Statistics · Diamonds
Lab-grown vs natural diamond prices —
the 2025–2026 numbers.
In 2025, 48% of U.S. engagement rings carried a lab-grown diamond, lab-grown wholesale prices fell another 26%, and De Beers cut production 12% to defend the natural price. This page aggregates those numbers from their primary sources — De Beers, BriteCo, Edahn Golan, and Fortune Business Insights — with the period each figure covers stated next to it. Every figure was last verified against its source on July 3, 2026.
The Headline Numbers
Five figures that summarize the whole market.
U.S. engagement rings containing a lab-grown diamond
Figure
48%
Period
2025
Source
BriteCo, via Rapaport News
All diamond jewelry sold containing lab-grown diamonds
Figure
42%
Period
2025
Source
BriteCo, via Rapaport News
Lab-grown wholesale price change, year on year
Figure
down 26%
Period
2025
Source
Edahn Golan Diamond Research & Data
Global lab-grown diamond market size
Figure
$29.46 billion
Period
2025
Source
Fortune Business Insights
De Beers rough diamond production
Figure
21.7 million carats (down 12%)
Period
FY 2025
Source
De Beers Group
| Metric | Figure | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. engagement rings containing a lab-grown diamond | 48% | 2025 | BriteCo, via Rapaport News |
| All diamond jewelry sold containing lab-grown diamonds | 42% | 2025 | BriteCo, via Rapaport News |
| Lab-grown wholesale price change, year on year | down 26% | 2025 | Edahn Golan Diamond Research & Data |
| Global lab-grown diamond market size | $29.46 billion | 2025 | Fortune Business Insights |
| De Beers rough diamond production | 21.7 million carats (down 12%) | FY 2025 | De Beers Group |
The one-line read: lab-grown now wins roughly half of U.S. engagement-ring demand while getting cheaper every quarter, and the largest natural producer is answering with less supply, not lower prices. The two products have stopped competing on the same curve.
The Retail Gap
What the two stones cost at the counter.
Average retail price, 1 ct natural diamond
Figure
$4,200 (typical range $3,000–$6,000)
Period
2025
Source
BriteCo, via Rapaport News
Average retail price, 1 ct lab-grown diamond
Figure
about $1,000 or less
Period
2025
Source
BriteCo, via Rapaport News
Retail gap on those two 1 ct averages
Figure
roughly 76% lower (computed from the two averages above)
Period
2025
Source
BriteCo, via Rapaport News
Average lab-grown center stone in an engagement ring
Figure
1.31 ct → 2.45 ct
Period
2019 → 2025
Source
BriteCo, via Rapaport News
| Metric | Figure | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average retail price, 1 ct natural diamond | $4,200 (typical range $3,000–$6,000) | 2025 | BriteCo, via Rapaport News |
| Average retail price, 1 ct lab-grown diamond | about $1,000 or less | 2025 | BriteCo, via Rapaport News |
| Retail gap on those two 1 ct averages | roughly 76% lower (computed from the two averages above) | 2025 | BriteCo, via Rapaport News |
| Average lab-grown center stone in an engagement ring | 1.31 ct → 2.45 ct | 2019 → 2025 | BriteCo, via Rapaport News |
The retail gap is now wide enough to change what shoppers buy rather than just what they pay: the average lab-grown center stone nearly doubled from 1.31 to 2.45 carats between 2019 and 2025. Buyers are not pocketing the discount — they are spending it on size, which is why lab-grown demand keeps growing in dollar terms even as per-carat prices fall.
The Wholesale Trajectory
Falling — but finding a floor.
