The complete birthstone list
Modern Western birthstones standardised by the American National Association of Jewelers, with traditional alternates.
Month
January
Garnet symbolises trust, friendship, and protection — a warm, grounding stone for the start of the year.
Month
February
Amethyst represents peace, spiritual protection, and clarity of mind. It's one of the most universally loved birthstones.
Month
March
Aquamarine evokes the calm of clear water — courage, communication, and emotional balance.
Month
April
Diamond traditionally; many crystal practitioners use clear quartz as the affordable, equally powerful master-healer alternative.
Month
May
Emerald for love, rebirth, and prosperity. Green aventurine carries similar heart-chakra energy at a more accessible price.
Month
June
Pearl symbolises purity and femininity; moonstone offers intuition and emotional balance for those born under Cancer's lunar influence.
Month
July
Ruby for passion and vitality. Carnelian is the popular crystal-healing alternate, sharing ruby's fiery sacral-chakra energy.
Month
August
Peridot is the bright lime-green stone of strength, prosperity, and the lifting of spirits.
Month
September
Sapphire for wisdom and royalty. Lapis lazuli is the deep-blue traditional alternate worn by ancient Egyptian and Mesopotamian rulers.
Month
October
Opal for creativity and inspiration. Rose quartz is a soft, loving alternate widely used by October-born for heart-centred work.
Month
November
Citrine — the merchant's stone — for warmth, prosperity, and joyful confidence. November's most popular crystal birthstone.
Month
December
Turquoise for protection and good fortune. Worn for thousands of years across Asia and the Americas as a sacred talisman.
Why some months have multiple stones
The modern Western birthstone list was last updated in 2016 (when spinel was added to August). Older traditional birthstones are still widely worn, especially in crystal-healing contexts where the affordable, energetically-similar quartz alternates (rose quartz for October, citrine for November, clear quartz for April) are sometimes preferred to the precious gem originals.