Blue Nile Review – Are Their Diamond Rings Good or Bad?
Note: This review of Blue Nile has been updated to include my personal experience of buying a 1 carat halo engagement ring from them. To find out more details about the purchase, make sure you read the entire review!
My recent 1 ct halo engagement ring purchase from BlueNile.com
Blue Nile is arguably the largest online diamond retailer. Founded 12 years ago, BlueNile has since established a reputation for great customer service and support. This success was also largely built on the better prices they could offer over the typical mom and pop store.
The company understands that a great majority of jewelry shoppers do not have much knowledge about jewelry in general. With this in mind, they go to lengths to ensure a potential customer is given sufficient information to weigh on a potential purchase.
This enables the consumer to make up his/her own mind and select a piece of jewelry of sound quality that is within their budget.
Product Range and Prices At BlueNile.com
Website Screenshot
Loose diamonds are the core products at BlueNile.com and they form the bulk of the jewelry sold at their website. In fact, they have the largest online inventory of diamonds compared to anyone else in the world.
With over 180,000 diamonds available in different shapes and sizes, BlueNile.com caters to different people with different budgets.
Besides that, they also offer a wide range of pearls and gemstone jewelry sold in platinum, sterling silver, and gold.
When it comes to ring mountings, the options available seem almost endless. Whether you’re shopping for a wedding band, engagement ring or anniversary gift, Blue Nile’s immense collection can meet almost every customer’s taste in jewelry.
For example, if you’re shopping for a ring or pendant, you can use the company’s ‘Build Your Own’ tool to design your own setting. Besides a wide range of designs to choose from, you can also select the metal type of your own preferences from 3 options of white gold, gold and platinum.
When it comes to style, the selection of jewelry doesn’t disappoint. Even though they might not have licensing deals with brand names or settings made by well known designers, their alternatives to the classic ring are particularly pleasing.
Jewelry, especially diamond jewelry, is usually a reserve for higher end shoppers. However, budget buyers are well catered for as well. Prices for gemstone jewelry start for as low as $50 while those for loose and mounted diamonds tend to go up in the higher digits.
For the purpose of this review on BlueNile.com, we will limit our focus on diamond related jewelry.
Blue Nile’s Website And Features
You will not find complex graphics or glittery flash animations on their website. Instead, what you’ll find is a simple and functional interface with a straightforward search feature. Whether it is an engagement ring or something simpler to spoil yourself with, you can easily refine your search to locate exactly what you need.
There’s also an exhaustive collection of content in the form of informative articles. For a first time shopper, the FAQ section contains almost every answer and article to commonly asked questions. For instance, you could easily read up on how to shop for different types of jewelry, learn how jewelry is graded, find tips on reading grading reports, etc.
A Review of BlueNile’s Security And Customer Support
All personal and credit card information is processed through a secure server and the company will not disclose any of your information to third parties. Customers who are uneasy with giving their credit card information can opt to pay through PayPal or Google Checkout.
The Seattle based company does offer a 30-day money back guarantee which is pretty much the industry standard nowadays. In case you’re not pleased with what you had purchased, returning it isn’t too much of a hassle. Like most other reputable stores, all purchases are shipped securely via logistic companies like FedEx & UPS.
Customer support is offered 24/7 through phone, email, or live chat. On top of that, customers also have an option to add a custom message with a gift order. I personally think this is a nice value added service and adds a personal touch which is useful for many occasions.
Shopping at BlueNile.com the Smart Way
When I personally buy diamonds, I look out for tangible data to evaluate my options and never rely solely on what a salesperson tells me. Here at Beyond4cs.com, I advocate that you do the same as well. After all, it’s your hard earned money and the cost of an engagement ring is pretty significant.
Great return policies like those offered by BlueNile (30-day no questions asked refund) allow you to fall back on them if the need arises. That said, while return policies are good to have for the shopper, I never want to utlize them because it’s just unnecessary hassle to return a purchase.
Basically, I want to ensure I get it right the first time and I’m pretty sure you feel the same way. When shopping at BlueNile, I recommend that you only consider diamonds that have a video listing.
You can easily filter the listings by checking the box as seen below…
Video listings will enable you to see exactly what you are buying!
An example of a video listing that reveals indepth details about the diamond.
On the following pages, we will take a critical look and perform an unbiased analysis of BlueNile.com’s signature Astor diamonds. You will also get detailed information about the engagement ring I purchased from them. Lastly, I will be reviewing the craftsmanship standards of the settings they make.
