The birthstone chart everyone argues over isn’t ancient. It was standardized in 1912, when the American National Retail Jewelers Association met in Kansas City and voted the list into existence — one stone per month, tidy as a calendar. It has been amended a handful of times since, and jewelers have been settling bar bets with it ever since.
This is that list, read for men: all twelve birthstones by month, what each stone has actually stood for — and, because we cut most of them into men’s rings, what the stone looks like when it’s built for a hand rather than a charm bracelet. Where we’ve written a full deep-dive on a stone, it’s linked under its month.
The chart first. The details after.
| Month | Modern birthstone(s) | Stands for |
|---|---|---|
| January | Garnet | Protection, endurance, loyalty |
| February | Amethyst | Clarity, calm, self-control |
| March | Aquamarine (trad. bloodstone) | Calm seas, courage |
| April | Diamond | Permanence, resolve |
| May | Emerald | Growth, rebirth |
| June | Moonstone, pearl, alexandrite | Intuition, new beginnings |
| July | Ruby | Life, passion, courage |
| August | Peridot (spinel since 2016) | Light, renewal, protection |
| September | Sapphire | Wisdom, clear thinking |
| October | Opal, tourmaline | Hope, imagination |
| November | Topaz, citrine | A cool head; prosperity |
| December | Turquoise, zircon, tanzanite | Protection, luck |
Winter Birthstones: January to March
January — Garnet
Blood-red and battle-tested: soldiers carried garnet for protection from Rome to the Crusades, and the stone still reads as endurance and loyalty. The full history is in our garnet meaning guide. On the hand, we set it deep — the garnet dragon claw ring grips the red stone in silver talons, which is about as far from a dainty birthstone charm as January gets.
February — Amethyst
The Greeks named it amethystos — “not drunk” — believing the purple quartz kept a head clear. Clarity and self-control have been amethyst’s meaning ever since, which is why it became the classic clergy stone: our whole bishop rings collection is built around that tradition.
March — Aquamarine
The sailor’s stone — pale blue-green, carried for calm water and steady nerves. Its older, tougher-looking alternative is bloodstone, dark green flecked with red. Honest note: we don’t currently cut either one. Pale blue reads delicate against heavy silver, and March-born men usually borrow from a neighboring month.
Spring Birthstones: April to June
April — Diamond
Permanence, plain and simple — the hardest natural material there is. At men’s ring scale, natural diamonds price like real estate, which is why most men’s jewelry — ours included — uses clearly disclosed CZ where a diamond look is wanted. The sparkle is the same across a room; the honesty is on the product page.
May — Emerald
Growth and rebirth — the green of things coming back to life. Fine emerald is brittle and inclusion-heavy, which makes it a nervous choice for a daily-wear men’s ring; green-stone loyalists usually find peridot friendlier to live with.
June — Moonstone
June officially lists pearl, alexandrite, and moonstone — and for men, moonstone is the one that works. Its floating blue-white glow (the trade calls it adularescence) has meant intuition and new beginnings for centuries. Our moonstone guide covers the glow, the colors, and how to spot glass fakes.
Summer Birthstones: July to September
July — Ruby
The stone of kings — red corundum, hardness 9, second only to diamond. Three thousand years of ruby symbolism come down to life, passion, and courage. We set it where the color can hold court: the ruby bishop ring pairs the red with yellow gold and lets neither win.
August — Peridot
The Egyptians called peridot the gem of the sun; it forms in volcanoes and occasionally falls from space in meteorites — light, renewal, and protection earned the hard way. The peridot deep-dive has the full story. August also gained spinel as an official second stone in 2016. On the hand, the gold peridot bishop ring rings the green with a bright halo.
September — Sapphire
Heaven, royalty, and clear thinking — the blue that clergy and kings both claimed, and ruby’s twin mineral at the same hardness 9. Our sapphire guide explains why the name once belonged to a different stone entirely.
Autumn Birthstones: October to December
October — Opal & Tourmaline
Hope and imagination — opal’s shifting play-of-color made it the dreamer’s stone. It’s also soft: 5.5 to 6.5 on the Mohs scale, which is why you rarely see opal in heavy men’s rings, ours included. It doesn’t survive the way men actually wear rings. October-born buyers usually go tourmaline — or borrow November.
November — Topaz & Citrine
The only month with two warm golden stones — fitting, since they were mistaken for each other for centuries. Topaz stands for strength and a cool head; citrine is the merchant’s stone of prosperity, added to the official list in 1952. For November hands we go big: the natural citrine ring carries a 21-carat cushion-cut stone inside a white sapphire halo.
December — Turquoise
December lists zircon, tanzanite (added in 2002), and turquoise — and turquoise is the one with three thousand years of men wearing it: armor inlay, saddle silver, protection charms across six cultures. What turquoise actually meant is deeper than the gift-shop version.
Do You Have to Wear Your Month?
No. The 1912 list was a trade agreement, not a law of nature — and plenty of men pick a stone for what it means or how it sits against silver rather than when they were born. Birthstones by month make a starting point and a good story, not an obligation. If you’d rather choose by the stone itself, our men’s gemstone ring guide compares them side by side, and the full rings lineup is where all twelve months end up eventually.
One practical rule outranks the calendar: pick a stone hard enough for your hands. Above 7 on the Mohs scale, a stone survives a man’s daily wear. Below it, buy the pendant instead.