Comfort Fit Ring vs. Flat Fit, Wedding Bands for Comfort

18kt Custom Made, Textured, Super Heavy Comfort Fit Band, 3.75 mm deep.

Not all wedding bands are created equal. In fact, there are bands out there parading as wedding bands that are a joke. They look like a wedding band and seem like one, till they bend and crack from the stress of daily wear. For lasting value, don’t just “pick one.”

Chose a quality, comfortable band that’ll be like a little friend, not an annoying “thing.” Two rings may look the same, but trust me, they’re not. Let’s explore the differences and make sure you’re a winner in the wedding band best-choices contest.

Wedding Band Weights

Bands commonly come in three different weights: light, medium, and heavy. The heavier the band, the thicker or deeper the ring will be and the more gold will have been used in its manufacture.

As you might have guessed, you’ll pay more for a heavier band than a lighter model.

Don't Buy This Ring, it is too Thin for Daily Wear. See How Bent up it is?

So, why get a band that costs a $100 more than an almost identical looking lighter one? Heavier rings are more durable and more likely to last through the slings and arrows of your amazing life. A lighter model is more susceptible to cracking and bending and may deteriorate more rapidly.

The other reason—pay attention guys—is that a heavier ring just feels better. A heavier band feels more substantial. Like it didn't come from a gumball machine or off a rickety table at the local swap meet. Think of it like the difference between a Smart car and Mercedes. If you can afford it, get the latter.

The Inner Shape of the Comfort Fit Ring

Notice the Inner Part of the Ring Appears Less Wide than the Exterior Width

You might not have been aware of it, but the inside of a band rings come in different shapes. Many inside band surfaces are flat. But happily some—like the Comfort Fit ring, give a narrower feel than their actual width when worn.

Most comfort fit rings also incorporate nice rounded surfaces. This helps your band slide off smoothly. For example a comfort fit band that is 6mm wide, may feel more like a 4mm width, due to its specialized inner shape. That 4mm feel will be much easier to slide over your knuckle.

Some Comfort Fit rings are convex, rounding up into your finger and some have a kind of soft edged bevel invisible from above that falls away from the finger, leaving a narrower area of contact.

Four Reasons Why a Wide, Flat-Inside Fit, for a Wide Band is a Huge Mistake

This 4 MM Wide Flat-Inside Band Works Fine

If I'm going to tell you why comfort fit is so awesome, I'd better tell you why flat inside can be such a disaster. A wide (minimum 6mm) flat-inside ring construction has an unintended flaw. The flat inside can create suction when going over the knuckle. Here are the steps of ring suction;

1. You start to pull the ring off and because it is wide it may bunch the finger skin in front of your knuckle.
2. This creates a skin barrier that I call, 'the skin dam.'
3. The skin dam stops your ring from easily going over your knuckle.
4. The flat surface somehow ends up creating suction and holding on instead of sliding over the knuckle.

Water and Contact Dermatitis and Flat Inside Fit Bands

Flat Inside with Rounded Angles at the Outer Edges

Many men have never worn a ring of any kind before they married. Suddenly they have to get used to having  ring on their finger all the time. For the record it usually takes three weeks to get used to wearing a ring all the time.

Since most men have never worn a band, (same thickness all the way around ring), they don't know what to look for when shopping for their wedding band. I've gotten a lot of calls over the years from new ring wearers concerned they may be allergic to gold wedding bands.

Usually they are not allergic. Reddish and irritated skin can come about merely because water with traces of soap can become trapped under the ring keeping the skin too damp. Traces of soap when in contact with the skin for too long can cause contact dermatitis. One thing in common in most of these cases is a wider ring and a flat inside construction. The longer skin is exposed to dampness, the greater the chance of rash and irritation.

The Comfort Fit design seems to help wick away dampness.

Comfort Fit is More Comfortable to Put on and Take Off

I always recommend Comfort Fit for any band wider than 6mm. It is at the 6mm width that sliding a ring off your finger can become more challenging. You may not realize that you need a larger ring size for a wide ring than a narrow ring. This suction situation is part of it. The other part of it is that the wider your ring is, the less you can wiggle it off. Its very width slows down the removal process. If you try on various widths of rings you'll find that you probably need at least a half a size larger to comfortably remove your ring.

Below is a diagram showing flat inside and light and heavy Comfort Fit.

They aren’t called “Comfort Fit” for no reason. Comfort Fit bands are simply more comfy to wear than flat-inside ones.

Side Edge Comfort or Round Edges

I prefer a band that is softly rounded at the edges as well as having that nice convex curve next to your finger.

Heavy and Light Comfort Fit Bands What’s the Difference?

The light comfort bands have less depth from top to bottom for example 2mm deep. A heavy comfort fit band could be 2.5 to 3mm deep at the center of the ring which is where it’d be measured.

A light comfort fit will not have as noticeable comfort curve underneath as the deeper heavy comfort band.

How Much is a Non-Comfort fit Band Compared to Comfort Fit or Heavy Comfort Fit Band?

I’m taking three wedding bands that look quite similar (not pictured) on casual glance and comparing them for you. Same size, same gold content, same width. The only changes are the inside shape.

Band #1

Dome top, flat inside, 1.55 millimeters deep
Size 8 14kt Yellow or White Gold
Price: $645.00

Band #2

Dome top light comfort fit inside, 1.7 millimeters deep
Size 8 14kt Yellow or White Gold
Price: $729.00

Band #3

Dome top, heavy comfort fit inside, 2.6 millimeters deep
Size 8, 14kt yellow or white gold
Price $1249.00

Prices 2015.

Stick with Gold and Platinum and Avoid Titanium and Tungsten and Alternate Metals

Comfort Fit Inside Does Not Feel As Noticeable on Wider Wedding Bands. This One is 14kt White Gold with Black Rhodium.

Gold and platinum can be sized and altered by your jeweler.

Alternate metals? Well if you want to know what I really think read my blog post, "Don’t Buy Titanium or Tungsten Wedding Bands."

If you don't have time, just know I DO NOT approve of alternate metals as wedding  bands.

What's  the Takeaway Message?

Looking Across This Ring See the Soft Roundedness of the Edge. This is Extremely Comfortable

If you’re planning on wearing a band for the rest of your life, do yourself a favor and get something that’s easy to take on and off and won’t irritate the daylights out of your finger. Whether you choose white gold, yellow, rose gold or platinum, go with a heavy comfort fit on the inside.

I actually custom make a lot of comfort fit wedding bands. A lot of guys I work with, like them when they are more noticeably comfort fitted on the inside. What I mean is the depth of the band. I often make between a 2.25mm and 3.5mm deep custom bands. I also like rounded edges. For a more angular design I like to do what I call rolled edges, where the whole ring is an angular design, but the edge that goes in contact with the knuckle I soften with subtle rounding.

The inside shape of any wedding band over 5.5 millimeters in width needs to be an important consideration on your wedding band shopping list.

In the trivia department, the ring at the top, I made that for my husband Jeremy. He has three wedding rings and one wife and wears that one all the time. He likes the thickness and how easy it goes on and comes off his beefy man hands.

So what’ll it be? Flat or comfort?

Your Comfort Loving Jeweler,
Calla Gold