Is this Helzberg Signature diamond ring worth it for $6K? No! I prove it with screen shots. Get this certified, better alternative. It’s at least $1K less, too!
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The Helzberg Offer: $5,999
Item number at Helzberg: 2317333
See it live at Helzberg (unless it’s been discontinued / gone out of stock).
Notice these specs about the Helzberg offer:
- Nowhere did I find a GIA, IGI, or AGS diamond certification mentioned for the Helzberg Signature diamond offer. So, that tells me it probably doesn’t exist. It says to me that Helzberg may even have graded these diamonds itself. (In my experience, this is typical. That’s unfortunate. You should never buy an expensive diamond without a diamond certificate from the GIA, IGI, or AGS. Without it, you can’t really know what clarity and color of diamond you’re actually buying.)
- The Color is said to be anywhere from H to I.
- The minimum Clarity is said to be I1. (In my opinion, they’re probably not going to hand out anything better than I1, if that’s their listed spec. It would be like giving away money, since there are plenty of I1 diamonds available to them.)
- The center diamond is 3/4 (0.75) carat.
- The accent diamonds total 1.2 (0.5) carats.
- The total carat weight of this ring is then 0.75 + 0.5 = 1.25 carats total.
- The center diamond is an Oval shape diamond
The James Allen MUCH better prices on IGI-certified, bigger, better diamond rings: $2,630.
Earth-created diamond ring offer at James Allen: $2,630
Lab-created diamond ring offer at James Allen: $2,650
Specs compared directly
Carats
The Helzberg center diamond is 0.75 carats.
The earth created diamond at James Allen is 0.80 carats. And the lab-created diamond at James Allen is 1.0 carats.
Clarity
The Helzberg diamond in this ring is I1-Clarity:
That’s pretty bad clarity, especially at this high price point, in my opinion, and as you can see from the chart:
James Allen earth-created diamond example is SI2-Clarity:
That’s better clarity. And especially it’s a MUCH better price. (You’re not paying through the nose for the privilege of saying you went to Helzberg.)
James Allen lab-created diamond example is also SI2 Clarity:
Color (Note that the perfectly colorless grade is “D”. There are no such grades as A, B, or C.)
Helzberg diamond color in this ring. The center stone is said to have color anywhere from H to I.
(But we don’t know who graded it. Was it the GIA? Very likely not, since that is such a valuable certification that jewelers make that prominent. The IGI? Same. AGS?
They don’t say, that I could find.
W may not know who graded it. It could have been someone on the Helzberg staff.
The James Allen earth-created diamond in this example has an IGI-certified Color H.
You may think that’s pretty much “the same.” Maybe … but … it’s IGI-certified, unlike the Helzberg diamond. So, it’s a trustworthy grade.
The James Allen lab-created diamond in this example has an IGI-certified color grade of G:
That’s up to two entire grades better than the Helzberg diamond! That’s a big increase in quality (and a MUCH lower price).
Certification
To restate a point of importance: I find no mention at Helzberg of certification for the diamonds they’ll attach to these rings.
Why is this a deal breaker? Because as a consequence, we can’t know for sure anything about the diamond. We have to trust Helzberg to grade their diamonds generously? And we also have to trust that whoever actually graded the diamond (I mean whichever human individual) was competent.
On the other hand, the two diamonds at James Allen are certified by the IGI.
So you can trust the color and clarity scores there.
PLUS you can inspect your diamonds at James Allen before you buy. You can inspect them online. Immediately. In super zoom. From every angle. Right now. Without waiting.
That alone is an unspeakably huge advantage to you.
How to get the James Allen deals
At James Allen, you can’t just add a ring to cart. Shopping there is necessarily slightly more difficult (and gives you more control and choice). Instead, you do this:
- You choose a setting (the metal ring, which in some cases comes with accent diamonds).
- Then you choose a loose diamond to add to it.
But it’s not as hard as it may seem. In fact it’s easy.
At least, it’s easy if you have someone walking you through it for the first time.
Here’s exactly how to get these deals (or very similar deals) at James Allen:
1. Select this 14K white gold setting. (It’s available on the same page in 14K, 18K as well, also in yellow gold and rose gold, or even in Platinum. Just choose them from the drop down on the setting product page.)
2. For the diamond, go to these pre-set James Allen diamond search results and select a diamond from the first 2 or 3 diamonds in the list.
(James Allen diamonds are unique, so I can’t send you straight to a specific diamond. It would sell out quickly. But there are many many others in the inventory. The price will be close to what you see here.
Also, of course the inventory is always changing, so you may see slightly different prices when you search.)
3. For even greater savings, click the “Lab-Created Diamonds” filter. (Use my pre-set James Allen Lab-Created Diamonds search results.)
Conclusion: Is this Helzberg $6,000 Signature Diamond Engagement Ring worth it? Not at all. You can get certified, better alternatives from James Allen for less: around $2,600.
It’s always shocking to me. Name brand diamond retailers such as Helzberg charge a LOT. And they provide, in my opinion, the bare minimum value in return.
You have seen in these screenshots. You’ve seen the proof. It’s right there. You can spend less than half the money and still get a bigger, better diamond ring. A ring with certified, better diamonds.
I catch some flack from some people. They say I’m always pointing to James Allen. I would not do that if James Allen wasn’t always winning the value war with its competitors. They simple are always winning.
If you see a similar diamond ring for significantly less elsewhere (from a highly reputable dealer such as James Allen … say for example at Blue Nile…) then let me know.
But I think you won’t.
So get inspired wherever — even at Helzberg by their Signature Series of diamond engagement rings.
But don’t buy there. Instead use the search skills I teach in this blog. Use those skills to search for and find loose diamonds at James Allen. Then easily add them to a setting as I show you in each article.
You’re going to either:
- Save literally thousands, even on a ring of $5,000 or less.
- Be able to bump up the size and quality of your diamond engagement ring a LOT.
- Both.
It’s easy to get great deals on better diamond jewelry — for less money! Here’s how:
- Scroll up to the section on “How to Get the James Allen Deals.”
- Follow the easy directions there.
- Feel 100% confident that you bought the best diamond for the money
How to search this site to save up to tens of thousands of dollars at trusted diamond retailers, vs most any Costco, Kay, Jared, or Zales ring you’re considering
Search and save. You could save enough for a new compact car. Or a honeymoon. Or several expensive dinner dates. Or that guitar you’ve been wanting.
Read this very short note on how easy it is.
