The Ultimate Guide to Buying a 7 Carat Diamond Ring
Diamonds have traditionally been associated as symbols of love and when it comes to engagement rings, most women prefer bigger diamonds. And since you are here, you are probably interested in buying a massive 7 carat diamond ring for your loved one.
So, with such a large pending purchase, what are the key things to look out for and how do you actually go about shopping for it?
In this guide, we will let you in on insider tips to buying a seven carat engagement ring, reveal the vendors who specialize in large diamonds and show you how much they could cost.
Let’s dive in…
First of All, How Much is a 7 Carat Diamond Ring?
A seven-carat ring will definitely not come cheap and probably cost you a fortune. Depending on the quality of the diamond (4Cs), prices could range from as low as $90,000 to a staggering amount of $900,0000.
Diamond price chart of 7ct round diamonds from BlueNile.com
If you are looking for the best in terms of material quality, a D color flawless diamond is as good as it gets on paper. Needless to say, you can expect to shell out a huge premium for such goods.
On the other hand, if you don’t need the D/IF ratings for symbolic reasons, a lower color/clarity (e.g. F VS2) diamond can look identical to the naked eyes and cost significantly less!
How Big is a 7 Carat Diamond Ring on a Hand?
The size of a 7ct round brilliant cut diamond is approximately 12.34×12.34×7.5mm. In contrast, the size of a 1ct round diamond is about 6.5 x6.5×3.9mm. If you are wondering how big a 7 carat diamond ring is, check out the following comparison against a 1ct ring below.
A seven carat diamond is insanely HUGE!
Here’s something to note. Even though the 7ct diamond is 7 times heavier than the 1ct diamond, it is not seven times larger in terms of physical size. In fact, a 7ct has a diameter that is roughly two times as big as a 1ct diamond.
I also want to point out that a seven carat engagement ring is HUGE. For smaller sized fingers and hands, it may look overwhelming and imposing. If you have a finger size of 5 or less, I actually recommend buying a 2 carat or 3 carat ring instead as they are more proportionate to your hands.
3 Essential Guidelines to Shopping for a Seven Carat Engagement Ring
Tip #1 – You Need to Go Online For Better Selections & Transparency
One of the biggest problems that consumers face when buying a 7ct diamond ring is the lack of options and available inventory. Due to financial constraints and popularity, the vast majority of people don’t buy diamonds larger than 2ct in size.
As a result of demand and supply, you won’t find any 7 carat diamonds in most physical stores. Don’t believe me? Go visit every single brick and mortar store in your area and ask to see a 7ct diamond of ANY shape/color/clarity. Chances are, you will never get to see one in person.
And in the extremely unlikely occasion that you do, are you going to make your purchase based on that one single stone shown to you? What happens if they only have a single D/VVS1 option that is selling at an insane premium when you are looking for a G/VS2? Are you willing to be “forced” into making a compromise on something you didn’t want in the first place?
Besides better selections, the more important factor of going online is the transparency and ability to SEE full the details of a diamond better than you ever will in a physical store.
Full HD 360° video listing enables you to scrutinize the smallest details
Tip #2 – Recommended Specs for a 7ct Diamond Ring
When it comes to super large 7ct diamonds, inclusions and color tints become more apparent compared to smaller sized diamonds. In most cases, a SI1 clarity would be sufficient to ensure eyecleanliness for a 0.7ct diamond. On the other hand, the majority of 7 ct diamonds with a SI1 clarity would not be eyeclean.
With that said, here are our recommended guidelines if you are someone who is looking for an icy white diamond that is eyeclean…
Color: G or better.
Clarity: VS2 or better.
Cut: GIA 3Ex or AGS000 as baseline.
Do note that these are not hard and fast rules. If you love a warm looking diamond or a vintage style ring, going down to a near colorless J rating is perfectly fine as your preferences should take precedence.
Tip #3 – Best Places to Shop for Large Size Diamonds
As we’ve stated earlier, there is very limited supply of seven carat diamonds in the entire market. As a consumer, let me tell you that the best places to buy a 7 carat diamond are Blue Nile and James Allen.
I will reiterate the fundamental reason behind using these vendors: transparency. With HD videos, it is easy and intuitive to examine diamonds upclose. Click on the listing from James Allen below and experience it for yourself…
Besides reliability and ease of shopping, these vendors also offer beautiful setting designs and good craftsmanship quality. Here are a couple of my favorite designs from James Allen and Blue Nile:
This Verragio engagement ring from the Venetian Collection showcases a combination of rose gold and white gold in the shank. Melee diamonds adorn the surface and intricate milgrain details are added to complete a unique appearance.
With a delicate twist of pave-set diamonds, this platinum engagement ring takes on a rope-like appearance to entwine the wearer’s finger. It’s very well crafted and is one of Blue Nile’s best sellers.
Money Saving Tips to Achieving a 7 Carat Engagement Ring Look
Realistically, a well cut 7 carat engagement ring will cost at least $100,000 for a center stone of lesser quality. Even at the lower spectrum of 7ct diamond prices, this is far beyond what a typical shopper can afford.
