Pearl Grading
Pearl grading is a key metric to understand before ultimately making your pearl jewelry purchase. Due to a lack of universal grading standards for pearls, its important for consumers to purchase from reputable and trustworthy pearl suppliers that uphold the highest standards for pearl quality.
Freshwater
Freshwater pearls range in size from as small as 5mm to as large as 13mm. Pearls below 7mm in size are considered to be on the smaller side, while 7-8mm and 8-9mm are among the more popular sizes selected for necklaces in Freshwater pearls. Anything sized from 9-10mm and above is considered to be above average in size, and such pearls are more rare and valuable. Please download and print our pearl sizing guide below for more information.
| A | AA | AAA | AAAA | |
| INFORMATION |
Low Quality Freshwater representing the bottom 60% of pearl harvest. |
Medium-Grade Freshwater representing top 30% of Harvest. | High-Grade Freshwater representing the top 8% of a pearl harvest. | Very High-Grade Freshwater representing the top 1-2% of a pearl harvest. |
| SURFACE | Heavy blemishing with only a 50% or less clean surface. | Minor to medium blemishing with a 70-80% clean surface. | Minor blemishing with at least 90% of the pearl surface clean. | Very Minor to no blemishing with at least 95% of the pearl surface clean. |
| LUSTER | Poor | Medium | High | Very High |
| NACRE | Thin | Medium | Thick | Very Thick |
| SHAPE | Off Round | Off Round | Near Round to Round | Round |
Japanese Akoya
Japanese Akoya pearls range in size from as small as 2mm to as large as 10mm. Pearls below 6.0mm in size are considered to be on the smaller side, while anything between 6.0mm and 8.0mm are common sizes selected for pearl jewelry items on Pernulo. Akoya pearls sized above 8.0mm are considered to be above average in size, and such pearls are more rare and valuable.
|
AA+
 |
AAA |
Hanadama
 |
| A | AA | AA+ | AAA | Hanadama | |
| INFORMATION |
Low Quality Japanese Akoya representing the bottom 50% of pearl harvest. |
Medium-Grade Japanese Akoya representing top 40% of Harvest. | High-Grade Japanese Akoya representing the top 5-10% of a pearl harvest. | Very High-Grade Japanese Akoya representing the top 1-5% of a pearl harvest. | Gem Quality Japanese Akoya Pearls representing the highest 1% of a pearl harvest. Accompanied by a numbered certificate by the Pearl Science Laboratory of Japan. |
| SURFACE | Heavy blemishing with only a 50% or less clean surface. | Minor to medium blemishing with a 70-80% clean surface. | Minor blemishing with at least 90% of the pearl surface clean. | Very Minor to no blemishing with at least 95% of the pearl surface clean. | 99% or cleaner pearl surface with either very minor to no blemishes visible. |
| LUSTER | Poor | Medium | High | Very High | Superior |
| NACRE | Thin | Medium | Thick | Very Thick | Very Thick |
| SHAPE | Round/Off Round | Round | Perfectly Round | Perfectly Round | Perfectly Round |
Tahitian South Sea pearls
Tahitian South Sea pearls range in size from as small as 8mm to as large as 20mm in rare cases! The smallest size Tahitian pearls offered are 8-9mm in size, with more common sizes including 9-10mm and 10-11mm. Generally, any sizes from 11-12mm and above are considered to be above average. Such pearls are very rare and valuable, especially in higher qualities.
| A | AA | AAA | AAAA | |
| INFORMATION |
Low Quality Tahitian representing the bottom 50% of pearl harvest. |
Medium-Grade Tahitian representing top 40% of harvest. | High-Grade Tahitian representing the top 5-10% of a pearl harvest. | Very High-Grade Tahitian representing the top 1-5% of a pearl harvest. |
| SURFACE | Pearls having flaws on at least 60% of the pearl surface, with 20% containing deep imperfections. | Flawless pearl on 40% of its surface, with the remaining 50% having minor imperfections and 10% containg deep flaws. | Flawless pearl on at least 80-85% of its surface, with remaining 15-20% containing only minor imperfections with one or two deep imperfections. | Flawless pearl on at least 95% of the pearl surface, with 5% concentrated imperfections. |
| LUSTER | Poor | Medium | High | Very High |
| A-D GRADING SYSTEM | "D" Quality | "C" Quality | "A/B" Quality | "A" Quality |
White & Golden South Sea Pearls
White & Golden South Sea Pearls range in size from as small as 3.0mm to as large as 9.5mm. Pearls below 7.0mm are considered small in size. 7.0mm until 8.0mm are generally the more popular sizes selected for necklaces, while anything above 8.0mm is considered to be more rare and valuable, especially in the higher qualities.
| A | AA | AAA | AAAA | |
| INFORMATION |
Low Quality Tahitian representing the bottom 50% of pearl harvest. |
Medium-Grade South Sea representing top 40% of harvest. | High-Grade South Sea representing the top 5-10% of a pearl harvest. | Very High-Grade South Sea representing the top 1-5% of a pearl harvest. |
| SURFACE | Pearls having flaws on at least 60% of the pearl surface, with 20% containing deep imperfections. | Flawless pearl on 40% of its surface, with the remaining 50% having minor imperfections and 10% containg deep flaws. | Flawless pearl on at least 80-85% of its surface, with remaining 15-20% containing only minor imperfections with one or two deep imperfections. | Flawless pearl on at least 95% of the pearl surface, with 5% concentrated imperfections. |
| LUSTER | Poor | Medium | High | Very High |
| A-D GRADING SYSTEM | "D" Quality | "C" Quality | "A/B" Quality | "A" Quality |
South Sea Pearls Grading Details
Luster Grade
| Quality | Luster |
| Top | AAA |
| Excellent | AAA/AA |
| Good | AA |
| Medium | AA/A |
| Low | A |
Surface Grade
|
Quality |
Surface cleaness |
| 1 | No concentrated imperfection after drilled, good for rings. |
| 1-2 | One minor with one deep imperfections after drilled, good for ring for certian styles. |
| 2 | More than two imperfections after drilled, good for seat-in style jewelries. |
| 2-3(2-3+) | Few imperfections after drilled, good for earrings and pendants. |
| 3(3+) | Normal for pearl necklaces or bezel set styles cover some imperfections. |
| 3-4 | For pearl necklaces, e.g Phoneix grade necklaces. |
| 4 | Almost no clean surface from any side of view. |
| 5 | Deep and minor imperfections full over surface. |
Shape Grade
| Shape | Shape Description (affects value) |
| RD | Round, good for all jewelry styles. |
| NRD | Near Round, good for all jewelry styles. |
| SRD | Semi-round, good for all jewelry styles. |
| BU | Full-button, good for earrings studs and seat-in styles. |
| OV | Oval, good for dangle pendants and earrings. |
| DP | Drop shape, good for dangle pendants and earrings. |
| CR | Circled pearls, or semiround baroque. |
| BQ | Baroque irregular shape |
