Complete Beginner Nose Piercing Chart: A 2024 Guide

More than one in ten men and almost three-quarters of women have a piercing of some kind. While ear piercings represent the more traditional option, nose piercings have grown in popularity.

If you don't have much experience with piercings, though, getting started can bewilder you. You might want to know how fast your piercing will heal, or how much the process will hurt.

Let's take the uncertainty out of the process. Keep reading our beginner nose piercing chart and we'll show you what you need to know.

Basics of the Beginner Nose Piercing Chart

"Nose piercings" include many styles and locations of piercing. Learning the jargon can help you identify which kind of piercing you want. We'll kick this chart off with the basic nose piercing types.

Nostril Piercings

Most people start their nose piercing journey with a nostril piercing. Nostril piercings can use a wide variety of nose jewelry, hurt less than many other piercing types, and range from flashy to unobtrusive.

One advantage of the nostril piercing comes from its small size. If you decide you like the look of nostril piercings, you can have multiple piercings on the same nostril.

Septum Piercings

Septum piercings go through the middle part of your nose. Most septum piercings take the form of a ring, though other shapes can also feature in a septum piercing.

Septum piercings and nostril piercings make up the most common nose piercing types. Any beginner piercing guide will cover both, and any reputable piercer can perform them.

The Columella

When piercers perform a septum piercing, they look for a thin portion of flesh with no cartilage inside it called a columella. Going through the columella reduces the time spent healing and sometimes improves the appearance of the piercing as well. This improvement in results leads piercers to call the columella a sweet spot.

Not all people have a columella of sufficient size to let a piercing through. If this happens, the piercer will need to go through cartilage.

Cartilage Piercings

The rigid part of the middle of your nose, called septum cartilage, can also hold a piercing. If you remain dead set on a septum piercing after finding out you have a small columella, you can expect healing times of up to a year. This slow healing occurs because the septum cartilage receives less blood than the sweet spot.

High Nostril Piercings

High nostril piercings work like nostril piercings, only they sit higher up on the nasal bridge. This position reduces the flexibility of the piercing, as conventional nose rings will not fit most noses with a high nostril piercing.

You can still use smaller nose jewelry options, such as studs and L-shaped rings, in a high nostril piercing. Talk to your piercer about the best choice for your nasal anatomy.

Bridge Piercing

The bridge piercing sits at the top of the nose, between the eyes. The exact location of the bridge depends a lot on the anatomy of the wearer's nose.

Bridge piercings often scare off people new to nasal jewelry, as they wonder if the piercing had to go through bone. Bridge piercings do not go through bone, but instead pierce only the surface-level skin, coming to rest atop the bones.

At the same time, though, this trait of bridge piercings invites curiosity from people unfamiliar with nose jewelry. They may ask whether the piercing goes through the bone, or how much it hurt when your piercer placed it.

Rhino Piercing

Rhino piercings have earned some notoriety on TikTok in recent years. The rhino piercing makes a vertical pass through the tip of the nose, earning the name from its similarity to a rhinoceros horn. (The root "rhino" comes from the Greek word meaning "nose," so this makes a funny set of transitions in language.)

Rhino piercings cause more discomfort than other types due to the larger number of nerve endings in the tip of the nose. Expect a little pain when you get a rhino piercing.

Austin Bar Piercing

The Austin bar piercing plays sideways cousin to the rhino piercing. Where the rhino piercing passes through the tip of the nose up and down, the Austin bar enters left to right.

Like the rhino piercing, the Austin bar ranks higher on the pain scale than most other piercings. If you get squeamish about needles, consider nostril piercings or conventional ear piercings before looking at an Austin bar.

Septril Piercing

This type of piercing requires the wearer to get a septum piercing and let it heal to completion first. After this, you need to expand the opening left by the piercing. The septril piercing then goes through the tip of the nose and exits through the septum piercing's fistula, allowing it to protrude straight from the front of the nose.

Not everyone makes a great candidate for a septril piercing. Some people's anatomy makes it much harder to get a clean, good-looking rhino piercing. It can also require more piercing aftercare than some other forms of nose piercing.

Third Eye Piercing

The third eye piercing sits higher up than the bridge piercing, often at or a bit above the level of the eyebrows. Some piercers refer to these as Medusa piercings, Medusa eye piercings, or forehead dermal piercings.

Some people worry that a third eye piercing will leave a scar. This does happen, but a reputable piercer will take care to minimize the appearance of a scar from a third eye piercing.

Nasallang Piercing

A nasallang piercing combines the features of a septum piercing and a nostril piercing. It enters the body through one nostril, passes through the septum, and comes out through the other nostril. These piercings look similar to a pair of identical studs.

Nasallang piercings cannot enter most people's nasal sweet spots. This type of piercing goes through the septum cartilage in almost all cases, meaning you can expect higher nose piercing healing times.

Piercing Size

Most piercings use an 18G or 20G needle, though some require a 16G needle. Note that in this measurement system, the lower number means a larger size.

Piercers sometimes use a somewhat larger needle than the final piercing to create the initial hole. For some piercings, this can encourage better healing. The decision of what needle to use rests with your piercer, and a good piercer will make appropriate judgment calls based on your anatomy and chosen jewelry.

Piercings, Discomfort, and Pain

People new to body piercings often have concerns about the pain or discomfort they may experience during the process. The answer clocks in at a solid "it depends." Some nose piercings barely cause any discomfort, while others can cause significant pain if you're not ready.

The more rigid an area is and the more nerve endings it has, the more discomfort you'll experience. The easiest areas to pierce have more fatty tissue and a floppier overall feel.

Piercing Aftercare

When you get a piercing, the area will often feel irritated or tender for some time. Avoid pressing against this area and keep it clean to minimize these difficulties.

Your piercing may form a yellow or off-white crust. This happens as a result of the normal healing process, so you should avoid picking at it or rubbing at it. If the appearance or smell causes any distress, you should use a cotton swab soaked with saline or sterile water to wipe it with a gentle touch.

While you may face the temptation to use wound care products like rubbing alcohol or antibacterial creams, do not apply these to your piercing site. These can irritate the area.

If you suspect an infection, contact your physician as well as your piercer. The nature of infected piercing sites varies, so get some experts involved to make judgment calls.

Letting Your Piercing Heal

While having a new piece of metal in your body presents temptations and irritations, do not play with the piercing. Rotating and moving it can lead to infections and poor healing.

Remember that a piercing can close faster than you expect. Leave your piercing in at all times during the healing process. If you need a medical procedure that requires the removal of a metallic piercing, contact your piercer and ask about a temporary non-magnetic alternative.

You may need to check for piercing tightness sometimes while your piercing heals. When you do this, use clean hands to prevent healing setbacks.

Loving Your New Look

This beginner nose piercing chart can get you started, but it won't cover every issue. Once you decide on the piercing you want, do more research specific to that type, and don't hesitate to contact a piercer to learn more. Your piercer wants you to be happy with the jewelry you choose.

If you're looking for a piercing, take a look at our collection. At Body Pierce Jewelry, we have body jewelry for many different body parts and offer a balance of style and affordability. If you need help finding anything or want to learn more about specific piercing options, contact us today.