Learn About Pearls

Compare Pearl Types Side by Side

On this page
  1. Where the figures come from
  2. Reading the table
  3. More comparisons

The table below sets the five pearl types in the Learn About Pearls dataset side by side: Akoya, freshwater, South Sea, Tahitian and keshi cultured pearls. Untick a type or a row to hide it. With JavaScript off, the full table shows.

The pearl types in the Learn About Pearls dataset, side by side
Feature Akoya cultured pearlFreshwater cultured pearlKeshi cultured pearlSouth Sea cultured pearlTahitian cultured pearl
Mollusk Pinctada fucata (Akoya pearl oyster)1 2Hyriopsis cumingii (triangle shell mussel)1 2 3 4Pinctada maxima, Pinctada margaritifera cumingii and Pinctada fucata (South Sea, black-lipped and Akoya pearl oysters)1 5Pinctada maxima (silver-lipped pearl oyster and gold-lipped pearl oyster)1 5Pinctada margaritifera cumingii (black-lipped pearl oyster)1 6 7
Water saltwater2 8freshwater1 7saltwater1saltwater7 8saltwater7 8
Natural or cultured cultured1cultured1cultured1 9cultured1cultured1 6
Main producing regions Japan, China and Vietnam2 3 10China3 7 10wherever South Sea, Tahitian and Akoya cultured pearls are farmed1Australia, Indonesia, the Philippines and Myanmar1 5 7 10French Polynesia1 7 10
Typical size 6–8 mm3 8 10 11 123–15 mm3 8Not recorded9–16 mm3 8 108–14 mm3 8 10 13
Size range 2–11 mm3 8 10 11 123–25 mm3 8under 1 mm to 16 mm (larger ones are very rare)3 98–18 mm3 8 108–20 mm3 8 10 13
Shapes round, near-round, semi-baroque and baroque3 11round, near-round, oval, coin and baroque3 8 14baroque, button, oval and drop1 15 16round, oval, button, drop, circled and baroque3 8round, oval, button, drop, circled and baroque3 8
Natural colors white and cream2 3 8 12white, cream, pink, peach, orange, lavender and purple1 2 3white to yellow and gray to black1 16white, silver, cream, champagne and golden3 7 17 18 19gray, greenish gray, black and brown3 7 8
Growing time 6–36 months (typically 10 to 14 months)3 10 111–5 years (depending on the culture method and mussel)4 14 20Not recorded1–3 years (two to three years in Australia and the Philippines)3 518–24 months3 13
Nacre Bead-cultured, so the nacre covers a shell bead. Akoya nacre is generally thinner than that of South Sea and Tahitian cultured pearls, because the growing period is shorter and the water cooler.1 21 22Most are grown from mantle tissue alone, with no bead. Bead-cultured freshwater pearls, such as Edison pearls, have a shell bead at the center.8 10 23No bead, and mostly solid nacre. Some South Sea and Tahitian keshi are hollow or contain a lot of organic matter.1 5Bead-cultured, with the thickest nacre of the bead-cultured types, typically 1.5–3.0 mm.5 24Bead-cultured, with the bead placed in the gonad. French Polynesia used to require at least 0.8 mm of nacre; since its 2017 pearl law, a nacre check is voluntary.1 6 25
Relative price Generally more expensive than freshwater cultured pearls of similar size and quality (GIA)2The most affordable pearl type (GIA)2Not recordedNot recordedNot recorded
Identification notes X-ray radiography shows the shell bead and lets labs measure the nacre over it. White Akoya are routinely processed after harvest. Bleaching is common, and the pink overtone is very often the result of processing. Bead-cultured freshwater pearls can look much the same. Freshwater pearls contain more manganese and barium and less strontium, a difference labs can measure.2 3 12 22 23 26Freshwater pearls contain more manganese and barium and less strontium than saltwater pearls. Labs measure this directly, and through X-ray luminescence, which brightens with manganese. Some bead-cultured freshwater pearls look like Akoya and are sold as "freshwater Akoya", a name GIA calls incorrect. Bleaching, dyeing and optical brightening are common treatments.1 2 9 23 26X-ray imaging shows organic-rich centers, voids or lines instead of a bead. Some of these features also occur in natural pearls, so a few results are inconclusive. Many are now grown on purpose, and most are thought to form in the gonad, while natural pearls form mainly in the mantle.5 15 16X-ray radiography and microtomography show the bead and help separate bead-cultured, non-bead cultured and natural pearls. Golden color can be natural, or produced by heat or dye; labs tell them apart with UV-visible spectroscopy, fluorescence and photoluminescence.5 18 19 22 27A reflectance feature near 700 nm is a key sign of the black-lipped oyster; pearls from Pinctada mazatlanica share it. Some are treated, for example bleached to "chocolate" brown or modified to "pistachio" green. French Polynesian law requires treated pearls to be labeled as treated.6 28 29 30 31

Where the figures come from#

Every value in the table comes from the Learn About Pearls dataset, and the numbers in each cell point to that value’s own sources in the list below. The same records fill the type profiles and the comparison pages, so the figures agree across the site. The whole dataset can be downloaded as CSV or JSON.

