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What Is Jade? Jadeite, Nephrite and How to Buy It

By Digital Towns Crystals · Last reviewed October 7, 2026

Short answer: jade is a name for two different stones: jadeite and nephrite. Both are tough, finely interlocked masses of crystals prized for carving for thousands of years. Jadeite is the rarer and more valuable, with an emerald-green "imperial" color at its best; nephrite is a little softer but even tougher. When buying, the key question is whether jadeite is natural, untreated "Type A".

What is jade?

Jade is an umbrella term for two different rocks used for jewelry and carving:

  • Nephrite is a calcium magnesium silicate in the amphibole group of minerals. Its crystals form a fibrous, felted mass, which makes it extremely tough. It is typically green, but can be white, yellow or black.
  • Jadeite is a sodium aluminum silicate in the pyroxene group. Its crystals interlock in a granular mass, and it occurs only in metamorphic rocks. It ranges from white and near colorless through every shade of green, including an intense emerald green called imperial, to lavender, yellow, orange, brown and black, and rarely blue.

The two were only recognized as different minerals in the 19th century.

How hard is jade?

Jadeite is about as hard as quartz, 6 to 7 on the Mohs scale. Nephrite is slightly softer, 6 to 6.5, but tougher and more resistant to breaking. That toughness, not hardness, is jade's defining quality: it is why jade could be carved into thin, intricate shapes and was used for tools and weapons in prehistoric times.

A long history

Jade is one of the oldest carving materials in human history. Some of the earliest jade artifacts are simple beads, buttons and tubes, and jade was shaped into adze heads and knives before metal tools existed.

  • China: jade has been treasured in China for thousands of years. Nephrite was the traditional jade; jade ornaments were found in Shang dynasty royal tombs, and jade became the "imperial gem", used for ceremonial objects and even burial suits. Jadeite from Burma was imported in quantity only after about 1800 and became known as fei cui, kingfisher jade.
  • Mesoamerica: the Olmec, the Maya and other ancient cultures of Mexico and Guatemala prized jade for ritual and symbolic objects.
  • New Zealand: Māori carve nephrite, known as pounamu or greenstone, into pendants and tools such as adzes and chisels.

Where does jade come from?

Myanmar is estimated to supply more than 70 percent of the world's high-quality jadeite, from the Mogaung area of Upper Myanmar, where jadeite forms a layer in dark green serpentine. Guatemala is the other principal source of modern gem jadeite. Canada, especially British Columbia, supplies a major share of modern nephrite for carving, and nephrite is also found in New Zealand and China.

Type A, B and C jade

For jadeite, the trade uses three grades to describe treatment:

  • Type A is natural, untreated jadeite. A conventional surface wax is accepted and not counted as a treatment. It is the most valuable.
  • Type B has been bleached in acid to remove brown staining, then impregnated with a colorless polymer or resin to restore its structure.
  • Type C has been dyed, with or without bleaching first. The dye sits in fractures and between grains.
  • Type B+C combines bleaching, polymer impregnation and dye.

Treated jade is still jadeite, but its value is far lower and the resin in Type B can age and discolor. For any significant purchase, ask for a laboratory report that states the type.

What is jade traditionally associated with?

In East Asian traditions, jade has long symbolized purity, harmony, protection, wisdom and good fortune, and it holds deep cultural and spiritual importance. In modern crystal traditions, jade is associated with good luck, balance and kindness, and it is commonly linked with the heart chakra. Some lists pair it with Virgo.

These are traditions and beliefs. They are part of why jade is cherished, not properties you can measure in the stone.

What colors and varieties are there?

  • Imperial jade: intense, even emerald-green jadeite, the most valuable.
  • Lavender jade: pale to medium purple jadeite.
  • White and icy jade: near-colorless, highly translucent jadeite.
  • Pounamu: New Zealand nephrite.

Jade jewelry

Jade is used for bangles, beads, rings, pendants and carvings. Its toughness makes it well suited to bangles and everyday rings. Value depends on color, translucency and texture: even, saturated color and a fine, glassy translucency are most prized.

How do you care for jade?

  • Clean it with warm, soapy water and a soft cloth, then dry it.
  • Avoid harsh chemicals, which can damage the resin in treated jade.
  • Avoid ultrasonic and steam cleaners for treated or valuable pieces.
  • Store it separately and protect bangles from hard knocks.

How can you tell real jade?

  • Many green stones are sold as jade. Serpentine has long been carved and sold as "false jade", and other green stones and glass are used too.
  • Feel and weight: jade feels cool and dense for its size.
  • Hardness: jade resists a steel blade much better than serpentine, which scratches easily.
  • Color in cracks: dye concentrates in fractures and along grain boundaries.
  • Laboratory testing is the only reliable way to confirm Type A jadeite, and it is worth it for valuable pieces.

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Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between jadeite and nephrite?

They are different minerals. Jadeite is a sodium aluminum silicate with a granular texture, rarer and more valuable, and slightly harder. Nephrite is a calcium magnesium silicate with a fibrous texture, a little softer but even tougher.

What is Type A jade?

Natural, untreated jadeite, at most finished with wax. Type B has been bleached and resin-impregnated, and Type C has been dyed. Type A is by far the most valuable.

What is imperial jade?

Jadeite with an intense, even emerald-green color and fine translucency. It is the most valuable color of jade.

Where does most jade come from?

Myanmar supplies more than 70 percent of the world's high-quality jadeite. Guatemala also produces jadeite, and British Columbia in Canada supplies much of the nephrite used for carving.

What is jade traditionally associated with?

In East Asian traditions jade symbolizes purity, harmony, protection and good fortune. In modern crystal traditions it is linked with luck and the heart chakra. These are traditions rather than measurable properties.

Why is jade so tough?

Its crystals are tightly interlocked. Nephrite is a felted mass of fibrous crystals and jadeite a dense, granular mass, so a crack cannot easily run through the stone. That toughness is why jade could be carved thin and was used for tools before metal.

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