Niobium jewelry is made from niobium, a pure metallic element with no nickel in it. It's soft, heavy for its size, and it can be colored by anodizing, which thickens a thin oxide layer on the surface rather than adding a coating. Piercers use it, and people with very reactive skin often do well with it. It's a genuinely good material, and we don't make earrings from it. Our materials page explains what we use instead and why.
What niobium is
An element, not an alloy. Niobium is element 41 on the periodic table. Jewelry made from it is normally commercially pure niobium, and there's no nickel in it because nothing is added to it.
A refractory metal. It sits in the same group of the periodic table as tantalum and has a very high melting point. Industry uses it in superconducting magnets and in high-temperature alloys for jet engines.
Unreactive against skin. Like titanium, niobium forms a thin, tough oxide layer on its surface as soon as it meets air. That layer is what makes it so stable in contact with skin.
Soft. It's noticeably softer than titanium and softer than stainless steel. A thin niobium post bends more readily than a steel one.
Heavy for its size. Niobium is nearly twice as dense as titanium and slightly denser than steel. On a small stud the difference is barely noticeable. On a larger hoop, she'd feel it.
Where the colors come from
Niobium jewelry is known for vivid blues, purples, golds and greens. On most pieces, those colors come from anodizing.
Anodizing isn't a coating. An electrical current thickens the natural oxide layer on the metal. The thickness of that layer changes how light reflects from it, and that's the color you see. No dye or plating is involved.
When the color wears, the metal is still niobium. If the color rubs away at a friction point, what's underneath is the same metal. That's a real difference from plating, where wear exposes something else.
Black can be different. Some black finishes on niobium are made by other processes, and some are coatings. If a piece is black, it's worth asking how the color was produced.
Niobium against titanium and steel
| Niobium | Implant grade titanium | S316L Surgical Steel | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it is | Pure element | Titanium alloy to ASTM F136 | Stainless steel alloy |
| Nickel in the metal | None | None | Roughly 10 to 14% |
| Weight for its size | Heavy | Light | Heavy |
| Hardness | Soft | Hard | Hard |
| Color options | Wide, by anodizing | Wide, by anodizing | Polished steel, or plated |
| Implant specification | None in common use for jewelry | ASTM F136 | ASTM F138, which most jewelry isn't made to |
| Used by piercers for new piercings | Yes, by many | Yes, the usual choice | Only to the implant specification |
| Typical cost | Higher | Higher | Lower |
Where niobium makes sense
Very reactive skin. If her ears react to almost everything, a metal with no nickel content takes the most common contact allergen out of the picture. Some people who can't tolerate anything else wear niobium without trouble.
A diagnosed nickel allergy. If a dermatologist has confirmed a nickel allergy and advised avoiding nickel-containing metals, niobium fits that advice.
Color without plating. If she wants purple or blue earrings, anodized niobium gets there without putting a coating against her skin.
Where it's less straightforward
Soft posts bend. A child who takes earrings in and out, fiddles with them or sleeps in them can bend a soft post out of line. A bent post is awkward to put in and can scrape the inside of the piercing.
The label is only as good as the seller. A listing that says niobium with no further detail is still a claim rather than a specification. Ask what the back is made of too. Backs are often a generic part bought separately, and a niobium earring on an unnamed back isn't a niobium earring where it matters.
Fewer designs for young ears. Most niobium jewelry is made for body piercing, so fewer styles are sized and shaped for a child's lobe.
Weight on larger styles. For anything bigger than a stud, titanium does the same job at about half the weight.
Why we didn't add a third material
Niobium is a good metal, and I don't need to run it down to explain our range.
We chose two materials and fixed the line. S316L Surgical Steel through the setting, the post and the butterfly back, and a pure 24 karat gold finish over that same core. More materials and more styles are always on offer, and I've turned down suppliers rather than accept something different. Every material added is another thing to specify, test and keep consistent across every pair. There's no compensation to be had for weakening that.
What we do
S316L Surgical Steel, used on its own throughout the Polished Surgical Steel range, front, post and butterfly back. It contains nickel, as stainless steels do, and its corrosion resistance is what keeps that nickel in the metal. The same grade is used in medical instruments and implants.
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 we describe it as one.
Independently tested by SGS to ASTM F2923, CPSIA and BSEN 71-3. Nickel release under EN 1811: not detected. Report BTO 341803/1, and I'll send it if you ask.
If niobium works for her, that's a good outcome, and I'd leave it there. If you'd like a harder post with a measured result behind it, the 4mm Ball Stud Earrings in S316L Surgical Steel are one alloy throughout, with nothing plated over anything. The full range is on the Polished Surgical Steel collection.
Questions parents ask next
Is niobium better than titanium? Neither wins across the board. Titanium is lighter and harder. Niobium takes color beautifully and is equally free of nickel. For a small stud, the maker and the documentation matter more than the choice between the two.
Is niobium "hypoallergenic"? The word isn't regulated for jewelry, so it doesn't tell you much. The useful fact about niobium is that it contains no nickel.
Does anodized niobium fade? The color can wear at friction points over time. Because it's an oxide layer rather than a coating, the metal underneath is still niobium.
Is niobium magnetic? No, and neither is titanium, so a magnet won't tell the two apart.
Can she wear niobium in a new piercing? Many piercers use it for new piercings, and a professional piercer is the right person to choose jewelry for that stage. Our earrings are designed for ears that have fully healed.
Related reading
- What is implant grade titanium, and is it better than S316L?
- Is titanium better than surgical steel for earrings?
- Does surgical steel contain nickel?
- What metal is best for sensitive ears?
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.
