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1 carat diamond engagement ring price test
A 1 carat diamond engagement ring is a pretty substantial piece of bling to offer to your potential spouse. Prices rang hugely from a few hundred pounds for a lower grade second hand diamond ring (about £400 minimum from eBay), up to around £7,500 or more for a higher grade new one carat ring from a big name jeweller (such as Beaverbrooks).
A mid-range 1 carat diamond ring will cost you about £2000-£3000 from an online jeweller, or potentially much more from a high street or Hatton Garden jeweller.
We searched for the cheapest 1 carat diamond ring available to UK shoppers. We searched in January 2022.
Our criteria was for a single stone 1 carat diamond of any grading in a gold or platinum ring. We didn’t include clusters of smaller diamonds in the total carat weight, and it needed to be a company which was either in the UK or shipped to the UK.
Here they are, from lowest price to highest:
A mid-range 1 carat diamond ring will cost you about £2000-£3000 from an online jeweller, or potentially much more from a high street or Hatton Garden jeweller.
We searched for the cheapest 1 carat diamond ring available to UK shoppers. We searched in January 2022.
Our criteria was for a single stone 1 carat diamond of any grading in a gold or platinum ring. We didn’t include clusters of smaller diamonds in the total carat weight, and it needed to be a company which was either in the UK or shipped to the UK.
Here they are, from lowest price to highest:
1st: eBay - £530 – Overall winner
The winner in our search for the UKs cheapest 1 carat diamond ring is eBay. However, the substantial caveat is it was second hand. The cheapest 1 carat diamond ring we could find was very low grade (the seller didn’t specify grading, but did say it was low quality).
Plus of course, many people don’t want a second hand engagement ring because of the superstition or because they think their future spouse wouldn’t be pleased!
Generally, we found 1 carat engagement rings on eBay were selling for between £700 and £1000 with some creeping up to £2000 if they were a particular brand or very new.
My advice would be to buy one with a certificate of grading or an original receipt so you can be confident you are getting what you are paying for.
Search for 1 carat diamond engagement rings on eBay
Plus of course, many people don’t want a second hand engagement ring because of the superstition or because they think their future spouse wouldn’t be pleased!
Generally, we found 1 carat engagement rings on eBay were selling for between £700 and £1000 with some creeping up to £2000 if they were a particular brand or very new.
My advice would be to buy one with a certificate of grading or an original receipt so you can be confident you are getting what you are paying for.
Search for 1 carat diamond engagement rings on eBay
2nd: Overstock - £861 – Cheapest new 1 carat diamond engagement ring
If you exclude second hand retailers, then Overstock was our winner by some distance. A low grade 1 carat diamond ring was selling for £861 (H-I colour, I1 – I2 clarity, 14 carat white gold) but we've added on the customs duty and import taxes that have to be paid to HMRC to take the price to about £1000.
However, there are another couple of caveats to consider before you leap straight to Overstock.
Firstly, it is a US website. It does sell to UK buyers, but you won’t have the convenience of being able to return an item locally which you will get with a British based jeweller which also had cheap rings in this comparison such as Littlewoods or F Hinds.
Secondly, prices fluctuate a lot and there is a lot of stock to trawl through. I wouldn’t like to say that you will find the exact same deal again. It is a bit like rummaging through a bargain bin – you might get lucky, or you might not find anything you want.
It is worth noting that imported engagement rings are subject to import duties and taxes. Some US sites include the charges in the amount you pay, whereas others leave you to pay it. Overstock adds on VAT and duty at the checkout, according to its website (January 2022).
If you’re willing to buy from the USA and like a bargain, you might also try SuperJeweler (see #4).
(Please note, some of the links on this site are affiliate links, but we include good deals regardless of whether they have the potential to earn money for the site or not).
However, there are another couple of caveats to consider before you leap straight to Overstock.
Firstly, it is a US website. It does sell to UK buyers, but you won’t have the convenience of being able to return an item locally which you will get with a British based jeweller which also had cheap rings in this comparison such as Littlewoods or F Hinds.
Secondly, prices fluctuate a lot and there is a lot of stock to trawl through. I wouldn’t like to say that you will find the exact same deal again. It is a bit like rummaging through a bargain bin – you might get lucky, or you might not find anything you want.
It is worth noting that imported engagement rings are subject to import duties and taxes. Some US sites include the charges in the amount you pay, whereas others leave you to pay it. Overstock adds on VAT and duty at the checkout, according to its website (January 2022).
