Albite is the sodium-rich end member of the plagioclase feldspar solid solution series. It is frequently identified by its characteristic polysynthetic twinning visible as striations on crystal faces and its occurrence in igneous pegmatites.
Is this albite?
5-step field checkRun through these checks against the specimen in your hand. The more boxes tick, the more confident the ID.
- 1Test the hardnessTry to scratch albite with a known reference. Albite sits at Mohs 6-6.5, softer than the next harder reference, harder than the previous one.
- 2Check the streakDrag the specimen across an unglazed porcelain plate. Streak: white.
- 3Read the lusterHold the specimen under a strong light. Luster: vitreous, typically pearly on cleavages.
- 4Match the color rangeCompare against the expected color range: white, colorless, gray, bluish, reddish, gray, greenish gray, bluish green.
- 5Look at form & habitCrystal system: triclinic. Typical habit: blocky, granular, striated.
Often confused with
Albite vs. its common look-alikes, and how to tell them apart in the field.
Often found alongside albite
Minerals reported to co-occur with albite. Spotting these in float or country rock is a strong cue you are in the right ground.
All properties
- Chemical formula
- NaAlSi₃O₈
- Mohs hardness
- 6-6.5
- Density
- 2.60-2.65 g/cm³
- Streak
- White
- Luster
- Vitreous, typically pearly on cleavages
- Transparency
- Transparent to translucent
- Crystal system
- Triclinic
- Crystal habit
- Blocky, granular, striated
- Cleavage
- Perfect on {001}, very good on {010}, imperfect on {110}
- Fluorescence
- Cherry-red blue under SW UV; white under LW UV
- Rarity
- Common
- Uses
- Collector, Industrial, Ceramic production
- Host rock
- A major constituent of granites and granite pegmatites, alkalic diorites, basalts, and in hydrothermal and alpine veins
Where rockhounds find albite
42 mapped spotsClassic worldwide localities
- Haddam and Middletown, Middlesex Co., Connecticut, USA
- Amelia, Amelia Co., Virginia, USA
- Diana, Lewis Co., and Dekalb, Macomb, and Pierrepont, St. Lawrence Co., New York, USA
- Pala and Mesa Grande districts, San Diego Co., California, USA
- St. Gotthard, Ticino and Tavetsch, Graubünden, Switzerland
- Roc Tourné, near Modane, Savoie, France
U.S. states with albite
Each link opens a state-specific list of mapped rockhounding spots that produce albite.
Field-hunting tip
Where it forms: A major constituent of granites and granite pegmatites, alkalic diorites, basalts, and in hydrothermal and alpine veins. If you start seeing quartz, orthoclase, muscovite in float, you are in the right ground. Typical habit: blocky, granular, striated. Train your eye for that shape before scanning the outcrop. In the U.S., the densest reported localities are in New Jersey, Maine, Connecticut. Start trip planning there.
More albite photos
Common questions
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Find albite on the map
RockHoundR shows mapped rockhounding spots, access rules, and lets you log every find.
