Birthstone jewelry holds a special significance, representing a person’s birth month. Each month (January to December) is associated with a specific gemstone that’s believed to bring good fortune.
Birthstones are very beautiful, hence they are often included in jewelry pieces to add beauty and serve as a symbol of the wearer’s birth month. However, they are priced differently. In this post, we will unveil the most valuable birthstones and the budget-friendly ones.
What are the Most Expensive Birthstones?
These are the top most expensive birthstones. They are also called “precious stones” because of their rarity and value.
- Diamond: April’s Birthstone
Diamond is the hardest natural substance on Earth. It is a colorless mineral fully composed of pure carbon. This April’s birthstone is popularly revered for its incredible sparkle, brilliance, toughness, and high refractive index, making it the most sought-after gemstone. This gemstone symbolizes eternal love, strength, invincibility, and purity.
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- Ruby: July’s Birthstone
Ruby is commonly known for its vibrant red color as a result of its chromium content. This July’s birthstone is the hardest gemstone after diamond. Fine rubies are transparent with minimal inclusions that do not affect their clarity. This gemstone symbolizes passion, love, vitality, energy, courage, and protection.
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- Emerald: May’s Birthstone
Emerald is highly referenced because of its rich green color, which can be traced to its chromium and vanadium content. This May’s birthstone often contains inclusions (known as Jardin), which gives the stone a unique character. This gemstone symbolizes rebirth, renewal, wisdom, patience, love, and fidelity.
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- Sapphire: September’s Birthstone
Sapphire is best known for its deep blue color, although this September’s birthstone can be found in other colors except red. Sapphires in red color are classified as rubies. This gemstone symbolizes wisdom, nobility, protection, spiritual insight, loyalty, and trust.
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The Next Tier of Birthstone
After the 4 precious stones mentioned above, the next tier values of birthstones are alexandrite, aquamarine, peridot, and garnet. They are also referred to as “semi-precious gemstones”, and they range from $400-$3000 per carat.
- Alexandrite: This is June’s birthstone and it’s known for its color-changing ability. It can appear green in daylight and red under incandescent light. Alexandrite symbolizes balance, creativity, and self-esteem.
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- Aquamarine: This is March’s birthstone and it is valued for its stunning blue to green color. It gives a feeling of the sea. Aquamarine symbolizes tranquility, courage, and clarity.
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- Peridot: This is August’s birthstone. Unlike most gemstones, Peridot can only be found in one color (lime green). It symbolizes strength, protection, and healing.
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- Garnet: This is January’s birthstone and it’s available in several colors, but the red color is the most popular. It symbolizes passion, energy, and good health.
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What are the Least Expensive Birthstones?
The least expensive birthstones are topaz, tourmaline, amethyst, and citrine. They are valued at $10-$400 per carat.
- Topaz: This is December‘s birthstone. It comes in a variety of colors, including blue, yellow, pink, and clear. Topaz represents love, affection, and strength.
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- Tourmaline: This is October’s birthstone. It’s also available in a wide range of colors, including pink, green, and bi-color options. Tourmaline represents creativity, love, and healing.
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- Amethyst: This is February’s birthstone. It’s a deep, rich purple gemstone. Amethyst was once considered as valuable as Ruby and Sapphire. Amethyst symbolizes peace, clarity, and spiritual growth.
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- Citrine: This is November’s birthstone. It’s available in yellow and orange colors. Its warm color makes it a popular option to consider. Citrine symbolizes joy, abundance and prosperity.
Source: Pinterest
Most Expensive Birthstones in Order
Below is a list of the most expensive birthstones in order, including their price per carat and birth month.
| Birthstone | Price per carat | Birth Month | |
| 1 | Diamond | $3000-$11000 | April |
| 2 | Ruby | $3000-$10000 | July |
| 3 | Emerald | $3000-$7000 | May |
| 4 | Sapphire | $1000-$3500 | September |
| 5 | Alexandrite | $2500-$3000 | June |
| 6 | Aquamarine | $800-$1000 | March |
| 7 | Peridot | $400-$650 | August |
| 8 | Garnet | $500-$600 | January |
| 9 | Blue Topaz | $100-$400 | December |
| 10 | Tourmaline | $100-$400 | October |
| 11 | Amethyst | $50-$90 | February |
| 12 | Citrine | $10-$50 | November |
NOTE: The value of birthstones depends on many factors, so the price per carat above is a loose and estimated figure.
What are the 3 Rarest Birthstones?
The 3 rarest gemstones among the 12 birthstones above are: Diamond, Ruby, and Emerald. These are precious stones that are very hard to find, hence a higher price.
What is the Most Powerful Birthstone?
Diamond is considered the most powerful gemstone because of its unmatched hardness, beauty, shine, and symbolic meanings. It’s the hardest natural substance on Earth and on the Mohs scale, it’s rated at 10 (the highest above all gemstones).
Diamonds are used as a symbol of strength, courage, and eternal love, hence why they are often integrated into jewelry. Also, it’s believed to have spiritual powers of bringing good fortune and repelling evil.
How Much Do Birthstones Cost?
