Is Spinel Expensive?

Once known only as a ruby impersonator, the popularity and value of spinel have skyrocketed in recent years. This beautiful transparent gemstone is available in many colors and is often more affordable than its similarly colored corundum counterparts.

The process of valuing spinel involves analysis of familiar qualities: color, clarity, cut, and carat weight. Let's take a close look at what features are prized in a spinel, and which traits drag value down.

Quality of Color Drives the Value of Spinel

Like most gems, the most impactful value characteristic of spinel is its color. Spinel is available in a range of hues, including red, pink, orange, purple, blue, violet, green, gray, and black. Browsing the IGS Value Guide, you will see that different colors have their own range of potential values. While there is overlap between the values of some hues, others stand out. 

Red

Red spinel has the distinction of commanding the highest values spinel can achieve. For centuries, fine red spinels were thought to be rubies and were incorporated into important gemstone collections around the world as such. It wasn't until the 1800s that gemologists performing detailed examination of important stones recognized spinel as its own independent species separate from ruby. 

The overlap in the color expression of spinel and ruby is the primary reason that this hue is consistently valued the highest. The finest red spinel is valued at just a fraction of what an identical ruby costs. 

Like rubies, a pure red hue is possible, as are colors that include minor amounts of purple or orange. The most expensive spinels on the market are a pure red or slightly purplish red color with a medium to medium-dark tone.

Cobalt Blue

Spinel can express a range of blues, but there is one shade in particular that stands out in terms of value - a vibrant color caused by a combination of iron and cobalt. Gems with this rare coloration can come from some traditional sources in places like Sri Lanka and Madagascar, as well as a few newly discovered deposits in Tanzania and Vietnam. 

Also, some fine blue spinel can express a color that is comparable to the best blue sapphire, specifically a pure blue or violet-blue color paired with and medium to medium-dark tones. These gems are also valuable.  

Pink and Orange

The third tier of the pyramid of spinel value is occupied by lively pinks and oranges. Just as stunning in their expression as the best red and cobalt blue hues, these gems are in high demand. 

One factor to bear in mind is that a few richly colored pink spinels are only distinguished from red gems by the slightest difference in color saturation and tone. Moreover, there can be disagreement about where that line separating them falls. Sellers want to sell their borderline red/pink product as "red" to get a notably higher price, while buyers will prefer the reverse. If you want the look of a red spinel but find that they are a bit out of your price range, a well-saturated pink gem may be the way to go.

Other Colors

Aside from the top three most valued colors, the remainder of spinel colors tend to have lower values with overlapping price ranges. Low saturated blues, violets, and lavenders, as well as black,s are offered for a more attainable price point for many buyers. These colors are not only less popular, but they are also more common than red, cobalt blue, pink, and orange. 

The Value Trend of Gray Spinel Stands Out

It is normal for the value of gemstones to rise and fall over time. However, the value trends of some gemstones follow other paths. This is the case with gray spinel. 

Going back a decade, demand for gray spinel was low, and gems could be bought for very low per-carat prices. However, the public has come to admire the gentle, sophisticated gray hue, and demand for such stones has increased markedly. What has not changed is the supply. The combination of greater demand for gray spinel with a steady supply has driven prices in a consistently upward trend.

Phenomenal Spinel Is a Collector's Gem

Spinel can express two types of phenomenal effects: asterism and color-change from a medium-dark purple to a medium dark violetish blue shade. These stones are impressive to look at, but their rarity prohibits an introduction into the wider gem marketplace. They are valued based on the quality of the phenomenal effect and remain a collector's stone.

Clarity

The impact of clarity features impacts the value of individual spinel as you would expect for a transparent gemstone. Spinels that have eye-clean clarity command the highest prices, while those with any visible clarity characteristics sell for lower per-carat values. This is a mostly linear trend - the more apparent the inclusions, the lower the value of the stone. 

Carat Weight

Spinel crystals tend to be small. Faceted stones weighing over three carats are impressive, and collectors covet anything over five carats, especially for those prized red, cobalt blue, pink, and orange colors. 

Cut

As the global production of spinel is relatively restricted, and fine spinel with good color and clarity make up just a fraction of that material, cutters must carefully consider a few issues when deciding how to shape a raw spinel crystal. 

Commercial-quality stones require the least planning. Because the cutter knows that the color isn't perfect and there might be clarity features that will be present, they don't expend much energy trying to hide those facts. These gems are the most likely to be made in calibrated sizes that can fit into standard design templates.

On the other hand, when faced with a big, brightly colored gem with beautiful clarity, cutters must meticulously plan how they are going shape the gem. First, they orient the spinel to best highlight the natural color expression while minimizing or eliminating any visible clarity characteristics. This is easier said than done. Not only do spinel crystals tend to be small, but it is also not unusual for them to grow as twinned crystals which are flat. Oval and cushion shapes tend to work well, so you will find lots of spinels on the market with these outlines.

Cutters will aim to accomplish a standard outline with good proportions that enhance brilliance, but, because each crystal is unique, fine spinel are usually cut freeform to some degree. What matters above all is color, followed by clarity and carat weight. 

Treatments Are Not a Significant Concern

Spinel is not one of the gemstone species whose appearance is improved with treatments like heating. The only treatment that you should look out for is some type of fracture-filling to seal cracks in the stone. This is something that dealers are required to disclose, and it is rarely performed. Fine-quality spinel will not be fracture-filled.

Watch Out for Non-Standardized Grading Descriptions!

You might see spinel sold by independent companies advertised using some sort of ranking system. While jewelers may have their own internal quality ranking system for spinel, this is not something that is standardized across the trade. One dealer may have a system in place where they would classify a stone as "AAA" while another would use a different grading structure and call the same stone "A". While there is nothing technically wrong with this practice, it can be misleading to buyers. Never blindly trust a non-standardized gemstone quality ranking system. You should always visually inspect gems, either in person or with high-resolution images, before making a purchase.