Affiliate Disclosure
Gemstone Rush includes a small number of commerce links that pay a commission if a reader makes a qualifying purchase. This page is the complete account of those relationships, the programs we participate in, and the editorial rules the team follows when any partner link appears on a page.
We think the honest version is short: we make a little money when a reader buys a ring or a loose stone through one of our links, it costs the reader nothing extra, and we still write every page as if no money were on the table. The longer version below fills in the legal and operational detail.
- As required by the United States Federal Trade Commission under 16 CFR Part 255 (Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising), Gemstone Rush discloses all material connections between this site and any products, services, or brands that may result in compensation. Where affiliate links appear on a page, a short disclosure is shown above the first link. This page constitutes our standing disclosure for the site as a whole. It applies to every page on gemstonerush.com where an affiliate link is present.
What an Affiliate Link Is
An affiliate link is a hyperlink that contains a tracking identifier. When you click the link, your browser is redirected to a retailer's website. The identifier in the URL tells the retailer that your visit originated from Gemstone Rush. If you then make a qualifying purchase during the attribution window, the retailer pays us a small percentage of the sale value as a commission.
The price you pay is identical to the price you would pay if you had navigated to the retailer directly. We do not set retail prices, do not take a cut from the retailer's listed price, and have no involvement in the transaction between you and the retailer. The commission comes from the retailer's margin, not from a surcharge added to your purchase.
Commission rates vary by affiliate program and by product category. In the programs we currently participate in, rates typically fall between 1 percent and 10 percent of the qualifying sale value. Higher-ticket items such as fine jewelry tend to carry lower percentage rates than smaller accessory items. The commission rate for any given link is not visible to you as a reader and has no effect on the editorial content that surrounds the link.
How Affiliate Links Appear on Our Pages
We take several steps to make affiliate links easy to identify. These are not just legal requirements; they are design choices we made because we think readers deserve to know when a link is commercial.
- Every page that carries an affiliate link shows a short disclosure statement above the first link on that page. The disclosure identifies the nature of the link before you click it.
- Every affiliate link on this site uses the HTML relationship attributes rel="nofollow sponsored" so that search engines can identify the link as a commercial referral rather than an editorial endorsement.
- Affiliate link calls-to-action are labeled with language such as Browse Sellers, View on Amazon, or See Current Prices rather than editorial-sounding language that implies a recommendation of a specific product or seller.
- We do not hide affiliate links inside plain text without visual or contextual identification. If a link is commercial, it is identifiable.
- We do not place an affiliate link inside a passage of editorial text that makes a specific claim that depends on that partner being chosen. The editorial claim and the commerce link are kept editorially independent.
How Affiliate Tracking Cookies Work
When you click an affiliate link, you are redirected to a retailer's website. At that point, the retailer's system sets a tracking cookie on your device. This cookie records the referral so that if you complete a qualifying purchase before the cookie expires, the retailer can attribute the commission to our account.
These cookies are set by the retailer, not by Gemstone Rush. We do not read them, do not receive their contents, and do not store any individual-level data about which reader clicked which link. Attribution windows vary by program. The Amazon Associates program uses a 24-hour window from the time of the click. Other programs may use windows of up to 30 days. Once the attribution window closes, any purchase on that retailer's site is no longer linked to our affiliate account.
If you prefer not to receive affiliate tracking cookies, you can decline to click affiliate links, use a browser extension that blocks third-party tracking cookies, or clear your cookies after visiting a retailer's site. Doing so has no effect on your ability to read Gemstone Rush. It does mean that purchases you complete on the retailer's site during that session will not generate a commission for us.
Current Affiliate Partners
The following programs are active at the time this policy was last updated. If a program is added or removed, this page is updated before the new links appear on the site.
If we add a display advertising network in the future, we will disclose the name of that network and the data it collects before any ads appear on the site. At the time this policy was written, no display advertising is running on Gemstone Rush.