However, for people who still want an enormous looking ring, there are ways to lower your costs significantly. This can be done by a clever choice of ring setting and pairing it with a smaller sized diamond to bring down prices.
This specially handcrafted and custom made ring features 2 rows of halo on the perimeter of the center stone. In such an arrangement, the ring provides an illusion of a single large looking diamond when seen from a distance.
This majestic ring design has a halo made of twenty smaller round diamonds and is finished on the edges with milgrain accents. It provides superb finger coverage and has vintage flower motifs on the sides.
Similar to the previous double halo design, the outline and perceived size of the center stone is enhanced to appear significantly larger. With such a setting, you can get an identical finger coverage of a 7ct diamond with a lower carat center stone.
Let’s Wrap Things Up And Go Shopping!
So there you have it, we have highlighted some of the most important points to be aware of when buying a seven carat diamond ring. It is also important that you manage expectations and your budget realistically.
To recap, if you want to buy a diamond with better color, clarity, carat size or cut quality, you can expect to pay a higher premium for the stone. Likewise, if you have a strict budget to work with, something has to give and you will need to make compromises on the 4Cs to strike a balance.
We’ve also looked into the pricing of seven-carat diamonds and also revealed the best places to buy them. For people who have a much smaller budget and would still like a massive looking diamond ring, the choice of setting can help you reduce costs.
Lastly, I hope you enjoyed the article and found it useful. Buying such a large size diamond is a once in a lifetime experience. So, make sure you enjoy the process and have fun choosing the perfect stone. Good luck!
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10 Comments
Can you tell me how much is a 7 carat diamond ring with a F color VS2 princess cut stone worth?
If the stone has been graded by GIA or AGS, it enables a consistent baseline for you to perform basic price comparisons. All you need to do is to visit some of the vendors listed above to get an estimated 7 carat diamond ring price with similar properties. For a more accurate comparison and to estimate value, you need to have a more indepth understanding of the 4Cs. e.g. is the VS2 eyeclean or not? How well is it really cut?
My husband is looking for a 7 karat diamond ring as an investment while I get to wear it on special occasions. Do you know of anyone trustworthy in the UK we can talk to? I can make it worth your while if you have any referrals. I am apprehensive from buying online due to the sizable cost involved.
Just to be clear, I think you mistaken “7 karat diamond ring” for 7 carat. Karat is a measure of gold purity of the ring. It doesn’t matter where you are based. The same thing of having limited or non-existent inventory will be a problem you face. Just walk into stores and see if they have any seven ct stones in stock. If you want to deal with a UK vendor, Blue Nile is a reliable business with operations in the United Kingdom.
Have you heard of EGL? My jeweler recently showed me a vintage style ring with a diamond certified by EGL. That was the only one in the store and he is based in NYC. How much does a 7 carat ring cost and how do I know if I am getting a good deal out of the purchase?
The cost of a 7 carat ring would wildly fluctuate based on the quality of the center stone. Let me tell you that EGL is a giant rip off as they misrepresent and misgrade diamonds. I have written a comprehensive article here detailing the scams that these people run. The key to determining value lies in understanding the properties of the diamond. With EGL, their atrociously bad standards can’t even offer you any good gauge of what the stone really is.
For such a big purchase, how does going online help alleviate fears and enable people to choose better diamonds? Won’t seeing it in person be better to determine whether it is a good purchase?
The problem with ost shoppers is that they don’t know what to look out for and can be easily misled by a store’s bright lights. In an environment designed to help diamonds look better (regardless of whether the stone is properly cut or badly cut), it’s easy for jewelers to pass off mediocre stones.
With videos and ASET images provided by the online retailers, they enable you to deduce performance in a scientific manner. In fact, the videos themselves are very useful to determine cut quality.
As examples, take a look at these two 7ct cushion cut diamonds:
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/cushion-cut/7.02-carat-f-color-vs2-clarity-sku-2078079
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/cushion-cut/7.11-carat-i-color-vs1-clarity-sku-511830
The F diamond is a mediocre stone. On the other hand, the I color diamond has strong light return. Without spending weeks or months to hunt down diamonds in a physical store, you can actually find them online much faster and with better information to make educated decisions.
What do you think of the following listings for a 7 carat canary yellow diamond ring? Also, is there a reason why they are so much cheaper than white color stones? I am interested in buying a fancy color diamond as a form of investment to protect value with the added benefit of being able to wear them.
SKU C716-8Z9014579
SKU C756-242629240
I reviewed both listings and I think you did very well to shortlist them. Both are well cut and have evenly distributed color hues. For a 7 carat canary yellow diamond ring, I do prefer the color saturation of the first option.
Now, to address your comment on buying the ring for investment purposes, I think you are making a huge mistake to view diamonds as investable products.
Read this: https://beyond4cs.com/investing-in-diamonds/
Buy the yellow diamond for your viewing pleasure and enjoyment. However, don’t expect to make money out of them. It will lead to disappointment.