Tragus Piercing [20+ Ideas]: Pain Level, Healing, Cost, Experience

Ready to fall in love with a new ear piercing? Tragus piercings are a popular choice for a many piercing enthusiasts! Here you’ll find all the information you need about piercing procedure, pain level, overall experience, recommended aftercare & healing time of the tragus piercing.

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Check out the photo gallery with 20+ photos to get an idea of how different jewelry will look in your new piercing.

What Is a Tragus Piercing?

The tragus piercing is located on the small patch of hard cartilage just above your earlobe. This unique piercing is more visible than some other ear piercings since it is right in front of the ear canal where your face ends.

There are 3 types of the tragus piercings:

The vertical tragus piercing is the traditional version. The cartilage is pierced straight through so that gems or studs really shine.
The surface tragus piercing is a surface piercing in the same location. The skin on the edge of the face is pierced instead of the cartilage, and a small barbell is the standard jewelry of choice.
The double or triple tragus piercing is ideal for anyone who wants variety. The most common combination is one piercing above and one piercing below the tragus edge. This style can be used to create patterns with the associated jewelry.

tragus piercing image

surface tragus piercings

tragus piercing hoop piercing tragus

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Should You Get a Tragus Piercing?

Getting pierced is an important decision, so let’s weigh out the pros and cons.

Pros:

The tragus piercing is a subtle piercing, especially if you have longer hair. This piercing is great for anyone wanting to test the waters of cartilage piercings for the first time.
Although tragus piercings aren’t always obvious, you can get more creative with different types of jewelry than with some other ear piercings. Your tragus can be dressed up or down for any occasion!

Cons:

Check your tragus first! You may not be able to get pierced here if you have either thin or short cartilage. Surface tragus piercings are still an option if you’ve really fallen in love with the idea.
Tragus piercings require you to be very careful during the healing process. The potential for infection is high, since it’s closer to your face than other ear piercings. Following proper aftercare instructions will drastically reduce your chances of infection during the healing period.

ear piercing tragus trachea piercing image ragus pierced men

Tragus Piercing and Headaches

There is some evidence that certain ear piercings can assist in pain relief from migraines. Like acupuncture, puncturing specific spots can stimulate certain reflexes. Tragus piercings are said to help some with migraine pain relief, so regular migraine sufferers might consider a tragus piercing more than non-sufferers.

Some evidence also suggests that there are specific nerves in the tragus area which influence appetite control. Tragus piercings could even help you to manage your eating habits as well as possible migraine relief.

Tragus Piercing Procedure

After discussing the details with your piercer and picking jewelry, your instruments will be sterilized and your piercer will prepare for the procedure. You’ll lie down on your back so your piercer can clean the area and get a trustworthy view of what they’re doing the whole time.
A cork will placed into the ear canal to avoid inner ear damage. This is to protect the rest of your ear from the force used on your thick ear cartilage to puncture it.
Your piercer will mark the location of the piercing with a surgical pen. After confirming this with you and clamping down, the needle will be forced through your cartilage.
The jewelry will be threaded through the piercing needle and secured immediately after for a tight fit.
Your piercer will discuss necessary aftercare and answer any other questions you might have.

You can watch how the tragus gets pierced here and here.

Thinking of doing it yourself? Read our post on DIY piercing.

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How Much Do Tragus Piercings Hurt?

6 out of 10

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The tragus piercing is not the most painful piercing out there. However, many people rate it as a 6 out of 10 on the pain scale, which isn’t exactly pleasant. You’ll feel a sharp pain when the needle punctures your cartilage, but this is short-lived. After this initial pain, the swelling and irritation will reduce in the next few days.

The associated pain rating is dependent on your pain threshold, and everyone is different. Consider your individual pain tolerance, the thickness of your cartilage and your overall well-being when weighing out your decision.