If you’re willing to buy from the USA and like a bargain, you might also try SuperJeweler (see #4).
(Please note, some of the links on this site are affiliate links, but we include good deals regardless of whether they have the potential to earn money for the site or not).
3rd: Amazon (Marketplace) - £1399 - Cheapest UK based seller
The cheapest brand new 1 carat diamond engagement ring on sale in the UK that we could find was on Amazon Marketplace.
In case you didn't know, Amazon sells its own jewellery, but it also runs Amazon Marketplace which allows other jewellers to sell their own stock.
At the time of searching we managed to find a 1 carat ring, with a clarity of SI-VS and a colour of KLM in an 18 carat gold setting for £1399.
Search for 1 carat diamond engagement rings on Amazon
In case you didn't know, Amazon sells its own jewellery, but it also runs Amazon Marketplace which allows other jewellers to sell their own stock.
At the time of searching we managed to find a 1 carat ring, with a clarity of SI-VS and a colour of KLM in an 18 carat gold setting for £1399.
Search for 1 carat diamond engagement rings on Amazon
4th: Etsy - £1400
Etsy is a competitor to eBay in this instance and gets fourth place in our countdown of the cheapest places to buy a 1 carat diamond engagement ring.
However, this was a ‘vintage’ ring, so I would say it’s only worth considering if you don’t mind a second hand option. The seller didn’t specify the grading, which also devalues the ring somewhat.
Click here to search for 1 carat diamond engagement rings on Etsy
However, this was a ‘vintage’ ring, so I would say it’s only worth considering if you don’t mind a second hand option. The seller didn’t specify the grading, which also devalues the ring somewhat.
Click here to search for 1 carat diamond engagement rings on Etsy
5th: Littlewoods - £1611
If you’d like a 1 carat diamond engagement ring which is from a UK retailer and is brand new, then one of the cheapest we could find was from Littlewoods.
For some reason, the clarity and colour wasn’t specified by Littlewoods, although presumably it would be towards the lower end for that price. It was also only 9 carat platinum, which looks similar to 18 carat platinum but is a cheaper option.
For some reason, the clarity and colour wasn’t specified by Littlewoods, although presumably it would be towards the lower end for that price. It was also only 9 carat platinum, which looks similar to 18 carat platinum but is a cheaper option.
6th: SuperJeweler - £1691
Although SuperJeweler came sixth on our list, it takes fourth place if you overlook the second hand retailers of eBay and Etsy.
It’s another seller based in the USA, which isn’t for everyone, but they do sell lower grade diamonds for a fraction of the price you’ll pay at many of the UK’s high street jewellers. You'll save money even once you've paid import duties, which generally works out as about 20% on top of your purchase price (see this HMRC guide).
For £1691, SuperJeweler was offering an I2 clarity ring, with a colour or J-K in a 14 carat white gold ring.
SuperJeweler also came very high in our comparison of cheap 0.25 engagement rings, and it is included in our guide to the 10 best places to buy cheap diamond rings.
It’s another seller based in the USA, which isn’t for everyone, but they do sell lower grade diamonds for a fraction of the price you’ll pay at many of the UK’s high street jewellers. You'll save money even once you've paid import duties, which generally works out as about 20% on top of your purchase price (see this HMRC guide).
For £1691, SuperJeweler was offering an I2 clarity ring, with a colour or J-K in a 14 carat white gold ring.
SuperJeweler also came very high in our comparison of cheap 0.25 engagement rings, and it is included in our guide to the 10 best places to buy cheap diamond rings.
7th: B2C Jewels - £1717
B2C Jewels is another US jeweller, and it's probably not a name you have heard of if you live in the UK. Prices for cheaper diamond rings (such as 0.25 carat engagement rings) didn't score so well once international shipping and import taxes had been added on. However, for larger diamond, B2C Jewels came up as a cheap option.
Their cheapest 1 carat ring was pretty low quality, but there were plenty of higher quality diamonds for not a great deal more money and plenty of choice.
Their cheapest 1 carat ring was pretty low quality, but there were plenty of higher quality diamonds for not a great deal more money and plenty of choice.
8th: Diamond Heaven - £1960
Only a few hundred pounds more than Littlewoods is Diamond Heaven, offering a 1 carat diamond ring for £1960 (I1 clarity and I colour). However, the ring on offer was 18 carat gold, as opposed to 9 carat gold, so I would say that it actually represents better value than Littlewoods on this occasion.
