The finest amethyst color is a strong reddish purple or purple with no visible color zoning. Dealers prefer strongly saturated reddish purple to dark purple, as long as the stone is not so dark that it reduces brightness. If the color is too dark, an amethyst might look black under dim lighting conditions.

Translucent to transparent.

An amethyst is often cut into a variety of shapes with pear, emerald-cut, square, trillion, cabochon, round, oval, cushion, and heart being the most common.