If you are contemplating a purchase from BlueNile, you definitely want to continue reading…
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63 Comments
Blue Nile SUCKS big time and I don’t even know where to begin. Their customer service is one of the worst I’ve ever encountered when buying jewelry. First of all, I’ve gotten a charge on my credit card due to a cancelled order. Despite the fact BlueNile emphasizes a 30 day money back guarantee, I’m having difficulties in getting my money back.
Mind you, I’m a diamond collector and I had made a couple of purchases online before. I also purchased a couple of 2 carat diamonds in local stores before. So, I do know what I’m doing and is your above average clientele for luxury products.
However, what a huge mistake I made to try out Blue Nile this time round. When I returned a diamond I purchased because it looked milky and tried exchanging it for a more expensive stone, I was met with scorn and nasty remarks by the customer service representative. It got me so turned off that I decided to cancel the order and requested a refund which led to a string of unpleasant events.
If you are smart, heed this warning and stay far away from BlueNile.com. Don’t make the same mistake I made by trusting them with your money.
Hi Paul,
I read your guide on diamond buying and first want to thank you for your help. I found the guide very informative and helped me narrow down my diamonds.
I did have a question on buying a lower grade color diamond with strong fluro. Will it look similar to a higher grade color with no fluro?
Here are the diamonds I’m considering:
E Color/Faint Fluro
http://www.bluenile.com/round-diamond-1-carat-very-good-cut-e-color-si2-clarity_LD02552750 <— 1.6 HCA Score (Concerns about SI2)
G Color/Faint Fluro
http://www.bluenile.com/round-diamond-1-carat-very-good-cut-g-color-si2-clarity_LD02476475 <— 1.2 HCA Score (Concerns about SI2)
And finally, the lower color grade but with fluro:
J Color/Strong Fluro
http://www.bluenile.com/round-diamond-1-carat-ideal-cut-j-color-vs2-clarity_LD02560772 <— 1.0 HCA Score
Thanks for your help,
Alex
Hello Alex,
Thanks for writing in.
Do note that the HCA score is used as a rejection tool instead of a selection tool. For diamonds that have a HCA score of higher than 2, they usually don’t perform well in the optics department.
However, even if a diamond has a score lower than 2, it doesn’t automatically qualify as being good in terms of optics. Likewise, we do have some exceptions whereby sweet looking diamonds have slightly higher HCA scores. We will need more details and information in order to help us determine this.
With regards to strong fluro, you need to check that it doesn’t give the diamond an unwanted hazy appearance. Diamonds with faint fluorescence are generally Ok in this aspect.
I had recently also posted an article that debunks a lot of misinformation spreading on the Internet about transparency in diamonds. Contrary to popular belief, fluorescence in diamonds DO cause haziness issues quite frequently.
Will it look similar to a higher grade color with no fluro?
Yes. It will appear like a higher grade. The most important factor is still related cut. If a diamond is cut well, a J color will appear like a higher color grade (typically 2-3 grades better) when mounted. This is because when the light return of a diamond is great, the scintillation and fire of the diamond will mask any tint of yellow-ness in your stone. With fluorescence, the diamond will appear whiter under most lighting conditions.
If you intend to buy shop at BlueNile.com, make sure you get them to help you to perform physical checks on the diamond for milkiness and ask for more info.
More importantly, when you are looking at SI2 clarity diamonds, a magnified diamond picture is essential because the inclusion plot in the grading report won’t tell you everything about its clarity characteristics.
It places additional risks on you because the diamond may not appear the way you would want it to be. Do let me know if you need further help or have other questions.
Paul
Blue nile disappointed me so much with their “money back” policy. I have got my ring however needed it to be resized. Hence we sent it back to the US (from Australia) and they have guaranteeed that NO additional charge even if the Australian custom charges us they will reimburse us. However it is NOT the case. When we got charged by the custom, we paid it and expected to have an reimbursement from Blue nile. Blue nile provided us with an incorrect letter (not for returned goods but a random letter to custom for refund) and asked us to wait for refund from the custom.
Blue nile has misled us by saying reimburse any additional charge but when the time comes we got told if the custom does not refund they cannot and will not do anything. It does not fit the definition of reimbursement. We never expect a refund from custom but an reimbursement from Blue nile.
I will not recommend blue nile to anyone. there are plenty of online diamond jewellers and also local jewellers to choose from.
I’m looking to buy a round diamond around the 0.75 carat, VS2 range? I’m based in the UK, so I have been using bluenile’s Uk based site. Is blue nile a good company?
Could anyone comment on the stone in the link below and/or make any recommendations within a similar price range (max. £2k)? Are there any other ratings I should look out for?
https://beyond4cs.com/go/bn-LD05850011-uk/
Thanks,
Joe
The diamond you selected is mediocre. From its proportions alone, I can tell you that it is going to experience some light leakage under the table facet. The pavilion angle is slightly too steep and the angle combination isn’t ideal. Blue Nile is a good company for buying loose diamonds IF you know what to look out for. If you are completely new, there are better vendors to buy from.
