Why is Jade Expensive?

Ahem. I believe the word you're looking for is "valuable." You mean to ask why is jade so valuable? And the answer is this - it isn't always.

Here are just some quick facts if you're here to skim:

• Treated jadeite jade should be crazy cheap, but unfortunately, unscrupulous sellers will sell it for unfairly high prices. This is why you should always shop with a seller you trust.
  
  
• Natural jadeite jade ranges in price drastically from affordable to expensive. The more rare, the more valuable - which is why some jade stones fetch prices in the millions.
  
  
• There are two gemstones called "jade:" Jadeite jade (also called fei cui) and nephrite jade. Both can be expensive. In jewelry, jadeite jade is usually the valuable one. However, fine white nephrite jade can easily fetch tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars in China for rough and carvings.
  
  
• Most people are probably wondering why jadeite jade is so expensive, which will be the focus of this article. There are less than 20 known geological sources of jadeite jade in the world (by comparison, there are around 50 commercial - not counting industrial - diamond mines), and of those jade sources only two are producing any notable quality in any notable quantity. Most sources of jade are either not being mined - or - the value of the material isn't worth the expense of mining.
  

So if that doesn't answer your question, and neither does the video above, then buckle up - we're taking you down the jade value rabbit hole.

How Much Does Jade Cost?

If we want to know why jade costs so much, we need to know how much it actually costs.

Jade value depends on color, quality, size, and provenance. Quality is determined by a jade stone's quality of color (meaning hue, saturation, and tone, as well as evenness of color), translucency, and texture.

An inexpensive jade pendant, without gold, can sell easily in the low hundreds. For this price point, the jade stone might not have a very saturated color or high translucency if it's a highly desired color such as green or lavender.

Natural jadeite jade bangles can sell in the low hundreds, but these pieces tend to be quite low quality. A durable quality of bangle will most likely cost around $1,000 - but it likely won't have good saturation (unless there are other marks against it, for instance poor translucency or texture.)

Most natural jadeite jade bangles of good quality cost $1,000 - $5,000. Over $5k, you start getting into higher qualities. The finest quality of jade bangle you might see in a jewelry store will be in the $10k - $20k range. For customers shopping for a bangle over $20k, they can ask their local independent jeweler to bring in some options on memo (meaning the store essentially "borrows" the jade from the dealer) from a wholesale supplier such as Mason-Kay Jade.

For more information about jade pricing, browse our website.  For professional jewelry appraisers looking to better understand jade value, we encourage you to access our online portal for the trade only (wholesale) at masonkayshowroom.com. Note: Jeff Mason G.G., President of Mason-Kay Jade is widely regarded as the leading authority on jade value in the United States. He has lectured on the topic of jade value at multiple professional conferences including the International Jade Summit, AGTA GemFair, International Society of Appraisers, and more. Mason-Kay is better connected to the American jade market than any other supplier because of their role as both a retail seller and a wholesale supplier that works with thousands of jewelry stores in the United States and Canada. Because Mason-Kay also offers jade testing services to the trade and public, Jeff is able to connect with customers and sellers to find out what is happening in the jade market outside of just our customers at all times. Some people might be concerned that this is unconventional, as sellers typically don't offer appraisals. It's important to note that at Mason-Kay Jade, we don't offer appraisals for jewelry. We only offer testing and valuation on the jade itself, as so few other professionals in the nation are qualified to do so. It is a privilege to offer this service to the American gem trade, and customers with questions are always encourage to call and speak to Jeff if they have any concerns.

 

Natural Vs. Treated Jadeite Jade

I could bore you here with word-y details that are already scattered throughout our retail and wholesale websites (see our main Treated Jade article), but I've decided to keep it simple with a few bullet points:

• Everything Mason-Kay sells has been tested in-house by a professional gemologist with normal equipment (handheld spectroscope, refractometer, specific gravity, and microscope) and advanced equipment (FTIR for polymer detection) and is guaranteed natural, meaning untreated, except for the cases where a thinly applied beeswax coating has been applied on some of the jades which does not affect the appearance or value, and it is not permanent.
  
  
• Mason-Kay does not sell treated jade. This means we do not sell: 'B Jade', 'C Jade', jade doublets,  hollow cabs, etc. In cases where we are unsure whether a red jade has been heated, our uncertainty is disclosed, as this treatment can not be detected by testing.
  
  
• 'B Jade' is genuine jadeite jade of exceptionally low quality that has been acid-bleached and then impregnated with a polymer, wax, or resin. (Note: They wouldn't treat it if it had been of gem-quality in the first place.) 'B Jade' is worth ~5-10% the value of it's natural jade counterpart, but is often sold for unfairly high prices by unscrupulous sellers who don't disclose treatment. (Which is illegal, btw.)
  