Reading the table#

  • Typical size is the range of sizes most often seen, and size range the usual spread. Some types have only one of the two.
  • Relative price never gives a price. It is the source’s own ranking in plain words, with a tier from 1, the lowest, to 5, the highest, where one can be given.
  • Not recorded means the dataset has no sourced value for that type yet.

More comparisons#

The comparison pages set two kinds of pearls against each other in words, such as Akoya vs freshwater, and the type profiles cover each type in depth.

References#

  1. CIBJO, The World Jewellery Confederation, Pearl Commission (2026). The CIBJO Pearl Book (Pearl Blue Book) 2026. Source · Archived copy
  2. Phoebe Shang (2026). Freshwater Akoyas – A Trending Misnomer for Certain Freshwater Pearls. Source · Archived copy
  3. CIBJO Pearl Commission (2025). CIBJO Guides Describing and Classifying Natural and Cultured Pearls, the Producing Molluscs & Responsible Pearling. Source · Archived copy
  4. Doug Fiske and Jeremy Shepherd (2007). Continuity and Change in Chinese Freshwater Pearl Culture. Source · DOI 10.5741/GEMS.43.2.138 · Archived copy
  5. Artitaya Homkrajae, Nanthaporn Nilpetploy, Areeya Manustrong, Nicholas Sturman, Kwanreun Lawanwong and Promlikit Kessrapong (2021). Internal Structures of Known Pinctada maxima Pearls: Cultured Pearls from Operated Marine Mollusks. Source · DOI 10.5741/GEMS.57.3.186 · Archived copy
  6. Assemblée de la Polynésie française (Journal officiel de la Polynésie française) (2017). Loi du pays n° 2017-16 du 18 juillet 2017 réglementant les activités professionnelles liées à la production et la commercialisation des produits perliers et nacriers en Polynésie française. Source · Archived copy
  7. Gemological Institute of America (GIA), Gem Encyclopedia. Pearl Description. Source · Archived copy
  8. Gemological Institute of America (GIA), FAQ. What are the main types of cultured pearls and what are their distinctive characteristics?. Source · Archived copy
  9. H. A. Hänni (2006). A short review of the use of "keshi" as a term to describe pearls. Source · DOI 10.15506/JoG.2006.30.1.51 · Archived copy
  10. Fisheries Agency of Japan (水産庁) (2026). 真珠養殖をめぐる情勢について (On the situation of pearl culture). Source · Archived copy
  11. Areeya Manustrong (2018). Very Small Akoya Cultured Pearls. Source · Archived copy
  12. Artitaya Homkrajae (2024). Remarkably Large Akoya Bead Cultured Pearls. Source · Archived copy
  13. Oïhana Latchere and others (2018). Influence of water temperature and food on the last stages of cultured pearl mineralization from the black-lip pearl oyster Pinctada margaritifera. Source · DOI 10.1371/journal.pone.0193863 · Archived copy
  14. Shigeru Akamatsu, Li Tajima Zansheng, Thomas M. Moses and Kenneth Scarratt (2001). The Current Status of Chinese Freshwater Cultured Pearls. Source · DOI 10.5741/GEMS.37.2.96 · Archived copy
  15. Michael S. Krzemnicki (2010). Trade Alert: "Keshi" cultured pearls are entering the natural pearl trade. Source · Archived copy
  16. Nishka Vaz, Abeer Al-Alawi and Anukul Belanke (2026). Diverse Range of Organic-Rich Cores in South Sea Non-Bead Cultured "Keshi" Pearls. Source · DOI 10.5741/GEMS.62.1.26 · Archived copy
  17. Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. South Sea Pearl Ring (NMNH G10639). Source · Archived copy
  18. Shane Elen (2001). Spectral Reflectance and Fluorescence Characteristics of Natural-Color and Heat-Treated "Golden" South Sea Cultured Pearls. Source · DOI 10.5741/GEMS.37.2.114 · Archived copy
  19. Chunhui Zhou, Artitaya Homkrajae, Joyce Wing Yan Ho, Akira Hyatt and Nicholas Sturman (2012). Update on the Identification of Dye Treatment in Yellow or "Golden" Cultured Pearls. Source · DOI 10.5741/GEMS.48.4.284 · Archived copy
