RockhoundID

The field kit

Free rock and mineral tools

Three small, fast tools for the questions every rockhound asks: what is it, how hard is it, and could it possibly be from space?

Rock identifier

Answer up to six quick questions about color, luster, a scratch test, streak, texture and a few special tricks (magnet, vinegar, weight). The identifier ranks the likely candidates from its dataset of common rocks, minerals and look-alikes, shows why each fits and what does not, and suggests the next test. Every entry lists its sources.

Open the rock identifier

A tidy row of rough rock and mineral specimens on linen, each with a small blank museum label card in front of it
The rock identifier: likely candidates, the reasons, and the next test

Mohs hardness scale

The ten reference minerals, the everyday testers from fingernail to steel file, a simulator that tells you what scratches what, and a searchable list of more than 90 minerals, gems, metals and rocks with their hardness and sources.

Open the Mohs hardness scale

Ten mineral specimens lined up from soft talc to a small diamond, arranged in order along a wooden rule on a stone table
The Mohs scale: ten minerals from talc to diamond

Is it a meteorite?

Nine checks, one at a time: fusion crust, a cheap magnet, metal flecks, bubbles, streak, weight, surface and where you found it. You get an honest verdict, the look-alikes your answers point to, and who can confirm a real meteorite.

Open the meteorite checker

A dark stony meteorite with a thin black fusion crust beside a small magnet and a hand lens on a stone table
The meteorite checker: honest odds, one check at a time

Coming next

A streak color chart, a specific gravity calculator and a collecting rules finder are on the list. Join the early-access list below and we will tell you when the RockhoundID app and new tools land.

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