People have pierced their ears for thousands of years for ceremonial, cultural, religious, and decorative purposes. The oldest known example of ear piercing comes from “Ötzi the Iceman,” a man who lived in the Alps some 5,300 years ago. Scientists found Ötzi’s earlobes had gauges that stretched them 7-11 mm wide, though they don’t know why he had ear piercings.
Today, ear piercings are a common fashion statement and a way to express yourself. From simple lobe piercings to conch and tragus piercings, there are many options to choose from. Here's everything you need to know before you get your first (or second or third) ear piercing.
What Are the Different Types of Ear Piercings?
Ear piercing isn’t only done on your ear lobes anymore. If you want to get creative with ear jewelry, piercing professionals can pierce nearly any part of your ear.
There are several different types of ear piercings. Some of the more common ones include:
Standard lobe piercing. Lobe piercing is done on the soft part that hangs down at the bottom of your ear, close to your jaw.
Stacked lobe piercing. This is done right above the standard ear lobe piercing.
High-lobe piercing. This piercing is done along the upper part of the ear lobe before the cartilage begins.
Anti-tragus piercing. This piercing is done on the hill-shaped cartilage right above your ear lobe, opposite the tragus.
Tragus piercing. This is done on the tiny hill-shaped flap close to your face that partially covers your ear canal.
Daith piercing. It is done in the inner cartilage fold of your ear, just above the ear hole.
Helix piercing. This is done on the upper outer cartilage of your ears.
Forward helix piercing. This piercing is done on the upper inner part of the cartilage, close to your face.
Conch piercing. This is done on the inner part of your ear cartilage that's shaped like the inside of a shell, hence the name.
Industrial piercing. This piercing uses straight barbell jewelry to connect two cartilage piercings on the upper ear.
How Does Ear Piercing Work?
Before your piercing begins, the piercer will wash their hands and put on clean disposable gloves. They may wipe your ears with sterile cleansing wipes. They will then mark the area to be pierced with a white or purple skin-safe marker. Using a mirror, you can check to ensure that these markings are in your desired spot.
The piercer will then use a sterile hollow needle to quickly pierce your ear. Then, they'll use a tool called a taper to help place your jewelry in the hole.
Note that some places may use a piercing gun, but this is not a preferred method.
What’s a downsize adjustment?
When you get an ear piercing, your initial jewelry may have a post that’s a bit longer to accommodate swelling. Jewelry with a post that’s too short or tight won’t allow for air and blood to circulate. As your ear heals, the swelling will go down and the post may stick out too much. The extra post length may snag clothing or push into your skin when sleeping.
See your piercer to replace the initial jewelry with jewelry that has a post closer to your ear.
Piercing Gun vs. Needle: Which Is Safer?
The Association of Piercing Professionals recommends against the use of piercing guns, which it considers dangerous, for any body piercing.
Reusable ear-piercing guns often can’t be fully sterilized. This can put you at risk of coming into direct contact with blood and body fluids from previous clients.
The pressure caused by the spring-loaded mechanism of the piercing gun can also cause more damage to surrounding tissue. You may have more pain and swelling from using a piercing gun.
Does It Hurt to Get Your Ears Pierced?
Getting your ears pierced can be painful. You'll feel a sharp pinch when the needle goes through, but that may be it. How much pain you feel depends on several things, such as:
The area you're getting pierced. All parts of your ears have nerves, but your ear lobes have slightly fewer. So, earlobe piercings usually cause less pain.
The skill of your piercer. Piercing professionals are trained to do needle piercing as quickly as possible to minimize your pain. A less experienced piercer may lack proper skill, which could potentially make the experience more painful.
Your pain tolerance. Some people feel pain more than others. If you know you're more sensitive to pain, let your piercer know beforehand.
Piercers at retail and tattoo shops usually don't offer numbing cream or sprays. You may be able to put ice on your ears before the procedure. Ask beforehand so you know what is allowed and what to expect.
Dermatologists and pediatricians are more likely to use numbing medication. But they also often use piercing guns rather than needles, which can cause more trauma and pain.
Afterward, your ears will probably be sore for a few days. You can take pain relievers to lessen some of that discomfort.
Will I Bleed?
The piercing needle breaks your skin, so you can expect a few spots of blood. How much you bleed depends on you and what part of the ear you’re getting pierced.
If you take non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medicines (such as aspirin or ibuprofen) or prescription blood thinners, you may bleed more. If there is a lot of bleeding or it doesn’t stop, seek medical attention.
Can I Take Aspirin for the Pain?