Anyway, this diamond has strong fluorescence and you want to double check that it doesn’t cause any haziness or milkiness.
https://beyond4cs.com/grading/fluorescence/haziness-or-transparency-issues/
If you want to select a truly well-cut round brilliant diamond, read these sections for details:
https://beyond4cs.com/step-by-step-guide/
https://beyond4cs.com/best-place-to-buy-engagement-ring/
Never again will i deal with this company. Bought an engagement ring and wedding band. Diamond fell out and instead of apologising asked that I send at my own cost EUR46 the ring back with no commitment they would fix it. Very poor customer service and they don’t address complaints in a satisfactory manner. Go to a local jeweller who you can trust.
Sorry to hear about your awful experience with BlueNile.
First things first, I’m not a fan of BlueNile. I think that’s pretty clear based on my review and I have no intention of defending them. Now, regardless of whom you buy a diamond ring from (whether its online or a brick and mortar store), it is almost a standard procedure for any jewelry business to do a check on the ring first before committing to fixing it.
To be fair, anyone would want to make sure that the damage is not caused by negligence before repairs are performed. I’m pretty sure Blue Nile will perform the necessary repairs to satisfactory conditions once the assessment is completed.
Lastly, shopping at a local jeweler doesn’t prevent the issues you face and yes, BlueNile isn’t the best company to deal with when customers run into problems.
What do you think of Bluenile’s signature ideal against Tiffany’s engagement rings? Are they legit and do they live up to their reputation as being better cut and have you received any complaints so far? Lastly, would you happen to know if Blue Nile offers any promotion codes for their jewelry?
I would say that the Signature Ideal is on par with Tiffany’s standards. Both have good standards but they aren’t the best. If cut precision and light performance matters, I recommend that you look at Brian Gavin https://beyond4cs.com/reviews/brian-gavin-diamonds/ or White Flash https://beyond4cs.com/reviews/whiteflash/.
I do receive complaints about Blue Nile occasionally. Most of these complaints pertain to customer service. To be fair, some of these complaints arise as a result of unrealistic expectations and unreasonable clients.
I believe Blue Nile does offer discounts and promotion codes near festive events You probably want to check directly with them
I’m looking to buy a diamond, and get a setting from a local jeweler. Do blue nile rings say blue nile on them?
I have narrow one down from blue nile.
https://www.bluenile.com/diamond-details/LD06292396
I was wondering is this a legit, good stone?
You are on a dangerous path. Buying a fancy shaped diamond in Blue Nile is one of the worst ways to getting something unexpected in the mail box. Bluenile rings have a stamp of their logo in the inner shank of the ring. It’s very subtle.
Read these 2 links carefully:
https://beyond4cs.com/buying-diamonds-blind/
https://beyond4cs.com/where-to-buy-fancy-cuts/
My Bluenile experience with expensive jewelry is a nightmare. Before I posted my review, I tried to contact bluenile and give it a chance to correct the situation, no one cared!
I purchased a platinum monique Lhuiller pave petal engagement ring plus diamond, and later the platinum wedding band that blue nile said matches the engagement ring.
Recently, I noticed the edge of the wedding band next to the diamond was all dented up; almost like it had been in the sink disposal. It seems the decoration on the side of engagement ring has been chewing up the wedding band. These are not normal wear and tear scratches I would expect to see and occasionally get polished at the local jewelry store. These was damage beyond that.
I’m working 6 days a week so I only wear these rings about 1/2 day a week. This is unacceptable to me for something that has a combined cost of around $ 15,163.
I sent the ring back (costly) to have them check out, and was hoping we could choose something that would last.
After about 3 weeks worth of delays, all blue nile could do was repair as good as they could and return the ring back.
The customer service representative suggested i have to wear the wedding band on the other hand (that is ridiculous)
I felt like blue nile sold us rings that do not go together. I bought these from blue nile because I thought I was getting the best, something that would last forever.
Now I have 2 rings that I am not able to wear and only serves to remind how much I hate Blue nile.
Hey Paul been shopping around for a ring downtown LA whole sale on a round Brillant 2.13 carat SI1, cut excellent, F color $24,200.00. Blue Nile has one similar for much cheaper. Who do I trust for quality and value? Is blue nile legit? Are blue nile diamonds real?
