Types of Silver

Learn about different types of silver alloys used in jewelry.
Expand your knowledge so you can be an expert on all things silver!

About Silver

There are many types of silver available on the market today. It is important to be familiar with the competing metals in the marketplace in order to educate your customers about silver quality standards and alternatives in the industry. Don’t assume you are buying sterling silver jewelry supplies when something is called “silver.” Below you will find definitions and comparisons of the different silver metals used to make jewelry around the world.

Silver Alloys

First, customers need to understand that silver used in jewelry is usually an alloy which means a metal mixture of two or more elements from the periodic table. Silver is an element. Other metallic elements are alloyed with silver for various reasons that are described below.

Quality Marks

Second, a lot of finished silver jewelry will have a quality stamp somewhere on the piece. This is the quickest way to identify quality. There are cases of fraudulent marking but they are fairly rare. These tiny markings may only be legible under magnification. However, jewelry items or components are only required to bear a stamp when there is a surface area available. For that reason, small findings and components are often unstamped even though they are quality alloys. Quality stamp standards are described in the sections below.

Silver Grades

1. Fine .999 Silver

Fine silver is the closest metal to the pure element silver. It is marked .999 which indicates 99.9% purity. The 0.1% remainder consists of trace elements of insignificant quantity. Fine silver has a more vitreous luster than the bright polish of sterling. It appears grayer and slightly dull. This type of silver is quite soft and will scratch, dent and change shape fairly easily. For that reason, it is less common in jewelry because items will not wear well over time.

However, there are benefits to fine silver. It is easy to form, it fuses without solder and it is highly resistant to tarnish. Fine silver is best for earrings or necklaces instead of rings or bracelets that are bumped and scratched more frequently because it is such a soft metal. Silver clay products reduce to fine silver and have increased the demand for pure silver jewelry in the US market. Hill Tribe silver is often .999 as well. The most common quality stamp on this metal is .999 FS or just .999.

2. Sterling .925 Silver

Sterling is the jewelry quality standard in the United States and most world markets. It is an alloy of 92.5% silver. The remaining 7.5% is usually copper though it is sometimes other metals such as nickel. The other metals in the alloy increase hardness so the material will be more durable. Alloy additions also create the color and luster that is so prized by consumers. Sterling silver is the silver color we are most familiar with and the most common type of silver in US jewelry stores. It is very bright and shiny but it will tarnish. Tarnish is easy to clean with readily available polishing products. Sterling silver is harder than fine silver but it is still soft compared to other metals. Fine sterling silver chain and thin metals can be stretched or “drawn” under tension. And jewelry will be scratched or dented if it is banged around. Sterling can be soldered, formed and annealed repeatedly. The most common quality stamps are .925 and Stg. Halstead is a market leader in sterling silver jewelry supplies.

3. Silver

Jewelry sold as just “silver” is a bit of a mystery. The term is thrown around in the market as a color descriptor, especially in fashion. However, in the jewelry trade, items should be clearly identified as a specific standard quality. If not, it is unlikely that the silver alloy is of very high quality. Jewelry artists and manufacturers are legally required to either stamp pieces when space permits or tag finished products with quality designations.

4. Silver Plated

This is a base metal type of silver with an extremely thin plating layer of silver applied to the surface. Even when jewelry is described as fine silver-plated, the overall silver content is a tiny fraction of a percent. Silver-plated jewelry is affordable costume jewelry. Plating can tarnish and will eventually wear off to expose the base metal underneath. Costume jewelry will not have a quality stamp but it may bear the manufacturers logo or hallmark.