| GAUGE |
DIAMETER (IN) |
DIAMETER (MM) |
COMMON USES |
| 10 gauge |
0.1019 in. |
2.588mm |
Very thick wire. Often used by silver smiths using forging or welding techniques. Good for chokers, stiff bracelets, rings. |
| 12 gauge |
0.0808 in. |
2.052mm |
Still very thick wire, still hard to bend intricately by hand. Good for chokers, stiff bracelets, even wire-sculpted rings. |
| 14 gauge |
0.0641 in. |
1.628mm |
Heavier Wire. Good for chokers, stiff bracelets, even wire-sculpted rings. |
| 16 gauge |
0.0508 in. |
1.290 mm |
Heavy Wire. Commonly used for chokers, heavy-duty clasps |
| 18 Gauge |
0.0403 in. |
1.024mm |
Med-Heavy Wire. Good for making clasps, chokers, wire sculptures. |
| 20 Gauge |
0.0320 in. |
0.8128mm |
Medium wire. Size most often recommended for creating wire-jewelry using wire jigs and other wire sculpturing techniques. Good for making heavy-duty earwires and lightweight clasps because it’s still pretty easy to work with but strong as well. Dead soft is best, as thicker wire starts getting harder to bend. About 19 feet of 20 gauge wire to the ounce. |
| 22 Gauge |
0.0253 in. |
0.6426mm |
Medium-Fine Wire. Very versatile size because it is pretty thick but most beads (like crystals and stone beads) can fit on it. Dead soft is a good way to go with this wire. Good for making earwires, headpins, and rosary style wrapped links. One ounce of 22 gauge has about 31 feet of wire. |
| 24 Gauge |
0.0201 in. |
0.5105mm |
Fine wire. Good for beads that have small holes in them such as pearls. Half-hard is good in this size as it adds a little bit of body and strength to a slender wire. Good for making rosary-style beaded links. In an ounce of 24 gauge there is about 48 feet of wire. |
| 26 Gauge |
0.0159 in |
0.4039mm |
Very fine wire. Good for beads that have small holes in them such as pearls. Half-hard is good in this size as it adds a little bit of body and strength to a very slender wire. Good for making rosary-style beaded links. In an ounce of 26 gauge wire there is about 76 feet of wire. |
| 28 Gauge |
0.0126 in. |
*0.3200mm |
Extremely fine wire, not much wider than a human hair. Mostly used for wire crocheting and wire knitting. Hard to handle, tendency to get tangled. |
