In door system design, hinge selection is often underestimated. From our manufacturing and export experience, incorrect understanding of door hinge types is one of the main reasons for premature door failure, excessive maintenance, and customer complaints.
This article provides a professional overview of types of door hinges, written specifically for importers, door manufacturers, engineers, and project contractors.
Different door hinges types directly affect:
Load distribution on door frames
Opening cycle life
Installation tolerance
Long-term alignment and safety
Selecting the wrong type of door hinges often leads to door sagging, hinge deformation, or noise within the first year of use.
Door butt hinges are commonly used for residential and light commercial doors.
Engineering characteristics:
Simple two-leaf structure
Load transferred directly through hinge pin
Suitable for low to medium door weight
Material options include:
stainless steel hinge
steel
aluminum
For doors with frequent use, upgrading to ball bearing door hinge designs is strongly recommended.
Ball bearing hinges, also known as bearing hinges or ball hinges, are engineered to reduce friction under load.
Key advantages:
Even load distribution
Reduced metal-to-metal wear
Significantly higher opening cycle life
In commercial buildings, hospitals, and public facilities, ball bearing door hinges can extend service life by 2–3 times compared to standard hinges.
For doors exceeding standard load limits, heavy duty door hinges are mandatory.
Typical applications:
Steel security doors
Fire-rated doors
Industrial and warehouse doors
Common materials:
heavy duty stainless steel hinges
heavy duty ss hinges
heavy duty stainless hinges
These hinges often feature reinforced pins, thicker knuckles, and bearing structures.
aluminum door hinge
aluminium hinges
aluminium hinges for doors
door hinges for aluminium doors
These hinges are optimized for lightweight aluminum profiles while maintaining corrosion resistance.
steel door hinge
metal door hinges
hinges for steel gate
metal gate hinges
For outdoor use, exterior hinges for doors made from stainless steel are strongly recommended.
From factory experience, buyers often focus on hinge appearance rather than:
Pin diameter
Knuckle thickness
Bearing type
Required hinge quantity per door
These factors are critical in real-world performance.
As a professional door hinge manufacturer, we support:
Load calculation
OEM & ODM customization
Stainless steel, aluminum, and steel hinges
Contact us with your door specifications to receive a professional recommendation.
