Looking for the perfect place to buy pink diamond jewelry online?
You're in the right place!
In this Learning Jewelry guide I'll answer common questions like:
- What should you look for when buying pink diamonds online?
- Are pink diamonds good for an engagement ring?
- How do you know you’re getting a good deal?
- What are the red flags to watch out for when buying?
Top 3 Best Places to Buy Pink Diamond Jewelry Online
If you need the list quick, here are my top picks for finding quality pink diamonds from reputable online dealers. Keep reading for more information about each of these shops.
Pink diamond engagement rings have drawn the eyes of celebrities such as Mariah Carey, Jennifer Lopez, and Blake Lively.
But is a pink diamond ring the right one for you? Let's get into it!
1. James Allen
James Allen's library of loose diamonds in among the largest of online retailers. They have pages of white diamonds, fancy color diamonds, and select gemstones, all for your viewing pleasure.
Using their 360 viewing technology, you can see each individual stone up close and personal. This allows you to get a proper view of any secondary hues, clarity details, and cut shape.
In their special fancy colored loose diamond section, they offer over 600 pink diamonds.
However, only around 80 of them are a 1/2 carat or bigger. The cost increases quickly, but you can still get an untreated pink diamond at .5 carats for less than $2000, stone only. Their stones also come with grading reports or certificates, many of them below. Check out this brownish pink diamond below:
If you purchase one of their high quality fancy pink diamonds that retails over $30,000, they let you pick out a ring setting of up to $1500 for free. Or, you can apply it toward a more expensive ring setting.
Not only is that a great perk, but James Allen also offers all their customers a free lifetime warranty with all their diamond jewelry, no matter how much you pay.
This warranty covers any routine maintenance your engagement or wedding ring might need. This includes retipping prongs, rhodium plating white gold, and tightening stones. You also get one free ring resizing within the first year.
Pros
- Large selection
- GIA certified
- Free warranty
- Clear 360 view on all diamonds
Cons
- majority of brownish pink diamonds
2. Leibish & Co.
Leibish and Co. is hands down the most expensive retailer on our list today. That's the main reason why it hits lower on our list. Most of these pink diamonds will be out most people's price ranges.
Make no mistake, these are the most beautiful pink diamonds you'll find online. They have over 970 different pink diamonds of varying intensities and hues.
Leibish has their own selection of Argyle diamonds, which are the most expensive and valued pink diamonds in the world.
Because they specialize in fancy colored diamonds, they also have more varied filters such as overtones like this pink diamond with a purple overtone.
Leibish's colored diamonds have different diamond certifications to include GIA, IGI, AGT, and their own GIA graduate in-house gemologist. In house diamond grading reports aren't official grading report though, even when done by a GIA graduate. They can send your diamond for certification by the GIA for an extra cost.
They have a manufacturer's warranty as well that only covers defects or flaws in the actually design, usually pertaining to the ring setting you've chosen to put a diamond in. They don't cover wear and tear.
Pros
- Over 900 pink diamonds
- Best coloration
- 360˚ view
- Option to get certified
Cons
- Expensive
- No warranty
- Not all diamonds are GIA certified
3. Blue Nile
Usually a top contender in many of our guides, Blue Nile takes the #3 spot when it comes to pink diamonds.
Here's why...
While Blue Nile's long-standing reputation as the first online diamond retailer adds stability to their name, I can't overlook their pink diamond collection. They carry loose natural pink diamond and a selection of Lightbox Lab pink diamond jewelry. They don't carry loose lab-grown pink diamonds.
Though the selection is varied, it's not very user friendly. I constantly talk about how it irks me that they don't have 360˚ viewing on all of their diamonds. But they still have it on tons of their colorless ones.
But out of their 200 pink diamonds, most of them don't have the video. The ones that don't have video don't have HD photos either, just a stock photo to show you the intensity. Most of the pink diamonds that can be seen with a viewer are mostly light pink, with little saturation like this light pink .50 ct diamond below
In fact, most of the collection features barely pink diamonds, which is another reason why it ranks lower. Every diamond at Blue Nile is GIA certified, which is nice.
The lab diamond collection gives you around 20 options for lab created pink diamond jewelry in fashion rings, diamond tennis bracelets, earrings, and pendant necklaces.
Blue Nile doesn't offer any kind of warranty for ring settings, but you do get one free ring resizing. The manufacturer's warranty covers defects, but not wear and tear. If you don't like your pink diamond ring from Blue Nile, they have a 30 day return policy.
Pros
- Trusted reputation
- 200 Pink diamonds
- GIA certified
Cons
- Mostly faint pink
- Most don't have 360˚ video
- No warranty
What Are Pink Diamonds?
Pink diamonds are a bit of a mystery in the jewelry and gemology world, which adds to their appeal for those desiring an engagement ring of an entirely different caliber altogether.
