Are Clip-on Earrings Becoming More Popular?

5 min readSep 7, 2023

Clip on earrings are in fact gaining in popularity. There are a number of reasons for this, some are related to advantages recognized for over a century and some that are relevant to fashion as it stands today and as we know, fashion dictates popularity.

We live in a society that thrives on convenience and adaptability. This is no more evident than in the area of technology which includes the internet and the ever growing use of smart phones in our daily lives. This has made the delivery and obtaining of information so much easier such that people in general are better informed and more aware. Of course shopping has become so much easier — we can all shop online anywhere, any time — whilst on the bus or train on the way to work or whilst simply chilling out.

As it is with many products, demand has grown as a result of the convenience factor. So in the case of clip on earrings the awareness and availability factors have grown in recent years. Whilst less than 20% of the female population do not have their ears pierced and hence need to use clip style earrings if they want to adorn their ears, the greater percentage of earring wearers are becoming more aware of clip on earrings which have in the past been somewhat our of the mainstream.

Many online stores selling earrings for pierced ears, whether they be traditional styles like hook or stud or both, are now offering a selection of clip on earrings albeit a reduced range. The sparse availability of clip on earrings has for a long time been disconcerting for those who require them. These women (and indeed some men) have usually had to look hard for stores that stock this style of earring and then have had to settle for the meagre range that has been traditionally available. There are also more specific clip on earrings sites that offer fairly extensive selections

Back in the 1950’s and into the first half of the 1960’s clip-on earrings were well and truly in fashion, dictated to a certain degree by hairstyles of the era, lending themselves to showing off the larger heavier earrings that were in fashion at the time, which were unfortunately problematic when it came to the sometimes damage to the earlobe. The hook of these heavy earrings when worn regularly as was often the case could cause the skin of the inner of the pierced hole in the lobe to become irritated causing discomfort. This irritation of the skin could sometimes end up becoming infected which was painful. They even often resulted in an elongation or stretching of the hole or even of the lobe in some cases. This was also the case during the heyday of clip on earrings during the so called roaring twenties during the decade of the 1920's.

So the solution was to wear clip on earrings in these situations. Hence women who had their ears pierced would often wear clip-on earrings as well and typically have a selection of this style in their jewellery box in addition to standard earrings.

The wearing of large and often heavy earrings has somewhat remained a constant through the years when it comes to weddings so it is often that the bride and her bridal party will wear clip on earrings — another reason of course for this is that in a group of bridesmaids there often can be someone who has not had their ears pierced so the solution is for everyone to wear clipons, from the same source, to ensure they all look good.

Large earrings have come into fashion and gone out of fashion at various periods — not unlike many fashion accessories. Over recent years there has been a revival in long dangle earrings, some even far longer than they were in the iconic 1920’s — and there is a big trend in tassel style earrings. Both of these fashions are now readily available in clip earrings and as such many women now have the choices that they did not have previously.

One deterrent to some over the years has been comments from someone who wore clip earrings many years ago, back in the day, that clip on earrings were either too tight and resulted in discomfort or they were too loose and one would lose and earring, or both. The design and manufacture of clip on earrings has improved over time and importantly as discussed earlier, information is more readily at hand — there are many videos available online that show in detail how to adjust the tension of your clip on earrings if need be. As new the spring clip is pre-set by the maker, generally to a known ‘average’ pressure that will suit the greater majority of women — of course we are not all average so even when new your clip on earrings may need adjusting to be just as you require them to be. Over time the spring back may lose some tension or we are wearing heavier earrings or our ear lobe is ever so slightly thicker than it one was — in any case you van easily adjust the tension. So the old tales really should no longer be a deterrent.

Improvements in manufacturing and distribution and the competitiveness of the online space has generally had a positive downward effect on prices. These days you can buy a decent pair of costume clip on earrings for less than $20 and Sterling Silver for under $60 — still a few dollars more than the equivalent pierced earring but the gap has considerably closed. As always shop around for a bargain but be aware of quality if the price is too cheap.

Another factor affecting why clip on earrings are becoming more popular is the growth in demand for vintage fashion, of all types, whether it be clothes, shoes, jewellery or accessories, including earrings.

The demand for vintage clip on earrings is growing at a fast pace, ‘everything old is new again’. While the younger generations are discovering these wonderful jewellery pieces those who once upon a time wore clip on earrings are searching jewellery boxes for those that they still own and those that were passed on by their mother or grandmother — a revival is under way.

There are now simple, affordable and readily available adaptors to turn stud or post earrings into a clip on, such is the growing demand.

As is often the case variety is not only advantageous but also desired — having clip on earrings in your collection along with regular earrings makes sense.

Are Clip-on Earrings Becoming More Popular?

Written by Harmony Ball