Cuban Link Chain Buying Guide

A Cuban link is a curb chain with a specific job: the links are oval, twisted so they sit flat, and pressed close enough that the chain reads as one band instead of a loose row of loops. Wikipedia traces the pattern to the older curb chain and notes that the exact origin is not documented. What shoppers mean by the name, especially in Miami, is that tight, polished look.

Three names show up on our chain wall, and they are not marketing fluff. They match different builds.

• Miami Cuban: rounder, fuller links. The Miami Cuban Chain 5mm is described as solid gold with open round links, and it costs $4,260.
• Flat Miami Cuban: the same family, pressed flatter so it sits lower on the chest. The Flat Miami Cuban Chain 5mm is $1,880. Same millimeter on the ruler, very different gold and a very different price.
• Hollow Cuban: the word Hollow is in the title. The Hollow Cuban Chain 8.5mm is $4,870. You are paying for width and a gold shell, not for a solid bar of metal.

If a seller will not say which of those three you are looking at, you do not have a quote yet. You have a photo. Start with the Cuban link chains already priced, then use this page to decide which row you belong in.

Width is the measurement across the face of one link, in millimeters, not the thickness of the wire inside it. It is the number that decides whether the chain disappears under a collar or shows up across a room.

Width	How it usually reads	Piece we list	Price
1.5 mm	Fine. Good under a small pendant or as a first real-gold chain.	Miami Cuban Link Chain 1.50mm	$495
3.7 mm	Clearly a Cuban, still easy for every day.	Flat Miami Cuban Chain 3.7mm	$1,355
5 to 5.8 mm flat	The width most men picture when they say "a Cuban."	Flat 5mm and flat 5.8mm	$1,880 and $2,060
5 mm solid round	Same ruler mark as the flat 5 mm, much heavier look and much more gold.	Miami Cuban Chain 5mm	$4,260
6 to 8.5 mm hollow	Statement width without solid-gold weight.	Hollow 6mm, 7.5mm, 8.5mm	$2,090 to $4,870

We do not list a 10 mm, 12 mm, or 14 mm Cuban. If that is the width you want, it is a custom conversation, not a chain you can add to the cart today. The Cuban link width guide goes millimeter by millimeter. For a first chain, the flat 3.7 mm or the flat 5 mm is the range where the style is obvious and the price is still in the low thousands.

Length is measured end to end with the clasp closed. On most men, 18 inches sits high, near the base of the neck. Twenty inches lands at the collarbone. Twenty-two inches sits on the upper chest. Twenty-four inches reaches mid-chest, which is where a pendant usually looks right. Brilliant Earth publishes the same landmarks in its men's chain length guide.

Our Cuban listings do not charge more for a longer size. The flat chains come in 16, 18, 20, 22, and 24 inches at one price. The solid 5 mm and the hollow 7.5 mm and 8.5 mm also offer 26 inches, still at the same price as the 16 inch. The 1.5 mm chain is only 18 and 20 inches. The hollow 6 mm stops at 24 inches.

That flat price is convenient, and it is also a trap if you are comparing shops by the gram. A 24 inch chain contains more links than a 16 inch chain. If another jeweler prices by weight, their 24 inch quote should be higher. Ours is not, because these listings are priced by the style, not by a scale ticket. Read length next to width in the men's chain length guide.

This is the step that changes the money more than karat does, at least on our wall, because every Cuban we list is already 10K.

Solid means gold all the way through the link. The 5 mm Miami Cuban is the one whose description says solid gold. It costs $4,260. Flat, on our site, means the link has been pressed into a lower profile. The flat 5 mm is $1,880 and the flat 5.8 mm is $2,060. Neither title says hollow. Hollow means a gold shell around an empty center. A dent in that shell is a real risk, because there is no gold behind it to hold the shape. People who want the wide look for less money accept that risk on purpose.

Put three chains next to each other and the choice gets obvious:

• $1,880 buys a flat 5 mm, 16 to 24 inches, yellow or white gold.
• $2,090 buys a hollow 6 mm, close in price, wider, lighter build.
• $4,260 buys the solid round 5 mm, including rose gold, out to 26 inches.

