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Introduction: Nickel is a known dermal sensitizer and, as such, is regulated under REACH in Europe for articles intended to come into direct and prolonged contact with the skin.Although the prevalence of nickel allergy has decreased significantly in some European countries since the European nickel restriction was put in place, nickel allergy and nickel dermatitis are still of concern in Europe.One potential source of the remaining low prevalence of nickel allergy is the lack of compliance with the EU nickel regulation.Objectives: To assess nickel release from articles on European and United States markets that could come into direct and prolonged contact with skin to determine non-compliance with the European REACH nickel regulation.Methods: Articles listed as examples in the EU REACH nickel regulation (i.e.earrings, necklaces, watches, rings, and clothing fasteners) and expected to be worn by teens were purchased in three European countries (DK, FR, and IT) with expected high compliance rates and the United States.Items were purchased from different types of vendors, including department stores, specialty stores, regional stores, local markets, and piercing shops.Anonymized and coded Items were tested for nickel release using the standardised EN 12472 and EN 1811:2011 + A1:2015 methods.Results: Out of 535 articles, 83 (16%) were non-compliant with the EU nickel regulation.Non-compliance was higher for the United States (39/188 = 20%) than the European countries combined (46/347 = 13%).Watches (22/75 = 29%), earrings (25/125 = 20%), and clothing fasteners (9/65 = 15%) had the highest non-compliance for types of articles.Online (US only; 13/33 = 39%), thrift stores (US only; 6/20 = 30%), local markets (12/46 = 26.1%),and local independent stores (24/108 = 22%) were the most non-compliant vendor types.