Interface shear strength is a critical property used by engineers to evaluate the appropriateness of products for their specific applications. Internal shear strength is another critical property for composite products such as geosynthetic clay liners (GCLs) where the product can shear internally before the interface shear strength is mobilized. Multi-component GCLs are a newer type of GCL consisting of either a polymeric membrane liner laminated to or a membrane coating applied to one of the geotextile carriers. Direct shear testing was performed on multi-component GCLs to assess the internal shear strengths of the coatings and laminates on the geotextile surface of the GCL. Direct shear testing was performed on multiple coated and laminated GCLs. Fine-grained sand was used as the interface against the GCL to simulate typical field conditions for these products. The testing was performed in accordance with typical parameters from ASTM D6243-09 using two different loading conditions. The direct shear testing protocol, test results, and observations from the tests performed are discussed.