For a while, we didn't know where these diamonds got their pink color from. Unlike other fancy color diamonds like blue or yellow mined diamonds, there aren't any chemical impurities causing color changes.
Nowadays, we think we have a pretty good idea.
Our best guess has to do with immense pressure to the diamond while it's being formed, creating pink and red diamonds.
Pink Diamonds FAQ
Are Pink Diamonds Good For An Engagement Ring?
All diamonds are great for engagement rings, be it melee stones or your center stone. As long as the diamond is real, it will be perfect for daily wear. Both lab created pink diamonds and natural pink diamonds are real diamonds, just in case there's any confusion.
Diamonds have rate a 10 on the Moh scale of hardness, which is the highest rating a mineral can achieve. Nothing is harder than a diamond, which is why diamonds are commonly used for industrial purposes.
Are Pink Diamonds More Expensive?
If your pink diamond is both a natural mined diamond and it hasn't received any heat treatments or irradiation to get its color, chances are it's going to be pretty expensive.
Fancy color diamonds in general are more expensive than their colorless counterparts. Pink diamonds are more expensive than yellow lab diamonds, yet less expensive than blue diamonds. Red diamonds are the most expensive. Other colors like purple and green diamonds fall along the same line as pink.
The cost of a pink diamond will depend entirely on its quality. The higher grades in each category, the more expensive your stone will be. The more intense the color and bigger the carat weight, the more expensive they'll be.
What Should You Look For When Buying Pink Diamonds Online?
You've probably heard of the 4Cs by now, a diamond grading system put forth by the Gemological Institute of America. With gemstones, they follow the same basic guidelines, but without the actual grades.
Cut
Cut is usually is what usually sets the scene when purchasing colorless diamonds. The way your diamond is cut determines its overall brilliance and sparkle. But with fancy color diamonds like pink diamonds, the cut isn't the end all, be all.
That doesn't mean you should get a diamond with a poor cut though. A bad cut on a stone can compromise its integrity especially if it has blemishes on the surface. This makes it susceptible to breaks and chips.
If you're looking for a great pink diamond, keeping its cut grade at Good or Very Good is best. You might want to stay away from brilliant cuts like round, princess, or cushion when it comes to pink diamonds.
This is because pink diamonds are generally light pink. Having all those extra facets reflecting will detract from the light pink diamond color. But, these diamond shapes will also cost less because of this factor.
If you want to retain the color, you should stick to shapes like emerald diamonds, hearts, and Asscher cut diamonds.
Color
Pink diamonds are most valued by their color and their color tone, hue, and saturation. But instead on grading them individually, the GIA takes into account all three factors and sums them up into one grading system.
The tone of a gem is how light or dark it appears to be. Pink diamonds that are too dark tend to show secondary hues of browns in the diamond. Medium to Light tones are more ideal for pink diamonds.
The tone of a pink diamond should either be in the light or medium range. Don't put too much weight in the tone of a pink diamond, because the hue and saturations are what you really want to pay attention to.
The grading terms for fancy diamonds can be found as follows: Faint, Very Light, Light, Fancy Light, Fancy, Fancy Dark, Fancy Deep, Fancy Intense, or Fancy Vivid. You can have a fancy light purplish pink diamond and it can also be Fancy intense.
When it comes to buying colored diamonds, you usually want one solid hue. However, pink diamonds with a pure pink hue are very rare. Most pink diamonds can have secondary hues of purple, brown, or orange. Brownish pink diamonds are less expensive.
Leibish & Co. Pink Diamond Hues
The saturation of a pink diamond refers to how intense the hue is. Pink diamonds aren't known for their high saturation and fetch a large price as the saturation increases. Argyle diamonds have beautiful saturation in their stones.
The Argyle Mine is a pink diamond mine in Australia has produces most of the world's high quality pink diamonds.
They have intense hues and high saturation. They also have their own grading scale when it comes to the color of their pink diamonds. Check it out below:
Clarity
Depending on where you go to purchase your pink diamonds, you'll find them in various clarities. Brian Gavin doesn't sell pink diamonds below SI clarity. James Allen will have many I clarity pink diamonds.
Higher clarities are rarer, which means they cost more. But do you need a higher clarity grade?
Well, it depends on your diamond. If your diamond is a very light pink emerald cut stone with an I clarity grade, those inclusions are going to detract from the overall appearance.
With a light hue, they will stand out. But with a darker hue like fancy brownish pink, you don't notice inclusions near as much.
Tip: You should always look for diamonds that have dark inclusions close to the girdle of the diamond, if you're unable to afford a higher clarity like SI1 or VS2 clarity.
Read also: Is VS diamond clarity right for you?
Fancy colored diamonds are divided into types, similar to color gemstones. Fancy color diamonds are divided into Type Ia, Type IIa, Type Ib and Type IIb.
Type Ia colored diamonds contain nitrogen throughout the crystal structure. This creates a yellowish color, which makes fancy yellow and orange diamonds a Type Ia colored diamond. Most diamonds are Type Ia.
