Aqeeq Price in Pakistan: How Carnelian Is Priced, Per Carat and Per Ratti

Ask three shops in the same bazaar for an aqeeq price and you can get three answers that look impossible to compare. One quotes per ratti, one quotes for the stone, and one quotes for a finished silver ring. None of them is necessarily wrong. The aim of this guide is to put those numbers on the same footing, so you can see which aqeeq is fairly priced and which is priced on a story.

Below you will find GemStore's own price table for loose aqeeq, refreshed from our listings each month, followed by what actually moves the number up or down, how per-carat and per-ratti quotes relate, and the budget filters that help you shortlist stones online.

Current aqeeq prices at GemStore

The table below is built from the aqeeq stones we list, with the lowest, typical and highest price per stone, and the same figures per carat and per ratti. We do not type prices into articles because they go out of date; the table refreshes monthly instead.

Aqeeq · October 2026 edition · PKR, from GemStore listings. 1 ratti = 0.91 carat.

Weight	Weights	Stones	Per carat	Per ratti
All Aqeeq in stock	13.6 – 16.9 ct	4	Rs 180 – Rs 210	Rs 160 – Rs 190

Read the per-carat and per-ratti columns before the per-stone column. A large, average stone and a small, fine stone can cost the same in total while being very different value. For other stones, the monthly gemstone price guide uses the same layout.

What aqeeq is, for pricing purposes

In the Pakistani trade, aqeeq usually means carnelian: the orange to blood-red variety of chalcedony, a fine-grained quartz. The same word is stretched to cover banded agates in other colours, which is why you will also see "black aqeeq", "Sulemani aqeeq" and "Shajri aqeeq". This guide is about the red and orange stone that most buyers mean when they say aqeeq, and the one we list in our aqeeq category.

Two labels come up in almost every quote: Yemeni and Iranian. They describe a look and a reputation as much as a place, and they are hard to prove for any single stone without paperwork going back years. We have covered how the two are told apart in Yemeni vs Iranian aqeeq. For pricing, treat the label as one factor among several, not the whole price.

The six things that set an aqeeq price

1. Colour

Colour does most of the work. A deep, even red with a slight warmth sits at the top. Clear orange and honey shades sit in the middle, and brownish or patchy stones sit lower. Evenness matters almost as much as depth: a stone that is rich red at one end and pale at the other is priced below one that holds its colour across the face.

2. Glow when held to light

Hold a good aqeeq up to a window and it lights up from inside, like a coal. A dull stone stays flat and opaque. Sellers sometimes call this "pani" (water). Two stones of the same colour can be far apart in price because one glows and one does not, and this is the easiest factor to check yourself in a video.

3. Natural colour, heated or dyed

Much of the carnelian in world trade is pale agate that has been heated or dyed to turn it red. Heating is long-standing and stable. Dyeing can look striking but may sit along cracks and bands, and it is priced well below natural colour. A fair quote says which you are buying. Our guide to spotting dyed and glass aqeeq shows what to look for.

4. Clarity and finish

Fine cracks, chips at the girdle and pits on the surface all pull the price down, and they matter more on a ring stone that will take knocks. A glassy polish with no orange-peel texture is a sign that the cutter took time. On engraved stones, look at the edges of the letters: crisp, even cuts cost more than shallow, wobbly ones.

5. Size and shape

Aqeeq is not a rare mineral, so the price per carat does not jump as steeply with size as it does for ruby or sapphire. What does add cost is a large stone with even colour all the way across, because big pieces of fine material are less common. Shape matters too: an oval cabochon that fits a standard men's ring mount is easier to sell than an odd shape that needs a custom setting.

6. Engraving and age

Engraved stones (naqsh) carry the cost of skilled hand work on top of the stone. Older stones with genuine wear and age can be priced higher by collectors, but "old" is easy to claim and hard to prove. If age is part of the price, ask what supports it.

Per carat, per ratti and per stone: making quotes comparable

Pakistani bazaars usually quote gemstones per ratti. The standard gemstone ratti is 0.91 carat (about 0.182 g). Some jewellers use the smaller sunari ratti of about 0.1215 g, roughly 0.61 carat, so always ask which ratti a quote uses. A price "per ratti" on the sunari scale will sound lower even when the total is the same.

