The Best Places To Buy Diamonds, For All Your Jewelry Needs

Shopping for diamonds online can be complicated. Not only are you searching for a piece you, or a loved one, will find beautiful and wear for years to come, but you want to be entirely confident that what you’re buying is authentic and will arrive safely. Fine jewelry is no small purchase and the best places to buy diamonds give you peace of mind when choosing something of such high value and personal significance.

Our recommendations for the best places to buy diamonds include items from (left to right) Blue … [+] Nile, Gemist and The Last Line.

ILLUSTRATION: FORBES / PHOTO: RETAILERS

Many modern fine-jewelry retailers have made shopping for diamond jewelry online a safe and streamlined process. These sites offer detailed information on where their gemstones and other materials come from, comprehensive valuation reports and shopping consultations by phone or video if you need human help.

Whether you have something specific in mind or just want some inspiration, the list below covers 17 of the best places to buy diamond jewelry online. It touches on every category, from lab-grown diamond specialists to artisans working with responsibly-sourced gems, classic jewelry houses to boutique designers, big splurges to dainty, everyday purchases. Keep reading to learn why we like—and trust—these retailers for quality, authentic diamond jewelry online.

Best For Lab-Grown Diamond Jewelry

The popularity of lab-grown diamonds has skyrocketed in the last few years. Not to be confused with “diamond simulates,” like cubic zirconia, which look similar to diamonds but are not true carbon crystals, these are “real” diamonds, cultivated from the carbon seeds of pre-existing diamonds in a lab setting, which lessens their environmental impact.

Clean Origin: Responsible Supply Chain

Clean Origin does away with the destructive mining and unsafe practices in the diamond industry and instead only sources lab-grown diamonds. All of the stones meet strict standards of quality in terms of cut, color, clarity and carat, so they are flawless to the naked eye. In addition to engagement and wedding styles, you’ll find everyday jewelry—studs, drop pendants, slim bracelets—for about $500 to $1,500.

Vrai: Stylish And Sustainable

Vrai exclusively uses lab-grown diamonds created as its own foundry, meaning there is truly no middleman between the stone’s source and its setting. The diamonds are grown with an entirely hydropowered production process, meaning no carbon emissions. In addition to classics like studs and tennis bracelets, Vrai offers modern styles like signet rings and statement earrings. Prices range from under $100 for single stud earrings to just under $10,000 for an eight carat tennis bracelet.

Brilliant Earth: Independently Certified Classics Best For Engagement And Wedding Rings

Modern fine jewelers have simplified the process of shopping for engagement and wedding rings online, where you can find a variety of prices and styles, as well as virtual try-on services and easy returns.

Blue Nile: Trusted For Elegant Styles

Blue Nile was one of the first fine jewelry retailers to embrace online as a viable shopping platform, way back in 1999. You can create a customized ring or shop a selection of stunning ready-to-shop options. There’s also ready-to-ship diamond jewelry for everyday, includes traditional earrings, necklaces, bracelets and rings as well as modern picks like rose gold diamond bar studs. Prices start around $200 for stud earrings and climb into the six figure range for certain engagement rings.

With Clarity: Excellent Customer Service

With Clarity aims to marry (so to speak) the best of online and in-person shopping to create engagement and wedding rings as well as everyday diamond jewelry. The emphasis is on transparency, convenience and high quality without the markup; prices start at about $1,000 for pre-set engagement rings and go up from there with options you can customize. The brand also offers a lifetime warranty against manufacturing defects, will replace any diamonds under 0.10ct carat weight that are broken or lost during everyday wear, and accepts returns for any reason within 30 days.

Ritani: Fair Costs And A Price-Match Guarantee

Ritani understands that diamond ring shopping can be intimidating—emotionally and financially. For that reason, the brand’s “pricing tool” provides a clear breakdown of the actual cost of each diamond from the wholesaler, the operational costs (shipping, packaging, processing) and the final margin earned by Ritani. They also have a price match guarantee, where if you find an online competitor’s diamond priced for less, they will try to find a similar diamond at a lower price. Expect to find traditional and lab-grown diamonds, ranging from $350 to $6,500.

Best For Affordable Diamond Jewelry

Like pretty much every other fashion product, fine jewelry has gotten the direct-to-consumer treatment. With a well-tuned supply chain and a direct line to customers via social media, these companies are able to skip the traditional retail markup, meaning quality jewelry for a fraction of the price.

Mejuri: Unique Fine Jewelry

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This popular direct-to-consumer brand is known for its beautifully refined jewelry, at prices that are lower than industry standard. They’re also female-founded and women-centric in their approach, making the case that fine jewelry is not something you need to be gifted by men, but rather an item you can (and should) buy for yourself, anytime. Prices start around $75 for a single stud earring and top off around $2,000 for diamond rings.

Noémie: Transparent Prices

Noémie focuses on creating unique, high-quality pieces for very reasonable prices. The L.A.-based, direct-to-consumer brand lists what you would pay if you were to shop the traditional retail route for their diamond jewelry. On average, Noémie customers save about 60% on everything you see online, which includes huggie earrings for $470 and diamond compass necklaces for $1,540. Noémie also offers free shipping and returns.

