Earring vs Piercing: Difference and Comparison

In this everyday upgrading kind- of an era, appearance is the key expression to know a person. Appearance is mistaken by the beauty, complexion and brands, which is intolerable.

With the uprising fashion standards, people are more keenly investing in jewellery. Also, to look unique and classic, more attention is given to the accessories.

Fashion jewellery and accessories add more light to the wardrobe. From wearing traditional to amazingly customized collections, jewellery is in its highest demand.

If the right kind of jewellery is chosen with the outfit, it can actually outshine the conscious world.

Earrings and Piercings are one of the forms of flaunting the jewellery. Before carrying out a process one must know it in depth. So it is really informative to know the difference between the two.

Key Takeaways

1. An earring is a piece of jewelry worn on the earlobe, while a piercing creates a hole in the skin to insert jewelry.
2. Earrings can be worn in pierced or non-pierced ears, while piercings always require a hole to accommodate the jewelry.
3. Earrings are limited to the ear, while piercings can be done on various body parts, including the nose, navel, and eyebrow.

Earring vs Piercing

An earring is a jewelry piece worn on the ear via a piercing in the earlobe or another external part of the ear. They have a thin bar. Piercing is puncturing a small hole in your earlobe in which you wear the earrings. It is a type of body modification and can be done on other parts of the body as well.

An Earring is a form of jewellery that is put into the earlobe or any other external lining of the ear. Earlobe Piercing is referred to as an earring.

An ear-piercing can even be in the form of studs. The advantage of an earring over that of a piercing is that it hurts a little less during the process of earlobe piercing.

Piercing is the process of getting a hole on any part of the body, other than the ears. It is done on the cartilages and rings, studs or another kind of jewellery is inserted.

The biggest advantage of getting a piercing is that it can be done anywhere on the body.

Comparison Table

Parameters of Comparison	Earring	Piercing
Meaning	An earring is made into the ear. The softer skin of the outer earlobe is made pierced and hence, this process turns out to be an earring.	The process by which an opening or a hole is created anywhere on the body so as to wear different forms of jewellery is known as piercing.
Types	Earrings are made on the lobe or upper lobe. Another kind of earrings can be made over helix, forward helix, rook and sometimes, daith. Daith is somewhat thicker than the helix region.	Piercings are categorically made in different regions of the body. For the cartilage area of an ear, Tragus and conch is made. The nose, nostril and septum are pierced.
Pain	Since the skin around the non- cartilage area of the ears is very thin, therefore earring makes a very slight or no pain.	Body piercing, especially that of a nose, is very painful. This is because the cartilage makes the skin around it very thick.
Longevity	Because of the thin and soft skin, the earrings have longer life. That means if earrings are removed for a few days, there are a very less chance of hole closure.	As soon as the articles from the piercings are removed, the hole starts reducing in size.
After effect	Earring pains less and therefore, heals fast.	Piercings takes alot of time to heal. Also, there are chances to get skin infections and swelling around the pierced skin.

What is Earring?

An earring is a hole created on the thin lining of the ears. These are worn by men, women and kids. Worn in different forms, it is very lucrative. It can be a ring, a stud, in different shapes and sizes. An earring can be created simply using a sharp needle.

In many cultures, earrings have their significance. Many people also consider wearing an earring as a very auspicious deed. Now, earrings have become a part of fashion jewellery. It enhances the beauty of any outfit.

It hardly pains while getting earrings on an earlobe. Whereas, the helix region still pains a little. Also, the aftereffect of an earring is not severe. Getting pierced with an earring is very pocket-friendly.

What is a Piercing?

A piercing is a modification made by creating a hole on any part of the outer skin. Piercings can even be done inside the mouth (On the tongue, inner lining of the mouth or inner cheek).

Piercings focus on thick regions of the skin. People get them in order to look attractive. There are a few traditions and cultures that support septum piercings, belly piercing and tongue piercing.

Piercings need proper professional tools to carry out the process without causing any damage to the skin. It can be done using piercing guns, needles, needle receiving tubes, cork and forceps.

Some regions like the nostril, eyebrow, tongue, belly etc also demand anaesthesia before moving forward with the procedure.

Main Differences Between Earring and Piercing

1. The two terms “Earring” and “Piercing” are completely different from one another. Earring is done on the ear itself whereas the piercing can be done anywhere on the body.
2. The major distinction occurs when it comes to having a look at the thickness of the skin. Piercings focus on the thicker regions, in fact, on the ears. 
3. There is a wide variety of colours, shapes, designs and options in earrings. Diamonds, pearls, exquisite stones, hoops, rings, heavy jhumkas are worn as earrings. Considering the category of piercings, there are rings, studs, hoops and wires made of stainless steel or silver. 
4. In order to prevent any further rash or skin infection, there is a need to get alcohol-based solutions applied over the piercing. Earring demands no special after-care. 
5. The earring takes about 3-6 weeks to heal, whereas, piercings may take 4-10 weeks to heal. Moreover, it may even take as long as 3-4 months to heal a lip and genital piercing to heal.

References

1. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1524-4725.2011.02281.x
2. https://www.thieme-connect.com/products/ejournals/pdf/10.1055/s-0039-1699446.pdf

Last Updated : 13 July, 2023