The conversion is simple:

• Ratti (standard) = carats ÷ 0.91
• Price per ratti = price per carat × 0.91
• Carats = grams × 5

So a 13.60 carat aqeeq weighs about 14.9 standard ratti, and a 16.50 carat stone about 18.1 ratti. Our carat to ratti converter does the arithmetic if you would rather not.

Lower-value aqeeq is often sold per piece rather than per ratti, especially ready-cut ring stones. That is fine, but convert it back to per carat yourself before comparing it with a per-ratti quote. It is the only way to see whether the bigger stone in one shop is really cheaper than the smaller stone in another.

How to compare two aqeeq quotes

When you have two prices in front of you, run through this list before deciding.

1. Same unit? Convert both to price per carat. Confirm which ratti the seller used.
2. Same weight basis? The weight should be the loose stone only. A weight taken in a ring includes metal and is meaningless for the stone.
3. Natural or treated? A dyed stone and a natural-colour stone are different products. Get the answer in writing.
4. Stone or ring? A ring price includes silver by weight, making charges and setting. Ask for the stone price separately.
5. The actual stone? A photo of "a stone like this" tells you nothing. Ask for a photo and short video of the stone you will receive, in daylight.
6. What happens if it is not right? A return window and the chance to inspect before paying are worth something real.

If one quote is far below the others for a stone that looks the same, the likeliest explanations are dye, glass, a different ratti, or a weight taken in the mount. Our general guide to checking a gemstone before you buy covers the warning signs.

Budget tiers: using the shop filters

You can shortlist stones by price using the shop filters. Treat these as starting points rather than quality grades, since a well-chosen stone in a lower band can be better value than a weak one in a higher band.

• Under 5,000 rupees: the place to look for smaller ring stones and everyday aqeeq. Look for even colour and at least some glow, and accept small surface marks.
• 5,000 to 20,000 rupees: the band most buyers end up in for a man's ring stone. Expect better colour, cleaner polish and a size that fills a standard mount.
• 20,000 to 50,000 rupees: larger stones, deeper and more even red, strong glow, or engraving.
• Over 50,000 rupees: unusual size, exceptional colour or collector pieces. Ask for testing at this level.

The filters cover every category, so use them alongside the aqeeq category page. Two stones from our current listings show how the per-stone price follows weight and colour: a 13.60 carat Yemeni carnelian and a larger 16.50 carat Yemeni aqeeq. Compare their per-carat figures as well as their totals.

The ring costs extra, and that is fair

Most aqeeq is bought to be worn in a silver ring, and the ring is a separate cost. Silver is charged by weight, the maker charges for labour, and setting a cabochon properly takes care. When you see an aqeeq ring advertised cheaply, ask how much of that price is the stone. Our planned guides to aqeeq ring prices and silver rings with stones break this down, and the stone setting service page explains how we handle setting a stone you buy from us.

A practical tip: choose the stone first, then the ring. A good stone in a plain, well-made mount looks better and lasts longer than an average stone in a heavy, ornate ring.

Aqeeq in tradition

Many Muslim families in Pakistan wear aqeeq in a silver ring, often on the right hand, and the stone appears in narrations and in long custom. Practices vary between communities. For questions about religious practice, ask a scholar you trust. Our page on aqeeq for men describes the silver ring tradition, and Islamic gemstones covers the wider group of stones. None of this changes how a stone should be priced: colour, glow and honesty about treatment still decide value.

Buying aqeeq from GemStore

Every aqeeq we list is photographed on its own and priced on its own, with the weight of the loose stone. We say when a stone's colour has been enhanced. A certificate is available on request, and independent lab testing can be arranged if you want it.

Delivery is nationwide by insured, tracked courier, dispatched in one to two working days and usually arriving in about seven working days. Cash on Delivery is available anywhere in Pakistan: open the parcel and inspect the stone before you pay the rider. If it is not what you expected, you have 7 days to return it. To ask about a particular stone, message us on WhatsApp at +92 308 887 3888, or email cod@gemstore.pk.

If you are still choosing between stones, the red agate and Sulemani agate categories are worth a look, and which gemstone to wear helps narrow the field.

Shop the stones: aqeeq.

The beliefs described here are traditions, shared for interest. They are not guaranteed outcomes, religious rulings or medical advice.