Updated October 25, 2021

For most diamond clarity scores, looking for eye clean bargains is a total waste of time. Which clarity scores have the bargains in eye clean diamonds? Read on to find out fast. I break it down for you and show you real, live, ready-to-purchase eye-clean diamonds at highly respected retailers.

Only TWO diamond clarity scores contain virtually ALL the eye clean bargains. The other clarity scores are 99% a waste of time. Do you know which two clarity scores to search, in order to find the bargains?

Only two diamond clarity scores contain ALL the savings in eye clean diamonds. The visual below is the best way to see this liberating truth. It means: you have narrowed your search for the treasure!

You’ll be much faster at finding the bargains.

This is literally the best info-graphic on the Internet about eye clean diamond hunting. 😉

• VS2 and above? Total waste of time. They’re all eye clean, according to the GIA and AGS. That means they all look the same in normal circumstances, without a magnifying glass or magnifying jeweler’s loupe. So obviously, you won’t find any “eye clean” discounting/bargains. (Which, slightly different topic, but worth saying: If you want an easy eye clean diamond without overspending, just grab a VS2 clarity diamond. Viewed when mounted on a ring and worn on a finger in normal light, it will look just as clear as even an FL (Flawless) diamond.)
• (Note that you can’t trust just any lab’s clarity score / clarity grade of VS2 to be eye clean. You have to trust a GIA-graded clarity score or an AGS graded clarity score. Any reputable seller will tell you on the product page which lab graded the diamond. If they don’t, it’s a red flag. Definitely don’t buy.)
• SI3 and below? A 99% total waste of time. You can virtually always spot flaws in them at arm’s length. Virtually none are eye clean. (But it you do find an extremely rare eye clean one, you have found a super bargain. Not that you probably will find such. And honestly, you might never. Probably be better off driving for Uber during all the time you’d spend searching, in order to make more money to buy a diamond with a higher clarity score.)
• SI1 and SI2? This is where the eye clean bargains are. It’s not easy, but it’s not hard either, to find eye clean diamonds among the SI1 and SI2 inventories of most major Internet diamond sellers.

SI2 eye clean finds are better bargains than SI1. But SI2 eye clean diamonds are harder to find than SI1 eye clean diamonds.

I think you see the pattern by now, right? Here’s the pattern:

The worse the clarity score of any given diamond, the lower the price, all other things being equal.

But if any diamond is eye clean, then the clarity score simply doesn’t matter in the real world. A FL diamond (top of the scale) looks just the same to the naked eye as a VS2 diamond, when those diamonds are mounted on a ring, worn on a finger, and looked at with unaided human eyes from an arm’s length away.

And if you can find an eye clean SI1 diamond, or an eye clean SI2 diamond, then you get a perfect LOOKING diamond for less money than paying for a VS2 or above.

Then why would anyone pay so much more money for a FL diamond?

A FL Clarity 1-carat round cut diamond, GIA certified, H color, Excellent cut quality, costs around $9,000.

Compare that to a diamond with all the same specs but a VS2 clarity score (that’s the lowest clarity score which is considered by the GIA and AGS to be always eye clean), which costs around $6,000.

Why would anyone pay 50% more for a diamond that looks the same at arm’s length? Well … because some people like to use magnifying glasses or loupes to enjoy the perfect clarity of an FL diamond. Some people also like knowing, and being able to say, to their beloved or to their friends that the diamond has flawless clarity.

Other people are happy with just the everyday, real-world look of a diamond. VS2 clarity (or even an SI1 eye clean, or SI2 eye clean), is just fine with them.

True, with an FL clarity diamond you get the pleasure of seeing how flawless the FL diamond is when looking through a magnifying glass or jeweler’s magnifying loupe.

But when you’re looking at it mounted on a ring, worn on a finger, in regular light, at arm’s length? You can’t see any difference from an SI1 or SI2 eye clean diamond.

That’s why the great eye clean bargains are in SI1 and SI2, especially SI2.

What is the definition of eye clean in diamonds, anyway?

Eye-clean simply means a diamond that looks flawless when mounted on a ring and viewed at arm’s length. Without magnification. By someone with 20/20 vision, or corrected 20/20 vision.

Calling an SI1 or SI2 diamond “eye clean” is ultimately a judgment call, but it’s not totally subjective either. (Get more details here. And here.)

The diamonds I list here are eye-clean in my opinion.

One reason I list mostly diamonds from James Allen is that you’re 100% protected — if you don’t like a diamond, you can return it.

So, even though I have a high level of confidence in my ability to show you eyeclean diamonds online, I know that rarely, a reader may buy one that I recommend and not love it 100%. No problem. When buying from James Allen, you can return it. See the iron-clad James Allen return policy for yourself.

Can you depend on clarity plots to help you choose an eye clean diamond? Or is that a terrible mistake? (Hint.)

Which one looks worse? The actual image of the diamond!

Why? Because those inclusions (flaws) are being reflected in many ways all through the diamond. It’s like you held up a piece of charcoal in front of a dressing mirror at a clothes shop. You’re going to see multiple pieces of charcoal, not just one piece of charcoal.

Even more important … what I CAN’T show you on this page … is how using the animated VIDEOS of actual diamonds at James Allen (and other stores) shows inclusions (flaws) even more clearly. (It’s how I screen for eye clean diamonds that I list on this page.)

LESSON LEARNED: Never trust a clarity plot to show you what a diamond’s flaws look like. That’s a huge mistake.

