Yes. That’s a short answer to that question. It’s possible that an engagement ring with a bigger diamond is less expensive than an engagement ring with a smaller diamond.

But well, we decided to write an article about this. So clearly, there’s more to it than that. Right?

Yes.

There’s more to a diamond’s price than its size. Choose wisely, and you’ll get a good deal!

The value of a diamond and consequently the engagement ring, depends on a lot more than just its size. The Diamond 4Cs are the holy grail as far as pricing goes. Each one of the 4Cs – Carat, Clarity, Cut and Colour acts as a lever that can be used to ascertain the price of a diamond.

Here’s how a bigger diamond ring could be less expensive:

The value of a diamond and consequently the engagement ring, depends on a lot more than just its size. The Diamond 4Cs are the holy grail as far as pricing goes.

The smaller diamond could be whiter

The whiter the diamond, the more valuable it is. Typically, white diamonds are graded on a scale from D to Z. A diamond graded D is more valuable than a diamond graded H than one graded R and so on and so forth. Colour becomes apparent to the naked eye beyond I, and thus, we recommend using grades H or better in our engagement rings.

On the other hand, pink, chocolate brown and intense yellow (beyond grade Z), are classified as fancy coloured diamonds. They’re extremely valuable too, and some customers consciously prefer to use a coloured diamond in order to achieve a certain look.

Diamonds are available in brighter colours too, ranging from blue to red to deep orange. Most of these colours are artificially introduced by irradiating the diamond. But natural examples exist too. These naturally available fancy diamonds are considerably more expensive than white diamonds too, owing to their rarity – prices sometimes extend into hundreds of thousand dollars a carat.

Chandelier Diamond Engagement Solitaire Ring

But yes, a bigger diamond with a worse colour grade can be less expensive than a smaller diamond with a better colour grade. The same would be true of any engagement ring holding them.

2. The larger diamond could have impurities

The clearer the diamond, the more expensive it is. Impurities could range from being minuscule (as is the case in VVS and VS graded diamonds) to evident and even distracting (as is the case in I2 and I3 graded diamonds). Impurities could, at times, also include small chips, or black dots, which can spoil the look of your engagement ring.

Bespoke Made to Order emerald diamond ring

Diamonds are graded under a 10x microscope, and graded by organisations like GIA (Gemological Institute of America) or IGI (International Gemological Institute). Diamond grading generally ranges from Internally Flawless (IF) to Inclusion 3 (I3). We recommend using qualities of VS2 and better. In these cases, the inclusions are invisible to the naked eye. In fact, we go above and beyond the diamond grading certificate, and inspect the diamond ourselves. Even diamonds with the same grading could look different, especially to the trained eye. Subjective difference can help us choose the best piece for your engagement ring.

If the larger diamond is less clear than the smaller one, this fact will reflect in its value. In fact, we recommend clients to opt for a larger diamond instead of going for one with a clarity grade better than VS2. If you still choose to opt for better clarity, you could always opt for a VVS1 clarity diamond, offered as an optional upgrade on some of our designs.

Apart from these two qualities, fluorescence can also play a part in the price of a diamond. At The Peacock, all our jewellery comes with diamonds graded by a professional lab. Further, each diamond is inspected by our resident gemologist, with over 40 years of experience. So you can rest assured knowing you’re getting the best diamonds for your engagement ring. Visit our shop and expolore the collection today.

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View the entire collection in our store. Each design is carefully made, with love and care. All stones are hand picked, and adhere to our high standards of quality and craftsmanship.

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Akshay Sethi

With an eye for detail, Akshay has been designing exquisite pieces of jewellery for years now. He's also our resident gemologist, and the founder at The Peacock.

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