Photo by Luke Hodde on Unsplash

Short answer: Yes, and it depends.

I feel like I shouldn't even need to write this article as the number of search results that come up in google should result in an answer that is fact based.

Unfortunately, most of the content seems tailored more toward someone trying to garner support for a product. Rather than provide useful information (as of this writing).

So here I am. Writing this article.

Stainless steel isn't rust proof.

Stainless steel is corrosion resistant. The chromium in the alloy reacts with oxygen to forms a protective layer around the metal. This layer can last a long time, holding up against a lot, but it's not all-powerful. There are plenty of things that can and will come along resulting in the layer getting messed with.

Why is my stainless steel jewelry rusting?

There are specific circumstances that tend to result in rust or corrosion forming on stainless steel. In my personal experience wearing stainless steel jewelry, it does not matter if I passivated (formed a protective chromium-oxide layer) the piece— of it was done from wherever I purchased the piece from.

I'm a ring guy. I make and wear them— with many of pieces being made from stainless steel. So I tried digging into actual research articles regarding skin discoloration and various metals.

The research points to chloride. It's releasesd when we sweat and the theories point to it being highly reactive when it's exposed to many metals and their alloys (stainless steel and brass being the ones I work with).

Now, the concentration from person to person likely varies. And it's also possible there's some other factor at play that we just don't know about yet.

Many customers know not to wear their jewelry while working out, working with their hands, and not to expose it to detergents (hand soap counts). But to my knowledge, this isn't taught to any of us.

So, no shame or tsking.

Research literature aside. Many people will report their skin browning when they wear their rings for prolonged periods of time (i.e. sleeping with it on, in addition to the previous list of don't-do's). They may also get little rust spots that form on the interior of the band. 

This used to happen to me. And still will if I wear rings on the same finger for a stretch of days (even with following appropriate ring care guidelines). I just wear my pieces less. It's also important to note, I have an allergy to something in many alloys. I had some bad experiences years ago with piercings that sent me to urgent care. Though I've never had any bad skin reactions to wearing rings like some customers have reported back to me. Nickel may or may not be the culprit.

For everyone that isn't allergic, not wearing the ring at night, taking it off whenever they are going to sweat a lot, and before cleaning any part of themselves seems to stop the browning. In fact, short of an allergy, I have not had a customer come back to me and ask what else they can do.

If you are allergic or this doesn't satisfy your desires, consider painting a thin layer of nail polish on the interior of the band. It'll come off in time and you'll need to reapply it, but you should notice less to no browning of your skin.

In the case of allergies, you may want to look into a sealant spray that can be found online. They are usually easy to apply, and some people have reported an alleviation of their previous reactions following the application of the sealant. Again, it will need to be reapplied over time.