Charles & Colvard: Simply Beautiful Basics

North Carolina-based Charles & Colvard specializes in lab-created diamonds, all set in responsibly-sourced precious metals. The company only works with Caydia diamonds of VS1 quality, which are sought out for their high polish and symmetry. A team of designers then turns these stones into a range of traditional jewelry—solitaire earrings, pendant necklaces, cuff bracelets—at affordable prices that start at less than $350.

Best For Traditional Diamond Jewelry

For traditional diamond jewelry pieces like stud earrings, pendant necklaces or tennis bracelets, the web is your oyster. After browsing dozens of fine jewelry shops online, the following stand out for their breadth of selection, range of price points and reliable retailer reputation.

1stDibs: Rare Finds Worth Coveting

1stDibs

18kt White Gold Dangling Earrings with White Diamonds and Blue Topaz Drops Buy From 1stDibs

For authenticated antique online, there’s no match for 1stDibs. The company works with a trusted network of top vintage and contemporary sellers across the world to source pieces you really won’t see anywhere else, like a 1920s Cartier engagement ring or a Victorian era bracelet. The selection is enormous and the price range is broad—at the low end are diamond studs for $100 and at the high end are $4.5 million engagement rings. Everything is thoroughly vetted and all purchases include buyer protection for a seamless shopping experience.

Allurez: Perfect For All Occasions

Allurez was founded in 2010 with a focus on diamond and gemstone jewelry made locally in the U.S. rather than elsewhere in the world, where the quality can fluctuate. In addition to engagement rings, the company offers diamond jewelry (necklaces, everyday rings, earrings) made with conflict-free stones as well as lab-created moissanite, which is more affordable, on a per-carat basis compared to natural diamonds. While there are certainly modern styles here, the classics—such as this cross pendant—are the most popular.

David Yurman: Keep-Forever Pieces

Before he became a jewelry superstar, David Yurman was a talented sculptor and artist, which is evident in the geometric shapes of his collections. The brand is most-known for its signature Cable Classic bracelets, adorned with a variety of precious stones, as well as chunky, twisted earrings, pendants and rings wrought from high-quality materials. Most pieces fall in the $1,500 to $3,000 range but for larger diamonds, expect to pay above $5,000.

Best For Everyday Diamond Jewelry

When you’re looking for something you can wear everyday, beyond the basic stud earrings or pendant necklaces, turn to these independent designers with small workshops making interesting, original jewelry.

Stone And Strand: Modern Pieces Minus The Markup

Stone and Strand offers classics like diamond eternity bands and stud earrings, but what sets this direct-to-consumer brand apart are its more whimsical designs, like this diamond-studded wishbone necklace or knotted ring. Stone and Strand caters to an audience shopping for everyday fine jewelry, which it makes more affordable by skipping the retail markup. Prices range from $65 for a petite diamond stud to $4,100 for a four-carat diamond necklace.

Aurate: Minimalist Chic

New York City-based Aurate sources diamonds, pearls and other precious gems from family-run establishments and the majority of its pieces are made from 100% recycled gold. To minimize costs, Aurate produces pieces on a made-to-order basis so you don’t pay for extra inventory. Expect to find elegant, refined basics, such as this diamond infinity necklace, for a reasonable price, along with mini stackable diamond rings for $160 and diamond slider eternity necklaces for $5,500.

Catbird: Quirky Cool

Catbird began as a little storefront in Brooklyn known locally for its ultra-dainty jewelry with names like the “Threadbare Ring” and “Sweet Nothing Choker.” In addition to its own Catbird Jewelry collection, the boutique now carries pieces from top independent jewelry designers, such as Blanca Monrós Gómez, Jennie Kwon and Wwake. Prices range from around $100 for a single diamond stud to around $10,000 for engagement rings.

Best For Diamond Jewelry Gifts

No matter the item, the best gifts are the ones that are personalized, thoughtful and show how much you care about the person—and if you’re still stumped, a little something sparkly is always a good idea.

The Last Line: Fine Jewelry That’s Fun

This LA-based brand has all the colorful gems and statement silhouettes for those who find the minimalist styles that dominate most “cool” jewelry brands a bit bland. After two decades of designing jewelry for celebrity lines and luxury houses, co-founder Shelley Sanders decided to make fine jewelry fun, and created The Last Line with her husband. Prices start around $200 for diamond huggie earrings and go up to $8,000 for collar tennis necklaces.

Gemist: Design Your Own Gift

Gemist is like having a custom jeweler at your fingertips. The site offers the option to completely customize and build your own pieces, which you can do on your own with the help of a pro stylist. For rings, necklaces, earrings and more, you pick the style, stones and metal, and from there, the final piece is made to order and manufactured in Los Angeles. Orders are sent out within 10 to 14 business days and shipping (and returns) are free, too.

Kinn: Modern Heirlooms

Kinn is all about circular jewelry—pieces that are meant to be kept and handed down. With their Repurpose Project, they recycle the metals and stones from your heirloom and inherited jewelry to create entirely new and custom pieces. For everything else, the brand only works with conflict-free and fair trade materials. The prices are extremely transparent as well, starting at $380 for a round diamond bracelet to $5,800 for a signet ring with a marquise diamond.