Going online offers better value and bang for your money. However, shopping at Blue Nile blind isn’t recommended because of their lack of tangible data. Read this to find out why: https://beyond4cs.com/buying-diamonds-blind/
That said, you can rest assured that Blue Nile diamonds are real. In fact, you will NEVER receive a diamond that doesn’t match up to the certificate you paid for. Blue Nile is good that way.
Blue nile is the most horrible company to deal with, their customer service is very poor, everybody says a different thing, no consistency with what they say, please… if you can, don’t ever deal with them. For the diamond that I bought, despite the GIA report saying its an excellent cut, F colour and SI1 clarity, but somehow it appears very milky, not shiny (I compared the same grade with the diamond from a local jeweler shop), and I then talked to a professional jeweler, and apparently GIA doesn’t record the origin of the diamond, so despite the same GIA report, the origin of the diamond is also critical, and you cant access it through internet. and when you try to return it, they will tell you that they are not familiar with the international policy, and funny enough, I called the international phone line =/=” And they don’t provide useful documents to you to claim back your customer cost… like what Sally Says.
I agree this is a very bad site name Blue Nite to buy diamond. I ordered a diamond yesterday. Today, the 25 of November, I plan to go to wire the money, before going, I clicked on the link again, I saw they said the diamond IS NOT AVAILABLE, call back. I call them and the answer is I have to wait another 24 hours for them to contact other address to see it is still there or not!!! And asked me to choose another one. My God! I spent days to find the diamond, now they need to check out to see they have to sell or not. I did not agree the way they are doing at all. I hope out there do not spend time to find your diamond in this store. This is cheap place.
I already have my engagement ring (not from Blue Nile). I am looking for a 4mm plain polished platinum wedding band. At the store my engagement ring was designed they would charge about $2500 however Blue Nile is offering it at $440 for classic fit and $620 for mid-weight comfort fit. Why is there such a large difference in cost? Is there platinum different? I don’t want to get raped in charges from the jewelery store if I can get it a lot less but I also don’t want to think I am getting a deal and it be crap. I am allergic to gold. I am sensitive to other metals. Platinum is my only option. Any advice would be great. Thank you.
Your store is overcharging you. Blue Nile is a fine establishment and the platinum they use is no different from the material used by many other jewelers. The only problem with Blue Nile is that you will be buying a diamond sight unseen.
I recently ordered two rings on Blue Nile, and I would not recommend the experience.
First of all, they seem to have serious security issues. After ordering on Blue Nile, I started getting lots of calls pretending to be my bank trying to “survey” my information. I provided none.
When I went to pick up my package they said my “wife” had re-directed the shipment. Considering I don’t have a wife, I found this surprising. Although this sounds more like a FedEx issue, BlueNile made the situation worse.
I contacted Blue Nile customer support, they said my problem was interesting and they would look into it and call me back. They did not call me back.
Instead, the next day when I went to FedEx to pick up my package, they said Blue Nile had recalled my package without ever contacting me. After waiting two weeks for the rings, we won’t get them after all. Try explaining that to your fiancee.
Blue Nile thankfully said they can send another delivery if I pay by money order. After having waited over two weeks for a missing delivery, I can only hope they remove the charges from my credit card.
Blue Nile may be a victim of this kind of fraud, but they should not pass the burden on to their customers. My advice: buying a ring online comes with a risk, consider it.
I wish Blue Nile would stand behind the products they sell. I guess this is what happens when you buy a diamond from a drawing. I would never buy a house or a car this way but I made the mistake to buy a Blue Nile engagement ring. Customer service before you buy is great but good luck after. I picked from 5 different drawings and somehow I ended up with another diamond, not the one I picked. I am not a jeweler so I don’t have a scope to inspect the ring but once I managed to get one and inspected the diamond I realized I got screwed. I tried to do an exchange even if I had to spend more money but that didn’t go well. In order for Blue Nile to take this stone back I have to buy a new one that’s worth double. Are they kidding me??? Double??? What a joke!!! Now I’m stuck with a diamond I don’t like, no money to buy a new one and frustrated beyond believe. I truly regret buying from Blue Nile. I just threw my money in the garbage.
People, please be careful. Go and see your diamond. Don’t make such an important purchase such a negative experience. This is a special time in a person’s life don’t let anyone ruin it for you.
You do realize Blue Nile has a money back guarantee? Why didn’t you go for that and opted for an exchange instead?
