A nasallang runs through the right nostril, the septum, and the left nostril in one straight line, so a single bar connects all three. From the front it can look like a septum piercing plus two nostril piercings; it is actually one piece of jewelry on one continuous path.
It is one of the most demanding piercings this site covers, both to place and to heal, and it is not a first piercing for anyone.
One bar, three walls of cartilage
Most nose piercings pass through a single point. A nasallang passes through three: the cartilage wall of one nostril, the septal cartilage in the middle, and the cartilage wall of the other nostril, all in one motion with a single needle and a single bar.
This is different from an industrial, which is also described as passing through two points on one bar, because an industrial’s two piercings are done as two separate passes moments apart. A nasallang’s three points are pierced as one continuous line. That is what makes the placement unusual, and it is why not every piercer offers it.
Your anatomy decides it
The piercing only works if the septum and both nostril walls line up closely enough for one straight bar to pass through all three without sitting under pressure at any of them. Your piercer checks this by assessing the width and alignment of your septum relative to your nostrils before agreeing to go ahead.
Noses where the septum sits noticeably off-centre, or where one nostril is a different shape or size from the other, often cannot take a nasallang safely. A piercer who examines your nose and declines is reading real anatomy, not being cautious for its own sake.
Pain
About 7 out of 10, among the highest scores on this site. The needle travels through three separate walls of nasal cartilage in a single pass, which is more tissue in one motion than almost any other piercing covered here, industrial and snug included.
Your eyes will stream throughout, which is a nerve reflex from the nose rather than a measure of how much it hurts.
Healing
Six to twelve months. Three cartilage punctures are healing simultaneously along a shared bar, and cartilage is slow to heal even one point at a time.
- Weeks 1-4: significant swelling at both nostrils and the septum, tenderness, heavier crusting than a standard nostril or septum piercing.
- Weeks 4-16: swelling recedes gradually; all three points remain sensitive.
- Months 4-12: slow internal maturing along the full length of the bar.
Downsize at eight to twelve weeks, once the swelling in both nostrils and the septum has genuinely settled. The initial bar has to be long enough to clear three points of swelling at once, which makes it longer relative to the finished fit than almost any other nose piercing, and a bar left long presses on all three openings whenever anything touches your nose.
Living with three points on one bar
The practical complication is that ordinary nose piercing problems now apply in triplicate.
- Colds are considerably more unpleasant than with a single nose piercing, since blowing your nose puts pressure on all three points at once.
- Sneezing does the same. There is no way to avoid it, only to be gentle afterwards.
- Glasses can rest against the septum area depending on your frames. Check before booking.
- Sleeping face-down presses on whichever side is against the pillow.
Aftercare is the standard nose routine tripled: sterile saline twice a day reaching both nostrils and the septum, patted dry, hands off. The nose cleaning guide covers the technique; here it simply takes longer to do properly.
Jewelry
Straight barbell, 16 gauge, implant-grade titanium, long enough to run cleanly through both nostrils and the septum without compressing any of the three points. Length is individual to your anatomy and is not something to guess at home. Threadless or internally threaded only. See the materials guide.
Because the bar is longer than almost any other nose jewelry and passes through three points of tissue, getting the fit right usually takes a follow-up visit once initial swelling has dropped, the same way a septril does.
Problems
Irritation at any of the three points is usually a length or sizing issue rather than an aftercare failure, and is worth a follow-up fitting rather than home troubleshooting. See nose piercing bumps for the general causes.
Migration can affect any one of the three points independently, since each sits in its own tissue even though they share a bar. Watch each opening separately for thinning skin or more bar showing than before. See piercing rejection.
Infection in any of the three points needs prompt attention: heat, spreading redness, thick coloured discharge, or fever means a doctor the same day, jewelry left in. See infected nose piercing.
Related placements
- Septum: one of the three points on its own, and a far simpler piercing.
- Rhino: a different advanced nose placement, vertical through the tip rather than horizontal through both nostrils.
- Septril: the other nose piercing here that depends on a specific piece of existing anatomy before it is possible.
Cost
$70 to $150 in a US studio, plus jewelry, and expect the upper end from a piercer with real experience of the placement. Few studios do these regularly, and that experience is what you are paying for. Tip 15 to 20 percent.
Frequently asked questions
What is a nasallang piercing?
A single straight bar that passes through the right nostril, the septum, and the left nostril in one continuous line, so a bead sits at each nostril and the bar itself runs through all three points. It looks like three separate piercings but is one piece of jewelry through one path.
Does a nasallang piercing hurt?
About 7 out of 10, among the most painful placements on this site. The needle passes through three walls of nasal cartilage in a single motion rather than pausing between them, which is more tissue in one pass than almost any other piercing here.
How long does a nasallang piercing take to heal?
Six to twelve months. Three cartilage punctures are healing at once along one shared bar, and cartilage heals slowly on its own before you add the complexity of a piercing with three points of contact instead of one.
Can everyone get a nasallang piercing?
No. It needs a septum and nostrils aligned closely enough that one straight bar can pass through all three cleanly without pressing unevenly on any of them. A piercer assesses this before agreeing, and a no here is about your anatomy, not your nose.
Is a nasallang a good first piercing?
No. It combines three cartilage punctures, an unusually long healing time, and a jewelry path that is awkward to clean and awkward to get wrong. It is a placement for someone who already knows they heal cartilage well, ideally with a septum or nostril piercing behind them already.
How is a nasallang different from getting a septum and two nostrils separately?
Three separate piercings would be three independent pieces of jewelry that can be changed or removed on their own. A nasallang is one bar through all three points, so it comes out and goes back in as a single unit, and losing or bending it affects all three at once.
Sources
- Association of Professional Piercers - Suggested aftercare for body piercingshttps://safepiercing.org/aftercare/
- Association of Professional Piercers - Jewelry for initial piercingshttps://safepiercing.org/jewelry-for-initial-piercings/
- Association of Professional Piercers - Body Jewelry Verification Programhttps://safepiercing.org/body-jewelry-verification-program-2/
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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.