Sapphire vs emerald. Girls love diamonds, and there’s no doubt about it. But if you’re in search of adding more color and glitz to your jewelry collection, then you need to invest in buying beautiful gemstones.
The beautiful gemstones you should buy are emerald and sapphire. They are the best two that are increasingly becoming as precious as diamonds. This is in terms of popularity and value.
These gemstones are really beautiful in different ways. But in case you’re not sure which of the stones to buy, this guide is all you need to differentiate them.
This article will share everything about sapphire, and emeralds. You’ll be able to know what their cost, value, and hardness differences are, and their individual differences.
Sapphire vs Emerald Cost
The emeralds gem may not be as hard and durable as sapphires, but they are very resilient. The emeralds gem is perfect for everyday wear.
They are also not easy to scratch and are very durable. This means that it won’t be easy to damage an emerald ring.
However, emerald gems would cost around $525 to $1,125 per carat. While sapphires can cost you anywhere from $1,000 to $11,000 per carat. Though a good-quality sapphire stone can cost over $11,000 per carat.
Please note that several factors might affect the price of a gemstone, and this includes its color, carat weight, and clarity.
Sapphire vs Emerald Value
The pink sapphires and blue sapphires are the most valuable. The value of sapphires ranges from $1,000 to $11,000 per carat, and this depends on its quality.
But good-quality sapphires can cost you over $11,000 per carat. There’s a record for the sapphire sold at an auction that goes to a Kashmir sapphire which was sold for $242,000 per carat.
On the other hand, to get a good quality emerald would sell for similar prices as sapphires. Although larger carat sizes are always more valuable in comparison.
A 5-carat emerald can be sold from $5,500 to $9,000 per carat. There’s a record for an emerald that’s sold for about $300,000 per carat.
Sapphire vs Emerald Hardness
Looking at hardness, the sapphire gem is second only to diamond. It ranks 9 on the Mohs scale of hardness, and this means that sapphire is exceptionally hard and strong. Unlike other gems, you don’t need to worry about breaking or damaging a sapphire.
While emeralds have about 7.5-8 on the Mohs Hardness Scale. The truth is that emeralds, even as not hard and durable as sapphires, are still resilient.
The gems are still perfect for everyday wear. The gem can’t be easily scratched and is very durable.
Are Emeralds More Expensive Than Sapphires?
Note that the value of a gem can increase further depending on its rarity. However, the sapphire gem is undoubtedly the most expensive option here. It can cost from $1,000 to $11,000 per carat, while a good-quality sapphire stone can cost more than $11,000 per carat.
On the other hand, emeralds can cost you from $5,500 to $9,000 per carat. Please note that several factors can affect the price of a gemstone, which include color, carat weight, and clarity.
Emeralds are indeed among the rarest of all gems. They are rarer than sapphires but not as rare as rubies.
Difference Between Green Sapphire and Emerald
The emerald gems happen to be richer green and more expensive than green sapphires. But note that the shape of the sapphire gemstone is trigonal while emerald gems are hexagonal.
You can cut sapphire into various types of shapes, but you can only cut emeralds into very reserved shapes.
Sapphire gems are known to be associated with the corundum mineral family, while emeralds come from the family of beryl minerals. Below are some of the differences between green sapphire and emerald:
1. Difference in Color: Sapphire gems are popularly known and come in blue, pink, and salmon color. While a good quality emerald gem comes in bluish-green color.
2. Difference in Hardness: Sapphire gems are very strong and weigh 9 when placed on the Mohs scale. However, emeralds weigh about 7.5 to 8 on the same scale.
3. Difference in Symbolism: Sapphire gems are known and seen as luxury, royalty, and romance, while emerald symbolizes peace, abundance, and rebirth.
4. Difference in Value: The value of the sapphire gem goes beyond $ 10000 per carat while the value of emerald gems can start from $ 5000.
