For most children with healed lobes, a well-made butterfly back is the best type of earring back. It's secure once it's on, a child can learn to take it off herself, and it's the easiest back to clean. Screw backs are more secure but fiddly, flat backs suit sleeping, and silicone backs add grip. Whatever the type, what the back is made of matters more than its shape. Our safety FAQ covers how ours are made.
The different types of earring backs
There are five backs you'll meet on children's stud earrings.
Butterfly back. Also called a push back, friction back or scroll back. A small metal clutch with two curled loops slides onto a straight post and grips it by friction. It's the back on most stud earrings sold anywhere.
Screw back. The post is threaded, and the back screws onto it like a tiny nut. Often used on diamond studs and on earrings sold for babies, because it can't slide off.
Flat back. A flat disc sits behind the ear, fixed to the post, and the decorative top attaches from the front, either by screwing in or by pressing in on a pin. Common from professional piercers. We've written about these in detail in What is a flat back stud?
Silicone or plastic back. A soft disc or bullet shape that pushes onto the post. Sometimes sold alone, sometimes as a sleeve around a metal butterfly to add grip.
Locking back. A push-on back that clicks into a groove in the post and releases when squeezed. Mostly used on valuable adult earrings.
What type of earring back is best? The five compared
| Butterfly | Screw | Flat back | Silicone | Locking | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| How it holds | Friction on the post | Thread | Fixed disc, top held by thread or pin | Grip of soft material | Clicks into a groove |
| Security | Good, if the fit is right | Very high | High | Moderate on its own | Very high |
| Can a child remove it | Yes, with practice | Rarely | Rarely | Yes | Rarely |
| Easy to clean | Yes | The thread holds residue | The top and disc need taking apart | Soft material holds residue | Mechanism holds residue |
| What to check | Material, and that it isn't too loose | Rough threads, thicker posts | Post length and gauge | What the material is | Weight and size |
What's better, pushback or screw back earrings?
A screw back has one real advantage. It doesn't slide off. For a child, I'd still choose the pushback in most cases. A screw back has to be lined up and turned several times on a post she can't see, which makes it a job for an adult every time. The threads on the post can feel rough as they pass through the piercing. They also hold residue that's hard to clean out. On a baby who can't take earrings out at all, the trade-off is different, and that's a decision for you and her piercer.
A pushback slides on and off in a second, and a child of six or seven can usually manage it with practice. If the back is too loose, the answer is a better-made back, not a more complicated one.
What type of earring backing is more secure to wear?
Ranked by how firmly they hold, screw backs and locking backs come first, flat backs close behind, then a well-fitted butterfly, then silicone on its own.
Security isn't the only thing that matters for a child, though. A back she can't remove herself is a back that stays in when it ought to come out, before a swim, before bed, or when her lobe is sore. The most practical answer is a butterfly that grips firmly enough not to slide off during a normal day, and still comes off when she pulls it.
If her earrings keep going missing, the cause is usually a worn or loose back rather than the type. We go through the common causes in Why do her earrings keep falling out?
What earring backs are best for stud earrings?
For studs worn every day by a child, the butterfly is the best back for stud earrings, with three conditions.
It's made of a named metal. The back sits against the skin behind her lobe all day. It touches her ear about as much as the front does.
It's finished the same way as the front. If the front is plated, the back should be plated the same way, not left as bare base metal.
It fits the post properly. Not so tight that it presses into her lobe, not so loose that it slides.
Butterfly backs get some bad press, mostly about cheap ones, which we look at in Are butterfly back earrings bad?
The back is usually the part nobody checks
Most parents look at the front of an earring, the part in the product photo. From the sourcing side, I can tell you the back is often treated as an afterthought. Backs are generic, and they're frequently made by a different supplier from the earring itself. That has a consequence parents rarely hear about. If a brand says its earrings were tested, the backs may not have been in the sample at all. Unknown factory, unknown quality, and no way of knowing whether the plating on the back matches the front.
The question I'd ask about any gold back is a blunt one. Is it 24 karat plating, or a gold color on a brass base?
A note on silicone and plastic backs
Silicone backs are useful for adding grip to a loose butterfly. On their own, they're less secure than metal, they hold residue, and they discolor over time. They're also rarely labeled with what they're made of, so if she uses them, replace them often.
When to replace a back
- It slides off the post with very little pressure.
- The loops have spread or bent out of shape.
- The finish has worn or the back has darkened.
- It's gone missing. A spare from another pair may be a different metal and size.
Healed ears only. If her lobe is red, sore or swollen around the back, take the earrings out and speak to her pediatrician.
What we do
We make butterfly-back studs only, because for a child's healed lobe the original design still does the job best.
Every purepixxi style has a security notch on the post. The butterfly sits on the lobe at the right tension, not too tight and not too loose. It's secure but removable: easy to put on, secure once it's on, and easy for her to take off.
The back is held to the same standard as the front. The S316L Surgical Steel core runs through the setting, the post and the butterfly back, and on the gold range the whole earring is then finished in pure 24 karat gold with Aunix™ 24K, our engineered gold finish, a gold-plating process. When we sent pairs to SGS, the setting, the post and the butterfly back were all tested, not just the front. Nickel release not detected under EN 1811. Report BTO 341803/1.
The 5mm Flawless Crystal Stud Earrings in 24K Pure Gold are a simple everyday stud on the same backs. The full range is on the 24K Pure Gold collection, and the wider buying questions are in How do I choose earrings for young ears?
Questions parents ask next
What earring back is best for sleeping? A flat back is usually the most comfortable against a pillow. A butterfly fitted at the right tension, not pushed hard against the lobe, is comfortable too.
Can I use any butterfly back on any earring? Only if the post diameter matches. A back made for a thicker or thinner post will grip badly, and it may be a different metal from the earring.
Are screw backs good for toddlers? They're hard to remove by accident, which is why they're sold for young children. They're also hard to clean and hard to remove quickly when you need to. Talk it through with her piercer.
Why do butterfly backs get loose? The two loops spread a little each time the back goes on and off. A gentle squeeze can tighten a steel back, but a back that keeps loosening is worn and should be replaced.
Do earring backs need cleaning as often as the earrings? More often, if anything. The inside of the loops is where residue collects. A soft toothbrush and warm soapy water clear it.
Related reading
- Are butterfly back earrings bad?
- What is a flat back stud?
- Why do her earrings keep falling out?
- How do I choose earrings for young 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.
