The full form of MSDS is Material Safety Data Sheet.

A Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) is a document that contains information on the potential hazards (health, fire, reactivity and environmental) and how to work safely with the chemical product. It is an essential starting point for the development of a complete health and safety program. It also contains information on the use, storage, handling and emergency procedures all related to the hazards of the material. The MSDS contains much more information about the material than the label. MSDSs are prepared by the supplier or manufacturer of the material. It is intended to tell what the hazards of the product are, how to use the product safely, what to expect if the recommendations are not followed, what to do if accidents occur, how to recognize symptoms of overexposure, and what to do if such incidents occur.

An SDS for a substance is not primarily intended for use by the general consumer, focusing instead on the hazards of working with the material in an occupational setting. There is also a duty to properly label substances on the basis of physico-chemical, health, or environmental risk. Labels can include hazard symbols such as the European Union standard symbols. The same product (e.g. paints sold under identical brand names by the same company) can have different formulations in different countries. The formulation and hazard of a product using a generic name may vary between manufacturers in the same country.

In Canada, every material that is controlled by WHMIS (Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System) must have an accompanying MSDS that is specific to each individual product or material (both the product name and supplier on the MSDS must match the material in use).

There are nine (9) categories of information that must be present on an MSDS in Canada. These categories are specified in the Controlled Products Regulations and include:

1. Product Information: product identifier (name), manufacturer and suppliers names, addresses, and emergency phone numbers
2. Hazardous Ingredients
3. Physical Data
4. Fire or Explosion Hazard Data
5. Reactivity Data: information on the chemical instability of a product and the substances it may react with
6. Toxicological Properties: health effects
7. Preventive Measures
8. First Aid Measures
9. Preparation Information: who is responsible for preparation and date of preparation of MSDS

The Controlled Products Regulations prescribes what information must be present in more detail.