Clarity plots can only show you where they are physically located. They cannot show you if a diamond is eye clean.

ALWAYS insist on looking at images and animated VIDEO …
…such as what you can find on virtually any diamond at James Allen, and some other stores too.

Live examples of eye clean diamonds, available for purchase right now*

Follow this link to my list of 1-carat examples of eye clean diamonds graded by the GIA, available for purchase right now. (Eye clean is not a gemological designation, but these diamonds clarity scores are definitely graded by the GIA.)

*I update this page regularly. But obviously, there’ll be some time between when someone has purchased a diamond I recommended and the time I update it with a new recommendation. Most of these diamonds are most of the time totally ready for you to purchase. But don’t wait, if you want it. Other people monitor this page, looking for eye clean diamonds. They might snap it up before you do. I’m not trying to pressure you. Don’t buy a diamond if you’re not ready. There are others. There will always be more diamonds. But if you want one of these, and are ready, then don’t wait too long. Yes, I make a small commission on many diamonds that I link to, at no extra cost to you.

The eye clean diamonds in this current page’s list (below) are 1.5-carat and higher.

Note again that eye clean is not an official gemological designation. See the definition above.

You’ve found a guide to your eye-clean diamond purchasing adventure, in the form of this page. Enjoy!

1. Eye clean LAB-CREATED, 100% AUTHENTIC Emerald cut diamond example available now. IGI-Certified. 2.05 Carat. G Color. SI1 Clarity. Check current price.

This one has a tiny set of streaks near one corner. You can see them when the image is blown up on the James Allen site. But when you shrink it down to actual size, I feel confident they’ll be invisible.

A note about lab-created: I normally don’t include lab created diamonds on this page. That’s because I want apples to apples comparisons. Lab-created diamonds are 100% authentic, physically and chemically identical to earth-created diamonds. So in a sense all are apples to apples comparisons. But in the real market, I know that people see them differently. (They aren’t different at all, except in their origin, but I know they are valued differently. So I don’t include them unless I “have to.” And I had to in this case because I couldn’t find any emerald shaped eye clean diamonds at the moment, of SI1 or SI2 clarity.)

How much you save (based on a comparison to EARTH-CREATED diamonds with same specs except for clarity grade): A VS2 diamond of the same other specs (remember, VS2 and above are all eye clean) would cost mostly around $8,700. So you’re saving A LOT.

2. Eye clean Oval cut diamond example that’s ready to buy. IGI-Certified. 1.51 Carat. H Color. VS1 Clarity. Check current price.

How much you save: Internally Flawless diamonds with these specs cost around $10,500, if you can find them.

3. Eye clean Asscher cut diamond example which can ship now. GIA-Certified. 1.01 Carat. I Color. SI1 Clarity. Check current price.

How much you save: Most diamonds with the same specs, except for IF clarity, cost around $3,700.

4. Eye clean Heart shape diamond example that you can buy right now. GIA-Certified. 1.01 Carat. I Color. SI1 Clarity. Check current price.

How much you save: Most heart shaped diamonds with comparable specs start at around $4,500.

5. Eye clean Round Brilliant shape diamond example, available to buy now. GIA-Certified. 1.53 Carat. I Color. SI1 Clarity. Excellent Cut Check current price.

How much you save: Most diamonds with all the same specs except for IF (internally flawless) Clarity will cost you around $11,000 or more.

See quite a few more hand-picked, current examples of Round Brilliant diamonds, all of them GIA certified, here.

6. Eye clean Princess shape diamond example. GIA-Certified. 1.51 Carat. I Color. SI1 Clarity. Ideal Cut Check current price.

You’ll search, with the image magnified enormously, for a long time before you spot the inclusions (flaws) in this eye clean Princess cut diamond. They’re going to be completely invisible at arm’s length.

How much you save: Diamonds with same specs except IF (Internally Flawless) clarity mostly start at around $9,300.

7. Eye clean Cushion shape diamond example, ready to buy. GIA-Certified. 1.01 Carat. G Color. SI1 Clarity. Ideal Cut Check current price.

How much you save: Diamonds with the same specs except for IF (Internally Flawless) clarity start at around $3,100.

8. Eye clean Marquise cut diamond example. GIA-Certified. 1.00 Carat. J Color. SI1 Clarity. Check current price.

How much you save: Almost all of the similarly-spec’d Marquise cut diamonds (all the same specs except for IF (Internally Flawless) clarity start at around $5,800.

9. Eye clean Radiant cut diamond example, ready to buy. GIA-Certified. 1.01 Carat. J Color. SI1 Clarity. Check current price.

How much you save: Diamonds with these same specs, save for a clarity score bumped up to IF Clarity (Internally Flawless), start at around $3,000.

10. Eye clean Pear shaped diamond example, ready to buy. GIA-Certified. 1.50 Carat. H Color. SI1 Clarity. Check current price.

This is another amazing opportunity! The flaws in this one are mainly very wispy, light clouds here and there. They’re very hard to see, even at max magnification online. Can you see them at max magnification, just down inside the top of it? I feel very confident these will be completely invisible at arm’s length, in the real world — especially since this cut is quite brilliant, and will throw out a lot of sparks and fire that will easily overwhelm any view of these wispy clouds.

How much you save: Almost all the diamonds with similar specs, except for IF (Internally Flawless) clarity, start at around $13,000.