of a reset.

DC — Door error

DC (dC) on a Samsung dryer means the door switch is not reporting 'closed'. The dryer will not start, or stops, because tumbling and heating with the door open is unsafe. A door that isn't fully shut, a failed door switch, or a bent door catch are the causes — in that order of likelihood. The door family on a Samsung dryer is best understood as one question asked three ways. The control needs to know the drum is sealed before it will tumble a heated load, and dC is its way of saying the answer came back no. Samsung's tables show how wide that 'no' can be: the current dC and dE pair, the wider family of dF, do and d0 on other models, and the Child Lock case where the message appears on an idle machine simply because the door was opened under a lock setting. None of those presentations tells you which physical piece is responsible — a trapped sleeve, a loose latch, a doubtful sensor and a lock setting can all produce the same two letters. That is why Samsung's published path is behavioural first and parts last: close it properly, clear it completely, check the lock setting, and only treat a code that remains through all of that as a service matter.

Most likely cause: Door not fully closed — Clothing caught at the latch or the door pushed to but not clicked.

First check: Open and close the door firmly; check for trapped clothing at the catch.

If it keeps coming back: DC that returns mid-cycle with vibration means the switch contacts or catch are marginal — replace rather than adjust repeatedly. A dC that returns after weeks of behaving usually arrives in one of two rhythms, and the rhythm is the clue. If it returns only on bulky loads — duvets, large mixed loads, anything that presses outward as it tumbles — the load is physically working the door against a marginal latch, and the fault will worsen as the latch wears. If it returns on empty and small loads alike, load pressure is innocent and the sensing side is ageing: the report is being lost without the door moving.

DE — Door error

DE (shown dE) is the door code on Samsung dryers that use the letter-style door designation (others show DC). The meaning and fix path are the same: the control cannot confirm the door is closed, so it will not start or it pauses. Door physically ajar, a worn door switch, or a damaged catch are the causes. Samsung files DE inside a wider door family than most owners ever see: its Canadian dryer page groups 'dC, dE, dF, do, d0, 1 DC, 1 dF' together as errors that 'indicate issues with the door, its latch, or the sensors detecting their status', with one shared instruction — ensure the latch is securely fixed, no items are obstructing the door, and it is closed properly. That grouping explains the two things that confuse owners. First, the spelling zoo (do and d0 are the same report read two ways on segmented displays; the 1-prefixed forms are the same codes on displays that prefix a compartment number). Second, the family's split personality: most of its members report the door's position, while dF reports the health of the sensing circuit itself. DE sits on the position side of that split — which is why Samsung's DE instructions are about the door, its obstructions and Child Lock, and why a DE that outlives those checks is reclassified, in practice, as the circuit's problem.

Most likely cause: Door not fully latched — Clothing at the catch; door closed to but not clicked.

First check: Close the door firmly and check the catch area for obstructions.

If it keeps coming back: Mid-cycle DE with vibration = marginal switch contacts — replace it. A DE that returns follows the circuit's logic, not the door's. The pattern to record is when it returns: always at the same point in a heated cycle suggests a contact that opens as the cabinet warms and vibrates; immediately at every start, on a door you have proven shut, suggests the sensing circuit has failed outright — Samsung's dF case, whose documented handling is the unplugged wiring check in the door/lock switch circuit and then switch replacement through service. Either way, the return itself is the information: the door has been eliminated, so further door-slamming only wears the latch that was never the fault.

HC — Heating error

HC belongs to Samsung's heating-fault family. On heat-pump dryers HC specifically reports a compressor/heating-system abnormality; on conventional electric models the HC-family covers heating checks where temperatures behave abnormally. Either way the dryer stops heating to protect itself. Restricted airflow is the environmental cause to rule out first in every heating code: a dryer that can't breathe runs hot regardless of which heater it uses. HC is best understood as a supervision report rather than a part verdict. Samsung's wording — a 'high temperature heating check' — describes a control comparing what the heating system is doing against what it should do, and finding the two disagree. That framing explains the odd shape of Samsung's remedy list, which mixes a breaker box, a lint filter and an electrician: the check can be tripped by the supply feeding the heater, by the airflow carrying the heat away, by the connections delivering the current, or, on heat-pump models, by the compressor circuit making the heat. Each branch is a different trade's work, which is why this page keeps sending you back to the presentation — cold drum or scorching drum, breaker behaviour, vent flow — before naming any suspect. The one branch that is never the owner's is the sealed heat-pump circuit itself.

Most likely cause: Restricted airflow — Clogged lint filter, crushed vent, long/blocked vent run — the universal first check for any heating fault.

First check: Clean the lint filter and check airflow at the outside vent while the dryer runs (strong warm flow = good).

If it keeps coming back: HC returning after an element change almost always means airflow is still restricted inside the machine or vent — replacing heaters into a choked vent just repeats the failure. HC that returns after a repair almost always means the branch that was treated was not the branch that was faulting. Returning after an element or wiring repair, with the vent never tested, is the classic: the machine still cannot shed heat, and the new parts are being cooked by the same restriction. Returning only on the hottest cycles, or only with the largest loads, is a marginal-airflow signature — the vent copes until the cycle asks for everything. And HC returning on a heat-pump dryer after filter and exchanger cleaning has exhausted the maintenance branch; from there the interval matters (every cycle versus weekly) as evidence for the sealed-system diagnosis Samsung reserves to its service centres. Keep the dryer out of heated service while a returning HC is unexplained — overheating codes are the fire-safety family, and repetition is the machine repeating a warning, not nagging.

Less common and model-specific codes

Search data shows owners also meet these codes on Samsung dryers: A5, AP, AS, B3, BC, C3, CE, CL, D3, D80, D90, D95, Dryer, E0, E1, E2, E4, E5, E64, E9, EC, EE, F01, F1L, H01, HC2, HO1, L5, LC, LE, LE1, LO, NF, NG, NP, OD, OE, OT, P5, PF, SC, SE, T3, T4, TE1, TE4, U6, UB, UC, UE, UR. They are not part of the core code list Samsung publishes for most models — several are series-specific, abbreviated display readings, or codes carried over from a sister platform — so we do not publish meanings for them rather than guess. Treat them by symptom: note what the machine was doing when the code appeared (filling, draining, heating, spinning), run one full power cycle (5 minutes off), and if the code returns, match the symptom to the closest documented family in the table above and check the tech sheet stored inside your machine for the model-specific definition.

Deep-dive guides for the most searched codes

Frequently asked questions

Related guides

Facts on this page were checked against manufacturer documentation: www.samsung.com · www.samsung.com · www.samsung.com · www.samsung.com