Jostens Review

Thursday, December 5th

2024 Class Ring Company Reviews

Jostens

• Priced from $418 to $3,308.98
• Between 50-80 ring styles in stock
• Men's and women's rings
• College, high school, and fashion rings
• Lifetime warranty
• 4- to 8-week turnaround
• Cancel within 5 days
• "A+” rating a from the BBB

Jostens was founded in 1897 by Otto Josten, a jewelry repairman with a vision to help high school students commemorate significant moments. Since then, Jostens has evolved into a graduation and commencement retailer. Used as the go-to for many universities, you can find products for preschoolers all the way through college students. Jostens collaborates with schools to provide yearbooks, sports championship merchandise, apparel, photography, and, of course, class rings.

Enter your school to start

Finding rings on Jostens requires that you start by putting in your college or high school to see the selection of rings. You can find rings in styles like heritage designs, class "band” designs, fashion designs, and varsity. Jostens will also save your input, so if you leave the site you can come back and pick up right where you left off.

Between 45 and 80 styles depending on the school

In terms of selection, there are tons of options at Jostens, though the final number will change depending on your school. On average, Jostens had about 50 styles for college rings and around 80 high school styles to choose from. For the college we put in (University of Michigan), we found 30 styles for women and 19 styles for men. In the high-school section, there wasn't a filter for gender, so we had to just browse through all 80 styles to explore the high school rings.

Easy design with tons of options

Customization options at Jostens include selecting the stone color, choosing from a variety of unique side designs representing activities such as sports, band, debate, drama, cheerleading, or zodiac signs, and adding graduation years and expressions. All class rings can be engraved and personalized for a unique touch. In terms of metal quality, you can expect sterling silver (at no additional cost), 10K-18K white gold, and 10K-18K yellow gold. There are 20 different stones to choose from, and you can add a keepsake box to keep your ring safe.

Prices starting from $418 to $3,308.98

At each store, we checked on the starting prices for college rings in the men's and women's sections. We also searched for the most and least expensive rings with both the baseline customizations and all the fancy add-ons. Here's what we found at Jostens:

• Women's rings: $418 to $539
• Men's rings: $439 to $539
• Least expensive ring: Small Roman Numeral Ring (Sterling Silver) for $418
• Most expensive ring: Evolve Ring (18K White Gold) for $3,308.98

Up to 8 weeks for processing

Jewelry production at Jostens typically takes 4-6 weeks, though some specific rings can take up to 8 weeks. Your exact shipping time will show up in your shopping cart after you've finished customizing the ring. The average service and delivery fee (which includes shipping) is around $19.95.

5-day order cancellation window, but rings come with lifetime warranty

Unfortunately, Jostens lacks a significant return policy. You can modify your order within the first 5 business days from when you placed it, and changes during this period are free. After this initial period, any modifications to your order will be accompanied by a $25 change fee. Similarly, if you decide to cancel your order, you can do so at no cost within the first 5 business days. However, cancellations made after this timeframe will be subject to a $100 change fee. On the bright side, every class ring from Jostens is accompanied by a lifetime warranty, covering services such as cleaning, polishing, re-applying antique finishes, and replacing birthstones.

Customers feel Jostens is too expensive

While holding an "A+" rating from the Better Business Bureau, Jostens receives mixed customer reviews. Customers on third-party review sites left complaints about the extra "service” costs added to orders and about higher-than-average costs for a variety of graduation items. Customers who wanted to cancel orders were unable to reach customer service, and the general consensus is that Jostens is far too expensive for what it offers.

Not competitive enough in customer service

While there are positive experiences at Jostens, the overall online reviews contribute to Jostens receiving an average rating among class ring retailers. The prices are somewhat higher with extra fees compared to other ring retailers. Further, without any listed return policy, there are fewer ways for customers to feel confident about their purchase here than with other companies. While the company remains a mainstay and is partnered with many universities and high schools, it may be worth it to shop around before you choose Jostens for your class ring.