If you want one chain for years of daily wear, spend the money on the solid link at the widest size you can stand. If you want the chain to look big in photos, the hollow 7.5 mm at $2,870 or the hollow 8.5 mm at $4,870 does that job. The full tradeoff is in solid vs hollow Cuban links.

Karat is the gold share of the alloy, not a quality score. 10K is 10 parts gold out of 24, which is 41.7 percent gold. 14K is 58.3 percent. 18K is 75 percent. 24K is essentially pure and too soft for a chain that has to flex. The Federal Trade Commission requires a gold item sold in the United States to carry its real karat mark. Under 10K, a piece should not be sold as gold.

All 46 chains on this site, Cuban and otherwise, are 10K. That is not an accident of one listing. Yellow, white, and rose are color choices on top of that 10K alloy, and not every Cuban offers every color. The flat Cubans are yellow and white. The solid 5 mm Miami Cuban is the Cuban that also comes in rose. There is no 14K or 18K Cuban in the catalog.

10K is harder than 14K or 18K because it contains more alloy, which is why a lot of everyday chains are made in it. The color is a little less rich than 18K yellow. If you want 14K or 18K, say so before anyone makes anything. The custom Cuban path is an idea, then a design and an exact price, and nothing is made until you agree. The gold karat guide covers the percentages in more detail, and 10K vs 14K is the direct comparison.

A Cuban closes with either a lobster clasp or a box clasp. A lobster is a spring hook. It is simple, and it is what you will find on most finer chains. A box clasp slides a tongue into a small box so the closure can sit flush with wide links. On a heavy chain, that box should have a safety latch, a second little arm that keeps the tongue from working open. Ross-Simons and Blue Nile both describe those two closures the same way. Our product pages do not name the clasp on each Cuban, so do not assume. Ask, and look at it in hand if you can.

Finish is polish. A Cuban should look even, with links that lie down when you set the chain on a table. Twisted links, gaps, or a clasp that is obviously thinner than the chain are reasons to stop.

Plain gold is the whole Cuban catalog we list: eight chains, $495 to $4,870. A diamond Cuban, sometimes called iced, has stones set across the face of the links. That is a different product. We do not have one titled and priced as a diamond Cuban. If you want stones, read the diamond Cuban link guide before you compare a plain-gold price with an iced price. They are not the same object.

Use this list on our chains and on anyone else's. None of it requires a lab.

1. The stamp. Look on the clasp or an end link for 10K or 417. 417 is the same thing as 10K, written as a fineness. No stamp is a reason to walk.
2. The build, in the title. If it is hollow, our title says Hollow. If a seller's title is silent, ask them to write solid or hollow on the invoice.
3. The millimeter. Measure one link. A chain sold as 8 mm that measures 6 mm is not a small mistake. It is a different product.
4. The length you actually received. Count inches with the clasp closed. Then check that the price you paid matches the listing, not a different length that someone repriced by weight.
5. The color you ordered. Yellow, white, and rose are different alloys. The solid 5 mm is the only Cuban here offered in all three.
6. A magnet and a second opinion, if you bought elsewhere. Real gold is not magnetic. A magnet test does not prove karat, but a chain that jumps to a magnet is not what you wanted. For a piece this size, a jeweler's scale and an acid test or an XRF reading are the real checks.

Price is the last check, not the first. Divide price by width. On our wall the flat and hollow Cubans land between about $330 and $570 per millimeter. The solid 5 mm lands near $850 per millimeter. A "5 mm solid Cuban" offered far under that, with no gram weight to explain it, is usually hollow, plated, or shorter than advertised. More of the math is in what a Cuban link costs.

Every order ships insured. If a piece has a manufacturing defect, you have 7 days to report it. Sales are final, and we do not do refunds. The showroom is at 7900 NW 27th Ave, Unit 506, Miami FL 33147, in the Northside Shopping Center area. Call 954-504-5640 if you want a specific width pulled before you drive.