Turquoise Price Per Carat
Turquoise is currently worth $1 to $1,000+ per carat depending on quality.
Turquoise pricing splits on a single word: treatment. Stabilized commercial material — the vast majority of the market — trades at $1–$5 per carat, while natural untreated stone runs $10–$100 and named-mine collector material (Lander Blue, Bisbee, Number 8, Persian) reaches $100–$1,000+ per carat. Provenance does for turquoise what carat weight does for diamond.
TurquoiseValue Chart by Carat & Quality (2026)
Retail price per carat for loose stones, by size bracket and quality tier.
| Carat | Stabilized (commercial) | Natural untreated | Named mines & Persian |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 5 ct | $1–$3 | $10–$40 | $100–$400 |
| 5–10 ct | $1–$4 | $15–$50 | $150–$500 |
| 10–20 ct | $2–$5 | $20–$70 | $200–$700 |
| 20–50 ct | $2–$5 | $25–$90 | $250–$900 |
| 50+ ct / cabs | $2–$6 | $30–$100 | $300–$1,000+ |
Per carat for cut stones and cabochons. Dyed howlite and reconstituted block — most 'turquoise' jewelry — has no gem value. Old-pawn Native American pieces price as antiques, beyond the stone itself.
What Drives Turquoise Value
The factors dealers actually price on — and how each one moves the per-carat number.
Treatment status
The 10–100× fork: stabilized (resin-hardened) turquoise is honest commercial material at a few dollars per carat, while hard natural stone that needs no help is genuinely scarce — under 10% of world production — and priced accordingly.
Mine provenance
Turquoise trades on named pedigrees like wine: Lander Blue (the rarest, $500–$1,000+/ct), Bisbee's smoky blue, Number 8 and Kingman spiderweb, Sleeping Beauty's clean sky blue, and Iran's legendary Persian robin's-egg. Documented attribution multiplies value.
Color and evenness
Intense even 'robin's-egg' blue leads Persian-style grading; American collectors equally prize high-contrast spiderweb. Green-shifted or chalky pale material trades at the commercial floor either way.
Matrix character
Tight black 'spiderweb' webbing on vivid blue is a premium pattern, not a flaw — Lander Blue's web defines the look. Random brown splotches, by contrast, discount; clean no-matrix stones rule the Persian aesthetic.
Hardness and cut quality
Naturally hard stone that takes a glassy polish (rare) outprices chalky material however blue. High-dome cabochons from old stock command silversmith premiums in the Southwest trade.
What Is YOUR Turquoise Worth?
Charts show the market — your stone has its own carat, color, clarity, and treatment story. Get a personalized estimate in under a minute.
These prices only apply to genuine turquoise
Imitations and undisclosed synthetics trade at a tiny fraction of these figures. Run the turquoise real-vs-fake tests before valuing or selling your stone.
Turquoise Price Questions
Get answers to common questions about rock identification, rockhounding, and using our platform.
Stabilized commercial turquoise: $1–$5 per carat. Natural untreated stone: $10–$100. Collector material from famous mines — Lander Blue, Bisbee, Number 8, fine Persian — $100–$1,000+. The first question is always treatment, the second is provenance.
Lander Blue from Nevada: a tiny 'hat mine' that produced roughly 100 pounds of intensely blue spiderweb material before exhausting in the 1970s. Authenticated stones bring $500–$1,000+ per carat, with documented pieces trading like art. Fine old Persian and Bisbee material follows.
Not worthless — honest. Stabilization lets soft, chalky (but real) turquoise survive cutting and wear, and it's standard in jewelry at a few dollars per carat. The fraud is selling stabilized as natural, or dyed howlite as turquoise at all. Disclosure is the line.
Two appraisals in one: the stones (treatment + possible mine attribution) and the piece (artist, tribe, era — 'old pawn' silverwork carries antique value beyond the turquoise). Photograph it for our free gemstone value calculator first, then seek a Southwest-specialist appraiser; generic jewelers routinely miss both halves.
More TurquoiseTools & Guides
Gemstone Value Calculator
Estimate what YOUR turquoise is worth in under a minute.
Is My Turquoise Real?
Turquoise prices only apply to genuine stones — test yours first.
Turquoise Identification Guide
Properties, colors, varieties, and photos in the encyclopedia.
Free Gemstone Appraisal
Photo-based appraisal estimate for any gemstone.