Aspirin and other NSAIDs can stop your blood from clotting, so you may bleed more. To prevent pain, you can take an extra-strength acetaminophen (Tylenol) an hour beforehand.
Who Should Not Get Their Ears Pierced?
Depending on what state you live in, state licensing may require your piercing professional to ask you a series of medical questions. This is to make sure you are healthy enough for piercings.
If you’re pregnant, you should not get your ears pierced because of the risk of getting an infection. You should also wait 3 months after giving birth before getting your ears pierced. This allows your body’s immune system time to recover from pregnancy and childbirth.
Other conditions may make it harder for your piercing to heal, which can increase your risk of infection. You should check with your doctor first if you have:
- Diabetes
- Hemophilia or other bleeding disorder
- An autoimmune disorder, such as lupus or HIV/AIDS
- A heart condition
- Any condition that slows or prevents healing
- Skin issues in the area you want pierced, including a lesion, rash, lump, cut, or mole
If you have a heart condition, a professional piercer may want proof that you’ve gotten permission from your doctor. Certain heart conditions can increase your risk of infective endocarditis, a potentially fatal condition. If you normally take antibiotics before dental work, your doctor may want you to take them before ear piercings.
Ear Piercing Risks
Piercing breaks your skin and opens the door to problems, such as:
Allergic reaction. Jewelry made of nickel or brass can trigger it.
Infection. People sometimes have redness, swelling, pain, and a discharge after a piercing.
Skin trouble. You may get problems such as scars and keloids (overgrown scar tissue).
Blood diseases. You can pick up hepatitis B and C, tetanus, and HIV from equipment contaminated with infected blood.
Infective pericarditis. You're at risk for this potentially fatal infection of the lining of the heart and heart valves if you have a preexisting heart condition.
If you develop any allergic reaction or infection after an ear piercing, talk to your doctor. They can figure out what’s going on and get you treatment if needed.
Where to Get Your Ears Pierced
Never try to pierce your ears yourself. Piercing kits you can buy online are often not the same quality that professional piercers use. They may include equipment that is not sterile or lack important instructions. Piercing also requires skill, training and experience to do right. When you try to do it yourself, you run the risk of serious damage.
You should only get your ears pierced by a piercing professional. Some dermatologists may do standard ear lobe piercing. Some pediatricians do piercings on young children. Dermatologists and pediatricians will often use piercing guns.
Make sure you do research on ear piercing professionals beforehand. Ask people you trust for recommendations, and visit a few piercers to get a feel for the place and person.
The Association of Piercing Professionals recommend piercing professionals use an antiseptic wipe to disinfect the skin beforehand. It also recommends that piercers wear disposable gloves.
Some "positives" to look for:
- A clean studio with good lighting
- A selection of hypoallergenic jewelry
- Before and after pictures of past clients
- Appropriate sharps disposal containers
- Written aftercare instructions
Ask these questions:
- Are you licensed?
- Do you wear a clean pair of disposable gloves for each client?
- Do you use new sterilized single-use needles?
- What equipment do you use?
- How do you sterilize it?
- Will you go over how to care for my piercing?
- Can I call you with any questions after the piercing?
Avoid any place where they sterilize equipment in the studio's public bathroom.
How Young is Too Young for Ear Piercing?
This is up to you. In some cultures, parents have their baby's ears pierced hours or days after birth.
The American Academy of Pediatrics says there's no health risk at any age, as long the setting and procedure are safe and sterile. But they also suggest that you wait until your child is old enough to handle the care involved afterward.
If you choose to have your child's ears pierced, start small. Round, flat earrings are best. Avoid anything big or dangly that can catch on clothing and tear your child's earlobe.
What Kind of Jewelry Should I Choose?
The jewelry style you choose is a matter of personal preference. But the material you use is all about safety.
For your initial piercing, jewelry made from these materials is considered safe to use while the wound heals:
Surgical steel. This is the kind doctors use for surgical implants, such as knee replacements.
Titanium. This is a lightweight metal used for implants. It can be anodized and comes in many colors.
Nobium. Another lightweight metal, which also comes in many colors.
Gold. Choose 14K to 18K solid gold. Never used gold-plated jewelry. It may contain nickel, cadmium, and other materials that can cause an allergic reaction and irritate your skin.
Glass. You can use three types of glass jewelry: fused quartz glass, lead-free borosilicate, and lead-free soda lime glass.
Platinum. This heavy precious metal is considered excellent for body piercings, but it’s rare and costs much more than other options.
What's the Healing Time?