9th: F Hinds - £1999 - cheapest UK high street jeweller - £1999
The cheapest 1 carat diamond engagement ring we found at a UK high street retailer was at F Hinds, for just under £2000.
Other big high street names, such as H Samuel, Goldsmiths and Beaverbrooks were much more expensive, although clarity and colour of the diamond wasn't specified by F Hinds, which suggests it is a lower grade gemstone.
The fact that the highest placed high street name wasn't in our top 10 does suggest that the cheapest engagement rings are to be found at exclusively online companies, but buying online from a jeweller such as F Hinds does give you an easy returns option if you change your mind about popping the question!
Other big high street names, such as H Samuel, Goldsmiths and Beaverbrooks were much more expensive, although clarity and colour of the diamond wasn't specified by F Hinds, which suggests it is a lower grade gemstone.
The fact that the highest placed high street name wasn't in our top 10 does suggest that the cheapest engagement rings are to be found at exclusively online companies, but buying online from a jeweller such as F Hinds does give you an easy returns option if you change your mind about popping the question!
10th: The Jewel Hut - £2000
I searched for details of the clarity and colour of this Jewel Hut ring which was going for half the usual price in the sale, but I couldn't find the details. For that money you get an 18 carat gold setting and although the exact colour and clarity details aren't available, I’d say this is a good price for what you are getting. Generally I’ve found The Jewel Hut to have some competitively priced diamond rings.
11th: Diamonds Factory - £2020
If you’ve read our guide to 10 of the best places to buy cheap engagement rings, you’ll know that we’re a fan of Diamonds Factory.
At the time of searching, we found a 1 carat diamond engagement ring for just over £2000. The colour was lower grade than the Diamond Heaven option above (L colour instead of I), but slightly better clarity S12.
Still, it’s a much better price than you could expect to find on the High Street and is about half the best price we found at H Samuel.
At the time of searching, we found a 1 carat diamond engagement ring for just over £2000. The colour was lower grade than the Diamond Heaven option above (L colour instead of I), but slightly better clarity S12.
Still, it’s a much better price than you could expect to find on the High Street and is about half the best price we found at H Samuel.
12th: Amazon (direct) - £2179
It's a surprise to see Amazon languishing outside of the top 10 in our chart of the UK's cheapest 1 carat diamond engagement rings. In our similar comparison of 0.25 carat rings, Amazon fared much better, coming out as one of the cheapest options around.
However, whilst the clarity and colour of the Amazon diamond ring wasn't particularly great, it was in a platinum setting, which is generally the most expensive option.
Also, we just searched for rings sold directly by Amazon rather than through the Amazon Marketplace which includes dozens of third party sellers.
It's also worth saying that prices with Amazon do fluctuate. On a return visit, we found a 1 carat diamond engagement selling for just £1745 (colour J, clarity I, 18 carat white gold), which would have certainly put it into the top 10. In the interests of fairness we've not included it.
However, whilst the clarity and colour of the Amazon diamond ring wasn't particularly great, it was in a platinum setting, which is generally the most expensive option.
Also, we just searched for rings sold directly by Amazon rather than through the Amazon Marketplace which includes dozens of third party sellers.
It's also worth saying that prices with Amazon do fluctuate. On a return visit, we found a 1 carat diamond engagement selling for just £1745 (colour J, clarity I, 18 carat white gold), which would have certainly put it into the top 10. In the interests of fairness we've not included it.
Joint 13th: Blue Nile and The Beautiful Company - £2402
Joint 11th place in our search goes to Blue Nile and The Beautiful Company
The one carat diamonds are a similar quality - Blue Nile's is a higher quality clarity, whilst The Beautiful Company's diamond is a better colour.
However, The Beautiful Company ring is 18 carat gold, rather than 9 carat so I would suggest it is a slightly better value option.
The one carat diamonds are a similar quality - Blue Nile's is a higher quality clarity, whilst The Beautiful Company's diamond is a better colour.
However, The Beautiful Company ring is 18 carat gold, rather than 9 carat so I would suggest it is a slightly better value option.
14th: 77 Diamonds - £2777
I'd not heard of UK based online jeweller 77 Diamonds before, but they were offering a 1 carat diamond ring at a fairly good price. The colour was quite poor (L) but the colour was a bit better (SI1).
15th: Macys - £3199
Just outside the top 10 is another big USA website - Macys. It's a department store which sells everything, but the jewellery and engagement rings section is huge. The clarity and colour wasn't specified, so my feeling is that if you are willing to buy your 1 carat diamond ring from the USA and import it to the UK, then you will get better value from Overstock or SuperJeweler.
