Costco offers this 1.2-carat total weight 3-stone platinum ring for $600 off, for a final price of $2,400. But there’s a catch. I’ll make a recommendation on how to buy a 3-stone ring in this price range that you won’t regret.
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Costco’s offer for $2,400
It’s Costco item number 1468165.
You can see it live at Costco, unless and until it’s sold out.
The Costco diamond ring’s specs, explained
Lack of a Diamond Certificate
There’s no diamond certificate. Not even for the center stone. Some Costco diamonds have them. This one simply doesn’t.
That’s a deal breaker, for me.
It should be for you, too. Here’s why: without a 3rd-party lab’s professional gemologist grading a diamond, we know very little unbiased information about it.
Shape
It’s a Round Brilliant Cut. All three stones. That’s the most brilliant, most sparkly shape of diamond. But only if it’s well-cut. A poorly-cut Round Brilliant will be dull and very disappointing.
Carats
The center stone is 0.60-carat. The total carat weight is 1.20 carats. So the two flanking stones are 0.30 each.
Clarity
It’s VS2 clarity.
A VS2 diamond can look good. Most do. But some have inclusions (flaws) right up top and center, or otherwise highly visible. Without a grading report, and without being able to view a specific center stone with the use of high resolution 3D imagery (Costco doesn’t have this technology), we can’t be sure what we’re getting.
A diamond grading report will diagram where the inclusions (flaws) are located.
But there’s no such document for this diamond.
Color
The color is “I”.
That’s not a terrible color. But anyone preparing to spend $2,400 should ask: “Who graded it? Were they biased? If the GIA graded this diamond, would the color grade be I? Worse? Better?”
Cut Quality
Cut Quality is not only not stated on a 3rd-party lab certificate, for example from GIA, IGI, or AGS.
It’s worse. Cut quality is not asserted at all. There’s no clue give as to what cut quality this center diamond is.
That would cause me to be very hesitant to make such an important purchase … blind.
A similar James Allen diamond ring’s ($4,800) specs explained
This James Allen diamond ring has the same Clarity and Color specs as the Costco diamond has.
But James Allen’s specs are vouched for by the IGI.
And there’s a huge advantage, already mentioned in the pic.
Carats
The James Allen center diamond is 0.70-carat, slightly larger than the Costco diamond.
The James Allen total carat weight, including the flanking diamonds, is 1.10-carats. That’s a total carat weight just shy of Costco’s 1.20 carats.
Cut Quality
The cut quality of this James Allen diamond is “Excellent”.
That’s tremendously consequential to your decision. It means you can know how well the diamond will perform in light. It will have the brilliance you are looking for.
About the Costco diamond, to restate, we don’t know the cut quality.
Cost
Many times I have compared the cost of diamond rings for which we have 3rd-party lab certificates (GIA, AGS, or IGI), between Costco and James Allen.
And every single time, James Allen comes out significantly less.
So I’m even more worried about the Cut Quality of the Costco diamond in this article, based on the price compare. The Costco ring is $2,400, whereas a comparable ring at James Allen is $4,800.
It makes me zero in on the lack of Cut Quality information for this ring at Costco.
And to me, speaking personally, it’s a torpedo. I wouldn’t buy that ring.
What if $2,400 is your budget?
What if $2,400 is just your budget. And you can’t go higher?
Still don’t buy that ring. Get a different ring, and shop at James Allen or at Blue Nile. Both offer good prices, consistently. And more importantly, both offer 3D imaging of specific diamonds.
I’ll make a recommendation here that comes in under $2,400, and gets you a certified, lab-graded diamond that you know you can be fully confident in.
Get this James Allen deal, very similar, but with an IGI certificate, for $2,080
James Allen sells diamond rings that you build yourself, so ordering them is very slightly different. It’s easy:
1. Select this platinum 3-stone setting for $1,370.
2. Go to my pre-set James Allen diamond search results (or adjust the filters yourself) 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. Also, of course the inventory is always changing, so you may see slightly different prices when you search.)
3. 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.)
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.
