Side Labret Piercing: Pain, Healing Time, Cost & Jewelry

A side labret is a labret piercing moved off-centre. Instead of sitting in the middle of the lower lip, above the chin, it sits to the left or the right of the midline. It is also called a side lip piercing.

It is one of the most popular lip placements, and the reason is simple: it is a standard, well-understood piercing with a more individual look.

How it differs from its neighbours

A single side labret is effectively one half of a set of snake bites. Whether it looks like a lone off-centre accent or the start of a pair is entirely in your plan for it.

The jewelry, the healing and the risks are the same as for a standard labret. The labret guide covers them in full, and types of lip piercings compares all twelve lip placements side by side.

Choosing the side

There is no medically better side. The practical questions are the ones in which side should you pierce:

• Which side you sleep on. A healing lip piercing pressed into a pillow is irritated all night. Pierce the side you do not sleep on, or sleep on your back.
• Which side you chew on and where you hold things. Straws, cups, phones and mask straps all end up near a lip piercing.
• How your face looks. Faces are not symmetrical, and a piercing that looks right on one side often looks different on the other. Ask your piercer to hold a stud against each side while you look in a mirror.

Placement

How far off-centre is a matter of taste and anatomy. What matters is that the piercer marks it while you are relaxed, smiling and talking, not only while you hold still. The lower lip and chin move with every expression, and a mark that looks perfect at rest can sit oddly when you smile.

The piercer will also check where the inside of the piercing will sit, so the jewelry avoids the blood vessels and nerves and rests against soft tissue rather than pressing on your gum. That is a matter of placing it carefully rather than a reason to avoid the piercing.

Pain

About 3 out of 10. The skin below the lip is thin and the needle passes in a moment. What people are less prepared for is the swelling over the following few days, which usually matters more than the piercing itself.

Healing

Two to three months.

• Days 1-5: noticeable swelling, tenderness, some difficulty eating and speaking clearly.
• Weeks 2-6: the swelling resolves, crusting on the outside, settling.
• Weeks 6-12: the channel finishes maturing.

Downsize at two to four weeks, as soon as the swelling has gone. The first stud has a long post to leave room for swelling, and once that room is not needed the extra length lets the inside disc press on your gum. Piercing downsizing explains it for every placement.

The gum and tooth question

This is the risk that lasts for years rather than weeks, and it applies to any piercing that opens inside the mouth.

The flat disc should lie flat against the inside of the lip. If the post is too long or the disc too large, it presses on the gum instead, and sustained pressure causes gum recession that does not grow back. Contact with the teeth can also chip enamel. The Association of Professional Piercers names playing with oral jewelry as the most frequent cause of tooth and gum damage, so keep it away from your teeth.

To reduce the risk:

• Downsize on time.
• Use a small, flat, smooth disc, not a large decorative back.
• Have the fit checked periodically, because lip shape and swelling change over the first months.
• Tell your dentist, so they can watch your gum line at check-ups.

Aftercare

A side labret needs two routines: one outside and one inside.

• Outside: sterile saline twice a day, patted dry with clean paper towel.
• Inside: rinse with alcohol-free mouthwash or saline after every meal, every drink other than water, and after smoking.

No kissing, sharing drinks or sharing cutlery for the first couple of weeks. Keep makeup, lip products and skincare away from the outside opening. The aftercare guide covers the general routine.

Jewelry

Start with a flat-back labret stud: 16 gauge, around 10 mm post, implant-grade titanium, downsized to roughly 6 to 8 mm once the swelling has gone. Threadless or internally threaded only. See the materials guide.

A ring is the classic upgrade, but only once the piercing has healed. A ring moves constantly against the inside of the lip and the front teeth. The flat back guide covers post lengths and gauges by placement.

Adding the other side

If you think you might want snake bites, say so at the first appointment. Doing both together means a piercer marks them against your face at the same moment, which is how they come out even. Adding a second piercing months later means matching against a healed one, and the two heal on different clocks.

A single side labret is a perfectly good finished piercing. Some people wear one for years and never add the second.

Problems

Gum irritation or recession is the long-term risk. If you notice gum sensitivity, redness, or the gum pulling back near the piercing, see your dentist.

Irritation bumps on the outside usually come from a post that needs downsizing or from makeup or skincare near the opening. See piercing bumps.

Infection near the mouth needs prompt attention: spreading redness, thick coloured discharge, swelling that increases after the first week, difficulty swallowing, or fever means a doctor the same day.

A lump that spreads beyond the piercing and keeps growing over months is a different problem: see the keloid guide.

Cost

$30 to $70 for the piercing in a US studio, plus $20 to $60 for a titanium flat-back stud. Many studios price a second piercing lower when it is done in the same appointment.

This article is for education only and is not medical advice. If a piercing is hot, swollen, spreading redness, oozing yellow or green discharge, or you have a fever, see a doctor today.