Jared offers this Diamond Solitaire Ring, with a 1-carat Princess-cut diamond, in 14K White Gold, for $3,400. But it has a LOT of red flags, from my personal viewpoint. And it should from yours as well. Here’s how to get a better ring for less.
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Jared’s offer for $3,400
It’s item number 161305507 at Jared.
You can see it live, as long as it’s in stock.
The specs of this Jared deal raise flashing red flags
Diamond Certificate
There seems to be no diamond certificate for this diamond. That means the GIA didn’t vouch for it. Nor the IGI. Nor the AGS. It’s just, apparently, Jared telling us the qualities of this diamond.
And the qualities are not even good, in my opinion. What they’re saying about it is not good, in my opinion.
Shape
It’s a Princess-Cut. That’s one thing we can know for sure. That’s a beautiful and classic cut, at least in theory.
Carats
It’s called 1-carat in the title. It’s said in the specs to have a range of 1/2 to 1 carat. I suspect it’s probably a 1-carat diamond. On the other hand, guessing is not knowing. Without a diamond certificate, we can’t be sure if it’s a .95, 1.00, or 1.05 carat.
Clarity
This is where I feel just ill, looking at the specs and price of this diamond. Sorry. But I do. It’s said to be, in the specs, to be of I2-Clarity. (“I” in Clarity scores means “Included”. “Inclusions” means “flaws.” That means little specs and streaks of gray, white, and black inside the diamond.)
(But remember there’s no certificate from a 3rd party lab such as the GIA. So … We may not know for sure.)
Color
The color of the Jared diamond is “I”.
That’s not awful. On the other hand, who graded the Color as “I”? Was it a trained gemologist just working for Jared?
Or was it a 3rd-party gemologist who is unbiased, such as those working for the GIA? (Well, we know it wasn’t that. Because if it were that, there would be a GIA certificate noted on the product page.)
It seems — who knows? because there is no lab vouching for the grade — that it was a gemologist, or someone, working for Jared.
I’m not saying Jared would deliberately misrepresent a diamond. Or even that someone there would make a mistake. But either could happen theoretically at some retailer who grades its own diamonds. This is why there should always be a certificate from the GIA, AGS, or IGI for any diamond purchase that’s this expensive.
James Allen offers a ring with better diamond specs for $2,790 (earth-mined) or $1,760 (lab-created)
As you can see in the images, below, James Allen again wins out. For an earth-mined diamond, the cost total for the entire ring is $2,790.
And for the lab-created diamond on the ring, the cost is only $6,600.
Earth-mined for $2,790:
Lab-created for $1,760:
How to get the James Allen deals
Getting the deal at Jared deal is easy. You just buy it on the site. (Please don’t! That I1-Clarity score is scary to me.)
But James Allen is different. They sell diamond rings that you build yourself, so it’s very slightly different. But it’s easy if you know how:
1. Select this solitaire 14K white gold setting for $440.
2. For the earth-mined diamond from James Allen, go to my pre-set James Allen diamond search results and select a diamond from the first 2 or 3 diamonds in the list. (The diamonds are unique, so I can’t send you straight to a specific diamond. It would sell quickly. 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 Lab-Created Diamonds search results.)
4. Combine a diamond you like with the setting you chose, and buy your ring. (Hurry because every diamond is unique. Anyone could buy it before you do.)
The specs of these diamond deals compared
Diamond Certificate
The Jared diamond has no certificate. At this level of expense, that’s a red flag all by itself.
The James Allen earth-mined diamond has a GIA certificate.
The James Allen lab-created diamond has an IGI certificate.
Shape
All three are Princess Cut.
Carats
All three diamonds are almost exactly 1 carats. We think.
The Jared diamond is probably 1 carat. That’s what it says in the title. But the fine print specs say it’s 1/2 to 1 carat. I think it’s probably very close to 1 carat.
The James Allen earth-mined is exactly 1.01 carats. (The GIA measured it.)
The James Allen lab-created is exactly 1.02 carats (The IGI measured it.)
Clarity
The Jared diamond, as we’ve seen, is I1. That’s pretty bad.
The earth-mined James Allen diamond shown is SI2-Clarity.
The lab-created one shown is SI1-Clarity.
James Allen has another huge advantage here:
Inclusions (flaws) could be anywhere in the diamond. You want to see where they are before you buy.
And at James Allen, you can easily look at your specific, particular diamond using their ground breaking 3D imaging technology on the website.
It’s just a click away. You can super zoom on the diamond you’re considering. You can see where the inclusions (flaws) are. And then you can choose a diamond which has inclusions only in places quite far from the “table” (the top facet) of the diamond.
That will make sure you get a diamond you love to look at. You’ll barely, if at all, see the flaws.
One more thing about that Jared diamond with it’s pretty bad Clarity score… they will most definitely be visible.
Color
The color of the James Allen earth-mined diamond and also the lab-created diamond is “I”. That’s the same color as the Jared diamond shown (supposing we trust Jared as much as we trust the GIA and IGI).
Cut Quality
The cut quality of the two James Allen diamonds (the earth-mined and the lab-created) has been graded by a professional gemologist, working for a 3rd-party unbiased lab (GIA in one case, and IGI in the other.)
The earth-created on is graded “Excellent” by the GIA, which is the best grade afforded any cut quality by the GIA.
The lab-created one is graded “Ideal” by the IGI, which is the best grade it can receive from the IGI.
That means these diamonds are not going to disappoint in terms of brilliance and fire.
The cut quality of the Jared diamond isn’t even mentioned. That’s a big red flag. The reason, seems to me, is that Jared is selling this ring/diamond combo as a mass market product. So, my guess is they’re grabbing diamonds of I1-Clarity and I-Color, and mounting them on 14K gold settings, then stocking them. So they can’t tell you a specific cut quality. The cut quality varies. (And my guess is that it’s probably not good, or Jared would spend the money to have GIA evaluate it and say “Excellent.”)
Conclusion: This Jared diamond should be avoided completely, in my opinion. James Allen definitely has two better deals, as shown in the hard numbers and screen shots on this page.
In my opinion, this Jared diamond ring isn’t a great diamond at all. It has a very poor clarity score. Avoid. The James Allen offers win out, hands down.
Remember, diamonds are unique products. So the diamonds you see in the screen shots of James Allen may have been sold to someone else. However, James Allen has a huge inventory of diamonds. You’ll certainly find others that are easily comparable in quality and price.
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.