5. Difference in Treatments: Almost 95% of sapphire gems are given heat treatment to improve their color and increase their clearness. While almost all the emeralds available are given treatment to improve their clarity.
6. Difference in Clearness: When it comes to clearness, sapphire inclusions/flaws are very common which means they can’t be seen by the naked eye. While emeralds inclusions/flaws are eye-visible.
The difference in Affordability: Sapphire gems which are natural and untreated can be very rare and expensive, while emerald’s only fine gems are expensive.
Difference Between Emerald, Ruby, and Sapphire
Let’s check out the difference between emerald, ruby, and sapphire.
1. Difference in Color: Emerald gems boast a lustrous green color while sapphire gemstones are available in various colors.
On the other hand, Ruby gems come in various shades of red. However, the finest quality is neither too dark nor red.
2. Difference in Symbolism: Ruby symbolizes passion, love, and purity. But emerald and sapphire are both known as royal gemstones, sapphire also represents faithfulness and emerald hope.
3. Difference in Clarity: The clarity which happens to be one of the 4Cs of diamond and gemstone grading is what shows the relative absence of inclusions. This means that the clearer the gemstone, the higher the value.
And among the three precious gemstones, emerald normally has the most inclusions. So when you want to choose a gemstone, ensure you avoid those that have highly noticeable inclusions.
4. Difference in Value: A good quality ruby is known to be more expensive than most sapphires and emeralds, as it has a record price of up to $1,000,000 per carat. While sapphire gems can cost from $1,000 to $11,000 per carat, you’ll get good-quality stones for more than $11,000 per carat. And as for emeralds, the value ranges from $5,500 to $9,000 per carat.
Always remember that several factors can affect the value of a gemstone, they include color, carat weight, and clarity.
5. Difference in Hardness: Sapphire gemstones are the third hardest gemstones which are next to diamond and moissanite. This is the reason jewelry pieces that come with sapphire stones are extremely durable and perfect to wear every day.
Sapphire scores 9 out of 10 on the Mohs Hardness Scale. But since ruby comes from the same mineral (corundum) as sapphire, they have similar hardness.
Emerald gemstone is the least hard among them, this gemstone is still very resilient, having a 7.5-8 grading on the Mohs Hardness Scale.
6. Difference in Popularity: When it comes to how popular they are, all three are extremely popular and they are becoming more popular every day. Just like diamonds, getting gemstones would make beautiful additions to your jewelry collection.
Emerald vs Sapphire Engagement Rings
The truth is that emeralds are very versatile stones that work with different settings and designs. You can use the brilliant green hue of this gem for both traditional and modern engagement rings
But sapphire, due to its toughness, can be used for engagement rings. This is because sapphires are great gems for everyday use and that’s why jewelry makers go for it. Another thing is that sapphires cannot easily break when struck.
Emerald vs Sapphire Meaning
Sapphire happens to be a type of corundum that’s mostly known for its cornflower blue version. This gem can come in any color such as pink, teal, yellow, white, orange, or black.
Note that it is the blue version that has become most famous. Though red is the only color you won’t find for sapphire gems, those are always classified as rubies.
Also, note that the colors would depend on the various elements and how much it contains. For instance, a hundred percent of iron and titanium would make their color blue, and the more iron it has, the darker blue it will become.
Emeralds on the other hand are a variety of minerals beryl. Emerald gems get their beautiful color from traces of chromium and/or vanadium elements. However, unlike sapphires, the emerald gemstones will always be green, but the vividness and intensity would vary.
Conclusion
Sometimes choosing between emerald and sapphire can be very difficult. This is because both of them are extremely rare, attractive, and valuable.
However, it’s all about your personal preferences, especially when it comes to color. But in an ideal world, I know you would want to have various kinds of rings and jewelry containing sapphires and emeralds, as both of them are very attractive to the eyes.
But if you must only pick one, for now, ensure that you pick one that speaks to you the most. I just hope this information above will help you in your decision.
As for me, you can’t really go wrong with a sapphire or emerald.
