Ear Gauge Size Chart: mm to Gauge, Explained

Gauge sizing is two systems wearing one name. Below about 10mm, sizes are quoted in gauge — a wire-thickness scale that counts down as the size goes up. Above that, the scale runs out and the world switches to inches, quoted in fractions. Meanwhile most of the world, and every bench that cuts jewellery, works in millimetres.

That is why the same plug can be called 00g, 10mm and 3/8" depending on who is describing it, and why so many people order the wrong size once.

We cut everything in millimetres. This is the full conversion for the ladder we actually make, from 3mm to 25mm, with what each size looks like in the hand.

The full chart

Two notes on reading it.

The gauge column stops being exact above 10mm. 7/16" is 11.1mm, 1/2" is 12.7mm, 5/8" is 15.9mm. When a size is marked ≈ in the chart above, it is because the millimetre figure and the fraction are neighbours rather than equals. If a listing anywhere quotes you a fraction, convert it to millimetres before you order anything, from us or from anyone.

Gauge numbers count backwards. 8g is smaller than 0g. 00g is bigger again. After 00g the numbering simply gives up, which is precisely why the industry switched to inches at that point.

Why we skip some rungs

You will notice 7mm, 9mm and 13mm are absent from the ladder. That is deliberate and it is not about laziness.

The traditional gauge ladder was never evenly spaced in millimetres, and stretching practice grew up around its steps. The rungs we cut match the sizes people actually stretch to and actually own tapers and tape for. Adding half-steps at the bottom of the range would mostly serve people trying to move faster than they should, and half-steps at the top are within the tolerance of how a solid metal pair sits anyway.

If you are genuinely at a size we do not list — it happens, particularly with older hand-made jewellery — write to us before ordering. Everything is cut to order, so odd sizes are a conversation, not an impossibility.

Measure properly, once

Guessing costs you a made-to-order pair. Measuring takes a minute.

Use digital callipers if you have them. Measure the barrel — the straight middle section of your current plug, not the flares. That barrel diameter is your size.

If you do not have callipers, use the true-size visualiser in our size guide. It draws each gauge at actual scale on screen, calibrated against a bank card so the display size is honest, and you hold your current plug against it. It is not as precise as callipers, but it is far better than eyeballing a listing photo.

Do not trust the label on cheap acrylic. Mass-produced acrylic and silicone are routinely mislabelled by half a millimetre or more, and tolerances are loose. Half a millimetre of error at the bottom of the ladder is a whole rung.

Measure both ears. Asymmetry is extremely common — most people have one lobe a rung ahead of the other, usually because one stretched more easily. We can cut a pair as two different sizes; just say so in the order notes.

What size feels like in solid metal

The chart tells you the number. It does not tell you the weight, and weight is where sizing surprises people.

Solid gold is dense. A 16mm pair in solid gold has genuine presence in a way a 16mm acrylic pair does not, even though the calliper reading is identical. Sterling silver is lighter than gold but still substantially heavier than plastic. That extra mass means:

• A solid pair at your measured size will feel snugger than the acrylic you measured against.
• If you are between rungs, size down. A slightly loose plug is comfortable and safe. A slightly tight one is an unconsented stretch applied continuously for as long as you wear it.
• Rotate to something lighter on long days, especially in the first weeks after moving up a size.

There is more on the mechanics of that in solid gold vs. plated.

Double flared vs. single flared, and why it matters at size

Most of our pieces are double flared: both ends are wider than the barrel, so the plug seats itself and needs no o-ring.

Double flared pairs must be passed through the lobe, which means the flare diameter — not the barrel diameter — is the size your lobe has to accommodate momentarily during insertion. On a healed, elastic lobe at a comfortable size this is a non-event. On a lobe that is freshly stretched, tight, or has thin walls, it is a genuine strain, and forcing a flare through is one of the more common ways people cause a blowout.

The rule: if the flare will not pass with gentle pressure and clean hands, the lobe is not ready for that pair. Wait; do not push.

If you are still stretching

Two things worth internalising before you spend money on a size you have not reached.

Never stretch more than one millimetre at a time, and leave six to eight weeks between jumps on a fully healed, comfortable lobe. And never stretch to fit a piece of jewellery — we will cut almost anything in almost any size, and your lobes are not remakeable. The full method, including tapering, taping, blowouts and when to stop, is in how to stretch safely: the 1mm rule.

Ready to commission

Everything is cast, set and hand-finished to order, and ships in 4–6 weeks. Sizes are final once cutting begins, which is why this page exists.

• See the gauge at actual scale: the size guide and true-size visualiser
• Browse by material: solid gold or sterling silver
• Or start with the full catalogue, 3mm to 25mm

If you are between sizes, mid-stretch, or measuring two different ears, write before you buy. That conversation is free and it is much easier than the one afterwards.