925 Silver vs 935 Silver
925 silver and 935 silver are one of the top priorities of buyers when it comes to silver jewelry making. But have you ever wondered what different numbers stand for in silver jewelry and how do their properties differ?
In this article we’ll discuss two types of silver i.e. 925 silver and 935 silver in detail including what specific properties do they have and what should you choose.
925 Silver
925 sterling silver or simply 925 silver is an alloy of silver used in jewelry making, It is composed of 92.5% silver and 7.5% copper or nickel. As it contains 92.5% silver, is named as 925 sterling silver. This alloy of silver is the most commonly used type in silver jewelry for its optimum balance of durability and shine. Apart from jewelry, 925 sterling silver is also used in household items like utensils, cookware etc.
Common stamps to spot such silver are “925“, “92.5” or “925 ster“.
Properties of 925 Silver
1. Affordability
925 sterling silver is one of the best options to have if you’re looking for a low budget metal. It is not only the cheapest alloy of silver metal, but also the most affordable of all the white colored metals available in the market. A good sized ring band will not cost you more than $35.
2. Tarnishing
Though it is known for its durability and toughness, it is also prone to tarnishing. Tarnishing is an effect in which silver reacts with moisture from air and forms a black colored chemical called silver oxide on surface of the jewelry. This gives an overall duller, dimmer and blackish look.
This tarnishing effect is treatable and your silver jewelry can look like a new one but it increases the overall level of maintenance and care.
3. Availability
925 sterling silver can easily be found in every jewelry store dealing in silver metal. As most of the silver jewelry is still made in 925 composition, you can easily buy or sell one of these. Another selling point of 925 sterling silver is its availability of customized designs and versatility.
935 Silver
935 silver or commonly known as 935 Argentium Silver is a relatively newer type of silver alloys containing 93.5% silver, 6% copper and 0.5% germanium. This type of silver alloy was specifically created to tackle the problem of tarnishing. Common hallmarks for 935 silver are “935” or “a flying unicorn” symbol specifically patented for this silver.
Argentium silver can also be formed in other compositions such as 940 argentium silver and 960 argentium silver containing 94% and 96% silver content respectively. In properties, all of the three types have almost similar properties.
In this particular article, we’re going to stick with 935 argentium silver only.
Properties of 935 Silver
1. Brighter Appearance
935 silver has a white lustrous bright color resembling costly metals like rhodium, platinum and white gold mainly due to greater silver percentage. Addition of germanium metal also plays an important role in enhancing this brighter appearance.
2. Non-Tarnishing
One of the biggest benefit tied to 935 silver is its non-tarnishing property. Mixture of different metals in the given proportion never allows tarnish to form and degrade the overall look of the metal. That’s why you do not only get prolonged shine on the surface but also longer shelf life of the metal.
3. Hypoallergenic
935 silver is a hypoallergenic metal meaning it does not react with your skin and you can safely use any cosmetics or skin oils when wearing this jewelry. In simple words, it will never turn your finger green or black. 925 Sterling silver can sometimes react with your skin due to the prescience of copper metal.
Full Comparison: 925 Silver vs 935 Silver
Here is a full one-on-one comparison between 925 silver and 935 silver.
Appearance
Appearance of a silver alloy is greatly affected by the percentage of silver content present. For example, sterling silver gives more of a darkish and duller tone due to less silver content (92.5%) compared to 935 silver.
On the other hand, 935 silver which is also a type of argentium silver, gives more of a bright, vibrant and lustrous appearane. This difference in appearance makes argentium silver a better choice.
Durability
Pure silver is a soft, easy to scratch and bent material. So, higher the percentage silver content in an alloy, more prone it will be to dents and scratches.
925 silver has a better tendency of resisting damages like bending, scratches and scuffs than 935 due to less silver percentage. This can be an issue if you are a person who does a lot of work involving force. With such a case, 925 silver will end up with less damages improving overall look of the jewelry.
Otherwise 935 is a better option if your daily routine work does not involve a lot of use of hand force.
Shelf Life
Shelf life is the time for which jewelry remains wearable. In silver jewelry, this time period totally depends on the extent to which a metal is exposed to tarnishing. As 925 sterling silver is more susceptible to tarnishing, it will have a shorter shelf life pf around 10 to 20 years.
On the contrary, 935 silver is a tarnishing free metal so you can basically wear it all of your life if protected from scratches and damages.
Availability
As 935 silver is a newer composition of silver, you can expect it to have less availability in online and offline jewelry brands. Due to this factor, one can expect to have big price variations among different online brands.
925 sterling silver is a much more common and easily available metal. You can find it in each and every jewelry store dealing in silver jewelry. Apart from this, a lot of jewelry designs and items are also available with customization options as well.
Cost
Cost is a very definitive factor between 925 and 935 silver. Where 925 silver is an affordable and inexpensive option to have, 935 silver is a quite expensive one. Price difference between these two can go as much as 5 times.
For example, you can expect to get a 9 mm 925 sterling ring of 23 mm diameter for around $23. And for a same ring made of 935 silver will cost you around $130. It must be noted that 935 and other types of argentium silver are the most expensive silver alloys out there.
Maintenance and Care
Maintenance and care play a vital role in defining the shelf life of a jewelry item. Jewelry items made of 925 silver require much more maintenance time from their owners which can be a problem for people with busy life routine.
If you are a regular wearer of jewelry, you can expect to clean your jewelry at least once every month. This includes regular cleaning to usage of tarnishing removing chemicals.
935 silver does not require much maintenance for cleaning and tarnishing purposes. The only thing you have to are for is external damages like scratches and dents.
Hallmarks
Jewelry hallmarks are the engraving made for showing authenticity of a jewelry piece. Ever metal contains their very own unique hallmark. Even same base materials with different composition also have different hallmarks and stamps.
925 silver comes with a standard hallmark of “925” present at the inner side of a ring or on a clasp of a necklace.
Similar to 925, 935 silver comes with a hallmark stamp of “935” along with a “flying unicorn” stamp showing that it is real authentic argentium silver.
Customization/Availability of Designs
Customization can be one of the most important factor for some people. Obviously, it allows one to have designs of their own choice. Luckily 925 silver checks all of these boxes. You can find a lot of different designs, textures and patterns which will be tailored according to your needs.
Unfortunately 935 silver do not have that much customization options available due to less availability. Most of the jewelry brands only offer already popular designs with very less customizability.
If you can compromise on this aspect of 935 silver, it is the best choice for anyone looking for a complete metal by spending a few dollars more.
Conclusion
925 sterling silver and 935 silver are two different forms of silver alloys. When it comes to appearance and maintenance part, 935 is the clear winner as it is a brighter lustrous metal which requires very less maintenance. In the durability and cost section, 925 silver is the clear winner as it is an affordable option with high strength.
It comes to one’s own set of preferences that what they want. If you’re one who can pay more for their jewelry and care for the overall appearance of the metal, 935 is for you. Otherwise 925 silver is a better choice.