Paul
I am looking at buying a loose diamond, I had thought of Blue Nile but after reading so many negative reviews I am now looking at James Allen
I have selected what I feel is a nice stone $4,390 us (equates to £2997 uk) I have made sure it was GIA and I spec’d the advanced filters based on what I have learned
See link below
Can you please give me your opinion on this stone, my intention would be to buy it (as I have not yet) and get it mounted in the uk
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/0.80-carat-e-color-vvs2-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-1091470
Cutwise, this stone is OK. It isn’t great. The Very Good polish and symmetry bothers me. There are better options available. So, why settle for this stone? I’m not sure what the price is because it is listed as unavailable. If this stone is significantly cheaper than other options you look at and within your budget, it is an OK buy.
I could go on and on but won’t! Ring of of low quality, bought it for close to $5,000 a side stone falls out in less than a month. Got the ring valued by a bluenile buyback partner and they’re valuing it at $1,300, while the bluenile suggested retail value is $6,500. I feel absolutely ripped off!
I was trying to buy a diamond ring for my engagement and I was planning to send it to my brother in law in Dubai because I live in China which would cost me much more in duties fees.
The first problem I encountered, is that blue nile doesn’t do home delivery in Dubai and that someone needs to go pick up, no problem, except that they don’t have anyway on their website to actually edit the shipping info and they force you to use the billing info for the name of the person who needs to pick up the ring
So I placed the order, then called (international call) to the customer service to edit the name (since the local number is only in Chinese and I don’t speak it), and they told me everything is good.
At that point, I actually showed the photo of the ring to my gf and her family and everyone was happy with it, then later on, I received an email from blue nile to call them again because they need some info before they can proceed with the order.
I called (twice) to their international number in US, first time they placed me on hold and then I was told to leave a message which I did and no one called back, so I called again and I talked with a very rude representative who basically literally told me: “there have been a business decision not to accept any credit card payments from you, and yes, specifically you!”
And that the only way to proceed, is for me to do payment via wire transfer, which is basically the kind of payment that gives you ZERO guarantee against scam because you can’t dispute it in case they just decided not to send you anything!!
Basically, STAY AWAY from them and don’t waste your time in that place!!
To be fair, I have encountered this situation personally with other vendors. You have to understand that jewelers are just as afraid of getting scammed as you are. It works both way. BlueNile may not have the best customer service but they are a reliable vendor that honors transactions made.
They are a publicly listed company and will not go out of the way to destroy their reputation by “scamming” you.
I was giving serious consideration to buying an engagement ring from Blue Nile that my girlfriend liked and had been talking with a customer service representative from the company and after thinking about it for a day or two was ready to place the order and called the rep but she was on a day off so I ended up browsing other websites including “beyond 4C’s” and and by the time I was done completing a self taught crash course in buying diamonds that was largely based upon reading through Paul Gian’s articles I ended up buying a fifteen thousand dollar diamond engagement and matching wedding band set at the James Allen website.
Am I ever glad that I did so after reading through the commentary at the end of this article.
I was extremely happy with my purchases at the other website but decided to buy an inexpensive ring for myself that I liked from Blue Nile shortly after making my main purchases elsewhere.
Shortly after purchasing this item and trying to get it directed to a FedEx pickup center I was contacted by Blue Nile and told that they didn’t ship anything to the shipping site that I had selected and that I would have to pay for premium shipping and have it sent to a FedEx pickup site that was considerably further away from me than my first choice.
I wanted the ring so I agreed to pay for the increased price of shipping.
A couple of days later I did the drive on my day off work and went to the pickup center and got my ring.
One of the first things that I noticed is that it looked badly scratched as if it had already been worn for quite some time by someone else. The next thing I noticed is that it was too large for my finger.
I contacted Blue Nile’s customer service as I was driving home from the pickup center and expressed my concerns and they asked for me to send the ring back.
I did so and then waited to hear back from them after seeing that they had got the ring back through my tracking number and signature service. Then I waited some more. And, a week after I saw through the tracking number that they had received it I wrote to them and they replied back with a big “Ooooops” and “Sorry” about not getting back to me shortly after receiving the ring. Fortunately for me not only did they agree with me that the ring was badly damaged due to numerous scratches but they also let me know that they had sent me the wrong size of ring. It appears that they had sent me out a used ring that was also the wrong size that they had taken back several weeks earlier. They asked if I wanted a new ring sent out and I declined their offer since I felt that they were hoping that I would pay good money for and accept what had basically become a piece of junk and because of this I asked that I be reimbursed for all of my costs due to their errors.
I did get my money for the ring back and then I got my money back for the costs of returning the ring. I waited a few months to see if they were going to also return the money that I paid for premium shipping to get the ring. They didn’t so I contacted them and then they did reimburse me for this cost.
I suspect that they were hoping that I would forget about this expense but I didn’t and informed them that I don’t normally chase after seemingly minor amounts of money but did so completely out of principle.
