Birthstone chart

Birthstones by month

All twelve modern birthstones with their colors, meanings and alternates. Tap a month to see that stone's full story.

Garnet birthstoneJanuaryGarnetAmethyst birthstoneFebruaryAmethystAquamarine birthstoneMarchAquamarineDiamond birthstoneAprilDiamondEmerald birthstoneMayEmeraldPearl birthstoneJunePearlRuby birthstoneJulyRubyPeridot birthstoneAugustPeridotSapphire birthstoneSeptemberSapphireOpal birthstoneOctoberOpalTopaz birthstoneNovemberTopazTurquoise birthstoneDecemberTurquoise

Modern & alternate birthstones

MonthModern stoneAlternates
JanuaryGarnet–
FebruaryAmethyst–
MarchAquamarinebloodstone
AprilDiamond–
MayEmerald–
JunePearlalexandrite and moonstone
JulyRuby–
AugustPeridotspinel and sardonyx
SeptemberSapphire–
OctoberOpaltourmaline
NovemberTopazcitrine
DecemberTurquoisezircon and tanzanite

A short history of birthstones

Birthstones trace back to the breastplate of Aaron in the Book of Exodus, which held twelve gems for the twelve tribes of Israel. First-century writers Josephus and St. Jerome linked those twelve stones to the twelve months, and by the 18th century people in Poland and Germany were wearing a stone for their birth month.

In 1912 the American National Association of Jewelers (now Jewelers of America) published the modern list most people use today. It was updated in 1952, again in 2002 with tanzanite for December, and in 2016 with spinel for August. See every stone's shade on our birthstone colors chart, or find zodiac birthstones by star sign.

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Questions, answered

What are the 12 birthstones?

January: Garnet; February: Amethyst; March: Aquamarine; April: Diamond; May: Emerald; June: Pearl; July: Ruby; August: Peridot; September: Sapphire; October: Opal; November: Topaz; December: Turquoise.

What is the most expensive birthstone?

Diamond (April) is usually the most expensive, followed by fine ruby (July), emerald (May) and sapphire (September). Lab-grown versions of all four cost far less.

What is the rarest birthstone?

Alexandrite (one of June's birthstones) is the rarest. Fine natural stones that change from green to red are mined in very small quantities. Black opal (October) and Paraíba tourmaline are also very rare.

What are the alternate birthstones?

March: bloodstone. June: alexandrite and moonstone. August: spinel and sardonyx. October: tourmaline. November: citrine. December: zircon and tanzanite.

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