Fine Jewelry · Birthstones

Birthstones by Month: The Complete Guide (2026)

By Tushar Leclerc · 10 min read

Last Updated: September 12, 2026

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A birthstone is a gem linked to the month you were born, and giving one is one of the oldest and most personal ways to give jewellery. This guide lists all twelve, their colours and meanings, explains why a few months have more than one stone, and covers the one gem that works as a gift no matter the month.

What are birthstones?

The idea is ancient, but the list most people use today is not. The modern birthstone list was standardised in the United States in 1912 by the national jewellers' association, with a few official additions since, most recently in the 2000s and 2010s. That is why you will sometimes see an older stone and a newer one for the same month.

Birthstones carry traditional meanings, protection, love, clarity of mind, and they are worn both as a nod to your birth month and simply because the colour suits you. There is no single global list: the modern US list below is the most widely used, but older traditional and zodiac systems assign different stones.

Birthstones by month (full list)

Here is the complete modern list, month by month, with each stone's colour and traditional meaning. Where a month has more than one official birthstone, all are listed.

Every day within a month shares that month's stone, so a 5 June birthday and a 26 June birthday both have June's birthstone. There are no separate stones by date, only by month.

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Birthstone colours at a glance

If you are shopping by colour rather than by name, the birthstone palette runs across the whole spectrum:

• Red tones: garnet (January), ruby (July).
• Purple: amethyst (February).
• Blue: aquamarine (March, pale), sapphire (September, deep), turquoise and tanzanite (December).
• Green: emerald (May, rich), peridot (August, lime).
• Yellow to amber: topaz and citrine (November).
• White and colourless: pearl (June), diamond (April).
• Multi-colour: opal and tourmaline (October), alexandrite (June), which shifts colour in different light.

April: the diamond, and why it works all year

April's birthstone is the diamond, which puts it in a unique position: it is both a specific month's stone and the one gem that suits a gift for any month. A diamond is colourless, so it pairs with any outfit and any other stone, and it carries the meaning of strength and lasting love that no coloured stone quite matches.

That is why diamond jewellery is the safe birthday gift when you are unsure, when the recipient's birth month stone is a colour they may not wear, or when you simply want something they will keep for life rather than for a season. A pair of diamond studs or a solitaire pendant reads as considered and permanent in a way a novelty birthstone piece does not.

And a diamond no longer costs what it used to. Every diamond we sell is lab-grown, chemically identical to a mined stone and independently graded, at a fraction of mined prices, so a diamond birthday gift is within reach in a way it was not a decade ago. If April is the birth month, it is the birthstone; for any other month, it is the upgrade.

Why some months have two birthstones

June, August, October, November and December each have more than one official birthstone, and there is a practical reason. Some traditional stones are rare, expensive or difficult to source in jewellery quality, so the industry added more available and affordable alternatives over the years.

June is the clearest example: its traditional stone is the pearl, but alexandrite (rare and costly) and moonstone were added as alternatives. October pairs delicate opal with the more hard-wearing tourmaline. December has the widest choice of all, turquoise, tanzanite and zircon, because none of the three is a hard, everyday stone on its own. Any of a month's stones is "correct"; the choice is about budget, durability and which colour the person actually likes.

Choosing a birthstone gift

A birthstone gift is personal by definition, but a few things make it land better:

• Check durability for daily wear. Diamond, sapphire and ruby are hard enough for everyday rings; softer stones like opal, pearl and tanzanite are better in earrings or pendants that take less knocking about.
• Buy the colour they actually wear. A birth month is a nice reason, but if someone never wears green, an emerald sits in a drawer. When in doubt, colourless diamond flatters everyone.
• Pendants and studs beat rings for gifting, because they need no finger size and suit any style. Our care guide covers keeping any diamond piece bright.
• For a milestone birthday, a diamond is the piece most likely to be kept and worn for decades, whatever the month.

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Frequently asked questions