How Does Your Diamond’s Cut Quality Affect Its Price?

Do you not know what is the difference between a $2000 and a $20000 diamond?

Do they all look shiny and the same?

We are here to help.

The factor that influences a diamond’s price the most is its cut quality. Other aspects like shape, color grade, carat weight, and clarity do affect the price but not as much as a diamond’s cut.

How do you know which is the best cut? Is the most expensive cut always the best cut? Keep reading to know more about the diamond cuts.

What Is a Diamond Cut?

diamond cut

A ‘diamond cut’ does not refer to the shape of a diamond, like a Pear Cut or a Marquise Cut. It is the way a diamond is cut and polished and how well proportioned it is. The proportions of a diamond include its symmetry and depth.

The reason why cut quality is such a big deal is that it affects a diamond’s fire and brilliance.

Fire refers to the ability of a diamond to disperse white light into a spectrum or a rainbow.
Brilliance is the ability of a diamond to reflect that white light back to our eyes, affecting its ability to sparkle.

It is easy to distinguish a poorly cut diamond from a quality cut based on its ability to reflect back to our eyes. So if you stumble on a dull diamond, know that it is poorly cut.

Certain cuts have more brilliance than others. For example, a Round Brilliant Cut has more brilliance than an Asscher Cut or a Pear Cut.

How does Diamond Cut differ from Diamond shape?

diamond shape

Diamond shape refers to the appearance of a diamond and its outline or figure. For example, a Pear Shaped or a Round Diamond.

A diamond’s cut on the other hand refers to its, reflective quality, facets, symmetry, and depth.

To make this simple, the shape of a diamond does not alter. You cannot change a round diamond into a princess diamond. However, the cut quality of a diamond differs for the same shape. You can have a poorly cut round diamond and a round brilliant cut.

How is a diamond’s cut quality graded?

The GIA grades diamond’s from excellent to poor. Here is what it means.

Excellent	Has the highest level of fire and brilliance. Almost the entire light coming into the diamond is reflected off the table.
Very Good	Have exceptional fire and brilliance. Most of the light is reflected off the table with this cut grade. It is very difficult to differentiate between excellent and very good cut grades with the naked eye.
Good	As the grade suggests, they have good fire and brilliance. A decent amount of the light is reflected off the table. This grade offers radiance at a lower price
Fair	They offer little brilliance and fire. A lot of the light escapes the diamond and is not reflected. Fair grade diamonds are a satisfactory choice for lesser carat weights or as diamond side stones.
Poor	Hardly offers any brilliance, fire, or sparkle. Nearly all of the light escapes the diamond from the bottom and the sides.

The AGS diamond cut grade chart replaces the excellent grade with the ideal grade. When choosing between AGS-certified diamonds, we recommend only buying ideal-grade diamonds.

What are the factors that affect the cut of a diamond?

the factors that affect the cut of a diamond

A diamond’s cut is the most important of the 4Cs. Not only does it affect the fire and brilliance of your diamond but also affects its ability to conceal inclusions. While purchasing your diamond it is the most important factor to keep in mind.

Various factors affect the cut of your diamond, like its proportions, symmetry, brilliance, fire, scintillation, and finish. Going through all these individual aspects might get too taxing. Here is a brief idea of what you need to know about the factors affecting a diamond’s cut.

Proportions of your diamond

Depth, width, and table make up your diamond’s proportions.

A Diamond’s Table

A diamond’s table percentage is determined by dividing the width of the top surface area of the diamond by the diameter of the diamond.
A large table percentage affects a diamond’s ability to reflect light off the diamond’s crown angles and facets.
If the table percentage is too low, it inhibits the ability of a diamond to reflect the light back to the eye. Instead, the light entering the diamond might be emitted through other parts.
The ideal table depends on a diamond’s shape. We recommend you ask your jeweler about your diamond’s table

A Diamond’s Width

Measuring from one end of the diamond’s girdle to the other gives you your diamond’s width.
Width is the most important aspect when it comes to determining the length to width ratio of your diamond.
The length to width ratio can be calculated by dividing the length of your diamond by the width. This tells you how proportionate your diamond is.

A Diamond’s Depth

Depth percentage refers to the height of the diamond from the culet to the top of the table. Depth may be measured in millimeters or percentage.
A lower depth percentage inhibits the ability of your diamond to reflect light back properly, thus giving it a darker appearance.

To make things easier for you here is a chart containing the preferred table and depth percentages for different diamond shapes.

