What Is Ring Gauge? Cigar Thickness Explained Simply

You pick up a cigar and the box says "5 x 50." The first number's obvious enough, but the second one — what is that? If you've ever nodded along without really knowing, this is for you. What is ring gauge? In one line: it's how thick the cigar is, measured in 64ths of an inch. Once that clicks, every cigar size on the shelf suddenly makes sense.

Let's unpack the number and what it actually means for your smoke.

What is ring gauge, exactly?

Ring gauge is a cigar's diameter — its thickness — expressed in 64ths of an inch. So a ring gauge of 50 means the cigar measures 50/64 of an inch across. A 64 ring gauge would be a full inch thick; a 32 would be half an inch.

The rule is simple: higher number = thicker cigar. That's the whole concept. It's an old measurement, but it's stuck around, and every brand uses it.

How to read cigar size numbers

Cigars are listed as length × ring gauge, like this:

• 5 x 50 → 5 inches long, 50/64 inch thick (a robusto)
• 6 x 52 → 6 inches long, 52/64 inch thick (a toro)
• 7 x 48 → 7 inches long, 48/64 inch thick (a churchill)

The first number is length in inches, the second is ring gauge in 64ths. Easy. (For what those style names mean, see cigar sizes and shapes explained.)

How ring gauge changes the smoke

Thickness isn't just for looks — it shapes the experience.

A thicker ring gauge (54, 58, 60) holds more filler tobacco relative to its wrapper. It tends to:

• Burn a little cooler and smoother
• Taste slightly milder and rounder (more filler, proportionally less wrapper)
• Offer a bigger, airier draw

A thinner ring gauge (38, 42, 44) has more wrapper relative to filler, so it tends to:

• Put the wrapper's flavor front and center (handy, since the wrapper carries so much taste — see cigar wrapper types explained)
• Smoke a touch warmer and more concentrated
• Feel elegant and quick

Neither is "better." Thin coronas and fat double-coronas are both classics; they're just different rides.

Length matters too — it's gauge and length together

Ring gauge sets the thickness, but length sets roughly how long the cigar lasts and how the flavor evolves. A longer cigar gives the smoke more distance to cool and develop, so it often starts milder and builds. A short, fat cigar gets to the point faster.

Together, gauge and length give you a rough sense of smoke time:

Size	Name	Rough smoke time
5 x 50	Robusto	30–45 min
6 x 52	Toro	45–60 min
7 x 48	Churchill	60+ min
5.5 x 42	Corona	30–40 min

The best ring gauge for beginners

Start in the middle: a 48–52 ring gauge. It's thick enough for an easy, even draw and a forgiving burn, but not so fat that it feels like smoking a baseball bat. Pair it with a 5-inch length (a robusto) and you get a relaxed 30–45 minute smoke — long enough to unwind, short enough that a slow evening doesn't run away from you. That's also why the best cigars for beginners so often land right in this range.

Very thin (under 40) and very fat (over 58) gauges are worth exploring later, once you know what you like.

A note on big ring gauges

You'll notice a lot of cigars on shelves these days run thick — 56, 60, even 64. Big ring gauges have become genuinely popular: they're easy to draw, burn cool, and last a while. There's nothing wrong with them. The only catch for newcomers is practical. A fat cigar needs a cutter (or punch) that can actually open it, and it commits you to a longer smoke. If you only have a small cutter or 30 minutes to spare, a 50-gauge robusto is the friendlier choice. When you do want to size up, just make sure your tools are up to it — and if you're caught short, here's how to cut a cigar without a cutter.

Beyond comfort, gauge is one of the dials you'll learn to turn as you figure out your taste — alongside wrapper and strength. Our walkthrough on how to choose a cigar ties all of those together.

The takeaway

So, what is ring gauge? It's a cigar's thickness in 64ths of an inch — higher number, fatter cigar — and it pairs with length to shape how cool, how long, and how flavorful your smoke is. For your first boxes, a medium 48–52 ring gauge in a robusto is the sweet spot.

As you experiment with thin coronas and chunky toros, track which sizes feel right in your hand and on your palate. The Casa DNC app lets you log each cigar's size and rate the experience, so you learn your own preferred ring gauge fast.