Earring gauge size is one of those numbers that seems designed to confuse. It appears in product listings, it goes down as the wire gets thicker, and nobody explains it. If you are buying earring posts, making your own earrings, or wondering whether a pair will fit a piercing you have had for years, this is what the number means and which one you actually need.
What the gauge number measures
Gauge is a measure of wire thickness, and it runs backwards. The higher the number, the thinner the wire. An 18 gauge post is thicker than a 20 gauge post, which is thicker than a 22 gauge post. It is counter-intuitive the first time and obvious ever after.
The system comes from wire manufacturing rather than jewellery, which is why it does not line up neatly with millimetres. In practice you only need a handful of sizes.
The earring gauge sizes that matter
20 gauge, about 0.8 mm. The most common thickness for standard earlobe piercings and for the posts on most commercially made studs. If a listing does not state a gauge, this is usually what it is.
18 gauge, about 1.0 mm. The other common standard, and what many piercing studios use. Slightly thicker, slightly sturdier, and still comfortable in a normal lobe piercing.
22 gauge, about 0.6 mm. Thinner than standard. It will pass through any lobe piercing, but a very thin post can feel flimsy and can bend more easily in wear.
16 gauge, about 1.2 mm. Common in cartilage and helix piercings rather than lobes.
The practical rule is straightforward: a thinner post will fit a piercing made for a thicker one, but not the other way round. Forcing a thicker post through a piercing that has settled at a smaller size is uncomfortable and unnecessary, and a piercing left with jewellery out will gradually narrow.
How to work out what you have
If you own a pair of earrings that fit well, you already have the answer. Measure the post with a digital caliper, or compare it side by side against a post whose gauge you know. Failing that, 20 gauge is the safe assumption for a standard lobe piercing, since it will fit both 20 and 18 gauge piercings.
One more measurement is worth knowing: post length. Most studs use a post between 9 and 11 mm. A shorter post can feel tight on a thicker lobe, and a longer one will tilt forward because there is nothing holding it flush.
Gauge when you are making your own earrings
If you are making earrings rather than buying them, the gauge decision belongs to the finding, not to the decorative part. With silver clay you shape and fire the front of the earring, and the post or hook is attached afterwards.
Silver clay is a mouldable clay that you shape by hand, dry, and then fire with a small torch. What remains after firing is 99.9% fine silver. It shrinks by roughly 8 to 10% during firing, which matters here for a specific reason: if you are embedding a post or leaving a hole for one, allow for that shrinkage or the fitting will be tighter than you planned. Fine silver is also soft, so a decorative element can be sized generously without adding much weight.
The silver clay starter kit contains the clay, a torch, the tools, cubic zirconia stones and instructions, which is enough to make the fronts of several pairs. The silver clay refills are the same clay on its own once you have the kit. For the process itself, see how to use silver clay, and the complete guide to silver clay covers the material in more depth.
The short answer
For a standard lobe piercing, choose 20 gauge and you will be right the great majority of the time. Choose 18 gauge if you know your piercing was made with a thicker needle or if you prefer a post with more substance. Anything thinner than 22 gauge is rarely worth it.
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