  
• 'C Jade' is genuine jadeite jade that has been dyed. These stones are worth less than $20.
  
  
• The most common treatment practice is a combination of 'B' and 'C' which we call 'B+C Jade,' not to be confused with natural (untreated) genuine nephrite jade from British Columbia, Canada which is commonly called "BC Jade." Because most treated jade is B+C Jade, we can confidently say that most treated jade is worth under $50 because of the dye.

There are many trustworthy sellers of jade, and there are signs for detecting them. Do they offer a guarantee? Do they offer a refund if the stone turns out not to be jade? Some sellers even offer gem reports from Mason-Kay to prove their authenticity, as this is a service we offer to the trade. Why? Because the machines and expertise for testing jade are very expensive, and it's not practical for common jewelry sellers to have either this type of equipment or the professional to use it on hand.

Trustworthy sellers have many indicators that they're above board: They refer to jade by it's stone type (jadeite jade or nephrite jade) - not just as "jade." They disclose any treatment, and if it's not treated, they make sure you know it! They answer the office phone, they send extra photos and videos upon request, they might have a live selling show to prove that they're not drop-shipping.

I'm not saying you should trust every seller with a live show (obviously lol), but I am saying you don't have to be afraid to buy jade. Is Mason-Kay the best supplier of natural jade because we have experienced jade experts and in-house testing? Yes, of course ;). But we only have so much inventory, and we understand that you want to support other jade sellers as well. We also want to support other jade sellers, it's why we offer our testing services to them and invest so much of our time into trade education.

Is Nephrite Jade the "Cheap Jade?"

No. Nuh uh. Negative. Absolutely not. This is a very common misconception. Nephrite jade is not the cheap jade, and frankly, gem-qualities and fine-carving-qualities of nephrite jade are extremely rare.

I like the bullet point thing, so I'm going to keep running with it:

• Jadeite jade in ultra-fine gem qualities can fetch millions of dollars. Nephrite jade is worth millions of dollars in cases where it is a fine-quality carving or sculpture with provenance. Nephrite jade in jewelry is unlikely to fetch more than $20k, though I suppose the right piece could.
  
  
• Jadeite jade can be cheap. Nephrite jade can be cheap. Jadeite jade can be expensive. Nephrite jade can be expensive.
  
  
• Green nephrite jade does tend to be pretty affordable, and it's the only nephrite jade most American customers have seen in a jewelry store - which is where it gets it's rep.
  
  
• White nephrite jade can be cheap, but depending on the quality and origin it can also be very expensive. A single river-tumbled pebble smaller than your palm can sell easily for $50k, depending on where it came from. The reason this isn't well known is because these transactions occur overseas and are rarely reported in English.

 

So Why is Jadeite Jade Expensive?

When jadeite jade is expensive (and it isn't always...), it's because it's of an ultra-fine quality which is exceptionally rare and desirable. It's in a category which only a percent of a percent of the jade mined in included. It's because jade is so highly desired that it's the 2nd highest selling gemstone in the world, and the Chinese market is voracious. The stone is not just a gem to China, it is an embodiment of their culture. Jade's history is so deeply rooted in China's, that there is no untangling the two stories. This is a rare material, a beautiful gem, and a meaningful symbol of strength, perseverance, and the divine.

Here are my bullet points on this topic:

• The vast majority of jade being mined is pale, fractured, and opaque. Finding jade that is of truly gem-quality is already difficult, and (probably) >99% of those stones sell for under $10k. So for the 1%-ish of gem-quality stones truly considered fine quality, there is more demand than there is supply and this drives up the price. This is how the gem market works.
  
  
• Jade has been beloved by China for literally thousands of years. It's deeply cultural and meaningful, and it is incredibly common for Chinese citizens to own jade. Again, there is just crazy high demand for the stone.
  
  
• Imperial jade (a trade term referring to natural, ultra-fine jadeite jade) is really only known to come from Myanmar/Burma. Jade in this exceptional range of quality has only been found in Guatemala and Kazakhstan in very small amounts. As far as Russia, I'm not sure how much truly imperial jade they've found there, but it matters more that the market perceives this material as specific to Myanmar - a source that is rapidly depleting.

Conclusion

This isn't an easy question to answer, and I'm writing this without knowing what you the reader already know about jade. I think if you keep learning about jade, you too will understand the greater realm and complexities of jade value. Watch my YouTube videos (Hi, this is Jordan btw, from Jewels of the Trade), read the blog, order a few books about jade. It's by far the most fascinating gemstone, and one of the most interesting topics period in my opinion. Don't trust random people on the internet or random sellers on TikTok, and don't trust ChatGPT. There are plenty of reliable sources for jade information if you go looking.

As always, if you have any questions, reach out to Kristina at kris@masonkay.com or call the main office.

If you're interested in having your jade tested and valued, click here.