Ballistic standards for body armor, shields, and helmets
The authoritative US standards for Personal Protection armor — NIJ, ASTM, MIL-STD, MIL-DTL, and ACH — alongside internationally-relevant HP-White, UK HOSDB, and European VPAM. Click a standard for threat levels, adoption timeline, and linked certified products.
NIJ3 standards
- NIJ0101.06rev. 2008
Ballistic Resistance of Body Armor
The currently-dominant US body-armor certification standard. Defines threat levels IIA, II, IIIA, III, IV based on ammunition type, velocity, and hit pattern. Most fielded US LE vests are certified under 0101.06.
Body armor - NIJ0101.07rev. 2023
Ballistic-Resistant Body Armor
The next-generation body-armor standard, first published 2023. Restructures threat levels to HG1, HG2, RF1, RF2, RF3 (handgun vs rifle classes), adds backface-deformation and environmental-conditioning requirements, aligns vocabulary with NATO/STANAG where possible.
Body armor - NIJ0115rev. 2000
Stab Resistance of Personal Body Armor
Separate standard governing edged- and spiked-weapon resistance, relevant primarily to corrections officers. Levels 1, 2, 3 based on impact energy in joules. Independent of ballistic certification — a vest can be NIJ 0101.06 IIIA + 0115 Level 1, for example.
Body armor
ASTM2 standards
- ASTMF2878rev. 2021
Standard Test Method for Protective Clothing Material Resistance to Hypodermic Needle Puncture
Complements NIJ 0115 for corrections and medical first-responder vests — tests resistance to hypodermic needle penetration, a threat class ballistic standards don't address.
Body armor - ASTMF3115rev. 2015
Standard Classification for Body Armor Wear and Care Labeling
Labeling standard for body-armor care, handling, and end-of-life. Harmonizes the information OEMs print on the wearer-facing care tags (inspection interval, cleaning instructions, expiration date).
Body armor
MIL-STD1 standard
MIL-DTL1 standard
HP-White1 standard
HOSDB1 standard
VPAM1 standard
Each standard page links out to the authoritative issuing body (NIJ, ASTM, DoD DLA, etc.) so the source is always one click away. We do not reproduce standard documents verbatim — we publish editorial summaries, threat-level tables, adoption context, and product-certification linkage. If you need the exact language of a spec, follow the source link.