What Is Turquoise Worth? 50 Turquoise Varieties & a 2026 Collector’s Price Guide

Santa Fe Sun Handmade
4 days ago
6 min read

From the Author:

This blog is inspired by conversations we had this week with notable artists discussing options for stones in pieces we commissioned. While we know the value of various turquoise types in our brain, speaking to the artists and seeing the real cabochons etches it into our heart. The stones we were shown were truly incredible. Isn't it interesting how our brain can know information and store it, and sometimes forget it. -- but our heart absorbs it, feels it, and remembers the impression of the beauty and brilliance of things worth visual and historical value forever...and makes us catch our breath...

Sterling Silver & Godber Burnham Turquiose Repoussé Cuff handmade by Navajo silversmith Rita Begay.

When people talk about the rising cost of handmade sterling silver jewelry, the conversation almost always turns to one thing: the price of silver.

And yes, silver matters. When the price of sterling rises, artists pay more for sheet, wire, bezel, ingot and every other bit of metal that goes into a handmade piece.

But there's another major cost sitting right there in the jewelry that often gets overlooked:

the stones.

In turquoise jewelry, the stone can represent a significant portion of the raw material value—and in exceptional pieces, the turquoise can be worth far more than the silver surrounding it.

A large cabochon of common or stabilized turquoise might represent a relatively modest material cost. But put a 20-carat gem-grade Bisbee stone into that same piece and the turquoise alone could potentially represent thousands of dollars in value. Replace it with authenticated Lander Blue, and you're dealing with an entirely different level of rarity and expense.

Yet when people look at the price of a substantial handmade turquoise bracelet, ring or pendant, they'll sometimes mentally calculate the value of the silver and wonder why the finished piece costs so much.

They're forgetting what's set in the silver.

And turquoise prices can vary far more dramatically than silver prices ever could.

One turquoise stone might be worth just a few dollars per carat. Another might command $50 per carat. Another $100. And exceptional examples of the rarest authenticated turquoise can reach hundreds of dollars per carat.

So when someone asks:

“How much is turquoise worth per carat?” It sounds like a simple question.

It isn't.

Unlike gold or silver, turquoise doesn't have a standardized market price. You can find genuine turquoise selling for just a few dollars per carat—and another natural turquoise cabochon selling for $100, $200, $300 or even more per carat.

How can the same gemstone have such an enormous range?

Because when it comes to turquoise, the story beneath the stone matters.

Color, hardness, matrix, treatment, size and beauty all influence value. But turquoise has another fascinating factor: where it came from and how much of it exists.

Some turquoise deposits have produced enormous quantities of material.

Others produced very little.

Some mines continue to produce turquoise today. Others have been closed for decades. A few legendary deposits yielded such tiny quantities of exceptional turquoise that authenticated stones have become collectibles in their own right.

So before we get to the numbers, there is one rule worth remembering:

A mine name tells you where to begin evaluating turquoise. It does not tell you what an individual stone is worth.

Sterling silver, Sleeping Beauty Turquoise, Sonoran Turquoise, Red, Orangl and Purple Spiny Oyster Shell Naja pendant handmade by Navajo silversmiths V & C Hale.

50 Turquoise Varieties: Approximate 2026 Price Guide

The following chart is intended as an educational retail reference for natural loose turquoise cabochons, not as an appraisal or an official commodity-price list.

The market for the rarest turquoise is small and relatively opaque, so exact prices can be difficult to establish. The ranges become less precise for mines with little current material available. Exceptional authenticated old-stock material may also sell above these ranges.

Prices are approximate U.S. dollars per carat as of August 19, 2026.