Preferred Table and Depth Percentage For AlL Diamond Shapes
Diamond Shape	Preferred Table Percentage	Preferred Depth Percentage
Round Cut Diamond	55-57%	60-62.6%
Princess-Cut Diamond	70-75%	69-75%
Cushion-Cut Diamond	< 69%	62-68%
Emerald-Cut Diamond	61-68%	62-68%
Asscher Cut Diamond	61-68%	62-68%
Oval-Cut Diamond	54-63%	< 69%
Pear Shape Diamond	54-65%	< 69%
Radiant Cut Diamond	62-69%	< 68%
Heart Shape Diamond	57-62%	57-66%
Marquise-Cut Diamond	54-63%	59-62%

Symmetrical Facets of Your Diamond

Symmetrical facets surround the table of your diamond. They are small mirrors that allow light to reflect onto your eyes.
The size, placement, and symmetry of your diamond’s facets affect its ability to reflect and refract light.
Unproportioned facets, too many facets, and not enough facets affect a diamond’s cut quality.

Brilliance of Your Diamond

A diamond’s brilliance is its ability to reflect white light.
Your diamond should reflect plenty of light when its table is facing upwards.
If your diamond’s cut is too deep or shallow, it will not be able to reflect most of the light through the table.

Fire of Your Diamond

The amount of colored light a diamond is able to reflect off its table and facets is referred to as a diamond’s fire.
You should be able to see colored light reflect off your diamond when it is facing up under a source of light.

Scintillation

It refers to the sparkles that are caused in your diamond when light reflects off its facets.
Light dispersed through light and dark areas of your diamond’s surface causes these sparkles.
A diamond with low scintillation appears dull.

Polish

Refers to the final condition and quality of your diamond’s facet details.
A well-polished diamond will have clear mirrors for light to reflect off.

How Can Cut Grade Affect Your Diamond’s Price?

The precision and quality of your diamond’s cut, determine its price. The factors affecting your diamond’s quality are its proportions and symmetry.

When choosing a diamond you should consider the following factors.

Observe how the facets and angles reflect light.
Place your diamond under a normal lamp and see how good the light return is.
Check for dark spots within the piece.
Check your diamonds Fire and Brilliance.
If the diamond seems dull or lifeless with dark inclusions, you can be sure it’s poorly cut.
Always review and buy GIA-certified diamonds.
Buy your diamond from a trusted jeweler to ensure you get the best product.
For GIA-certified diamonds, we recommend going for an excellent grade and an ideal grade for AGS diamonds.
When choosing round brilliant cuts, always rely on the GIA certification over anything any vendor tells you.
Ensure that your diamond is appealing to you despite its cut quality.
Get an expert’s opinion on your diamond

Having an idea about the relationship between cut grade and diamond shapes will help you to pick the right diamond. Follow the table for assistance.

Diamond Shape Chart
Round Brilliant Cut Diamonds	Provides Exceptional Brilliance and Fire. It is always recommended to buy GIA-certified excellent round brilliant diamonds.
Princess-Cut Diamonds	Square shaped and offers nearly the same amount of Brilliance. Price is lower than a Round Cut due to a larger yield from the diamond rough.
Emerald-Cut Diamonds	GIA does not grade fancy-shaped diamonds. Best to assess the cut grade by comparing the depth%, table % given in the table above. Choose an Emerald Cut having a length-to-width ratio between 1.4 and 1.5. This cut showcases a better size than any other diamond.
Cushion-Cut Diamonds	This certain diamond is available in many cut options. Offering personalization, Cushion-Cut Diamonds have a classy feel to them. You can choose a length-to-width ratio of your choice when it comes to this particular cut.
Asscher Cut Diamonds	With its high crown and 58 facets, the Asscher Cut offers more sparkle than an Emerald Cut.
Pear-Shaped Diamond	Good at hiding inclusions. The Pear Shape of this diamond accounts for its popularity. Well cut pear-shaped diamonds are rare. These diamonds are an excellent and affordable alternative to Round Cut diamonds.
Oval Shaped Diamond	Referring to the table and depth percentages provided above it is important to choose a diamond having very thin to very thick girdle thickness and a length to width ratio between 1.4 and 1.5.
Heart-Shaped Diamonds	The most romantic diamond you can find. To Choose a premium grade heart-shaped diamond it is best to stick to a length to width ratio of close to 1.00.
Radiant Cut Diamonds	The option of a square shape, as well as a rectangular shape, is available when choosing a radiant cut diamond. Having a length-to-width ratio of a maximum of 1.3 for rectangular and 1.03 for square shapes are recommended. The depth% and table % of both rectangular and square shapes should be what is mentioned in the table above.
Marquise Cut Diamonds	It is important you look out for the bow-tie effect when it comes to this particular cut. This effect is also referred to as the ‘slender football’ effect. With regard to premium quality and perfectly shaped diamonds, it is recommended to choose a length-to-width ratio of 1.90.
Baguette Diamond	Part of the Step-Cut family including Asscher and Emerald cuts, the defining factor of step cuts is their straight clearly defined facets. Hybrid Baguettes have more facets and as a result, have more brilliance.
Trillion Diamond	Also referred to as the trilliant cut, this diamond is shaped like a triangle. Ideally, this diamond should have three sides of equal lengths with a flat table. Very good at hiding inclusions, this particular diamond has amazing fire and brilliance.

Buying The Right Diamond

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So, What are you waiting for? Visit our website today.