There are different types of tissue in different parts of your ear. How long it takes to heal depends on your body and the place you've pierced.
Ear piercings heal from the outside rim of the wound inward. So, you may think your ear piercing has healed, but what’s inside may still be fragile and need more time to heal.
Earlobes usually take 6 to 8 weeks to heal. If you pierce the cartilage on the side of your ear, it can take 4 months to a year. Ask your piercing professional for an estimate.
Ear Piercing Aftercare
The right aftercare can help your piercing heal well and prevent a skin infection.
How to clean your ear piercing
You should clean the area around your piercing two to three times a day. Follow these steps to clean the skin:
- Wash your hands with soap and water before touching your ears.
- Use a saline solution spray labeled for use as a wound wash. Your piercing professional may recommend a specific cleanser. Spray the area thoroughly.
- If you want to use soap and warm water to wash the area, choose a gentle, fragrance-free soap. Make sure to rinse the area well.
- Dry the area with clean or sterile gauze or cotton swabs.
- Use the gauze or swabs to gently remove any crusty buildup.
- Don’t use rubbing alcohol, hydrogen peroxide, antibacterial soap, or homemade saline solutions which can dry and irritate the skin. This can increase the healing time of your piercing.
- Avoid twisting or twirling the ear jewelry, which may irritate your wound.
How to prevent an infection
Put an antibiotic ointment around the area two times a day to prevent a skin infection. Continue to do this for a few days after the piercing.
You can also use some petroleum jelly, but only if it comes out of a squeeze tube. It helps to keep your wound moist, which can help it heal faster. However, petroleum jelly in a tub may harbor germs, and that’s the last thing you want to put on your healing wound.
Healing dos and don’ts
You should follow several dos and don’ts to help your ear piercings heal:
Things you should do include:
- Follow the written instructions your piercing professional gives you. They know best what to expect from your type of ear piercing.
- Leave your jewelry in place, even at night, unless you have an infection or other issue.
- Leave your jewelry in even after it has healed. Sometimes, even well-healed piercings can close within minutes.
- Check if your jewelry needs a downsize adjustment.
- Sleep on clean pillowcases and bedding to protect your ears while sleeping. Wash them often or insert your pillow into a clean T-shirt each night instead. Flip your pillow over to a clean surface so you don’t have to watch it as often.
- Clean and disinfect any surface that touches your ears, such as a smartphone, headphones, or eyeglasses.
- Use caution when styling and drying your hair. Let your hairdresser know you have a new piercing so they’re extra careful around it.
- Call your doctor right away if you notice any sign of infection, such as skin that’s red, swollen, or tender.
Things you shouldn’t do include:
- Don’t touch your ear piercing. Germs on your hands can cause an infection.
- Don’t submerge your ears in water. Avoid using pools and hot tubs where germs can reside. Take a shower instead of a bath. If you want to take a bath, clean and disinfect the tub first.
- Don’t twist, spin, or rotate your jewelry, even during cleaning. This can further irritate your skin.
- Don’t use beauty products on or near your ears, such as lotions, makeup, hair care, or styling products.
- Don’t sleep or put pressure on your ear if possible. If you’re a side sleeper, you can use a donut hole travel pillow. Place your ear inside the hole so it doesn’t touch anything.
Which Spots on Your Ear Are Suitable for Piercing?
You can make holes in about 15 places on your ear:
- Lobe
- Upward along the outer cartilage
- Inward along the part of the ear attached to your head
- Several spots in the center
How to Treat Ear Piercing Infections
Right after an earlobe piercing, your ear may be a bit red, swollen, or tender. It may feel itchy and have a yellowish discharge. These should go away after a day or two with normal aftercare.
If these symptoms get worse during that time, continue longer, or if the redness spreads to other parts of your ear, see your doctor. These symptoms can mean you have an infection. Your doctor can prescribe the right treatment.
How Do I Care for My Piercing While It Heals?
Ear piercing no longer means just getting your ear lobes pierced. You can pierce nearly any part of your ear. Knowing what to expect from each type of ear piercing can help you take care of your piercing so it heals well and looks good for years to come.
Ear Piercing FAQs
Can you swim after getting your ears pierced?
You should not submerge your ears in water where germs may live, such as pools and hot tubs. That goes for your bath, too, if you don’t clean and disinfect it beforehand.
How long does it take an ear piercing to close after you take your earring out?
Even well-healed piercings can shrink or close up if you take out your earring, even after many years. It's a good idea to keep jewelry in the piercing to prevent it from closing.