Turquoise / Mine	Good Natural	High / Gem Grade	Exceptional / Collector
Lander Blue	$75–150	$150–300	$300–500+
Blue Wind	$40–100	$100–200	$200–300+
Bisbee	$25–60	$75–150	$150–250+
Number Eight (#8)	$20–50	$50–100	$100–200+
Indian Mountain	$20–50	$50–100	$100–175+
Red Mountain	$20–50	$50–100	$100–175+
Lone Mountain	$15–40	$40–100	$100–175+
Candelaria	$15–40	$40–90	$100–200+
Stormy Mountain	$20–40	$40–80	$80–150+
Ithaca Peak	$15–40	$40–80	$80–150+
Carico Lake	$15–35	$35–75	$75–150+
Blue Gem	$10–30	$30–60	$60–125+
Morenci	$10–30	$30–60	$60–125+
Godber / Burnham	$10–25	$30–60	$60–100+
Sleeping Beauty	$10–25	$25–60	$60–125+
Damele	$10–25	$25–60	$60–100+
Kingman	$5–20	$25–60	$75–125+
Royston	$5–20	$20–50	$50–100+
Dry Creek	$5–20	$20–50	$50–100+
Fox	$5–15	$15–35	$40–75+
Blue Diamond	$8–20	$20–45	$50–90+
Easter Blue	$8–20	$20–45	$50–90+
Ajax	$7–20	$20–40	$40–80+
Orville Jack	$7–20	$20–40	$40–80+
Pilot Mountain	$5–15	$15–40	$40–75+
Crow Springs / Blue Bird	$5–15	$15–35	$40–70+
Blue Moon	$5–15	$15–35	$40–70+
New Lander	$5–15	$15–35	$40–75+
Royston Ribbon	$5–15	$15–35	$40–75+
Battle Mountain	$5–15	$15–35	$40–75+
Emerald Valley	$5–15	$15–30	$35–60+
Royston Boulder	$5–15	$15–30	$35–60+
McGinnis	$5–15	$15–30	$35–60+
Pixie	$5–15	$15–30	$35–60+
Nevada Blue	$5–15	$15–30	$35–60+
Apache Blue	$5–15	$15–30	$35–60+
Tyrone	$5–15	$15–30	$35–60+
Cerrillos	$5–15	$15–30	$35–60+
Cripple Creek	$5–15	$15–30	$35–60+
King's Manassa	$5–15	$15–30	$35–60+
Persian Turquoise	$5–20	$20–50	$50–100+
Tibetan Turquoise	$5–15	$15–35	$40–75+
Hubei Turquoise	$3–15	$15–40	$40–80+
Golden Hills	$5–15	$15–40	$40–75+
Nacozari	$3–12	$12–30	$30–60+
Sonoran Gold	$3–12	$12–30	$30–60+
Sonoran Mountain	$3–12	$12–30	$30–60+
Campitos	$2–8	$8–20	$20–40+
Turquoise Mountain	$3–12	$12–30	$30–60+
White Buffalo*	$3–12	$12–30	$30–60+

*White Buffalo is not mineralogically turquoise.

Why Are Some Turquoise Varieties So Expensive?

The answer can often be summed up in one word: Rarity. But rarity alone isn't enough.

A scarce stone nobody wants isn't necessarily valuable. The truly expensive turquoise varieties combine scarcity with extraordinary color, pattern, history and collector demand.

And that brings us to the king of the turquoise world.

Sterling silver and Sleeping Beauty Turquoise 20 stone bracelet handmade by Navajo silversmith Paul Livingston.

What Actually Determines Turquoise Value?

Seven things matter enormously: whether the stone is natural or treated, color, matrix, hardness, size, rarity and provenance.

Natural turquoise generally commands the strongest collector premium, while stabilization can make softer material durable and beautiful for everyday wear. Neither should be confused with the other; disclosure is what matters.

Color and matrix can dramatically influence value, but there is no single universally superior appearance. Clean blue Sleeping Beauty, vivid green Carico Lake and heavily webbed Number Eight can all be highly desirable for entirely different reasons.

Hardness also matters because naturally dense material that takes a fine polish without stabilization represents only a fraction of some mines' production.

Large exceptional stones may receive a premium simply because finding enough flawless or beautifully patterned rough to create them is increasingly difficult.

Then we arrive at the two factors that can change everything:

rarity and provenance.

Provenance: Sometimes the Most Valuable Detail

Can the stone actually be traced to the mine?

Did it come from a known miner, cutter, collector or old collection?

Did the artist purchase it from a trusted source?

This becomes increasingly important as the claimed turquoise becomes rarer and more expensive.

A beautiful unidentified spiderweb stone may indeed look remarkably like Lander Blue.

That doesn't make it Lander Blue.

Without provenance, even experts can disagree.

At Santa Fe Sun Handmade, we'd rather tell you that a turquoise mine is unknown than give a beautiful stone a famous name we cannot support.

Because authenticity matters more than a label.

Sterling silver and Royston Turquoise Ring handmade by Navajo silversmith Mary Ellen.

Don't Forget the Stone When You're Looking at the Price of the Jewelry

And that brings us back to where we started.

When evaluating a handmade turquoise piece, it is easy to focus on the sterling silver.

Silver has a published market price, so it gives us an obvious number to talk about.

Turquoise doesn't.

But that does not mean its value disappears.

In some pieces, the stone represents a modest portion of the material cost.

In others—particularly jewelry containing rare, high-grade, natural turquoise—the stone may be one of the most expensive components in the entire piece.

And that still isn't the value of the finished jewelry.

You cannot simply calculate: turquoise + silver = finished value.

A handmade Native American piece also reflects the artist's experience, silversmithing, design, reputation, time, rarity, provenance and artistic vision.

An extraordinary old Bisbee stone set by a respected Navajo silversmith isn't simply $2,000 worth of turquoise sitting inside $100 worth of silver.

It is a work of art.

The stone has value.

The silver has value.

And then the artist adds something neither one possessed before.

View More Native Wearable Art at Santa Fe Sun Handmade E-GALLERY Now

Buy the Stone That Makes You Look Twice

After seeing prices ranging from a few dollars to hundreds of dollars per carat, it would be easy to assume the most expensive turquoise must also be the most beautiful.

It isn't.

A $200-per-carat stone might carry tremendous value because only a tiny quantity of that material ever existed.

Meanwhile, a gorgeous $10-per-carat stone may have extraordinary color and character.