Diamond Buying Guide
Since they're the most precious gemstones around, diamonds 
deserve to be a girl's best friend. Like with colored gemstones, there are a certain number of criteria to look for. Some refer to this as the "four Cs:" cut, color, clarity, and carat. These elements together will determine the cost of the diamond. Prices start around $150 and can soar to over $60,000.
"The Four Cs"
Cut
The cut of a diamond is a product of its craftsmanship. (The shape is a matter of personal taste and aesthetics, yielding a round, rectangular, teardrop, heart, or oval stone.) The cut is what brings out the vibrancy of the diamond as well as what minimizes flaws.
- The more facets (angles) cut into the stone, the more brilliant it will be as long as the diamond is cut to re-reflect the light out the top, or the table.
- Avoid deep or shallow cut diamonds because they let the light seep out the bottom instead of reflecting out the top, which will make the diamond look dimmer and not as sparkly.
- Check the diamond's grade: ideal, premium, very good, good, fair, poor. The higher the grade, the more costly the diamond. Generally, an ideal diamond will have balanced proportions.
Carat
The carat (or weight) of a diamond is directly associated with its size, and even the untrained eye can tell when a diamond has a higher carat. Carat also affects the price of a diamond. Keep in mind that a ring with several smaller diamonds measuring 2 carats, let's say, is not as valuable as a single diamond weighing 2 carats. If you want to save some money or are on a tight budget, find the highest carat you can afford, then go down in size by .05 carats and you may be able to save quite a bit of money.
- Measurements are as follows: one carat equals 0.2 grams. For anything smaller than a carat, the gem's size is referred to in points. For example, a gem with 25 points would be .25 carats. Diamond size in carats ranges from .05 to 3.
- What size to buy?
- Some say that for engagement rings, two months salary is about right. As with the shape, this is a matter of personal preference.
- Keep in mind the size of the hand that the ring will be worn on. Small hands make a small diamond look bigger.
- Consider what type of jewelry the wearer normally likes. If s/he likes big jewelry, you may need to sacrifice some quality.
Color
Besides carat weight, color is another value-inducing factor of a diamond. Diamonds should be as clear and as colorless as possible without cloudiness or brown or gray spots. To the naked eye they may all seem clear, but in fact, they all have traces of yellow in them. Colored diamonds, which are very rare and expensive, actually should have color, either blue, green, or yellow.
- Color is rated on the GIA (International Gemological Institute) professional color scale. The most colorless are rated a D, while those with tinges of yellow are found in anything with a K-X rating.
- It may be obvious now that anything between D and F are probably very valuable, while anything from G-I is of good quality, meaning that little color is seen by the untrained eye.
- Most people try to get the best quality diamond there is. However, some prefer the warmer tones of diamonds that have slight color to them.
- Another thing to look for is diamond fluorescence (or colored glow). Some like it, some don't. See what you prefer.
Clarity
Spots, cracks, blemishes, air bubbles, and inclusions are all considered to decrease a diamond's clarity. Clarity and transparency is often fixed by oils, resins, and chemicals used by gemstone manufacturers.
- Like with color, clarity is also measured on an alphabet scale. F through SI means that there are no visible flaws, even though there may be some internal ones (F=Flawless and SI=Slightly Included).
- Even going down to an I grade will not affect the outward appearance of a diamond unless you look at it through a magnifying glass. It will however lower the value.
- Some manufacturers use lasers to remove imperfections and even treatments.
Certificate, the Fifth C
Do not confuse a certificate with an appraisal. Just because its market worth is one thing, doesn't mean that the diamond is of real quality. Certificates are the true measure of the diamond's worth based on the specifications explained above. The certificate will be from a lab that tells whether or not the diamond is organic (natural or genuine and not grown in a laboratory). It also lists the grade of the diamond as far as carat, color, clarity, and cut.
- The lab should be reputable. Do a background check first just to be sure. If you look for the lab and the name doesn't come up, chances are that it is bogus. Some names to rely on are the GIA, IGI, AGSL, and EGL-US.
- Evaluate the picture on the certificate and cross check it with the serial number on the diamond. Sometimes you can even cross-check this information online.
Diamond Shapes
Learn more about each shape in our Gemstone Shape Guide.
Hearts and Arrows
The Japanese were the first to release a diamond cut so that it adhered closely to the Tolkowski specifications and maintained tight tolerance to ideal proportions and perfect polish and symmetry. These diamonds became popular as Super Ideal Cuts or Hearts and Arrows. According to one GIA study in which 60,000 diamonds were evaluated, less than 3% could satisfy ideal proportions. Only one per million diamonds can be called True Hearts and Arrows diamond.
Look-Alikes
Some inexpensive diamond look-alikes include: Cubic Zirconia (CZ) and Moissanite (pricier than a CZ). Moissanite gems are of the same hardness and brilliance as a diamond, thus making them more desirable and less prone to inclusions (or flaws).
Buying Online
- When you buy online you can often get the best price and are protected against fraud.
- You get all the conveniences of shopping online, like wearing whatever you want and taking your sweet time browsing without sales pressure.
- You're not protected against your own stylistic judgment (and you don't get to hold the diamond first) but a good diamond should come with a good warranty.
- Before you buy, Pricescope suggests that you make sure your product has been graded from an independent laboratory like GIA, AGS, IGI, EGL, AGL, AGA, or HRD.
- Once you receive the diamond, take it to a real-life appraiser once you receive it to make sure you've gotten what you've paid for.
Search for Diamonds
Remember that DeBeers owns almost the entire world's supply of diamonds. Their prices are heavily regulated and their prices coordinate directly with their quality.
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External Links
- Beads by Mail -- A more measured look at diamonds.
- Diamond Info -- In depth information on many cuts of diamond and online buying advice.
- Pricescope -- A guide to buying diamonds online.
- Pricescope -- Independent diamond appraisers across the United States.
- Pricescope -- 18 reputable etailers and their individual credentials.
- So You Wanna...Buy an Engagement Ring? -- An easy-to-follow section on how to pay attention to the Four C's.
- Wikipedia -- The diamond article. What more could you need to know?
- INUVUT -- An indepth Diamond Buying Guide and Resource in Chinese
