30 Most Popular Blue Gems

#1 of Blue Gems: SAPPHIRE

The birthstone for September, sapphire is the most popular of blue gems. Its hardness – second only to diamond – makes it a reliable choice for jewelry. Its transparent blue color has long associated the stone with royalty and prestige. This long-standing knowledge, along with the gem’s inherent beauty and durability, makes sapphire an enduringly popular gemstone. See also —

#2. TURQUOISE

Though opaque and relatively soft, turquoise enjoys an enduring popularity among blue gems. Its soft greenish blue color has long endeared it among the Persians and Native Americans. Being the birthstone for December, turquoise continues to be popular to this day. See also —

#3 of Blue Gems: DIAMOND

Though best known in the white or colorless variety, diamond has been very famous in its blue color. One particular gem, the Hope Diamond, figures in history books as one of the most valuable gems. However, while their immense value keeps blue diamonds extraordinarily famous, it also keeps them less popular than the more accessible stones. See also —

#4. AQUAMARINE

The birthstone for March, aquamarine is basically emerald in blue. Its serene blue color associated with the sea has long made this gemstone highly sought-after among collectors. Its affordability compared to other stones has likewise made aquamarine highly popular among blue gems. See also —

#5. BLUE PEARL

While pearls are best known in white, they also come in blue. In particular, the variety known as ‘Tahitian pearls’ produces blue gems, varying in shades from dark blue to silver blue. Their distinctive color and natural iridiscence make blue pearls in demand for high-end jewelry.

#6 of Blue Gems: LAPIS LAZULI

Lapis lazuli has been an immensely popular gem in history, and continues to be widely appreciated to this day. The ancient ‘sapphire’ was in fact lapis lazuli. Lapis lazuli was particularly highly valued in Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia.

#7. TANZANITE

One of the birthstones for December, tanzanite is a relatively new gem, but has dazzled jewelry enthusiasts since its discovery in Tanzania. Besides its deep violetish blue color, tanzanite also stands out with its pleochroism, by which the mineral displays different colors depending on the angle of view. Its rarity makes tanzanite even more popular.

#8. BLUE TOPAZ

While yellow topaz is the birthstone for November, many regard blue topaz as December’s gem. Partly on this account, blue topaz is a favorite gemstone for fine jewelry. Much of this popularity also stems from the stone’s relative affordability, though this low cost comes as a result of blue topaz’s artificial production or enhancement.

#9 of Blue Gems: LARIMAR

Discovered only in the last century, Larimar is a relatively new gem that has gone popular in recent years. Found only in the Dominican Republic, larimar stuns with its beautiful sky-blue color. Its rarity likewise adds to the stone’s popularity.

#10. KYANITE

Kyanite’s blue color manifests in its name, which came from the dark-blue shade known in Greek as kyanos. The brevity of this name has contributed to kyanite’s popularity, where other gems have to be prefixed with ‘blue’ for people to understand that they come in this color.

#11. BLUE AMBER

Given that the traditional color of amber is golden yellow, a blue hue on amber makes it an intriguing gem. Moreover, as with yellow amber, the blue gem’s origin as fossilized resin makes it a unique and highly sought-after gem.

#12 of Blue Gems: SODALITE

Sodalite is another gem that benefits from the brevity of its name. Often exhibiting white veins, sodalite is an opaque blue gemstone popularly used in fashion jewelry.

#13. BLUE AGATE

Agate comes in practically all colors, and the blue variety ranks among the popular blue gems. Like other agates, the blue gem features bands of different shades. In particular, the blue-lace agate, which features alternate layers of light blue and white, is much sought-after.

#14. AZURITE

Azurite is a soft mineral, achieving only 4 out of 10 in the Mohs scale. Even so, its intense blue color makes azurite relatively popular in the market. The blue of azurite is vivid, and indeed quite striking.

#15 of Blue Gems: OPAL

Both its rarity and stunning beauty make blue opal popular. Blue opals may have a black or gray body tone, but their play of color is predominantly blue, which shines with other colors in the gem’s fire. See also —

#16. BLUE JADE

There’s a growing interest in blue jade, which is rarer than its green counterpart. As with the green variety, blue jade is a popular charm, valued both for its beauty and the power to attract good fortune attached to it.

