A flat ear piercing goes through the smooth patch of cartilage in your upper ear, between the outer rim and the inner ridge. Piercers often rate the pain around 5 out of 10. Healing can take anywhere from six months to two years. You start with a flat back stud, and hoops usually come last.
It’s a small, quiet piercing that looks good on its own or as part of a stack. The part people underestimate is the healing, so most of this article covers what happens after you leave the studio.
Where the Flat Sits
The flat is the level stretch of cartilage just inside the curve of your outer ear rim, which is where a helix piercing goes. Run a fingertip along the top of your ear and you’ll feel the rim first, then a mostly flat area, then the raised inner ridge. That middle area is the flat.
Ears differ a lot here. Some people have a wide flat area and others have a narrow strip with very little room for jewelry. That’s why a good piercer marks the spot first and lets you look at it before anything happens. If you want to see where the flat falls among the other placements, our guide to types of ear piercings lays them out side by side.
How Much a Flat Ear Piercing Hurts
Piercers usually put the flat at around 5 out of 10, a little above a helix piercing. Pain is personal, so treat that number as a rough guide. Most of it comes in the second the needle goes through, a sharp pinch followed by pressure. Afterward the area feels tender and a bit swollen, which the Association of Professional Piercers lists as normal in the early days.
Ask for a needle, not a piercing gun. The same association says guns push a blunt stud through the tissue with force, and that on cartilage this can cause shattered cartilage, heavy scarring and serious infection. Its members don’t use reusable guns at all, and the reasons are laid out on its piercing guns page.
Prices vary by studio and city, so any number I gave you would be wrong for someone. Ask whether the quote includes the jewelry, since many studios charge the piercing fee and the jewelry separately.
How long a flat piercing takes to heal
Studios don’t agree on this one. Some say six to twelve months, others say nine to twelve, and some quote up to two years. Cartilage gets less blood flow than an earlobe, which is a big part of why it heals slowly. The Association of Professional Piercers also points out that a piercing can feel fine on the outside while the inside is still fragile, because it heals from the outside in. So plan for the longer end of the range, and let your piercer tell you when it’s done instead of going by how it looks.
Some swelling and tenderness are normal early on. Later you may notice itching and a little crust on the jewelry, which the association also lists as normal.
One thing worth asking about at the start is a downsize. The first post is usually left long to leave room for swelling. Once the swelling settles, a shorter post sits closer and snags less, and the association says many piercings need this change before they’ve fully healed. Have your piercer do it. Swapping jewelry yourself in the first few months is a common way to set healing back.
Jewelry to start with
Almost every studio starts a flat with a flat back stud, also called a labret. The flat disc sits against the back of your ear, so it doesn’t dig in when you sleep or wear headphones. The front can be a plain disc, a small gem or a gold bead.
What the jewelry is made from matters more than how it looks. The association says initial jewelry should be implant-grade titanium or solid gold of 14k or higher, and that gold plated, gold filled and vermeil pieces aren’t acceptable for fresh piercings because the thin gold layer can wear or chip off. The full list of safe metals is on its jewelry for initial piercings page. Titanium is also the usual pick if you react to nickel. It recommends internally threaded or threadless ends too, so no screw threads get dragged through the piercing. Skip cheap earrings of unknown metal, even if they look identical.
Why hoops come last
Most guides skip this part. A hoop looks like the obvious upgrade, and it’s one of the first things people shop for after a new piercing. But the flat is a level surface, and a ring has nothing to tuck in against. It sits up off the ear, swings, and catches on hair, collars, scarves and mask loops. Some piercers won’t put a hoop in a flat at all.
Anything that tugs on a healing piercing is a problem. The association warns that friction and too much motion can lead to scar tissue, migration and slower healing, and it says rings suit some placements while studs and bars suit others. A stud stays put, and a hoop is a question for later, once the piercing is fully healed and your piercer has checked that the ring is large enough for your ear.
If you want a fuller look in the meantime, add more studs nearby. The conch piercing guide covers another placement that also wears flat back studs well.
Aftercare for the upper ear
Your upper ear gets bumped by pillows, phones, hair and glasses all day, so a flat piercing needs more care than one tucked out of the way. The association recommends a sterile saline wound wash that lists 0.9% sodium chloride as its only ingredient. You spray it on, then dry the area gently with gauze or a cotton swab. Skip homemade sea salt mixes, which tend to come out too strong, and leave out alcohol, hydrogen peroxide and antibacterial soap. Don’t twist or spin the jewelry, and don’t over-clean, because that irritates the piercing too.
Sleeping is where flats often go wrong. Lying directly on a healing cartilage piercing can irritate it and even shift its angle. The association suggests putting a travel pillow on top of your regular pillow and resting your ear in the opening. Keep your pillowcase clean too. Wipe down your phone, headphones and glasses, and wash hats and scarves regularly. Tell your hairstylist about the piercing before they start.
If you think the piercing is infected, see a doctor. Ask them whether to leave the jewelry in rather than pulling it out yourself, since the association advises talking that through with a physician.
Before you book
Look for a piercer who works with needles and will show you the jewelry material before they use it. Ask them to mark the spot and hold up a mirror so you can see the placement on your own ear. Then ask when you should come back for the downsize. If a studio can’t answer those three questions, book somewhere else.
