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Sunday, February 9th
Ritani was founded in 1999 and specializes in high-quality, handcrafted jewelry, with all pieces made in New York: you won't find anything generic or mass-produced here. Ritani has gotten lots of buzz in top publications and news outlets, ranging from Vogue and Brides to CNN and Fox Business.
Remarkable inventory of loose lab-grown diamonds
If you're shopping for loose lab-created diamonds, either to buy separately or as the foundation for a one-of-a-kind piece of jewelry, you're going to love the selection at Ritani. At the time of this evaluation, there were over 130,000 loose lab-grown stones available, all with HD video and images. Prices ranged from under $100 to a jaw-dropping $349,000 for a 5.02 ct marquise cut good/F/VS1 stone. Your best bet is to use the filters to sort by shape, price, any of the 4 Cs, or delivery date - but you can also use the "Best Value” toggle to zero in on the best diamond for your budget.
Full transparency on each gem's details
The level of detail on each lab-grown diamond sold by Ritani is extraordinary. They're fully transparent in their pricing: each stone shows you the cost of the diamond, the fulfillment cost, and Ritani's mark-up. Beyond that, you'll get lots of info on the gem's cut, color, clarity, and carat weight, delving into the symmetry and polish, and even the ability to view the Diamond Certification Report for that stone.
Takes some work to find jewelry strictly with lab-created diamonds
What if you're not shopping for a loose diamond or for an engagement ring? There are other jewelry options at Ritani, but it's not as easy to find pieces that use lab-created stones. You can browse your options for earrings, bracelets, and so on, but there's no filter that lets you see only one type of diamond. You'll have to pay attention to the item description in order to find the ones that specifically say "lab”. That gets a little tedious.
Slightly mixed shopper feedback
Ritani's reputation is pretty solid overall, starting with an "A” rating and accreditation from the Better Business Bureau. Customer feedback is a little bit mixed, depending on where you look: on Trustpilot, for example, Ritani had a 3.8 average out of 5 stars across 530+ reviews, while on Reviews.io the retailer came out much better with a 4.5/5 average spanning 440+ shopper ratings.
Most customers have a fantastic shopping experience
Both compliments and complaints seem to focus on the same topics: customer service, the quality of the jewelry, and delivery. Most people have a fantastic experience with all of those things, but sometimes it seems like Ritani drops the ball. That seems to be the case more often when customers have a higher level of expertise with respect to diamond cut and clarity, how the stones are set, and so on. (In other words, if you're in the know, you might find issues with your lab-grown diamond jewelry purchase here.)
Free in-person preview on loose diamonds and engagement rings
However, on loose diamond and engagement ring purchases, Ritani makes it a little easier to be sure you'll love what you buy. They offer a complimentary in-store preview at a local jeweler, WeWork, or Regus location near you. You'll have to provide your credit card number to reserve the service, and be sure to click on the "Preview” button for the delivery method during checkout. If you go to your appointment and decide you don't want to buy it, there's no pressure or obligation. Ritani will unmount the diamonds and recycle the metal, no harm no foul.
Nothing noteworthy with customer service
In all other ways, Ritani's policies are pretty standard. You'll get free shipping on any purchase and 30 days to make returns. Customer service is available via phone, live chat, or email if you have questions before or after placing your order.
Great for the nervous shopper
Particularly for those looking for loose stones or engagement rings, Ritani has a lot to offer with its lab-grown diamonds. They know that it can be a little nerve-wracking to buy diamonds online, and so they go to great lengths to make sure you don't feel like you're ordering something "sight unseen” - by incorporating not only videos and photos of each stone but also the chance to preview in person before making the commitment to purchase. Ritani doesn't wind up in our #1 spot because they don't make it very easy to shop their lab-created diamond jewelry outside of engagement rings, but overall we give this retailer a strong recommendation.
Lab-grown diamonds, also known as synthetic or cultured diamonds, are man-made gemstones that are created in a laboratory environment using advanced technological processes that mimic the natural conditions under which diamonds form in the earth's mantle.
Sounds pretty technical, but the amazing thing is that these diamonds are essentially identical in chemical, physical, and optical properties to natural diamonds mined from the earth. They are also graded on the same 4Cs scale used for natural diamonds, which stands for cut, clarity, color, and carat weight. All of the same sparkle factor? Yes, please!
Better yet, lab-grown diamonds are generally less expensive than natural stones of the same size and quality. And, if you've ever been concerned by the idea of "blood diamonds”, lab-grown stones are perfect for you: they don't involve the environmentally damaging (and often unethical) practices associated with natural diamond mining.
However, lab-grown diamonds have a few small drawbacks. One major concern is that they may not hold their value over time as well as natural diamonds, since they aren't as rare or unique. Additionally, some people may prefer the idea of owning a natural diamond as a symbol of their love or commitment - even if lab-created stones are undetectable as such to the average person's eye.
When you realize that some jewelers offering lab-grown diamonds have an inventory of over 100,000 stones to choose from, you might feel a little overwhelmed. Take a deep breath, try to enjoy the process a little, and use these ideas to make your shopping easier:
Shopping for jewelry made with lab-grown diamonds can be an exhilarating experience, and Top Consumer Reviews has evaluated and ranked today's most popular retailers to give you an advantage as you browse. We hope this information helps take the edge off any nervousness you might be feeling, so that you can find - or create - the perfect piece of jewelry for that proposal, anniversary, or "just because” moment.
Select any 2 Lab Grown Diamond Stores to compare them head to head