Crystal Identifier: Identify Any Crystal from a Photo
Upload a photo of a crystal. The AI analyzes the crystal faces, color, transparency, and surface luster to return the mineral name, crystal system, Mohs hardness, and a value estimate. Works on rough points, clusters, druzy, and tumbled stones. Free, no account needed.
Drop a crystal photo here or tap to upload
JPG, PNG, WebP, HEIC • Max 50 MB • 1 free scan per day
Analyzing your crystal…
How the Crystal Identifier Works
Photograph the Crystal
Natural light. Plain background. Show the crystal faces and any termination points. If it looks dull, mist it with water. That alone changes everything.
AI Reads the Geometry
Crystal habit, color saturation, transparency, surface reflectance, edge angles. The model checks all of it against a labeled dataset of confirmed crystal specimens. A few seconds.
Get the Identification
Mineral name, crystal system, Mohs hardness, formation environment, value estimate. If confidence is low, the AI lists alternative candidates so you can compare.
What Is a Crystal Identifier?
A crystal identifier is a visual recognition tool. You photograph a crystal. The AI extracts face angles, color distribution, transparency, and termination shape, then matches those features against thousands of confirmed specimens. Same core engine as the rock identifier, but weighted toward geometry and optical effects.
Quartz Family
Clear quartz is the baseline: hexagonal prisms, pointed terminations, Mohs 7. Add trace iron and you get amethyst or citrine. Except almost every "citrine" at gem shows is baked amethyst. Real citrine is pale and far less common. Same formula, wildly different appearances. Color alone fails as an ID method.
Calcite
Over 300 documented crystal forms. Mohs 3, fizzes in dilute HCl, shows double refraction. Set a clear piece on printed text and you see two images. Nothing else common does that. Dogtooth scalenohedral crystals show up in caves. The rhombohedron is the classic shape.
Fluorite
Cubes and octahedra. Purple, green, blue, yellow, pink, sometimes banded in the same crystal. Mohs 4. A steel knife scratches it. Fluorite is the mineral that teaches every collector: shape matters more than color. Two purple crystals, different shapes, different minerals. Period.
Tourmaline & Pyrite
Tourmaline has a rounded-triangular cross section. Black schorl is everywhere. Watermelon tourmaline (pink core, green rim) is unmistakable when sliced. Pyrite forms cubes with face striations. Bright gold luster. Everyone calls it gold. It is not. Pyrite shatters. Gold bends.
How Crystals Form
From magma (slow cooling = large crystals, pegmatites yield tourmaline rods over a meter). From hot water in rock fractures (quartz veins, fluorite pockets). From evaporation (halite, selenite). Inside solid rock during metamorphism (garnet, kyanite embedded in schist). The environment dictates the mineral and crystal size.
Crystal Systems
Seven systems defined by lattice symmetry. Cubic: pyrite cubes, fluorite octahedra. Hexagonal: quartz, beryl. Trigonal: calcite, tourmaline. Monoclinic: gypsum. When the AI sees a well-formed cube, it immediately eliminates every hexagonal and monoclinic mineral from the list.
Photographing Crystals
Show the crystal faces. Angle so two intersecting faces are visible. Overcast daylight preserves true color. Plain white background. Do not hold the crystal in your fingers. Mist with water if dull. For transparent specimens, backlight them so the AI reads internal color saturation.
Limitations
Purple fluorite and amethyst overlap visually. The separator is hardness (4 vs 7), which a camera cannot test. Internal features (inclusions, phantoms) are invisible from outside. Heat-treated citrine is undetectable. For insurance or sale, combine AI with physical tests or consult a gemologist. The gemstone identifier handles gem-grade specimens.
Frequently Asked Questions
What crystal is this?
Upload a photo to the scanner above. The AI returns the mineral name, crystal system, hardness, and value range. One free scan per day.
How do you identify crystals by color?
Color narrows the field but rarely confirms. Purple could be amethyst, fluorite, or charoite. The AI cross-references color with shape, transparency, and luster.
Is there a free crystal identifier app?
Yes. Rock Identifier is free on iOS and Android and includes crystal identification. One free web scan per day.
What is the difference between a crystal and a mineral?
A mineral is a naturally occurring solid with a defined chemical formula. A crystal is a mineral whose internal structure is expressed as visible geometric faces. All crystals are minerals.
How can you tell if a crystal is real or fake?
Real crystals have imperfections: inclusions, color zoning, natural fractures. Glass fakes are perfectly clear with round bubbles. A scratch test confirms it.
What are the most valuable crystals?
Ruby, emerald, sapphire, and alexandrite can exceed $10,000 per carat. Common crystals like quartz and amethyst are inexpensive.
Can AI identify tumbled or polished crystals?
Yes, but with lower confidence. Tumbling removes the crystal habit the AI relies on most. Multiple angles help.
How does crystal shape help identification?
Crystal habit reflects atomic structure. Quartz grows as hexagonal prisms. Pyrite forms cubes. These shapes are consistent within a species and are the strongest photo-based signal.