Having said that, Macys is probably a more attractive brand, and it is worth having a look as prices do go up and down hugely in the diamond ring market with constant deals, sales and discount codes.
From what I can see, Macys includes the import taxes and duties at the point of purchase, so you won't need to pay them to HMRC later.
Having said that, Macys is probably a more attractive brand, and it is worth having a look as prices do go up and down hugely in the diamond ring market with constant deals, sales and discount codes.
From what I can see, Macys includes the import taxes and duties at the point of purchase, so you won't need to pay them to HMRC later.
16th: Ernest Jones - £3249
We found Ernest Jones to be very good value when it has a sale, but one of the more expensive jewellers at other times.
At the time of searching, the Ernest Jones 1 carat diamond ring was reduced, so it was one of the less expensive we've found. The clarity and cut of the 1 carat ring wasn't specified.
You do tend to pay a bit more at a high street jeweller than most online only jewellers (Diamond Heaven, Diamonds Factory etc) but you do have the benefit of easy returns, and you might prefer to able to say that your engagement ring came from somewhere your girlfriend has heard of!
At the time of searching, the Ernest Jones 1 carat diamond ring was reduced, so it was one of the less expensive we've found. The clarity and cut of the 1 carat ring wasn't specified.
You do tend to pay a bit more at a high street jeweller than most online only jewellers (Diamond Heaven, Diamonds Factory etc) but you do have the benefit of easy returns, and you might prefer to able to say that your engagement ring came from somewhere your girlfriend has heard of!
17th: The Diamond Store - £3343
Just under the £3000 mark is the 1 carat ring from The Diamond Store. It isn't as high a quality as the similarly priced ring from the similarly named Diamond Ring Company, but it is still significantly cheaper than some of the the High Street options.
18th: The Diamond Ring Company - £3460
If you are just looking at finding the lowest price when it comes to 1 carat diamond engagement rings then chances are you will have stopped looking by the time you get to The Diamond Ring Company.
After all, why would you spend over £3000 on an engagement ring when you could get a ring with the same sized diamond for less than a third of that price from Amazon, or several hundred hundred pounds less from a high street name such as F Hinds?
However, The Diamond Ring Company shouldn't be completely overlooked as this ring is a higher grade than most in the top 10, with an H colour and an 18 carat ring rather than the cheaper option of 9 carat gold.
After all, why would you spend over £3000 on an engagement ring when you could get a ring with the same sized diamond for less than a third of that price from Amazon, or several hundred hundred pounds less from a high street name such as F Hinds?
However, The Diamond Ring Company shouldn't be completely overlooked as this ring is a higher grade than most in the top 10, with an H colour and an 18 carat ring rather than the cheaper option of 9 carat gold.
19th: H Samuel - £3999
H Samuel is perhaps the best known name in jewellery in the UK with a High Street presence in 300 locations. They do have decent sales, but when we searched for a 1 carat diamond ring it didn't come out particularly cheaply. The ring wasn't graded online so my assumption would be that it was lower quality diamond.
The main advantage of course is buying from a name that you know, and being able to return it to any of its shops if you have problems with your engagement ring. If peace of mind and simplicity are your priorities then you could do a lot worse than choose H Samuel.
The main advantage of course is buying from a name that you know, and being able to return it to any of its shops if you have problems with your engagement ring. If peace of mind and simplicity are your priorities then you could do a lot worse than choose H Samuel.
20th: Purely Diamonds - £4036
If you’re looking a mid-range quality diamond in a high value setting then you could do a lot worse than Purely Diamonds. We’re now over £4000 in our league table of diamond rings so I’d be expecting something pretty decent at this price. The colour of the diamond is H, with a clarity of SI2 (SI stands for slight inclusions or imperfections) and the ring is 18 carat white gold.
The Purely Diamonds website is easy to use, with plenty of customisation options (better if you know what you want – such as a 1 carat diamond rather than if you know how much you can afford).
You might also like to know that Purely Diamonds is a family run, London jewellers, so it is a good option to consider if you want the convenience of buying online but you don’t fancy buying your engagement ring from a High Street giant which sells rings by the lorry load.
The Purely Diamonds website is easy to use, with plenty of customisation options (better if you know what you want – such as a 1 carat diamond rather than if you know how much you can afford).
