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The grading for a gemstone's clarity and color is based on the GIA colored stone grading systems. The systems are applicable for "transparent" colored gems (not diamonds), and do not apply to opaque gemstones such as play-of-color opal, coral, chalcedony, onyx, lapis, pearls, coral, etc.

Gemstone Clarity Grading
Inclusions are natural flaws that develop as gemstones form, impacting the clarity of the stones. Because colored stones have different habits of clarity, they are classified into three "types." This classification takes into consideration each type of stone's likelihood to be included, allowing for each type to be graded on a curve. So since Type III stones are almost always included, they are not graded as harshly as Type I stones, which are almost always free of inclusions.

Type I: Stones are usually naturally inclusion-free. Gems include aquamarine, morganite, smoky quartz, topaz and tanzanite.
Type II: Stones are usually naturally included. Gems include sapphire, ruby, garnet, iolite, peridot, quartz (amethyst, citrine, etc.), spinel, tourmaline (blue, orange, yellow) and zircon (green, orange, red, yellow).
Type III: Stones are almost always naturally included. Gems include emerald and tourmaline (red, pink, watermelon).

Within the three types, gem clarity is graded similar to diamonds, beginning at VVS and going down to I-3. There is no Flawless grade for colored gemstones.

VVS - Very, Very Slightly Included: Minor inclusions are somewhat easy to see using 10X, but still not visible to the naked eye.
VS - Very Slightly Included: Noticeable inclusions are easier to see using 10X, and may be slightly visible to the naked eye.
SI1 - Slightly Included 1: Large or numerous inclusions are easily seen using 10X, and are noticeable to the naked eye.
SI2 - Slightly Included 2: Large or numerous inclusions are easily seen using 10X, and are very noticeable to the naked eye.
I1 - Included 1: Inclusions are very obvious and have a moderate negative effect on the overall appearance or durability of the gemstone.
I2 - Included 2: Inclusions are very obvious and have a severe negative effect on the overall appearance or durability of the gemstone.
I3 - Included 3: Inclusions are very obvious and have a severe negative effect on both the overall appearance and durability of the gemstone.

Gemstone Color Grading
Since gemstones usually have one major color that is modified by a second, minor one, gems are also graded using a color system. The three components comprising a stone's color grade are hue, tone and saturation. The GIA's color grade classification list denotes 324 possible varying combinations of these components.

Hue is described as the shade, tint or sensation of a color. The GIA GemSet® encompasses 31 basic hues that can be used to describe virtually all colored gemstones.

Tone is described as the relative lightness or darkness of a hue. The GIA Tone Scale is divided into 11 grades, with 0 being colorless and 10 being black.

Saturation is described as the strength or purity of a hue. The GIA Saturation Scale ranks from 1 to 6. For warm colors such as red, orange or yellow, levels 1-3 tend to look brownish, while cool colors such as blue and green tend to look grayish. Level 4 does not show traces of gray or brown, but colors are neither strong nor weak. Level 5 colors are strong and level 6 is for extremely vivid color saturation.

The final color grade of a stone will include all three components of hue, tone and saturation, looking something like "gY 3 / 4." Since the main color is always capitalized and the minor color is in lower case, the "gY" shows the stone is a yellow gem that has a strong green secondary color. The "3 / 4" shows the stone has a light tone ("3") and a moderately strong saturation level ("4").

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