Buying an Engagement Ring - An Illustrated Guide

Most of the cost of an engagement ring is in its stone.
If you're buying a diamond engagement ring, you should be an educated consumer, and know about cut, clarity, carat, and color. Two diamonds can look remarkably similar yet have vastly different costs.
For example, right now if you were looking for a round diamond of about 1 carat, you'd find:

$18,966: Blue Nile has a 1.01-carat round diamond with a Very Good-cut, D-color, and IF-clarity
$3971: Zales has a 1.01-carat round diamond with I color, and SI1 clarity (cut not specified)
$1986: Mondera has a 1.10 Carat round diamond with a Very Good-cut, I color, and I2 clarity.

Be an educated consumer - click here to read about the 4 Cs of diamond buying

Blue Nile Engagement Rings
Mondera Engagement Rings
Shop Zales