Additional reading: Least to most painful piercings.

outer tragus piercing forward tragus piercing

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Healing and Aftercare

Bleeding and swelling are normal directly after having your tragus pierced. The initial healing phase can last up to three days depending on your body. Pay close attention to any potential problems during this period. This is most commonly when piercing bumps or infected ear canals become a problem. Call your piercer or doctor if your primary side-effects are not gone after three days.

If everything goes well, your tragus piercing will take 3-9 months to heal completely.

During the healing time, keep in mind the following general care tips:

Always wash your hands before touching your jewelry.
Do not hold your phone or clothing over your piercing for prolonged periods of time.
Avoid sleeping on your piercing as this can cause irritation.
Choose your initial jewelry carefully. Quality jewelry decreases the likelihood of jewelry rejection. Contact your piercer if you have an ear bump or you think your body is rejecting your jewelry.
Do not change your jewelry until healing is complete.
Clean your piercing at least twice per day to avoid infection.

Tragus Image gallery

double tragus piercing image stud and cbr

Recommended Aftercare Products

Sea salt

This piercing care sea salt is excellent for a gentle saline solution & piercing cleaner.

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Piercing aftercare spray

Saline spray is ideal for anyone on-the-go since it’s easy to throw in your bag.

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How to Clean Your Tragus Piercing

Get used to cleaning your piercing twice per day, preferably in the morning and before bed. Mix a saline solution using one gallon of distilled water and four tablespoons of sea salt. To clean your piercing, soak a clean pad or towel in your saline solution. If you notice crusted debris, hold the pad onto your piercing until the debris loosens up. Wipe down both sides of your piercing with the pad. Try not to move your jewelry around as you clean your piercing to avoid further irritation.

Read more about the best cleaning solutions for a new piercing.

How to Change Your Jewelry

Always remember to keep your jewelry intact until your piercing is completely healed. The tragus can be a difficult location to work with. You can always go to your piercer if you need help, but here are some handy tips for changing your jewelry at home:

Tie your hair back if you have longer hair that will get in the way.
Wash your hands & sterilize both your new jewelry and your piercing.
Expose your piercing by pulling the cartilage forward with your fingers.
Unscrew your jewelry and carefully pull it out of the piercing.
Quickly place the new jewelry into your piercing. It only takes a few hours for your piercing to permanently close, so it’s important to be fast with this process.

You can watch others changing their tragus jewelry here.

Best Jewelry

Rings, studs and barbells are the most common options for tragus piercings, but the styling options are limitless! It’s important to remember not to use larger jewelry in your tragus piercing. You can always size up from studs after your piercing has healed. Check out the links below and discover your new favorite tragus jewelry!

MoBody 4 Pieces 16G Tragus Cartilage Helix Earrings
OUFER Body Jewelry Heart CZ Left Closure
Bow Ribbon with CZ Accents Tragus Barbell
Stainless Steel Cartilage Tragus Snowflake
BODYA 16g Surgical Steel 5-Gem Curved Synthetic Opal
JOVIVI 2-5pc 16G Stainless Steel Cubic Zirconia Horseshoe Multi-functional Captive Hoop Ring Barbell
18G Golden Mermaid Scales Inspiration Dezigns Cartilage Tragus Earring
Amelia Fashion 16 Gauge Heart Shaped Tragus/Cartilage Earring Stud 316L Surgical Steel
Ruifan Crystal Tiny Tragus Cartilage Piercing Ring 20G 8mm

How Much Does a Tragus Piercing Cost?

In the US, the cost ranges from $25 to $50.
In the UK, the cost ranges from £18 to £35.
In Europe, the cost ranges from €20 to €40.

Tragus Piercing Experience

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Christina Andrusenko

My name is Christina. I’m passioned about piercing. I have 2 piercings for 17 years: Earlobe and Madonna. I used to have 3rd one before – nose piercing.

It pisses me off when I can’t find proven information about piercing type I interested in. That is why Piercee was created.