Gauge is used to measure the thickness of piercing jewellery. The gauge meaning is the opposite of what you may expect because the higher the gauge of the jewellery, the thinner it is.
It is important to wear the right size piercing jewellery as wearing jewellery that is too thin could result in the jewellery slipping out. In the case of a BCR, if the gauge is too high it may rotate through the piercing hole easily, causing irritation and rubbing the piercing. Whereas, wearing jewellery that is too thick or of a low gauge will not only cause pain and discomfort during insertion but will unnecessarily stretch the piercing hole.
At Blue Banana, we list our piercings using millimetre measurements. We have created a piercing gauge chart to help ensure you choose the right size for your piercing, which shows piercing gauge to mm conversions:
| Gauge | Millimeters | Inches |
| 18g | 1.0mm | 0.040" |
| 16g | 1.2mm | 0.047" |
| 14g | 1.6mm | 0.062" |
| 12g | 2.0mm | 0.078" |
| 10g | 2.5mm | 0.098" |
| 8g | 3.0mm | 0.118" |
| 6g | 4.0mm | 0.157" |
| 4g | 5.0mm | 0.196" |
| 2g | 6.0mm | 0.236" |
| 0g | 8.0mm | 0.314" |
| 00g | 10.0mm | 0.400" |
Here is a list of which piercing gauge sizes are usually appropriate for different piercing types. However, please note that these are general recommendations and can be different depending on anatomy or style of piercing.
- 24 Gauge (0.6mm)Nose Studs
- 20 Gauge (0.8mm)Nose Studs & Nose Rings
- 18 Gauge (1.0mm)Earrings, Ear Studs, Add-Ons, Nose Studs & Nose Rings
- 16 Gauge (1.2mm)Nose Studs, Nose Rings, Balls & Add-Ons, Cartilage Barbells, Eyebrow Bars, Labrets, Lip Rings & Fake Ear Plugs
- 14 Gauge (1.6mm)Balls & Add-Ons, Navel Bars, Barbells, Labrets, Lip Rings, BCRs, Tongue Barbells, Nipple Barbells & Rings
- 12 Gauge (2.0mm)BCRs, Barbells, Stretching Crescents, Tapers, Nipple Barbells & Rings
- 10 Gauge (2.4mm)Stretching Jewellery & Barbells
- Over 10 Gauge Exclusively Stretching Jewellery & Male Genital Jewellery
The safest and best way to select the right gauge sizes for your piercing is to speak to our professional piercers who can offer expert advice in choosing an appropriate piercing gauge. Once you know your piercing gauge you can confidently shop in-store or online for new piercing jewellery!
Please Note: Blue Banana piercing information is based on knowledge from our experiences as one of the UK's top piercing studios. All details provided should be read alongside professional advice. Please see our full Piercing Articles Disclaimer, here.