Lab grown diamonds:
common questions

A real diamond, pure crystallized carbon with the same hardness (10 on the Mohs scale), brilliance, and fire as a mined diamond, grown from a diamond seed in a controlled lab environment over a period of weeks. It's made using one of two methods: HPHT (High Pressure, High Temperature) or CVD (Chemical Vapor Deposition), which recreates the extreme heat and pressure found deep within the earth. The only difference is origin, not composition.

No. Since 2018, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission has formally recognized lab-grown diamonds as diamonds, not simulants. To the eye, and even under a jeweler's loupe, lab-grown and mined diamonds are indistinguishable; only specialized lab equipment can tell them apart. Just beware of companies trying to sell you moissanite as diamonds — those are NOT diamonds.

Yes, but it's worth understanding the current landscape, since it changed recently. The two main labs are IGI (International Gemological Institute) and GIA (Gemological Institute of America). In late 2025, GIA moved away from its traditional 4Cs grading scale for lab-grown diamonds, replacing it with a simplified "Premium" or "Standard" designation. This change doesn't capture the uniqueness and rarity that can still be had with a lab-grown diamond. IGI, by contrast, has said it will continue grading both natural and lab-grown diamonds using the full 4Cs. Every diamond we sell comes with independent certification from IGI so you know exactly what you're buying.

Lab-grown diamonds typically cost significantly less than a mined diamond of the same size, which means you can get a larger or higher-grade diamond for the same budget.

No, and neither do natural diamonds. Be cautious of anyone who tells you otherwise: lab-grown diamonds are best purchased for their beauty and value-per-carat, not as a financial instrument — and the same is largely true of mined diamonds, which also have poor resale value relative to retail price. We're transparent about this because we'd rather earn your trust than oversell.

This is genuinely contested, and we won't overstate it. Lab-grown diamonds are unquestionably conflict-free, since they carry no mining supply chain. The environmental comparison is more nuanced: production requires substantial energy input (for the HPHT/CVD process), and credible sources differ on whether that footprint is smaller than mining's. We'd rather give you the accurate, uncertain answer than a marketing one.

Cut matters most! And this is because it drives how a diamond sparkles. Color runs D (colorless) to Z, and D–H reads white in most settings. Clarity runs FL (flawless) to I, with VS and SI grades typically "eye-clean" — no inclusions visible without magnification. We'll walk you through these trade-offs during your consultation so you're prioritizing what you'll actually notice, not just chasing the highest number on paper.