Morganite and rose quartz have earned themselves a reputation lately – two of the most romantic and feminine gems to grace anyone’s jewelry. Morganite has become a favorite in the past decade, especially for engagement rings. Meanwhile rose quartz has that dreamy, hazy feel to it that borders on magical.
So what do you do if you’re stuck between a morganite and a rose quartz ? Read this to help you choose one, of course ! While both gemstones are beautiful, they are a bit different and it’s these differences that can really matter in the long run. So let’s compare the two.
Morganite vs rose quartz
Morganite is more durable than rose quartz, and almost always much clearer than rose quartz. Where rose quartz is pure light link, morganite is a peachy-pink with slight orange flashes. Morganite is always more expensive than rose quartz, simply because it’s a type of beryl and rose quartz is a very common mineral on the planet.
What is morganite ?
Morganite is a type of beryl, in the same family as aquamarine and emerald. This particular gem owes its pinkish hues to trace amounts of manganese. As a beryl, morganite is not rare but it’s not among the common gems on the planet.
What is rose quartz ?
Rose quartz is a variety of quartz, with a cloudy pink coloration. Its pink is not fully explained, but is thought to be due to a combination of titanium, iron, or manganese. As this is quartz, you’ll have an easy time finding it for sale since supply is plentiful.
Read also: Citrine VS Yellow Sapphire
1. Morganite is harder than rose quartz
When it comes to jewelry a gem’s hardness is a key factor. Morganite is a harder gemstone than rose quartz, and because of this is will stand up to daily wear and tear better. Oh morganite can still scratch, but far less than rose quartz. This is especially true if the rose quartz in question is very cloudy (it usually is).
This is because beryl, which is what morganite is, scores 8 out of 10 on the Mohs scale of hardness. And morganite in particular tends to not have inclusions, offering less weak points for it to split or chip.
Rose quartz is a type of quartz, which is a softer stone scoring 7 on the Mohs scale. Highly included specimens, such as rose quartz, tend to have an even lower score such as 6.5 as they are less compact.
In short, if you’re looking for a gemstone to wear on your body every day and have it last for decades, rose quartz is not a good choice. You’d be better off with morganite.
2. Rose quartz is more affordable than morganite
Morganite is always going to be more expensive than rose quartz, precisely due to it being a type of beryl. All beryl varieties have a high price tag, including morganite. Jewelry-quality morganite sells for about $150 per carat, with more saturated colors fetching a higher price.
Meanwhile rose quartz sells for far less, at $2 per carat. So not only is it inexpensive, getting a very large gem is completely doable. For jewelry this isn’t necessary, as after a point gems become cumbersome to wear. But if you’re looking for gems to carve or have around the house, rose quartz is definitely a choice.
3. Morganite is always clearer than rose quartz
Both morganite and rose quartz can be cloudy due to impurities, and this adds some charm to them. But if you’re looking for a clear, or at least clearer gem, you should stick with morganite. Between the two this one has the highest incidence of eye-clean gems.
You can find clear-ish rose quartz, though those are usually hazy. They’re not as opaque as rose quartz usually is, but you still can’t see very well through them.
And if you’re interested in clear gems, you might be wondering if morganite will give you a bit of sparkle. Beryl’s refractive index is 1.5, which is not much but it means morganite will still flash some white sparkles at you.
4. Rose quartz is a rosy pink, morganite is pink-peach
Let’s talk color, specifically pink. If you’re looking at morganite and rose quartz you’re also looking at those rosy colors and wondering what options you have.
Well, morganite comes in a wider range than rose quartz. You can find morganite from very pale pink to a rosy pink, and they often cross into peachy-salmon territory. So expect to see an orange undertone in your morganite. If you want it fully pink, it can do that but it’s rarer than the peachy-pink ones.
Rose quartz has much less orange-peachy notes in its body color, so it displays a simpler range of pinks. You can find very pale rose quartz, to quite vibrant colors, but it always has a milky, hazy appearance to it, much like moonstone.
5. Morganite can be any cut, rose quartz is usually a cabochon
Rose quartz is most often found in cabochon cuts, as is the usual case for hazy gemstones or very soft ones. This is because cabochons offer:
- a deeper view into the gemstone due to its come shape
- no weak points (sharp edges) that the gem could cleave from
So rose quartz will usually be in a cabochon, even if it’s a hazy one. Truth be told such a gem doesn’t benefit much from a brilliant cut, other than just switching things up. If you’d like a cut that is not a cabochon, consider a step-cut for rose quartz. For particularly large gems – like 5 cts and up – this kind of cut can make it look very elegant. Or, you can get a rough rose quartz and have that set into jewelry, for a boho artistic look.
As for morganite, it can benefit from any cut, as long as it’s got the shade you like. The most common cuts for morganites are pear and marquise, currently.
Can you wear rose quartz instead of morganite ?
Rose quartz cannot be worn instead of morganite because it cannot pass for morganite. Even the most clear rose quartz will still be hazy, which morganite is not. There is also a difference in color, where rose quartz will have a distinct pink look to it, compared to morganite’s peachy-pink look.
That being said, if all you’re looking for is a simple pink gemstone then you can wear any of these gems. If rose quartz makes more sense for you then go ahead. Just don’t expect it to behave as morganite and pass for one. If you’d like a morganite dupe we recommend CZ instead.
I’m the main author for jewelrymaterialguide.com. I started this site after we did tons of research before our wedding and noticed that there is information about rings, jewelry, and so on that is really hard to find on the internet.