Type IIa colored diamonds have a different fluorescence and no visible absorption. Type IIa fancy diamonds are considered the most rare. Blue diamonds fall under this category. Only 1% of diamonds mined is a Type IIa, which gives you an idea on how rare they are and why the cost is so expensive.
Carat
The other main contributing factor to the cost of a colored diamond is the carat weight. Carat weight of diamonds is often confused with the actual size of the diamond. But it's not, even though we act like it is.
You can have a 1 carat marquise diamond that is much smaller in appearance than a 1 carat princess cut diamond. But they both have the same carat weight. Because carat weight is commonly associated in size, it's good to familiarize yourself with a general carat weight scale for round diamonds.
Different diamond shapes have larger face-up appearances than others. A 2 carat round diamond will look smaller than a 2 carat oval diamond.
Another reason why the price increases so heavily with carat weight is because only 1 in 10,000 diamonds mined are a fancy color diamond. That's how rare they are.
In fact, a pink diamond must be at least .20 carats to be considered a large diamond. Pink diamonds over 1 carat are very expensive and rare.
Finding a decent one over 2 carats is quite a feat.
Red Flags When Buying Pink Diamonds Online?
When you're looking to buy pink diamonds online, there's a couple things you should watch out for. There is no cutting corners at cost with fancy colored diamonds. You shouldn't find any "deals" selling natural and untreated pink diamonds for cheap. Often times these "deals" are either synthetic or a simulant.
Simulants are stones that people use to imitate a gemstone. The best diamond alternatives can be colorless or colored, depending if the simulated gem is trying to look as a diamond or colored gemstone. Pink diamond simulants can be imitated by any pink stone. Common simulants include gems like cubic zirconia (CZ), zircon, pink sapphire, morganite rings, garnet, pink tourmaline, and even pink glass.
Another way that an unsuspecting customer might be duped is by paying mined pink diamond prices for a lab created or synthetic pink diamond.
While they both are still natural and real, synthetic diamonds use the bottom of the barrel diamonds and heat treat or irradiate them to force them to become pink. Once you know what to look for, you can often tell synthetic from mined.
The saturation is usually more intense that it looks like a semi-precious pink stone, not a diamond.
Private sellers on various social media apps such as Facebook, WhatsApp or Instagram may not properly represent their pink diamonds for what it is. You can be taken advantage of on the internet.
The best way to ensure you're not getting ripped off is to make sure it has a grading report or certificate from a credible lab like the GIA, AGS, or EGL. However, these reports can also be faked.
The GIA has grading reports for natural and lab colored diamonds. There are two types of reports for natural diamond: the standard colored diamond grading report and the color grading and origin report. The origin report tells you where the diamond comes from and is also laser-inscribed.
The best way to ensure you're getting exactly what you're paying for is to buy from a reputable website dealer that has lots of reviews and information. All of the stores we've mentioned here have the stamp of approval as legitimate places online to purchase pink diamonds.
How to Get the Best Deal When Buying Pink Diamonds Online?
I'm going to leave you with a couple lasting tips to remember when buying pink diamonds online.
Strategize the 4Cs
- Pink diamond shape prices decrease slightly when it's a brilliant cut, like a round. Pink diamonds with secondary color hues of brown will be less expensive as well.
- Make sure you can see the view of your stone from all angles before choosing a clarity grade.
- Think about the setting you want. If you want a halo around that pink diamond, you want the inclusions closer to the edge. You can usually find I clarity diamonds whose noticeable inclusions don't impact the direct line of sight.
Read also: Are all diamond inclusions bad?
The setting is also important when it comes to carat weight. If you're looking to have a solitaire, you'll need at least a half carat, which can be pricey. But a halo ring setting can make your center stone look bigger.
A .35 carat round pink diamond with secondary brown hues set into a halo setting would be a great way to save money in the pink diamond market.
Know the Treatments
Treated pink diamonds can be either mined or lab-created. All lab-created pink diamonds are treated.
A mined pink diamond that has received treatment to enhance its color or clarity will be significantly lower prices than an untreated pink diamond. All sellers are supposed to disclose which treatments any diamonds or colored stones may have.
Pink diamonds can be treated a few different ways, like most gemstone treatments. The most common is high pressure high temperature treatments. They take brown diamonds and apply heat and pressure to the diamond to alter its color to pink.
HPHT diamonds usually have a stronger secondary brown hue, which also contributes to its discount.
The good thing about this treatment is that its permanent, so there's no further care needed. You don't have to worry about excessive heat or sunlight altering it like other treatments.
Irradiation treatments are similar, except the color is made by radiation. Under extreme heat, this treatment can alter, leaving an unsightly diamond. You should always let a jeweler know that your diamond is irradiated before he ever put the jeweler's torch near it. If working on the metal, he'll have to unmount it to preserve your stone.