Stainless Steel vs White Gold for Rings: Which Is a Better Choice?

A lot of people are faced with the choice of whether their ring should be made with white gold or Stainless Steel. Let’s go through the most important factors you should consider when deciding between these two materials and see how they compare.

Durability

Stainless Steel is a stronger metal than gold, which is known for its softness. Although a white gold alloy contains additional metals that make it harder, its durability still cannot compare to that of Stainless Steel.

Compared with a ring made of white gold, which is easier to wear down, bend, or even break, a Stainless Steel ring is much harder and more long-lasting.

However, over time, the plating wears off, exposing the yellowish tint of the gold alloy beneath. When that happens, to restore the luster and color of your white gold ring, you will need to have it replated with rhodium.

With Stainless Steel, you won’t need to pay for replating – the grayish, platinum-like color of your ring will stay the same over time.

Stainless Steel is available in more colors than white gold: You can buy a Stainless Steel ring in blue, red, black, and other hues.

Click here to browse a selection of Stainless Steel jewelry (for men’s Stainless Steel jewelry see here).

Unlike many other metals, Stainless Steel is not colored by adding additional substances but by simply changing the optical structure of its surface through the use of electricity.

Allergies

Some people are allergic to the nickel that is sometimes found in gold jewelry, but with Stainless Steel, you should not experience such problems.

For one thing, the Stainless Steel used in rings is very pure and hardly contains additional metals, and the material itself is hypoallergenic, meaning that it is unlikely to cause an allergic reaction.

White gold that contains nickel can sometimes cause a rash in people allergic to this metal, usually when the rhodium plating wears off in some places.

However, there is white gold jewelry that does not contain nickel, so if you are concerned about allergies, you should make sure your white gold ring is nickel free.

Weight

A Stainless Steel ring is surprisingly light and is pretty comfortable to wear. In fact, Stainless Steel is one of the most lightweight metals used in jewelry.

A white gold ring, on the other hand, will be noticeably heavier than a Stainless Steel ring of comparable size.

Repairs and Resizing

One of the downsides to Stainless Steel is that it is a very hard metal to work with. This means that repairing a Stainless Steel ring would be a pain.

The biggest problem with rings made of this metal is that resizing them is very hard, often impossible.

White gold rings, in contrast, are much easier to work with, and their parts can be altered with much less hassle.

If you choose to buy a Stainless Steel ring, you should take your time to select the design and size that best fit what you are looking for because any alterations may not be achievable later.

 You will also find that Stainless Steel is not as easy to scratch as white gold. Rings made of both materials can be polished if needed.

The article comes from China Chang’an stainless steel jewelry manufacturer - A2A, the website is www.stainlesssteelacc.com.