So it seems to me that the concept of “serendipity” came into play the day that their customer service representative wasn’t available because I would have purchased a diamond engagement ring worth about twelve thousand dollars that day but she wasn’t available so I ended up shopping around and am extremely happy with the ring that I eventually purchased from James Allen.
Imagine my displeasure if I got a used engagement ring that was the wrong size along with a diamond that was chipped or cracked and they were hoping that I wouldn’t notice?
I’ve seen a few other items on Blue Nile’s website and now that I’m a much more cautious shopper when it comes to buying anything from them and look at lots of comparables first I’ve come to notice that if you are willing to look around you will probably find the exact same piece of jewelry elsewhere for at least half if not one fifth the price they are asking at Blue Nile even for items on sale.
For example, my girlfriend is getting a beautiful pair of amethyst earrings for her birthday that cost me twenty dollars. The exact same set of earrings were “for sale” for over one hundred dollars on Blue Nile’s website.
I have an electronic paper trail of emails and paper copies of shipping receipts to back up everything that I am saying here.
As a final note let me say that I did avail myself of Paul Gian’s expertise when it comes to selecting a diamond and after he reviewed and approved of my final selections I moved forward and made a purchase at James Allen.
Their viewing technology and ability to send you detailed analysis of every one of their diamonds is astounding and of great benefit in making such an important decision.
Thanks Again Paul!!!
Thanks for sharing your story and experience with BlueNile.com. It’s common for vendors to make mistakes or boo-boos once in a while. In fact, everyone does at some point in time. It’s how they pick up the pieces after that which will reveal how much a company cares about their customers.
Blue Nile is a pretty big corporation and many things are departmentalized. While they did make good on their money back guarantee, it did take quite a while for them to fix things for you. Anyway, I’m glad the issue has been settled. If it hasn’t fully been resolved, let me know again. I’ll direct you to someone over at BlueNile to help you out.
Hi Paul,
My apologies for the delay in responding to your offer to assist me but it was on purpose.
I was waiting to see if Blue Nile was going to respond to my request for a complete and full refund of all monies paid and if they would follow through thereafter and I saw on my credit card statement that they have indeed returned all monies paid as promised.
So thank you for your offer of assistance but it won’t be necessary.
I would like to add that I agree with you that any company can make mistakes although sending me a scratched and scuffed up ring that was a couple of sizes too big seems to be at the outer limits of a mere “boo-boo” however I really need to say something here.
Throughout my dealings with Blue Nile I have been speaking with and corresponding with a customer service representative named Jessyca and she has been fantastic.
I’d even add in other descriptives like courteous, smart and eager to help and make things right when describing her.
If every one of Blue Nile’s staff was like her I wouldn’t even deal with any other companies ever.
Thanks again Paul.
Steve
Hey Paul,
First off, wanted to thank you for you website and forum (i.e comments section)
Much appreciated collection of knowledge for an elaborate market.
I’m looking of coarse to buy a diamond online, and I have read the reviews for Blue Nile as well as James Allen.
At the moment, I’m looking at these 2 stones and wondering if you would be able to highlight or comment further on any concerns.
The downside to Blue Nile one is what you’ve mentioned numerous times on your site, that is, no visuals, pictures, ASET, Idealscope, etc…
But on paper this looks like a good diamond, 1.50 , H , VVS1, xxx, HCA: 0.8 . (to me anyway)
http://www.bluenile.com/ca/diamond-details/LD07364077
My reservation with the James Allen stone is that the HCA tool calculated a 2.4 Very Good. (but not excellent)
1.53, H , VVS1, xxx, HCA: 2.4
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/1.53-carat-h-color-vvs1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-1984495
Wondering if you could shed any further light.
Thanks.
Theodore
Why are you taking the risk to buy a diamond blind from BlueNile when there are so many better ways to go about shopping for a diamond. If you want to shop at BlueNile, I recommend that you shop within their signature lines: https://beyond4cs.com/go/bn-signature/
As an example, this is a fantastic diamond with great light performance and is eyeclean:
https://www.bluenile.com/diamond-details/LD07384437
This series of diamonds have photographs to give you a better idea of what you are actually looking at and they are also curated for better light performance.
With regards to the James Allen diamond, I could say the same as well. There are so many better options available in James Allen. Why do you restrict yourself to this one single diamond with mediocre proportions? ( The high crown angle is a cause for immediate rejection). Don’t get me wrong, this isn’t a terrible or ugly diamond, it’s just that you can easily find better options at James Allen.
