THE MOST INEXPENSIVE ONE CARAT DIAMOND

I like to do a lot of comparisons. I’m always looking at Diamonds, Quality and Price.

I like to see what the competitors sell, and I like to pass that onto you.

Today (11-24-2014), I’m searching the internet to find the lowest possible price for a One Carat Diamond.

My criteria is simple:

I have none!

Well, except for the fact that I’m only looking at Single Round Diamonds (Loose or Mounted as long as they are REAL, FACETED, and NOT Simulated or Lab Created, or Fancy Colored) that are at least 1.00 Carat EXACTLY (so if it’s a couple points higher, or lower, it doesn’t count), and no other characteristics apply.

Which means, I don’t care what the Clarity is, I don’t care about the Cut, I don’t even care if it’s Yellow, Non-Certified, or that it has Strong Fluorescence.

In other words, I’m out to find the cheapest One Carat Stone (usually called “VALUE” Diamonds) I can find. AND THAT’S IT!

CORRECTION…

I DO have one other criteria to make the playing field more equal: The Diamonds should NOT be Enhanced, as in Laser Drilled, Heat Treated, Cavity Filled or Chemically Altered in any way!!!

There, now I feel better!

I just want to see what’s the LOWEST PRICED STONE Available (which could change from day to day).

Easy as that!

Which of course, is not easy in the least. Because there are tons and tons of Jewelers and Retailers selling Diamonds online. THOUSANDS!

And, some Jewelers have cut-off points in Quality. Like some Jewelers won’t sell anything lower than I1 Clarity, while others won’t have any Color less than J. So the lowest quality that one store will sell versus another store is all over the board. Not truly a fair comparison, but I’m not here to compare Quality. I’m here to find the CHEAPEST DIAMOND POSSIBLE!

Now I could probably spend a decade searching prices, and still never find the lowest… But I’ll try my best and that’s all I can really do.

Remember, Quality is NOT an issue. I’m just looking for One Carats, and looking for the most Inexpensive Carat that these stores carry online at this time.

So here are my findings…

I’ll list the Jewelers that I searched below, and I’ll list their Cheapest 1 Carat Diamond ONLINE so you all can see.

And by all means, this doesn’t mean you should run out and buy any of these, after all, they are the Lowest Quality possible… This is just an experiment in Price, and I find it rather interesting.

So…

Let’s check it out…

P.S. When I did eBay, I selected the “BUY IT NOW” option, because you can never tell from auction to auction what the Diamond could and would sell for…

HERE WE GO…

STORE – CW, CLARITY, COLOR, CUT, CERT	PRICE	VIEW
Zales – 1.00, I1, F, GOOD, IGI	$3,961	VIEW
McGivern – 1.00, SI1, H, PREMIUM, EGL	$3,690	VIEW
Kays – 1.00, I1-I2, H-I, ROUND, ???	$3,599.99	VIEW
Ben Moss – 1.00, I2-I3, K, ROUND, ???	$3,499	VIEW
James Allen – 1.00, I1, H, GOOD, GIA	$3,380	VIEW
Jared – 1.00, I1-I2, H-I, ROUND, ???	$3,299.99	VIEW
LDX – 1.00, SI1, J, FAIR, GIA	$3,146	VIEW
Blue Nile – 1.00, SI2, I, GOOD, GIA	$3,004	VIEW
Daniel’s – 1.00, ???, ???, ???, ???	$2,999.95	VIEW
Helzberg – 1.00, I3, J, ROUND, IGI	$2,999	VIEW
Adiamor – 1.00, SI2, J, VERY GOOD, GIA	$2,994	VIEW
Reeds – 1.00, I3, J, ???, ???	$2499.95	VIEW
Ritani – 1.00, SI2, L, GOOD, GIA	$2,220	VIEW
Solomon – 1.00, SI1, J, FAIR, EGL	$2,150	VIEW
Lumera – 1.00, I1, L, FAIR, GIA	$1,994	VIEW
NYDEX – 1.00, I1, L, FAIR, GIA	$1,955	VIEW
Israel – 1.00, VS1, M, EXCELLENT, HRD	$1,763	VIEW
Fred Meyer – 1.00, ???, I-L?, ???, ???	$1,699	VIEW
Brilliance – 1.00, I1, H, GOOD, EGL	$1,224	VIEW
eBay – 1.00, I1, J, FAIR, IGL	$1,019.99	VIEW
Jewelry Ex – 1.00, ???, ???, ???, ???	$597	VIEW

Interesting, isn’t it? Do keep in mind, these qualities are all different. We aren’t comparing Apples to Apples! Just the Cheapest Carat!

Cheap really is CHEAP!

Out of all the Online Jewelers Stores listed, “The Jewelry Exchange” had the cheapest stone ($597). In fact, I laughed when I saw that price. Really I did! I was thinking the eBay stone for $1019.99 was the winner… until I saw the Jewelry Exchange Diamond.

Sadly, there is virtually NO information about this stone listed (but then again, some of the leading Nationwide Jewelers didn’t list everything either).

See for yourself…

So I did what all curious people would do… I called them!

“Ring Ring!”

This is what I found out about the Cheapest 1.00 Carat Diamond online…

They said that this particular Diamond is non-graded (which I have no problems with – a lot of Lower Quality “VALUE” Diamonds aren’t graded!), but he said that he didn’t know the exact Color or Clarity, and that it would probably have eye-visible Inclusions in the stone, and probably have some Yellow or Gray Hue as well (AGAIN, all to be expected for a stone that’s this CHEAP!). No problem!

BUT…

I wanted to learn MORE!

I told him that I wanted to know the EXACT Color and Clarity. I mean, who would buy it if they didn’t know???

Otherwise, it’s nothing more than just a ROCK!

So the guy (who was extremely nice) said he’d find out (since he didn’t have the Diamond in front of him), and that he’d call me back soon…

The Second Phone Call

After 5 hours of waiting, I decided to call them back. The gentleman told me that the Clarity is probably I2-I3, and that the Color is a Greenish-Brown Hue. He also said the stone was a bit Shallow with a little Sparkle. He did say that they don’t Grade Stones (and it doesn’t come with an Appraisal either), but they do sell other Certified Diamonds at a Better Quality…

Soooo the bottom line is, as long as you don’t mind what the Quality is, you may be a happy camper with this stone (or any of them listed above). After all, they are the CHEAPEST 1.00 Carat Diamonds ONLINE!

But, I would bet that most of these stones won’t look so hot to the eye. I’m sure they’re full of Inclusions, Flaws, Clouds, Black Spots, Fluorescence, or have lots of Yellow or Brown hues… But hey, you could save a TON of MONEY… If that’s your #1 priority.

And for some it is…

They’ll come into the Jewelry Store and say things like “What’s the Cheapest Diamond you have?” I know it’s all in jest… sort of. But it just goes to show, some people only look at Price and Quality is out the window.

You get what you pay for!

Cheap IS Cheap!

I always advise people to compare stones side by side if possible, let your eyes be the judge. The Average Quality that most people purchase is SI1-SI2, G-H-I, which is much higher than the findings here.

You may love the price, but you are scraping the bottom of the bucket with Mother Nature here… You’re bordering Industrial Quality!

Do you REALLY want the CHEAPEST DIAMOND?

Or…

Do you want the BEST Quality of Diamond that you can Afford with the money you now have.

That’s what most people really mean.

Isn’t it?