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Best places to buy cheap engagement rings under £100
Let's be honest - £100 is a tight budget to buy a diamond engagement ring, but it's not impossible to find something with an impressive enough sparkle to impress your potential spouse.
Your first choice is whether to spend your £100 on a new diamond engagement ring, a used diamond engagement ring or if you want to be a bit unconventional and plump for something like a ruby, sapphire or emerald.
Anyway, without further ado...here's our guide to shopping for cheap engagement rings under £100.
Your first choice is whether to spend your £100 on a new diamond engagement ring, a used diamond engagement ring or if you want to be a bit unconventional and plump for something like a ruby, sapphire or emerald.
Anyway, without further ado...here's our guide to shopping for cheap engagement rings under £100.
Buying used cheap engagement rings under £100
With a budget of £100 for a diamond engagement ring, I would seriously consider buying second hand. Your money will go much further if you are willing to propose with a ring which may well have only been worn for a few days or weeks.
eBay or Etsy are probably your best bets, just because of the range that's available and the ability to narrow down your search very neatly.
Click here to search for diamond engagement rings under £100 on eBay. Click on the 'used' tab to narrow it down and you could expect to pick up an engagement ring that is about 0.15 carat to 0.25 carat (1/4 carat) within your budget.
Here are some examples of diamond engagement rings sold on eBay for under £100 (or just over £100) in a random couple of weeks in October and November 2014
Alternatively, Etsy has lots of 'vintage' diamond rings (some genuinely vintage, some just second hand) for less than £100 (we found a 0.25 carat diamond ring for £95, October 2015).
Click to search for Etsy diamond engagement rings under £100
If all the talk of 'cut', 'clarity', 'colour' and carat' is gibberish to you then you might want to read our guide to 10 things you need to know when shopping for a cheap engagement ring.
eBay or Etsy are probably your best bets, just because of the range that's available and the ability to narrow down your search very neatly.
Click here to search for diamond engagement rings under £100 on eBay. Click on the 'used' tab to narrow it down and you could expect to pick up an engagement ring that is about 0.15 carat to 0.25 carat (1/4 carat) within your budget.
Here are some examples of diamond engagement rings sold on eBay for under £100 (or just over £100) in a random couple of weeks in October and November 2014
- Ernest Jones 0.25 carat diamond, 9 carat white gold engagement ring, 9 carat - sold for £99 on eBay (retails new at about £500).
- Goldsmiths 0.24 carat diamond, 18 carat white gold engagement ring - sold for £96 on eBay, although could do with a replate at about £20 (retails new at about £600-800)
- Unbranded 0.25 carat diamond with certificate, gold engagement ring, - sold for £102 on eBay
Alternatively, Etsy has lots of 'vintage' diamond rings (some genuinely vintage, some just second hand) for less than £100 (we found a 0.25 carat diamond ring for £95, October 2015).
Click to search for Etsy diamond engagement rings under £100
If all the talk of 'cut', 'clarity', 'colour' and carat' is gibberish to you then you might want to read our guide to 10 things you need to know when shopping for a cheap engagement ring.
Buying new cheap engagement rings under £100
For a new engagement ring, I'm afraid £100 won't go very far but you have got a few options.
A handful of online jewellers offer small diamonds for around £100 (prices checked October 2014). Take a look at:
A handful of online jewellers offer small diamonds for around £100 (prices checked October 2014). Take a look at:
- Amazon jewellery (up to 0.10 carat for £95)
- SuperJeweler (up to 0.10 carat for £95)
- Hot Diamonds (0.01 carat for £50)
- Jewellery World (0.03 carat for £90)
Alternatives to diamond engagement rings under £100
You might like to consider gemstone engagement rings other than a diamond, particularly if you are shopping on a budget of under £100.
Popular alternative gemstone for engagement rings include:
Alternatively, you could buy a 'Diamond Style' ring for about £40, which looks nice and sparkly but isn't actually a diamond. I suggest you make it clear from an early stage that it isn't a real diamond...unless you fancy the mother of all arguments at some point in the future.
Popular alternative gemstone for engagement rings include:
- Blue sapphire (worn by the Duchess of Cambridge/Kate Middleton). From around £100 for 0.4 carat on Amazon. Search for Blue Sapphire engagement rings on Amazon
- Green emerald (worn by Halle Berry). From around £70 for 0.4 carat on Amazon. Search for green emerald engagement rings on Amazon
- Red ruby. From around £100 for 0.4 carat on Amazon. Search for red ruby engagement rings on Amazon.
Alternatively, you could buy a 'Diamond Style' ring for about £40, which looks nice and sparkly but isn't actually a diamond. I suggest you make it clear from an early stage that it isn't a real diamond...unless you fancy the mother of all arguments at some point in the future.
Conclusion
With a budget of under £100 for an engagement ring, you need to be realistic - you won't find a high quality, large, brand new diamond ring for your money. If some dodgy looking fella offers you one in the pub , I would suggest you steer clear...
However, it's not a hopeless situation.
Personally I would either go for a used diamond engagement ring to make your £100 go much further, or I would consider an alternative gemstone (I like sapphires, but ruby and emerald are nice too). For under £100 you will find that a brand new diamond will be pretty tiny whereas an alternative gemstone will be a nice size for an engagement ring.
However, it's not a hopeless situation.
Personally I would either go for a used diamond engagement ring to make your £100 go much further, or I would consider an alternative gemstone (I like sapphires, but ruby and emerald are nice too). For under £100 you will find that a brand new diamond will be pretty tiny whereas an alternative gemstone will be a nice size for an engagement ring.
