Could it be because the amazon pearls are semi-round while the costco are round? I don't know. There are so many variables in pearls. Good luck with your choice. What a wonderful gift.

There is a LOT of difference in quality in those two necklaces per the descriptions, so it's possible that they both are priced fairly. My favorite seller is Pearl Paradise. Even if you end up buying from costco or amazon there's some pretty good information about pearls and pearl quality on their website.

That is a lovely gift, but I would probably buy from a local jeweler. With pearls, it is important to be able to see them before you buy. Freshwater pearls are less expensive than saltwater pearls, but both can be lovely.

Diito the Pearl Paradise suggestion. I would also take a look at the Pearl forum at Pricescope.com. The posters have trusted vendors they have bought from and are quite knowledgable and helpful.

I think you would be hard pressed to notice any difference between the 2 necklaces. Very likely the amazon ones don't have as thick a layer of nacre....but maybe they do!
With pearls, freshwater, salt water really doesn't matter, it's the matter of how the core of the pearl is introduced into the oyster and what it's made out of.
I would go with the amazon pearls and pop for the earrings and bracelet too!
Places like Amazon have almost no overhead and rely on volume to keep the price low...your local jeweler will have a 200% markup and often knows less about pearls than you can learn from the internet and certainly has a smaller inventory.
I have bought several strands of "cheap pearls" lately on the web and not been disappointed with any. The last purchase was 2 60 inch strands of freshwater "rice" pearls....$20 for both. Doubled and tripled they look great with a black T-shirt and jeans!!
Linda C

I don't know a whole lot about pearls, but I d know some.
I have my mothers pearls that 15 years ago were appraised at over two thousand.
What makes them better than a twenty dollar pair? They look about the same to my eye.

Because of the depth of the nacre....the amount of "stuff" the oyster laid down over the implanted bead. That extra nacre gives a deep luster to the pearls.
also...appraisals, unless they are done for a quick salr are notably waaaaay inflated.
I have a friend who was given by a friend of the family, when his wife died, the pearls he bought for her in Japan in the early 1950's....natural pearls, not cultured....appraisal outta sight!! Looks like my $200 cultured pearls to me!! And to her too before they had them x-rayed!
Another thing that lends price and value to a string of pearls is matching size and color, and unless they are obviously pink or cream....the whiter the better.
Linda c

Linda, freshwater pearls come from mussels, not oysters. Oysters are saltwater mollusks.

Thanks for your input!
I checked Pearl Paradise website and it seems I could be paying at least $100 too much. Unfortunately I didn't find this earlier and out of time to cross shop.

Out of the grand scheme of things, $100 isn't much and I'd have to chalk it up to experience, we just need to cancel 3 course dinner and find a diner instead :)

Happy happy. Your wife will love it!

I recently bought pearl earrings and necklaces and I was amazed at the differences but in the store I could see why one was more than the other due to the roundness of the pearls, how close each pearl was in size to the other, the size of the pearl, the glow of the pearl, the weight of the pearl, the beauty of the more expensive pearls, etc. I ended up paying more on sale for the Akoya Pearl earrings that really looked so much nicer than the salt water pearl earrings but I accepted some flaws in the necklaces I bought as long as the pearls were white and round since I could not afford the ones I fell in love with but I dislike oval pearls or pearls that look and feel cheep.

You wife will love the gift!

By the way, the necklace I fell in love with was $3,000 so I accepted a shorter necklace with pearls not as nice but round on sale for less than $200 (on sale at 65% off...) that are very pretty to my eyes.

But I also found a shorter pearl necklace for $49 out of 30 boxes I opened and looked at until I found one acceptable that looks like quality and had round pearls.

Akoya are saltwater pearls, not freshwater pearls. :)

Thank you cyn427 for correcting my post. I meant the Akoya Pearl Earrings looked nicer than the Freshwater Pearl Earrings. I am new at choosing pearls. I appreciate you explaining it to me since I was just remembering what the salesgirl at Macy's was showing me since I had my thank you for sharing dollars to spend and waited to use them when there was a decent jewelry sale.