Materials
PVD coating explained: how gold and black steel jewellery is actually coloured
Two pieces can both be “gold” and wear completely differently. The difference is how the colour got there.
Zayr Studio4 min read
Updated
PVD stands for physical vapour deposition. In a vacuum chamber, a metal such as titanium or zirconium is turned into vapour and deposited onto the jewellery, usually reacting with a gas on the way to form a hard ceramic-like compound that bonds tightly to the steel. Compared with ordinary electroplating, the result is typically much harder and far more resistant to wear, which is why PVD colours last noticeably longer on everyday pieces.
How PVD is applied
- The pieces are cleaned thoroughly. Any oil or residue left on the surface weakens the bond, so this step matters more than it sounds.
- They are loaded into a sealed chamber and the air is pumped out to a high vacuum.
- A solid source metal — commonly titanium, zirconium or chromium — is vaporised, typically by an electric arc or by sputtering, where the metal is bombarded with ions.
- A reactive gas is introduced. Nitrogen with titanium or zirconium produces nitrides in gold-like tones; carbon-bearing gases produce darker carbides and carbon-based coatings.
- The vapour condenses on the pieces atom by atom, building a thin, dense layer that is bonded into the surface rather than sitting loosely on top of it.
Some manufacturers finish gold-tone PVD with a very thin top layer that contains real gold to warm the colour. Others do not. Either way, the durability comes from the hard nitride layer, not from the gold.
How electroplating differs
Electroplating works in a liquid bath. The jewellery is connected to an electrical current and dipped in a solution containing dissolved metal, and the current pulls that metal out of solution and onto the surface. It is cheaper, faster and suits almost any base metal, which is why most gold-plated fashion jewellery is made this way.
The weakness is that the deposited layer is a soft metal, usually gold or a gold alloy, and often very thin. Gold is soft by nature. Friction from a collar, a desk or other jewellery gradually wears it away, and sweat and perfume speed the process up. How quickly depends heavily on the thickness, which is its own subject.
PVD and electroplating side by side
| PVD coating | Electroplating | |
|---|---|---|
| Process | Vapour deposited in a vacuum chamber | Metal deposited from a liquid bath by electric current |
| Typical layer | A hard nitride, carbide or carbon compound | A soft metal such as gold, rhodium or silver |
| Usual thickness | Roughly half a micron to a few microns | From a fraction of a micron up to a few microns |
| Hardness | Very hard | Soft for gold; harder for rhodium |
| Resistance to sweat and friction | High | Low to moderate, depending on thickness |
| Best base metal | Stainless steel and titanium | Brass, copper, silver, alloy and others |
| Cost to produce | Higher | Lower |
How long PVD lasts, honestly
PVD is durable, not permanent. It is a coating, and any coating on a piece that rubs against things will eventually show wear at the points of most friction. With PVD on steel, that typically means years of daily wear for a pendant or chain, and less for a ring or bracelet that knocks against hard surfaces all day.
- Chains and pendants: the slowest to wear, because contact is mostly with skin and fabric.
- Bracelets: moderate. Clasps and the underside that rests on a desk wear first.
- Rings: the fastest, especially the palm side and the edges, which meet door handles, steering wheels and weights.
- Sharp edges anywhere: coatings are thinnest and most exposed on edges, so wear shows there first.
What wears through is the colour, not the piece. Under gold or black PVD, 316L steel is silver-grey and does not rust or tarnish, so a worn edge looks like steel rather than turning green or dark. That is a meaningful difference from plated brass.
Gold, rose, black: how the colours are made
| Colour | Usual coating chemistry | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Gold tone | Titanium nitride or zirconium nitride, sometimes with a thin gold top layer | Shade varies between makers; do not expect two brands’ gold to match exactly |
| Rose gold | Nitride coatings adjusted with other elements, sometimes with a gold-copper top layer | The warmest tones tend to be the least uniform between batches |
| Black | Carbon-based coatings such as diamond-like carbon, or dark titanium compounds | Often the hardest of the finishes; wear shows as silver at edges |
| Gunmetal and blue | Variations on the same nitride and carbide families | Colour depends on layer composition and thickness |
Because the colour comes from a compound rather than a dye, it does not fade in sunlight. What changes appearance over time is surface scratching, which dulls the shine, and wear-through at high-contact points. Black finishes in particular are covered in more depth in the guide to black rings.
Looking after a PVD finish
- Rinse off sweat with plain water and dry with a soft cloth. That is most of the maintenance.
- Do not use abrasive polishes, silver dips or scouring pads. They remove coating faster than any amount of wearing.
- Take rings off for the gym. Barbells and dumbbell handles are the quickest way to strip a coated palm side.
- Store PVD pieces apart from diamonds, CZ and harder stones, which can scratch them.
- Keep chlorine bleach and pool water away from all steel jewellery, coated or not.
Zayr’s gold and black men’s pieces are PVD over 316L stainless steel, not electroplate, for exactly the reasons above. If you are weighing coated steel against plated pieces more broadly, the steel versus gold-plated comparison covers the rest.
A plated colour is a layer that wears off. A PVD colour is a layer that wears down, slowly, and shows steel rather than something worse when it does.
Common questions
Does PVD coating wear off?
Eventually, at points of heavy friction, but far more slowly than ordinary gold plating. Chains and pendants can hold their colour for years of daily wear. Rings wear fastest, usually on the palm side and edges, and the steel underneath does not rust when it shows through.
Is PVD gold real gold?
Usually not in any meaningful amount. The gold colour typically comes from titanium or zirconium nitride. Some makers add a very thin top layer containing gold to adjust the shade, but PVD jewellery should not be thought of or valued as gold jewellery.
Is PVD better than gold plating?
For durability, yes. PVD layers are much harder than soft plated gold and bond tightly to steel, so they resist sweat and friction far better. Electroplating is cheaper and works on more base metals, which is why most budget gold-tone jewellery still uses it.
Can you shower with PVD coated jewellery?
Occasional water will not harm PVD on stainless steel, but soap film dulls the finish and hot water with shampoo is not doing it any favours. The bigger risks are chlorine, abrasive cleaners and gym equipment, so take pieces off for those.
Can a worn PVD finish be redone?
Technically yes, but it requires stripping and recoating in industrial vacuum equipment, which local jewellers do not have. For most fashion pieces it is not economical, so it is better to protect the finish than plan to restore it.
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