Zinc alloy earrings are usually safe for skin as far as the zinc goes. Zinc rarely causes an allergic reaction. The risk sits in what surrounds it: zinc alloy is almost always plated, the plating usually goes on over a layer of nickel, and a cheap alloy can carry metals nobody names. For a post that lives inside her earlobe, that's the part to ask about. Our materials page sets out what we use instead.
What's zinc alloy?
When a listing says "zinc alloy", it usually means a die-cast metal that's mostly zinc, with small amounts of aluminum, magnesium and copper. The common family is called Zamak, and one standard grade is about 96 percent zinc and 4 percent aluminum.
It's popular for one reason. Molten zinc alloy flows into a mold easily at a low temperature, so a factory can cast detailed shapes quickly and cheaply. That makes it one of the most common base metals in fashion jewelry, alongside brass.
Bare zinc alloy is a dull gray. Nobody sells it that way. It's plated to look like gold or silver, and that plating is where the questions start.
Myth: zinc is the problem
Fact: zinc itself is one of the gentler metals on skin. Zinc allergy is rare. Zinc oxide is the white paste in diaper cream and many sunscreens, and it sits on children's skin every day without trouble.
So when someone asks "can you be allergic to zinc earrings?", the honest answer is that a reaction to zinc alloy earrings is far more often a reaction to something else in the earring. Nickel is the usual suspect.
Myth: if it's plated, the base metal doesn't matter
Fact: the plating is only as good as what's under it. Zinc alloy doesn't take a gold or silver finish well on its own. The standard way to plate it is in layers: copper first, then nickel, then the colored top layer. The nickel gives the finish a smooth, bright base.
While the top layer is intact, her skin touches the top layer. As it wears, the nickel underneath is what touches her ear. The post and the butterfly back take the most friction, so they wear through first, inside the piercing, where you can't see it.
Nickel allergy affects around one in five people in North America. It builds with exposure, which is why a pair that seemed fine for months can start a reaction later.
Myth: "nickel free" on the label settles it
Fact: a label is a claim, not a test. "Nickel free" on a zinc alloy earring might describe the alloy, the top coat, or neither. It rarely tells you whether the plating stack underneath contains nickel. We've written more about that in Does nickel free actually mean nickel free?
The same is true of "hypoallergenic". On jewelry, that word has no test behind it. The pillar article on what "hypoallergenic" actually means on a jewelry label explains why.
Myth: zinc alloy is fine as long as it's sold for children
Fact: children's jewelry does have rules, and they help, but they don't cover everything. Children's jewelry sold in the United States must meet the lead limit under CPSIA, and ASTM F2923, the children's jewelry standard, also screens for cadmium. Those are real protections.
What they don't do is limit how much nickel an earring can release. In the United States there's no legal limit on nickel release from earrings. EN 1811 is the European test that measures it, and it's worth asking any brand for an EN 1811 result.
Do zinc alloy earrings rust?
Not the way iron rusts, but they do corrode. Bare zinc reacts with moisture and forms a white, chalky layer, sometimes called white rust. On a plated earring you won't see it until the plating is scratched or worn. Then you may notice dull patches, a white or gray bloom, or a finish that bubbles and lifts.
That's why zinc alloy and the shower don't mix well. Water, soap and shampoo speed up wear on the plating, and once water reaches the zinc, corrosion starts underneath. If she wears zinc alloy earrings, take them out for bathing and swimming.
Is alloy safe for earrings in general?
"Alloy" on its own tells you almost nothing. Every earring metal except pure gold, silver or platinum is an alloy of something. S316L Surgical Steel is an alloy. So is brass, and so is the German silver that contains no silver at all.
The useful question is never "is it an alloy?" It's "which alloy, named exactly, and what's plated over it?" A brand that can answer both has thought about it. A listing that says "alloy" and stops is usually describing the cheapest base metal that does the job.
How to judge a pair of zinc alloy earrings
- Look for a named base metal. "Zinc alloy" with no grade and no plating detail is the least you can be told.
- Ask what's under the finish. If the answer doesn't mention the nickel layer one way or the other, assume there's one.
- Ask for a nickel release result. EN 1811 is the test. A brand that has one will share it.
- Check the post and the back. They're often a different metal from the front, sometimes from a different factory.
- Watch her ear after a few days. Redness, itching or a green or dark mark points to a reaction to something in the earring.
For bracelets and hair clips, zinc alloy is a reasonable, inexpensive material. For a post that stays in her ear for days at a time, the plating stack matters too much to leave unnamed. Brass raises the same question, which we cover in Is brass or copper jewelry bad for your skin?
What we do
When the price of gold rose, the easy move across the category was dropping karat. The less visible move was changing the core, from steel to a cheaper class of steel or an unnamed base metal such as zinc alloy, then coating it to last a little longer. I've been offered more styles that way, and I've turned those suppliers down, because taking them would mean changing what's inside the earring.
We don't use zinc alloy, brass or copper anywhere in an earring.
S316L Surgical Steel, used on its own throughout the Polished Surgical Steel range, front, post and butterfly back, with nothing plated over it.
24K Pure Gold, which is pure 24 karat gold applied onto a S316L Surgical Steel core with Aunix™ 24K, our engineered gold finish. It's a gold-plating process, and the core under it is steel rather than zinc.
Independently tested by SGS to ASTM F2923, CPSIA and BSEN 71-3, with nickel release not detected under EN 1811. Report BTO 341803/1.
If you'd rather rule out plating altogether, the 4mm Ball Stud Earrings in S316L Surgical Steel have nothing plated over anything. The full range is on the Polished Surgical Steel collection.
Questions parents ask next
What are zinc earrings, exactly? Earrings cast from a zinc-based alloy and then plated to look like gold or silver. The listing usually says "zinc alloy" and names nothing else.
Is zinc safe for earrings if it's left bare? Bare zinc alloy is rarely sold as jewelry, because it's dull gray and corrodes. It's the plating layers, not the zinc, that deserve the questions.
Can she shower with zinc jewelry on? It's better not to. Water and soap wear the plating faster, and once moisture reaches the zinc, it corrodes underneath.
Why did zinc alloy earrings turn her ear green or black? The plating has worn and a copper or nickel layer underneath is reacting with sweat. Take them out and let her ear rest.
Is zinc alloy the same as stainless steel? No. S316L Surgical Steel is an iron, chromium, nickel and molybdenum alloy that resists corrosion without plating. Zinc alloy needs plating to be worn at all.
Related reading
- Does nickel free actually mean nickel free?
- Is brass or copper jewelry bad for your skin?
- Is German silver real silver?
About the author. Matt Westmore is the founder of purepixxi. He came to children's jewelry from manufacturing and sourcing rather than marketing, which means he has walked the factory floors and knows what is actually inside a product rather than what a label says about it. purepixxi uses two materials only, names them exactly, and has them independently tested.
