A, B, and C Grade Jade — What the Difference Actually Means

April 30, 2026

When people talk about Grade A jade, they usually mean the best jade money can buy. They're right — but not for the reason they think. The A, B, C grading system for jadeite isn't a quality scale like school grades. It's a classification system that describes how much has been done to the stone. Understanding the difference matters when you're spending real money on a piece.

What Is the Jade Grading System?

The three-tier grading system tells you one thing: what treatments the jade has undergone since it came out of the ground. Grade A means nothing has been done beyond cutting and polishing. Grade B means the stone has been chemically altered. Grade C means it's been chemically altered and dyed. That's the entire framework.

What Is Grade A Jade?

Grade A jadeite is completely natural. It's been cut, shaped, and polished — and that's all. The color, texture, and translucency you see are exactly what the stone looked like when it came out of the mine. No bleaching, no resin, no dye.

The thin wax polish applied by the manufacturer during finishing doesn't change this classification. That's a surface step, not a treatment.

At Brother Ryan Shop, Grade A Burmese jadeite is what we focus on. We travel to Burma twice a year to source directly from manufacturers — we see exactly what we're buying before it ships. Some pieces come with laboratory certification. For all of them, direct sourcing is the foundation of our verification.

What Is Grade B Jade?

Grade B jadeite has been soaked in hydrochloric or sulfuric acid to remove internal impurities and unwanted discoloration. This acid treatment opens up the stone's structure, making it porous. Polymer resin is then injected under vacuum to fill those gaps and restore the surface appearance.

Grade B pieces can look stunning — clean, vibrant, more translucent than some natural pieces. That's the point. The problem is that the resin degrades. Exposure to heat and sunlight causes it to yellow and break down over years. The structural integrity of the stone is also compromised, making it more prone to fracturing. Grade B jadeite typically trades at around 5 to 10 percent of the value of equivalent Grade A material.

What Is Grade C Jade?

Grade C goes through everything Grade B does — acid bleaching and resin filling — and then adds artificial color. Dye is applied to intensify or even out the color of the piece. Grade C jade has very little lasting value, the color fades over time, and the chemical treatments can cause skin irritation with prolonged wear.

Grade A vs B vs C: Side-by-Side

Grade	Treatment	Longevity	Relative Value
A	Cut and polished only	Indefinite — improves with age	Full market value
B	Acid bleached + resin filled	Degrades over years	5–10% of Grade A
C	Acid bleached + resin + dyed	Fades, deteriorates	Minimal

What About Nephrite and Other Real Jade?

Not all jade is jadeite. Nephrite is also genuine jade — a different mineral with its own long history across Chinese, Māori, and other cultures. Nephrite and jadeite have different properties and different price points, and both are real.

At Brother Ryan Shop, we primarily carry Grade A Burmese jadeite, but we appreciate real jade across the board. What we don't carry is treated or fake material. If it's real jade, we're interested in it.

How to Verify You're Getting Grade A

Anyone can type "Grade A" in a product listing. The real verification comes from knowing your seller — their sourcing, their consistency, their willingness to show you the process. We can show you all of that. That's why we go to Burma.

For higher-value pieces, ask whether a laboratory certificate is available. Legitimate certificates from recognized gemological labs add a meaningful layer of verification.

Frequently Asked Questions: Jade Grades

Is Grade A jade always better looking than Grade B?
Not necessarily. Treated jade can look more vibrant than some natural pieces. The difference is longevity, integrity, and value. Grade A holds its appearance for generations. Grade B degrades.

How can I tell if jade is Grade A or Grade B at home?
It's genuinely difficult without lab equipment. The most reliable method is knowing and trusting your seller. Visual cues — overly uniform color, unusually high translucency at a low price — can raise flags, but they're not definitive.

Does Grade A jade come with a certificate?
Not always. Certification is more common on higher-value pieces. We have certified pieces in our inventory and can tell you which ones they are.

Is nephrite jade worth buying?
Yes — nephrite is real jade with its own cultural and aesthetic value. It's a different stone from jadeite with different properties, but it's not inferior. It's just different.

Browse Grade A jadeite at Brother Ryan Shop

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