How We Choose Recommended Products
When our pages link to specific products or search results, we apply a consistent set of criteria. Commission rate is not among them.
- Seller reputation and track record: we favor sellers with a long history of accurate listings and reasonable customer service, as evidenced by buyer reviews over time rather than a snapshot of recent ratings.
- Listing honesty: we look for sellers whose product pages accurately describe carat weight, cut grade, origin where relevant, treatment status (heated, irradiated, fracture-filled, lab-grown versus natural), and setting metal purity.
- Price accuracy: we prefer sellers whose listed prices reflect actual market conditions rather than inflated original prices with artificially large discounts.
- Availability: we link to search results or category pages rather than individual product listings wherever possible, because individual listings disappear when stock sells out.
- Return and exchange policies: we favor sellers who offer clear, fair return windows, particularly for fine gemstones where color and luster can differ between a photograph and the physical stone.
Editorial Independence
Affiliate relationships do not determine which stones we cover, what we write about them, or which products we surface on a page. A stone with no affiliate retailer behind it receives the same depth of editorial treatment as a stone with several commercial partners. Conversely, we cover stones like painite, benitoite, and grandidierite in full detail despite the fact that commercial availability for most buyers is negligible.
We do not accept free products, sample stones, sponsored placements, or payment for editorial mentions. If a retailer sends unsolicited materials, we either return them or, if kept for research, we disclose that fact on the relevant page.
Where a stone has documented durability issues, known treatment controversies, or a history of misrepresentation in the retail market, we flag those facts on the page even when one of our affiliate partners sells the stone. Editorial accuracy is not adjusted to protect a commercial relationship.
Affiliate revenue helps sustain the site. It does not direct the site. Our usefulness to readers is the foundation of the business, and an editorial compromise that causes a reader to make a bad purchase would undermine that foundation.
No Endorsement of Specific Sellers
Where possible, affiliate links on this site point to retailer search results or category pages rather than specific product listings. This is intentional. We are not endorsing any specific seller or product. We are directing readers to a marketplace where sellers that meet the criteria described above are active.
Seller quality, inventory, and pricing change. The fact that a link leads to a category page on Amazon, Etsy, or another platform does not mean that every listing on that page meets our criteria. We encourage readers to apply the same judgment they would use on any marketplace: check the seller reviews, read the product description carefully, confirm the stone's treatment status and return policy before purchasing.
What We Do if a Partner's Quality Slips
If readers report problems with a partner - misleading listings, poor customer service, or a pattern of selling misrepresented stones - we investigate and, if the concerns are substantiated, remove the partner's links from the site. The revenue loss is a real cost; we accept it because maintaining reader trust is not negotiable.
Readers who encounter misleading or misrepresented products through a link on this site are encouraged to contact us through the contact page. We take these reports seriously and act on them.
Prices and Availability
Gemstone prices are not fixed. They vary by carat weight, cut quality, clarity, origin, treatment status, and market conditions at the time of sale. When a price range appears on a page, it reflects observations at the time of writing and is labeled as a range estimate. It is not a guarantee that any specific stone will be available at that price.
Always verify the current price and availability directly on the retailer's site before committing to a purchase. Gemstone Rush is not a party to any transaction, cannot guarantee pricing, and has no ability to honor prices that have changed since a page was written.
Display Advertising
At the time this policy was written, Gemstone Rush does not serve display advertising. If display advertising is added in the future, we will identify the advertising network, describe what data it collects and what cookies it sets, and update this page before any ads appear. We will not add an advertising network that allows misleading health claim advertising or that builds behavioral profiles without user consent.
Contact for Questions About Affiliate Relationships
If you have questions about a specific link, want to know whether a link on a particular page is an affiliate link, or want to report a concern about a partner, contact us through the contact page or at the contact form on the Contact page. We are committed to transparency in these relationships and will answer factual questions about them in plain language.