Lab Grown vs Natural Diamonds: What's the Difference?

A lab grown diamond and a natural diamond are both real diamonds — pure carbon with the same hardness, sparkle and chemical makeup. Even jewellers cannot tell them apart with the naked eye; it takes specialised equipment. The difference is where they were formed: one grew in the ground over billions of years, the other was grown in a lab in a matter of weeks.

So why the big price difference?

Mining, transport and a long chain of middlemen make natural diamonds expensive. Lab grown diamonds skip most of that, so the same size and quality usually costs a fraction of the mined price. That is how a pair of 1.00 CTW lab grown diamond studs in 14K gold can sell for $525 instead of several thousand.

What about quality?

Lab grown diamonds are graded exactly like natural ones — by the 4Cs (cut, colour, clarity, carat) — and better pieces come with an independent report, such as an IGI certificate. Our certified pendants include an IGI certificate, and every piece we sell comes with a third-party appraisal.

One honest warning

Lab grown diamond prices have been falling as production gets cheaper. Buy a lab grown piece because you love wearing it and the price makes sense today — not as an investment. If resale value is your main goal, ask us and we will talk it through honestly.

See the difference yourself

Pictures only go so far. You can view any piece in person in Vancouver before you buy, and every order is covered by 30-day returns. Start with our most popular pieces: 2.00 CTW stud earrings, 4 CTW tennis bracelet and the 1.50 CTW pendant.