How do you tell the difference between apatite gemstone and paraiba tourmaline gemstone??

Question

How do you tell the difference between apatite gemstone and paraiba tourmaline gemstone??

Answer 1

The main difference between these is hardness. Apatite is much softer than tourmaline (5 on Moh's scale) which means it can scratch easily.  Tourmaline has a hardness of about 7.5 and is therefore more resilient and better suited for jewelry (especially rings and bracelets that get banged around more)

The other big difference between these two gems is price.  Paraiba tourmaline is much much more expensive than apatite.  It is also more widely available and more well known.

Good luck!  More info on gems on the site below.