The following are the major different types of sapphires, most are distinquished from their place of origin. Of note if the Cat's Eye sapphire and the Star Sapphire, which are truly stunning.

Bi-colored sapphires
Bi-colored sapphires are sapphires with more than one color to them.

Cat's Eye sapphires
Cat's eye sapphires exhibit a cat's eye effect. Cat's eye sapphires are very rare, and only exist for paler green sapphires. Chatoyancy is the industry term used to describe the optical effect of a wide slit that looks like the eye of a cat.

Color-changing sapphires
Color-changing sapphires change color in different light. In natural light, color-changing sapphire is blue - in artificial light, it is violet.

Kashmir sapphires
Kashmir sapphires have a distinct velvety-blue color that is the most prized color in sapphires. Other named include the Cornflower Sapphire and the Cornflower Blue Sapphire.

Fancy sapphires
Fancy sapphire is a term given to any sapphire that is not blue in color.

Padparadschah sapphires
Padparadschah sapphire are a rare type of fancy sapphire that is orange-pink in color.

Star sapphires
Star sapphire is usually a term that refers to a trapiche sapphire, but may also refer to the rare occurrence of an sapphire displaying asterism. Asterism is an optical effect that appears as a 6 or 12-rayed star that moves around when the sapphire is rotated.

Verneuil sapphires
Verneuil sapphires are a well-known type of synthetic, lab-grown sapphire.