The cost of birthstones, including the most expensive birthstones and the least expensive ones are valued based on the 4C (Color, Cut, Clarity, and Carat).
Color
The color of a birthstone is usually used to evaluate the quality and price of a gemstone. Gemologists have classified this into 3 components:
- Hue: This describes the gemstone’s general color. There are basic hues like red, green, blue, etc. Those with rich, glaring hues have high costs. But gemstones with no color, such as diamonds are the most expensive birthstones.
- Tone: This refers to the lightness or darkness of the gemstone color. “Tint” and “Shade” are two terms used to describe birthstone tone. Tint refers to lighter tones, while Shade refers to darker tones. Birthstones that are too light or too dark tend to lose their value. Thus, the most valuable birthstones are the ones that maintain a balance.
- Saturation: This refers to the intensity of the gemstone color. It can be bold or delicate. Examples of bold gemstone colors are Ruby (deep, rich red color), Sapphire (intense blue), and Emerald (vibrant green). While delicate gemstone colors are Aquamarine (pale blue) and Peridot (light green). The bolder the saturation, the more costly the birthstone.
Cut
Raw gemstones are usually rough with irregular shapes, necessitating that they are cut and faceted properly. This improves the stone’s brilliance, symmetry, and overall appearance.
Gemstones can be cut into different birthstone shapes, such as round, oval, or square, depending on your preference. However, the birthstone must be well-cut to reflect light evenly across its surface, thereby reflecting its natural color.
NOTE: The more symmetrical a gemstone is, the better its light-reflecting capacity, making it more costly. It’s recommended that you partner with a professional custom jewelry manufacturer to get a well-cut birthstone.
Clarity
Clarity measures the presence of imperfections (also known as inclusions or blemishes) in the gemstone. Birthstones with fewer imperfections are more valuable. This is because they are free of noticeable inclusions that can affect the free movement of light.
These imperfections are not always exterior blemishes, they include intrinsic components like small crystals of the same gemstone, microscopic gas bubbles, or tiny liquid-filled pockets.
Carat
This refers to the weight of the birthstone. 1 carat is equivalent to 200 milligrams. The larger and heavier the birthstone, the more valuable it will be. For example, a 2-carat birthstone will be more expensive than a 1-carat birthstone of the same quality.
NOTE: It’s crucial that you balance the carat with the other 3C (color, cut, & clarity). This is because a large gemstone with poor color, cut, and clarity is less valuable than a smaller gemstone with excellent color, cut, and clarity.
How to Choose the Right Birthstone Jewelry?
Either as a jewelry brand or a jewelry lover, certain factors can influence the type of birthstone jewelry to choose. They are:
For Jewelry Business
- Plan ahead for your jewelry collection
Customizing a series of birthstones requires at least 12 pieces for each style (using January to December gemstones). This results in a relatively high budget. Thus, it’s imperative that you make provisions for all your incoming product series and set aside a budget for the collection.
- Gemstone types
You need to be critical when choosing the gemstone to include in your birthstone jewelry series products. After selecting the gemstones based on birth months, prioritize the shape of the stone that best fits. The gemstone’s color, cut, clarity, and carat affect how the birthstone reflects light, which contributes to the jewelry’s beauty.
- Gemstone color and size
Be specific when choosing the color of gemstone for your jewelry pieces. Examine the stone’s hue, tone, and saturation before setting it in the jewelry. Also, the size of the stone should be determined by the type of jewelry and the customer’s desire.
- Birthstone cut and shape
Cutting style determines a birthstone’s brilliance and clarity level. Gemstones can be cut into various shapes, such as round, oval, square, etc. Consider the specific qualities of your gemstone and decide which cutting style is best.
- Stone setting
The gemstone jewelry manufacturing process includes many stone-setting methods. Some of them are prong setting, channel setting, flush setting, tension setting, cluster setting, trilogy setting, and bezel setting. Choose the setting type that firmly secures the birthstone to the jewelry, as well as enhances the stone’s beauty and brilliance.
- Metal types
Each gemstone is best set in a particular type of metal for a perfectly suited blend. For example, diamond birthstones are best set in noble metals, such as gold and platinum, while other birthstones like amethyst and aquamarine can be set in silver metal.
For Jewelry Lovers
- Personal style and preference
There are at least 12 series of birthstones to choose from. Ordinarily, you might choose the one that represents your birth month. But you can make a selection from others depending on your style and preference. For example, you can choose peridot because of its one color uniqueness (lime green) or tourmaline because of its variety of colors. You can also make selections based on the birthstone’s properties.
- Budget
Another crucial factor that determines the birthstone to choose as a jewelry lover is your budget. Gemstones are priced differently. Some are expensive while others are cheaper. Examples of expensive stones are diamonds, ruby, emerald, and sapphire. The least expensive birthstones are topaz, tourmaline, amethyst, and citrine.
Key Takeaway
There are birthstones associated with each month and each symbolizes different good fortunes. However, their prices are different. In this post, we’ve discussed the most valuable birthstones down to the least expensive birthstones. Now, you can make an informed decision on which to choose either as a jewelry business or a jewelry lover.