You might also like to know that Purely Diamonds is a family run, London jewellers, so it is a good option to consider if you want the convenience of buying online but you don’t fancy buying your engagement ring from a High Street giant which sells rings by the lorry load.
21st: Vashi - £4400
I bought my wife's ring from Vashi, although I must admit it wasn't quite as expensive as this one, and the company was operating under a different name at the time (they were called Diamond Manufacturers).
The clarity in this ring is one of the better ones in our chart and might explain the comparatively high price, and it is 18 carat gold, but the colour is only I. In my view, you are paying a lot for only a very slight improvement. The Diamond Ring Company mentioned earlier had a ring that was £1000 cheaper and is very similar in terms of grading.
The clarity in this ring is one of the better ones in our chart and might explain the comparatively high price, and it is 18 carat gold, but the colour is only I. In my view, you are paying a lot for only a very slight improvement. The Diamond Ring Company mentioned earlier had a ring that was £1000 cheaper and is very similar in terms of grading.
22nd: Goldsmiths - £5000
Goldsmiths is definitely at the luxury end of the High Street, so it is perhaps surprising to see it around the half way mark in our league table of 1 carat diamond engagement rings.
It was a fairly low grade ring and so whilst it came out at better value than H Samuel, it was around twice the price of some of the US based jewellers.
It was a fairly low grade ring and so whilst it came out at better value than H Samuel, it was around twice the price of some of the US based jewellers.
23rd: Serendipity Diamonds - £5150
Serendipity Diamonds is based on the Isle of Wight, and when we searched it was offering a 1 carat engagement ring for just over £5000. Some of the rings on their website are palladium rather than gold, but the higher value 1 carat diamond was in an 18 carat gold setting.
The quality is good – and you might like the idea of buying from a smaller firm – but I wouldn’t say the ring is significantly better quality than some of the rings in the £3000 - £4000 bracket.
The quality is good – and you might like the idea of buying from a smaller firm – but I wouldn’t say the ring is significantly better quality than some of the rings in the £3000 - £4000 bracket.
24th: Fraser Hart - £6000
High Street prices on larger diamond rings do tend to be a little higher, but the advantage of being able to return something may well be a significant draw. At Fraser Hart, you can pick up a 1 carat diamond for £6000. In terms of specification, it has an 18 carat gold setting which you would expect for a higher value engagement ring. Grading of the diamond is described as being a 'minimum' of colour H and I1 clarity (which is mid-range quality I'd say), so you may end up with something higher quality. It includes an IGI diamond grading certificate.
25th: Lloyds Family Jewellery - £6299
Another retailer offering a pretty high quality 1 carat ring for a pretty high price is Lloyds Family Jewellery. The cheapest we could find on the site was heading towards the £6300 pound mark.
26th: Laings of Glasgow - £6360
Laings of Glasgow came out towards the bottom of our search for the UK’s cheapest 0.25 carat diamond ring, and it is also towards the bottom of the 1 carat diamond league table. However, the reason is that their rings tend to be of a higher quality, so I wouldn’t expect them to be competing with the likes of SuperJeweler and Amazon.
27th Beaverbrooks - £7996
Want to show your future spouse just how generous you are? Beaverbrooks is certainly not the cheapest high street jewellery shop, but they do tend to only sell good quality items, so a Beaverbrooks jewellery case does make an impression with a woman who knows her brands.
Is it worth spending £7500 on a slightly higher quality diamond ring? I’d suggest that it’s a personal choice.
I guess the closest comparison is with hi-fi equipment. A £5000 hi-fi doesn’t sound 10 times better than a £500 hi-fi, but there is a still a significant minority willing to pay a lot extra to get something which is just that little bit better.
Is it worth spending £7500 on a slightly higher quality diamond ring? I’d suggest that it’s a personal choice.
I guess the closest comparison is with hi-fi equipment. A £5000 hi-fi doesn’t sound 10 times better than a £500 hi-fi, but there is a still a significant minority willing to pay a lot extra to get something which is just that little bit better.
28th: Wedding Rings Direct - £8269
Despite the name, Wedding Rings Direct also sell engagement rings (wedding rings usually refers to the band that a female wears alongside her engagement ring).
On this search they did come out as the most expensive option and with the clarity SI2 and colour H this ring is very overpriced. You can get the same quality of ring and diamond at Purely Diamonds for half the price.
On this search they did come out as the most expensive option and with the clarity SI2 and colour H this ring is very overpriced. You can get the same quality of ring and diamond at Purely Diamonds for half the price.
