Will earrings make airport metal detectors go off?

I just got my ears pierced and I'm going to have to get on a plane in a few days. I really don't want the metal detector to go off and have to take out my earrings and let my ears close up. They're titanium 4mm studs if that means anything

No. They are only triggered by the amount of a dense material equivalent to the amount of metal in a brass .22 casing. They're designed to offset on small metal pieces. Even the (copper?) button on your jeans isn't sufficient to set off the scanners. Really big ear rings might trigger an alarm though.

Jewelry usually doesn't set off the metal detectors. If it does, they will just use their wand (hand held metal detector) to find the source of the metal. When they realize it is just the earrings, they won't make you take them out.

However, I do know someone who claims that the underwires in her bra set off the metal detector at our local court house.

No, many thousands of people pass through metal detectors with earrings, rings, necklaces etc. Without tripping the alarm. You may find you'll go through a body scanner instead, and that will also disregard your earrings.

No - body jewellery doesn't set off metal detectors

THEY MIGHT
IN 99.999% of the time it is not an issue.

If the security agent wants you to remove them YOU DO AS INSTRUCTED.
Is is doubtful they would ask you to do so.

You ear hole does not close up in a few minutes.
After the inspection you just reinsert them if that is the situation.

Of course you could for the purpose of passing the security checkpoint have a non metal thing in your piercing hole and not have to worry about setting off an alarm or having the holes close up.

You probably have much more metal on you than an ear stud.

First, in almost all cases you will go through a body scanner and not a metal detector. The body scanner just identifies abnormalities on your body (like if you were hiding something under your shirt or in your pocket). It does not react to metal.

If you do happen to go through the metal detector, is is highly unlikely that your earrings will set it off. I have gone through with 2 pairs of earrings, my rings, and several bracelets and have not had any trouble. It's no big deal if it does go off though - they'll pull you aside, use a wand to identify the source of the metal, and then send you on your way. It might be a little embarrassing to you, but that happens often and no one will think twice about it.

Metal detectors key-in on carbon steel, not stainless steel or silver, so you should be okay.

The fact of them being titanium is very helpful. Actual metal detectors work on the principle that ferromagnetic metals will disturb the magnetic field they generate, they notice the disturbance and go off beep. The only ferromagnetic metal elements are iron, cobalt and nickel, and therefore also steel as that is mostly iron. The whole point is of course to detect steel knives and guns.

All other metals and substances are not ferromagnetic, so you can't make magnets out of them and most crucially here, they are invisible to metal detectors. That includes titanium. The earrings will be too small to be detected anyway, but you have the additional assurance that they're made of the "wrong kind of metal"! In a way, the name "metal detector" is inaccurate because there are only a few metals they can actually detect.

My mother has two hip replacements, which in her case means a big lump of titanium in each leg. These have never been known to set anything off.

Let's say your earrings did cause a beep. Then all the officers would do is wave a hand-held detector over you, find your earrings did it, OK fine and there's no need to take them out.

And if you come across a body scanner instead, that's a totally different technology and doesn't focus on metal.