  20. Changbo Zhu, Paul C. Southgate and Ting Li (2019). Production of Pearls. Source · DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-96776-9_5 · Archived copy
  21. Kwanreun Lawanwong, Ravenya Atchalak and Emiko Yazawa (2025). Exceptional Nacre Thickness of Hybrid Akoya Bead Cultured Pearls. Source · Archived copy
  22. Chunhui Zhou and W. Henry Towbin (2024). Applications of X-Ray Radiography and X-Ray Computed Microtomography in Gemology. Source · DOI 10.5741/GEMS.60.4.582 · Archived copy
  23. Chunhui Zhou and others (2021). Detection of Color Treatment and Optical Brightening in Chinese Freshwater "Edison" Pearls. Source · DOI 10.5741/GEMS.57.2.124 · Archived copy
  24. Nanthaporn Nilpetploy, Kwanreun Lawanwong, Promlikit Kessrapong, Areeya Manustrong and Nicholas Sturman (2021). A study on improving the surface appearance of low-quality Pinctada maxima bead cultured pearls. Source · Archived copy
  25. Chambre territoriale des comptes de la Polynésie française (2021). Rapport d'observations définitives : Politique publique en matière des ressources marines (perliculture), exercices 2015 et suivants. Source · Archived copy
  26. Stefanos Karampelas and others (2019). Chemical Characteristics of Freshwater and Saltwater Natural and Cultured Pearls from Different Bivalves. Source · DOI 10.3390/min9060357 · Archived copy
  27. Shane Elen (2002). Update on the Identification of Treated "Golden" South Sea Cultured Pearls. Source · DOI 10.5741/GEMS.38.2.156 · Archived copy
  28. Artitaya Homkrajae (2016). Spectral Characteristics of Pinctada mazatlanica and Pinctada margaritifera Pearl Oyster Species. Source · Archived copy
  29. Stefanos Karampelas, Emmanuel Fritsch, Jean-Pierre Gauthier and Thomas Hainschwang (2011). UV-Vis-NIR Reflectance Spectroscopy of Natural-Color Saltwater Cultured Pearls from Pinctada margaritifera. Source · DOI 10.5741/GEMS.47.1.31 · Archived copy
  30. Wuyi Wang, Kenneth Scarratt, Akira Hyatt, Andy Hsi-Tien Shen and Matthew Hall (2006). Identification of "Chocolate Pearls" Treated by Ballerina Pearl Co.. Source · DOI 10.5741/GEMS.42.4.222 · Archived copy
  31. Chunhui Zhou, Joyce Wing Yan Ho, Sally Chan, Jessie Yixin Zhou, Surjit Dillon Wong and Kyaw Soe Moe (2016). Identification of "Pistachio" Colored Pearls Treated by Ballerina Pearl Co.. Source · DOI 10.5741/GEMS.52.1.50 · Archived copy
Written by
Learn About Pearls editors
Fact-checked
Learn About Pearls editors,
Reviewed by
Simon,
First published
Publisher
Unique Pearl, a pearl jeweler
Revision history
  1. : First published. First published
How to cite this page
APA
Learn About Pearls editors. (2026). Compare Pearl Types Side by Side. Learn About Pearls. https://learnaboutpearls.com/tools/compare-pearl-types/
MLA
“Compare Pearl Types Side by Side.” Learn About Pearls, Unique Pearl, November 4, 2026, learnaboutpearls.com/tools/compare-pearl-types/.
Chicago
Learn About Pearls editors. “Compare Pearl Types Side by Side.” Learn About Pearls. Unique Pearl. Last modified November 4, 2026. https://learnaboutpearls.com/tools/compare-pearl-types/.
BibTeX
@misc{lap-tools-compare-pearl-types, title = {Compare Pearl Types Side by Side}, author = {{Learn About Pearls editors}}, year = {2026}, howpublished = {\url{https://learnaboutpearls.com/tools/compare-pearl-types/}}, note = {Learn About Pearls, published by Unique Pearl}}

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  • Comparisons: Side-by-side comparisons of the main pearl types, and of natural, cultured, saltwater and freshwater pearls.
  • Pearl types: Akoya, freshwater, South Sea, Tahitian and keshi pearls, and where each one comes from.
  • Pearl size visualizer: Pearls drawn at true size, from 1 to 20 mm, with each type's typical sizes.