I did a search and this would be a diamond I would recommend at James Allen: https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/1.50-carat-h-color-vs2-clarity-ideal-cut-sku-1925503
Hi Paul,
I have a question that I hope is all right for this thread: I am looking at pave bangles. Roughly speaking, a full pave bracelet in 18K gold at Tiffany is about $9K. At Blue Nile, the same full circle (can’t recall the gold amount) is a bit over $2K. At PA a similar bangle is marked down to about $1,700 (both these say 1ct total weight; can’t recall Tiffany total carat weight). My question is: when dealing with a piece that is all tiny pave diamonds, is there any noticeable or quantitative difference between the fancy retailer and these online merchants? I’m thinking that with the tiny stones the 4 c’s won’t matter much, but I also don’t want garbage either. Thank you, Laura
There is going to be noticeable differences between the melees used by different vendors. For the mom and pop stores, you can expect the ratings to be misrepresented. Tiffany is going to be reliable and you can take what they say on face value to be accurate. That said, they are pricey. Blue Nile is a vendor that I would consider reliable as well in their description and listings.
I LOVE Blue Nile. I have purchased several diamonds and numerous pieces of jewelry from them, and I believe they have an excellent selection of diamonds if you know what you are looking for. (You have done your homework)
While I have bought blind for all my purchases (including an amazing asscher– yes, a fancy shape!), Blue Nile is adding 360 degree views of their diamonds, though not all have this feature at the moment.
I will continue to buy from them.
Hi paul,
I was hoping to purchase a pair of diamond studs from blue nile or james allen but noticed its really hard because both sites don’t have many pairs available. Would you recommend that I search for 2 individual diamonds with the same specs instead? Also, i’ve spoken to a family friend who worked in the jewelry business and told me to never trust online purchases. One of the main reason is that the diamond you purchased could be a different one when you receive it. Have you ever encounter or heard of such situations with the websites you recommend to purchase diamonds from? Thanks in advance!
In my entire career, I had never heard of anyone complaining about receiving the wrong diamonds when they are purchased from reliable vendors online. ZERO. Not a single time. The return policies they offer protect you as the consumer. It’s a fact people get unhappy with the purchase on some occasions because of sizing or unrealistic expectations. Even so, getting your money back is straightforward.
Ironically, the most frequent complaints come from people who trusted a “family friend” in the business. These are the times you get ripped off.
Thanks Paul.
I’m trying to buy a pair of diamonds to make earrings but it’s been hard to build them with the filter cux blue Nile doesn’t have the 360 view for all of them. Do you think it’s ok to buy the diamonds separately with specs close to each other?
No. It’s not OK. You should only select diamonds with videos.
https://beyond4cs.com/reviews/blue-nile/signature-diamond/
In BlueNile’s search filter, you can actually tick the box that says 360 degrees videos.
Hi Paul,
I didn’t express myself clearly.
I meant, I was trying to build a pair of diamond studs. There are features on blue Nile, James Allen, etc that let you do that. However, there are less available pairs I get to choose from vs. me buying them individually. I was wondering if it’s ok to buy them individually (given that I can see the videos and get the same specs/filters) instead of using the build your own studs feature where they find pairs for you.
Thanks!
That’s definitely the way to go about shopping for earrings. You should be picking the stones individually. Keep color within 1 color grade and find similar table sizes (within 1-2%) and similar physical dimensions.
I looked everywhere for a 1.5 G excellent cut diamond.. Blue Nile had the best prices by a long shot. I gave them a try.. had the diamond appraise 50% more than I bought it for, and wife is happy. Customer service was ok, but I was there to buy a diamond..
Hi,
I’m looking to buy a cushion diamond around the 1 carat, H/G color and VS1 or better.
Could anyone comment on the stone in the link below and/or make any recommendations within similar price range (around 3k USD)? Are there any other ratings I should look out for?
https://www.bluenile.com/ca/diamond-details/LD08431773
Thanks,
Ray
Proportions wise, the diamond looks fine but that says nothing about the appearance or beauty of the diamond. With cushion cut diamonds, you definitely want to get tangible information like videos and photographs to help you with the assessment.
Thank you for your prompt response Paul. If I can get pictures or videos of the diamond, what should I look for? Brilliance?
Thanks.
Ray
Also, does the cloudiness in a diamond only depends on Color, Clarity and Fluorescence? Would we know base on the GIA report?
Cloudiness is caused by severe clarity and/or fluorescence issues. It’s really easy to pick out if a diamond does exhibit this negative trait.
Hi Paul, what do you think of this diamond?
https://www.bluenile.com/hk/diamond-details/LD08540540
It’s a decently cut diamond and is eyeclean. Offers good value for its pricepoint.
Thanks paul,
And for the diamond size.
Is the size difference noticeable compared to a 1 carat with the cut, color and clarity?