#17. CHRYSOCOLLA

Chrysocolla is popular for its vibrant greenish blue hues. However, being rather soft, chrysocolla is not ideal for jewelry. Still, agatized stones of chrysocolla can achieve a hardness of 7 in the Mohs scale, making them relatively suitable even for heavy wear.

#18 of Blue Gems: IOLITE

Iolite is a popular substitute for sapphire. Also known as ‘water sapphire,’ iolite exhibits a violet-blue color. Like tanzanite, iolite also exhibits pleochroism, thus displaying other colors depending on the angle by which the stone is viewed.

#19. BLUE ZIRCON

Its status as a December birthstone bolsters zircon’s popularity in the market. In fact, blue zircon deserves this much popularity, if not more. Its superior brilliance, approaching that of diamond, makes blue zircon an attractive gem. Its hardness, rated at around 7 in the Mohs scale, also makes zircon durable and thus suitable for jewelry.

#20. BLUE GARNET

Blue is a rare color among garnets. The blue variety of garnet is famous for its color-change property, which allows the gem to shift from blue to a purplish color. This peculiar quality and its rarity put blue garnet among the costliest of gems.

#21 of Blue Gems: TOURMALINE

Blue tourmaline comes in two varieties. The indicolite variety typically exhibits a deep shade of blue, while the rare Paraiba tourmaline produces bright blue crystals. The latter stands among the priciest of gems.

#22. VIVIANITE

Vivianite is an intriguing gemstone that appears colorless at first, but turns blue or green after extraction. This mineral, however, possesses quite an inferior hardness, which is only as high as 2 in the Mohs scale. This softness prevents vivianite from becoming ideal for jewelry.

#23. BLUE APATITE

Blue apatite is favored for its bright blue color. Unfortunately, its low hardness – registering at only 5 out of 10 in the Mohs scale – makes this gem less ideal for jewelry.

#24 of Blue Gems: AVENTURINE

Though most popular in green, aventurine also comes in blue. Its soft blue color, coupled with its shimmering effect known as ‘aventurescence,’ makes this gem attractive for jewelry. Given its hardness of up to 7 on the Mohs scale, blue aventurine is also durable.

#25. BLUE CHALCEDONY

Chalcedony is an old gem, popular since antiquity. Though occuring in various colors, the soft-blue variety has become representative of chalcedony in general. Its hardness, which rates 7 in the Mohs scale, also makes blue chalcedony a reliable choice for jewelry.

#26. BENITOITE

Benitoite is a comparatively new gemstone that has risen in popularity due to its rarity and value. Its name comes from its place of origin, San Benito County, California. Benetoite is among the most expensive of gemstones.

#27 of Blue Gems: LABRADORITE

Labradorite is famous for its iridescent optical effect called ‘labradorescence.’ This and its affordability make labradorite popular for fashion jewelry. Gems that display a blue sheen, in particular, are favored in the market.

#28. DUMORTIERITE

Though also found in other colors, dumortierite is best known for its rich blue shades. With a hardness of 7 in the Mohs scale, dumortierite is rather durable, and is also rare. Discovered only in 1881, dumortierite may become even more popular in the future, what with its interesting variably colored appearance.

#29. BLUE FLUORITE

Fluorite is a gemstone popular for its striking colors, among which is blue. However, as with other minerals, fluorite’s hardness — pegged at only 4 in the Mohs scale — keeps it from becoming a mainstream choice for jewelry.

#30 of Blue Gems: SPINEL

Though best known in red, spinel also occurs in blue, which can be bright and quite attractive. Indeed, blue spinel is valued both for its beauty and rarity. With a hardness of up to 8 on the Mohs scale, this gem deserves even more popularity than it currently enjoys.

Popularity of Blue Gems in General

Of gemstones’ different colors, the blue gems are among the most popular. People like the color blue, and this preference manifests in their choices of gems. Which of these blue gems do you personally like? Let us know your choice in the poll below.