The short answer: under 5 mm reads as jewellery, 6 to 9 mm reads as a chain, and above 10 mm reads as a statement. A first chain usually lands somewhere in the 6 to 9 mm range. The wider end is where our range is deepest — 10,5 and 12,2 mm Cuban, 11,3 mm curb — and it is what we are known for.
The longer answer is that millimetres on a product page tell you almost nothing on their own. A number on a screen has no scale, and — as the weights below show — two chains with the same width reading can contain very different amounts of silver. This guide shows every width we offer, to scale, with what each one actually weighs.
Every width we offer, with real weights
All weights are for a 50 cm necklace, so they are directly comparable.
| Width | Style | Weight (50 cm) |
|---|---|---|
| 3,8 mm | Franco | 36 g |
| 4,6 mm | Rope | 36 g |
| 4,7 mm | Franco | 55 g |
| 5,7 mm | Rope | 48 g |
| 6 mm | Cuban link | 49 g |
| 6,4 mm | Curb | 43 g |
| 6,8 mm | Rope | 87 g |
| 7,6 mm | Rope | 104 g |
| 8,9 mm | Curb | 66 g |
| 9,1 mm | Cuban link | 98 g |
| 10,5 mm | Cuban link | 130 g |
| 11,3 mm | Curb | 113 g |
| 12,2 mm | Cuban link | 178 g |
Why the same millimetre can mean very different chains
Read down that table and the numbers do not climb smoothly, because width measures the chain's profile, not how much metal is inside it. Three comparisons make the point:
- 4,6 mm rope: 36 g. 4,7 mm Franco: 55 g. Essentially identical width readings, and the Franco holds about 50% more silver. Franco's square, densely stacked links leave almost no air in the chain.
- 6,8 mm rope: 87 g. 8,9 mm curb: 66 g. The narrower chain is the heavier one by a clear margin. Curb links are thin relative to their width and sit with visible gaps between them; rope packs twisted strands into the full profile.
- 6 mm Cuban: 49 g. 6,4 mm curb: 43 g. The wider chain is lighter, because the Cuban's links are thicker in section and seat more deeply into one another, packing more metal into a narrower profile. Cuban link vs curb chain takes that pair apart at every width we offer.
So if what you care about is how substantial a chain feels, read the gram weight, not just the width. If what you care about is how far it carries across a room, read the width. How each of the four link constructions is built, and why that changes the weight, is the subject of our guide to the four silver chain styles.
Weight is not only something you feel, though. A heavy chain holds its curve, sits where you put it and moves as one piece instead of flapping, and that is a large part of what makes a chain look authoritative rather than thin. Two chains can measure the same and only one of them will hold the eye. Width is what carries at distance; weight is what convinces up close.
What each width looks like worn
The four photographs below show the same person, the same sweatshirt and the same camera distance, on a 39 cm neck — only the chain changes. That is deliberate: it means the widths can be compared against each other rather than against four different bodies. Put a tape measure around your own neck and you have a direct reference for everything below.
3,8 – 4,7 mm: jewellery
Sits close to the skin and disappears entirely under a collar or a crew neck. Visible at conversational distance, not from across a room. These are the widths to choose if you want to wear silver every day without thinking about it, or if the chain is going to carry a pendant that should be the focus.
The Franco at 4,7 mm is the interesting one here: it is a fine chain by width but a substantial one by weight, at 55 g. It is the most metal you can wear without it reading as a visible chain — which is why it is the one chain that competes with a 6 mm Cuban link on weight rather than on width.
5,7 – 6,8 mm: everyday chain
The middle of the range, and where most first chains land. Reads clearly as a chain rather than as a fine necklace, works with an open collar, and still sits under a shirt if you want it to. Roughly 43 to 87 g depending on style.
If you are buying a first silver chain and want one decision rather than five, a 6 mm Cuban or a 6,4 mm curb at 50 or 55 cm is the easiest decision in the range. The Cuban reads as more of a chain for the same money in width terms; the curb is the quieter of the two. If that is the decision you are stuck on, how the two compare in construction, weight and clasp is set out in full.
8,9 – 10,5 mm: deliberate
Visible from across a room. This is where a chain stops reading as an accessory and starts being the thing people register first — which is the reason to buy at this width. It is also where weight becomes something you notice through the day — 98 g for a 9,1 mm Cuban, 130 g at 10,5 mm. Both are comfortable, but they are present in a way the 6 mm widths are not.
Works best with an open collar or a crew neck that lets the chain sit on fabric rather than fighting a lapel.
11,3 – 12,2 mm: statement
At this width the chain is the outfit's main event. A 12,2 mm Cuban at 60 cm is 212 g — nearly a quarter of a kilo of solid silver. At this weight it wants to be the only chain on, and on show rather than under a collar.
One practical note: wide chains need length. A 12,2 mm chain at 50 cm sits high on the neck and can look constricted. At 60 cm it has room to fall and the proportions work.
Matching width to build
The same 9 mm chain sits differently on a 38 cm neck than on a 45 cm one, which is why the 39 cm reference above is worth measuring yourself against. Every width in our range can be worn at any build — this is about where each one reads most easily, not about what you are allowed to wear:
- Slimmer build or narrower neck: 4 to 7 mm is the easiest place to start. Wider works too — on a narrower frame a 10 or 12 mm chain reads as deliberately oversized, which is exactly the look for some people. Give it length if you go that way: 55 or 60 cm rather than 50.
- Average build: everything in the range works. Choose by how visible you want the chain to be, not by fit.
- Broader build or wider shoulders: 6,4 mm and up reads clearly at any distance, and 9 to 12 mm reads as proportionate rather than loud. The narrow widths work here too — on a broader frame they read as fine, understated jewellery rather than as a chain, which is exactly right if that is the look you want.
Length interacts with all of this. Where 50, 55 and 60 cm actually fall on the chest, and how a chain reads against a particular neckline, both change the answer — and both are worth treating separately from width.
Bracelet widths
The same ladder applies to bracelets, with one difference worth knowing: everything reads wider on a wrist, because there is less of it and it is seen closer. A 6 mm bracelet is more present than a 6 mm necklace. Sizing has its own rules, which are worth treating separately.
What every width has in common
Every chain in the table is solid 925 sterling silver, made in Italy, stamped 925 and Italy. Solid is what makes the gram weights what they are: a hollow chain of the same width would weigh a fraction as much while carrying the same stamp, which is one of the things the 925 mark does not tell you.