Diamond Clarity or Colour: Which is More Important? | Max Diamonds (2025)

FAQs

Diamond Clarity or Colour: Which is More Important? | Max Diamonds? ›

Color and clarity are equally as important when shopping for a diamond. You want to find a sweet spot where the diamond appears both eye-clean and colorless under normal viewing conditions. Though certain shapes or settings make clarity or color more important, in general, you need to consider both.

Clarity is more important in shapes like emerald, princess, and asscher. Colour is important for cushion, radiant, pear and oval. Generally speaking, as long as you choose an eye-clean diamond, your diamond will still look beautiful in terms of clarity.

The color grade is more important than the clarity grade because cushion-cut diamonds tend to retain a lot of color. If you don't want any hints of color, look for a cushion cut diamond with a color grade of H or above.

Is color or clarity more important in an emerald cut diamond? Clarity is more important, because inclusions can be seen easily in emerald shapes, and color can be hidden by gold. Because emeralds have that iconic sheen, and not inclusion-hiding sparkle, clarity has to be your first order of business.

You should seek the largest carat size (a.k.a. diamond weight) available within your budget. However, if exceptional sparkle is most important to you, then you should seek the highest quality diamond available within your budget.

While colored diamonds are considered more expensive than traditional colorless diamonds, their exact value can be difficult to determine. Keep in mind that every diamond is graded on a scale pursuant to its cut, clarity and carat with higher prices attributed to larger and higher quality diamonds.

The best diamond clarity grade is FL, flawless.

In essence, neither is universally 'more important. ' It's about striking the right balance for your preferences and budget. While color refers to the diamond's tint, clarity assesses imperfections.

According to that GIA standard, the "best" diamond color is D. (Read more about D color diamonds here). D color diamonds are the equivalent of IF or FL grade diamonds on the clarity scale — they're very rare, and their price definitely reflects that.

So are I-color diamonds a good investment? Without a doubt! They're an excellent way to save money, and if you do buy a stone that appears yellow, you can use optical illusions to make it appear colorless without spending any extra money.

Why do celebrities like emerald cut diamonds? ›

The long, step cut look gorgeous on the finger and don't have the dramatic sparkle that other cuts do. This is why many celebrities are drawn to the elegant cut. They can get a large diamond without it appearing too flashy.

On an emerald cut diamond, instead of having tiny sparkles of light emanating from the facets, light flashes 'on' and 'off' due to the nature of the step cut. These flashes of white light complement the dark planes in each step.

Color also has a big impact on the sparkle produced by a diamond. Because diamonds reflect white light, colorless diamonds produce the best sparkle and fire. In fact, the more color a diamond has, the less likely it is to reflect white light. And as a result, will produce less sparkle.

A one carat diamond is a common diamond size for manufacturers and consumers alike and rare carat is the best place to find them!

Cut, setting and overall design can make a difference in how large the diamond appears. A large diamond of poor quality will show flaws very obviously. Because of this, it is recommended that you prioritize quality over size. The average engagement ring diamond size in the United States is between 1.08 - 1.2 carats.

​ ​VS1 is higher than the VS2 grade. The only difference between the two is a VS2 diamond's impurities can be easier to spot than those in a VS1. Imperfections in a VS2 grade diamond are similar in size and quantity to those in a VS1.

While a diamond's clarity can affect its sparkle, you'll find that it ultimately doesn't play a major role.

An SI2 diamond can be a good purchase if it is eye-clean. SI2 clarity diamonds have noticeable inclusions that a diamond grader can see using 10x magnification. Sometimes, the inclusions like feathers, chips, and clouds are so many and so big that they can be seen with the naked eye too.

For VVS and VS diamonds, we'll focus on inclusions only. Diamonds with few or no clarity characteristics are very rare. So, all else being equal, diamonds with fewer inclusions – or smaller, less noticeable inclusions – are usually more expensive than diamonds with more inclusions – or larger, more obvious ones.