How to Tell if Amethyst is Real

Buying crystals online can be tricky. With so many crystal shops opening up, and sites like Shein and AliExpress selling them for incredibly low prices, crystals are everywhere now! But how do you know if your crystals are real? Specifically, how can you tell if Amethyst is real?

There are many fakes out there, and you should do your research before buying. Buying from a local crystal shop or reputable online retailer is your best bet. A specialized shop that focuses on crystals is usually the way to go. If the store you are shopping at also sells clothes, home goods, makeup and everything else - their crystal knowledge is probably sub-par, and they may be selling unethically sourced, fake, dyed, or mislabelled crystals.

In other words, avoid purchasing crystals from places like Shein, AliExpress, Urban Outfitters, and support a local business or small online shop instead. You will probably get a better quality crystal and can have greater confidence in your purchase. The prices might be tempting, but they are that low for a reason. Trust me on that! 

If you want to know how to tell if Amethyst is real or fake, here are some of my top tips:

1. Check the colour - is it too good to be true? Sometimes retailers will take a mediocre piece of amethyst (low quality) and dye it to make it appear higher grade. You can usually tell right away - especially if it's a cluster. The colour is abnormally bright, vibrant, and unnatural. But also, the colour will be uniform down to the bottom of a cluster. 

Here's an example of a dyed cluster:

See how the dye seems to be darker in the crevices of the cluster, and is a uniform colour throughout? 

Now let's look at a natural amethyst cluster:

As you can see, there is a variety of colours from the bottom (base) of the cluster to the top. This is what a natural cluster would look like.  In this case, if you have a dyed cluster, it is likely that it was a low-grade poor quality piece of amethyst that was dyed so it would look higher-grade and could therefore be sold for a higher price. You will still have the energetic properties of amethyst, but if this wasn't disclosed to you before purchasing, that's incredibly sketchy. A trusted retailer will ALWAYS disclose if a crystal is enhanced, dyed, or altered. 

2. Check the temperature.  Authentic crystals will generally be cooler to touch. When you hold it in your hand, it should feel slightly cooler than if you were holding glass or plastic. Of course, overtime it will warm up especially if you are holding it or wearing it against your body for a long period. But, if its sitting in your room untouched and you pick it up - you'll notice it has a cooler temperature.

3. Hardness Test. This is one of the best (most reliable ways) to test your crystals.  Each crystal will have its own score on the Mohs scale of hardness.  The scale ranges from 1-10 with 1 being the softest and 10 being the hardest. A diamond is a 10, a blade is around a 5, a fingernail is a 2. Amethyst, a variety of Quartz, is a 7 on the Mohs scale.  This means it's a hard stone and anything softer than it should not cause damage to the stone.  If you use a fingernail for example, to scratch the stone, it should not leave a mark.  

4. Check for bubbles. If a seller is selling fake amethyst, they may be using glass. Glass will often have bubbles, whereas Amethyst would not. 

Hopefully these tips will help you determine if your piece of amethyst is real or fake. These are some of the best ways to tell if your Amethyst is real or fake at home, but of course, not entirely fool proof. A gemologist is and always will be the formal authority who will use their skills and expertise to verify stones. 

You may see videos on TikTok telling you to burn your crystals, or place them on ice. Please be aware these are not valuable tests - and will do nothing other than potentially damage your stone/jewelry. 

If you want to buy from a trusted crystal retailer, that sells authentic, good quality crystals at an affordable price - head over to our shop here. We are proud to offer an authenticity guarantee on every crystal in our shop. This means we label our crystals correctly, vet them for quality, and verify authenticity before they ever reach our customers hands. 

Click here to shop for authentic, real amethyst or head to our local crystal shop in Hamilton, Ontario.

Have questions? Feel free to send us an email or reach out on Instagram at @manifestandflowshop