Sourcing guide
How to Build a Sleep Earplug Range: Foam vs Silicone, and Which Sizes to Stock
Seven foam SKUs and one moulded silicone SKU cover the same category from opposite ends: foam gives a wide size spread and single-use volume, silicone gives a washable product that brings the buyer back. Here is how the sizes and attenuation values actually split, and which three to stock first.
Fit decides the sale, not attenuation
A sleep earplug is returned for one reason: it does not match the wearer's ear canal. A plug rated at 38 dB that sits loose delivers less protection than a 30 dB plug that seals, and the buyer blames the product rather than the fit.
That is why this range is built around two variables at once, canal size and material, instead of a single headline attenuation figure.
The foam range, split by ear canal
Seven PU foam SKUs sit between SNR 26 dB and SNR 38 dB, and the size differences are what separate them in practice:
- SA-7-1 - 12 x 24 mm, SNR 30 dB, sized for Asian ear canals
- SA-7-2 - 12.3 x 20 mm, SNR 36 dB, general adult
- SA-7-3 - 14 x 26 mm, SNR 38 dB, adults with long ear canals
- SA-7-4 - 17 x 25 mm, SNR 36 dB, general adult
- SA-7-5 - 13 x 24 mm, SNR 38 dB; carton 40 x 34 x 53 cm, gross weight 3.55 kg
- SA-7-8 - 17 x 24 mm, SNR 30 dB, women and smaller ear canals
- SA-7-10 - 14.5 x 24 mm, SNR 26 dB, women and smaller ear canals
Where moulded silicone earns its shelf space
SA-5-2 is the odd one out and the most defensible listing. It is moulded soft silicone gel rated at SNR 27 dB, supplied in four sizes (diameters of 13.5 mm, 16.5 mm and 20 mm, plus a 15 x 17.5 mm shape) in white clear, blue or orange, at 2.5 g per capsule.
The commercial difference is repeat behaviour: foam is consumable and reordered by the box, while silicone is washed and reused, so it is reordered far less often but returns a higher price per pair. Customisation starts from 50 kg if you want your own colour.
A first order that covers the shelf
If the category is new to your range, three SKUs cover both canal profiles and both materials without tying up capital in seven similar boxes:
- SA-7-2 - the adult default at SNR 36 dB
- SA-7-8 - the small-canal variant at SNR 30 dB, which handles the returns problem
- SA-5-2 - the reusable silicone option that lifts average order value
Add SA-7-3 (SNR 38 dB, long canals) once you can see demand for a higher-attenuation SKU, and treat the remaining foam sizes as line extensions rather than opening stock.
The nursery is a separate buying decision
Baby earmuffs do not share the logic of the sleep range, because the buyer is a parent rather than a sleeper, and freight is driven by carton weight rather than pair count.
SA-8-9 packs 1 set per box, 24 sets per carton, carton 40 x 35 x 53 cm at a gross weight of 4.6 kg, in yellow, blue, aqua blue or white. SA-8-12 packs 60 sets per carton at 40 x 34 x 53 cm and 9.2 kg, in white, aqua blue, pink or blue. The same number of pairs costs very different freight depending on which one you pick.
Four things to confirm before you sign
Whichever way you build the range, these are the details that decide whether the order arrives as expected:
- Request the SNR test report per SKU, not one report for the whole family
- Confirm the plug dimensions in millimetres, since two SKUs can share a name and differ by several millimetres
- Confirm carton dimensions and gross weight, because they drive your inbound freight
- Confirm which colours are available per SKU, as colour sets differ between the foam and earmuff lines