Gemstone color chart: shades of every major gem
By HeyGema™ · Updated
In short
Colored stones are described by hue, tone and saturation, and there is no single universal scale as there is for diamond. Choose a gem below for its shades, the color considered finest, the treatments to ask about and the size in mm at each carat weight. 16 gems are covered.
Color charts by gem
- TsavoriteTsavorite is the green variety of grossular garnet.
- SapphireSapphire is gem corundum of any color except red.
- RubyRuby is red corundum.
- EmeraldEmerald is the bluish green to green variety of beryl.
- AquamarineAquamarine is the blue to greenish blue variety of beryl, usually a light pastel greenish blue.
- MorganiteMorganite is the pink to peach variety of beryl.
- TanzaniteTanzanite is the violet-blue to blue-violet variety of the mineral zoisite.
- AmethystAmethyst is purple quartz, from light lilac to deep, intense royal purple.
- CitrineCitrine is transparent quartz from pale yellow to brownish orange.
- TopazTopaz comes in yellow, orange, brown, pink to purple-red, blue, light green and colorless.
- PeridotPeridot is the gem form of olivine, colored by iron.
- GarnetGarnet is a family of minerals, not one stone.
- SpinelSpinel comes in red, orange, pink, purple, blue and black.
- TourmalineTourmaline has the widest color range of any common gem family.
- AlexandriteAlexandrite is the very rare color-change variety of chrysoberyl: bluish green in daylight and purplish red in incandescent light.
- KunziteKunzite is the light pink to violetish purple variety of spodumene.
How gemologists describe color
Gemologists describe the color of a stone with hue, tone and saturation, and look at the three together. For colored stones they also look at how evenly the color is spread.
- Hue
- The color you would name, such as blue, green or red, or a blend such as bluish green.
- Tone
- How light or dark that color looks, from pale to very dark.
- Saturation
- How strong or pure the color looks, from dull (grayish or brownish) to vivid.
- Evenness
- How evenly the color is spread through the stone. Color zoning is uneven color, such as bands or patches you can see.
Colored stones have no single color scale like the D to Z scale for diamonds, so sellers use their own words. Ask for a daylight photo and for the size in mm as well as the carat weight.
Why the swatches are illustrations
The swatches are illustrations picked to match the color names. Screens and light change how color looks, and a cut stone changes with the light, so judge a stone in person or from a daylight photo.
Color and size go together
Some stones need to be larger to show strong color, so the weight you can afford and the color you want pull against each other. Every color chart here ends with a size table, and the gemstone size chart gives the size in mm of each gem at each weight. For a stone you already have, the mm to carat calculator gives its weight.