This article has answers you seek: https://beyond4cs.com/faq/size-differences-in-carat-weights/
I am totally impressed with Blue Nile’s service! i usually don’t write reviews, but on this ocassion I feel that I have to.
I ordered my fiance’s wedding band yesterday at 6:00 PM, and the ring was on my door step at 9:04 AM this morning.
Shipping confirmation stated the ring would arrive today, but I was a bit skeptical. What makes if more incredible is that shipping was free!
This is an unreal conpany. The ring looks fantastic, and it was beautifully packed.
I would recommend Blue Nile to anybody!
Now I can’t wait for my fiancé to try on his wedding band!
I would say yours would be more of a special case and really depends on the location you are at. If there is stock available and you happen to reside near their distribution center, getting it in less than 12 hours may be possible. Typically, it takes a little longer. Anyway, congrats! And thanks for sharing!
Hi Paul,
Im thinking of buying my ring from online,
what do you think of this diamond?
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/1.00-carat-f-color-si2-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-3415810
Is Blue nile better or James allen?
thanks
The diamond you picked is absolutely abysmal. It has a unreliable grading report, terribly cut and NOT eyeclean. Dump that stone. You are doing your research completely wrong.
From your selection, you are obviously trying to cheapen out on quality and that never ends well.
https://beyond4cs.com/engagement-ring/beware-of-cheap-diamond-deals/
Expect to pay upwards of $7k for a well cut F color diamond. If you want to buy a piece of frozen spit, really, you don’t need to get the diamond you picked out. Get a CZ diamond or costume jewelry instead.
If you asked me to compare Bluenile vs James Allen, I would say both vendors are reliable and each have their strengths. They are good for different diamond shapes and setting designs.
Paul – I have been studying your site and visiting others you recommend: Whiteflash, James Allen, etc.
I decided on this one from Blue Nile based on what I was able to understand, but I’m worried I made a bad choice. If I need to return it I will.
Can you let me know what you think?
https://www.bluenile.com/diamond-details/LD09732214
I would say that the diamond is decently well cut and has good light return. It’s not a bad choice but if you really want the best of the best, then I would honestly say there are better stones in the market.
I was recommending Blue Nile to a friend today because we had such a great experience. We got our diamond about 11 years ago when we got engaged. My husband knew more about diamonds. I was able to read about what each of the Cs meant and make a good decision. I think we spent a little over 6000 on a nice quality one carat diamond. We did have it set outside the website. And when it was appraised, it appraise for more than twice the cost of the diamond. I love buying it on the website and I love seeing the map of the diamond and everything about the diamond. Even though my experience was long time ago, I noticed this comment page and I think that people have problems are more compelled to leave a message so I thought I’d leave mine.
Thanks for sharing your experience. Many years back, Blue Nile wasn’t as user friendly as it is now. They didn’t have much video listings and they had come a long way to improve on their shopping service. I think there’s even more to come as IT gets better and better.
Paul, Bluenile does not offer ASET or Idealscope image and Hearts and Arrows but they offer GEMEX certification of the diamond. What is your opinion on GEMEX certification?
Amazing website!! Congrats you’ve made my journey to buy an engagement ring much more informed.
Blue Nile doesn’t offer ASET nor would they offer Idealscope. In fact, they can’t even eyeball the diamond in person and would have to rely on the notes supplied by their vendors if you asked them detailed questions on color/clarity. The good thing is that Blue Nile offers video listings that allow you to bypass all these as the videos are sufficient to determine eyecleanliness and brilliance if you know how to analyze them. The GEMEX certification is an analysis of the diamond’s performance under spotlighting. While that is somewhat limited in its scope, it is still useful as part of the overall analysis of the diamond’s brilliance.
Very bad experience!! I just had to cancel my order and wanted to give some feedback and explain why in case you find it helpful.
I ordered a ring in Nov. 4th that was supposed to ship on Nov. 11. I had a whole thing planned for my future fiancée. I get an email a week later letting me know that my order cannot be fulfilled and my new ship date would be the end of November. So I replanned everything around that time-frame but today I got an email that said my new ship date would be Dec 15th without any other information or a heads up. In addition, I was told I would be charged more money to select an option that ships sooner!! So in the end I had to cancel my order and get a refund.
This has been a very frustrating experience for me that I hope other people don’t have to face.
Thanks for leaving your feedback. Running a business during the COVID19 period can be uncertain and lead to disruptions. They should have allowed you to expedite shipping at no extra cost as that is a better business sense for them. That said, Blue Nile has clearly dropped the ball and I think this could have been managed better on their side. If you need help on other matters or reselecting a diamond, let me know again. I will go out of my way to help you out on this.