Lab-grown wholesale prices, year on year
Figure
down 26%
Period
2025
Source
Edahn Golan Diamond Research & Data
Lab-grown wholesale prices, quarter on quarter
Figure
down 4.7% (smallest quarterly decline since lab-grown entered the market)
Period
Q4 2025
Source
Edahn Golan Diamond Research & Data
Three-carat rounds (steepest segment)
Figure
down 32% year on year
Period
2025
Source
Edahn Golan Diamond Research & Data
1.50 ct goods (most resilient segment)
Figure
down 8% year on year, up 11% vs Q3
Period
Q4 2025
Source
Edahn Golan Diamond Research & Data
Smaller goods after HPHT producers stopped cutting
Figure
up 10–20% (Chinese HPHT factories held prices once rough reached about $10/ct)
Period
Q4 2025
Source
Edahn Golan Diamond Research & Data
| Metric | Figure | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lab-grown wholesale prices, year on year | down 26% | 2025 | Edahn Golan Diamond Research & Data |
| Lab-grown wholesale prices, quarter on quarter | down 4.7% (smallest quarterly decline since lab-grown entered the market) | Q4 2025 | Edahn Golan Diamond Research & Data |
| Three-carat rounds (steepest segment) | down 32% year on year | 2025 | Edahn Golan Diamond Research & Data |
| 1.50 ct goods (most resilient segment) | down 8% year on year, up 11% vs Q3 | Q4 2025 | Edahn Golan Diamond Research & Data |
| Smaller goods after HPHT producers stopped cutting | up 10–20% (Chinese HPHT factories held prices once rough reached about $10/ct) | Q4 2025 | Edahn Golan Diamond Research & Data |
The 26% annual decline sounds like free fall, but the quarterly print tells a different story: Q4's 4.7% drop was the smallest since lab-grown goods entered the market, and small goods rose 10–20% once Chinese HPHT producers collectively stopped cutting near $10 per carat of rough. Production cost has started acting as a floor — the defining feature of a manufactured product, not a collapsing one.
For a store buying lab-grown, the practical read is that the inventory-writedown risk of 2023–2024 is fading in premium sizes, while three-carat rounds — down 32% on the year — remain the segment where holding depth still hurts.
Market Size
Cheaper per carat, bigger in dollars.
Global lab-grown diamond market
Figure
$29.46 billion
Period
2025
Source
Fortune Business Insights
Projected global market
Figure
$33.54 billion
Period
2026 (projected)
Source
Fortune Business Insights
Projected global market
Figure
$91.85 billion (13.42% CAGR over 2026–2034)
Period
2034 (projected)
Source
Fortune Business Insights
North America share of the global market
Figure
about 38%
Period
2025
Source
Fortune Business Insights
| Metric | Figure | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Global lab-grown diamond market | $29.46 billion | 2025 | Fortune Business Insights |
| Projected global market | $33.54 billion | 2026 (projected) | Fortune Business Insights |
| Projected global market | $91.85 billion (13.42% CAGR over 2026–2034) | 2034 (projected) | Fortune Business Insights |
| North America share of the global market | about 38% | 2025 | Fortune Business Insights |
Volume growth is outrunning price decline: the global market grew to $29.46 billion in 2025 and is projected to roughly triple by 2034. North America holds about 38% of it — the demand-side tailwind sits exactly where independent North American jewelers sell.
The Natural Response
Cutting supply, not price.
De Beers rough production, Q2 2025
Figure
4.1 million carats (down 36% vs 6.4M)
Period
Q2 2025
Source
De Beers Group
De Beers rough production, H1 2025
Figure
10.2 million carats (down 23% vs 13.3M)
Period
H1 2025
Source
De Beers Group
De Beers rough production, full year
Figure
21.7 million carats (down 12% from 24.7M)
Period
FY 2025
Source
De Beers Group
De Beers average realized rough price
Figure
$142/ct (down 7% from $152/ct)
Period
FY 2025
Source
De Beers Group
De Beers total revenue
Figure
$3.5 billion (rough sales $3.0 billion)
Period
FY 2025
Source
De Beers Group
De Beers underlying EBITDA
Figure
a $511 million loss (includes $424M of trading losses from stock rebalancing)
Period
FY 2025
Source
De Beers Group
De Beers production guidance
Figure
21–26 million carats at c.$80/ct unit cost
Period
2026 (guidance)
Source
De Beers Group
| Metric | Figure | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| De Beers rough production, Q2 2025 | 4.1 million carats (down 36% vs 6.4M) | Q2 2025 | De Beers Group |
| De Beers rough production, H1 2025 | 10.2 million carats (down 23% vs 13.3M) | H1 2025 | De Beers Group |
| De Beers rough production, full year | 21.7 million carats (down 12% from 24.7M) | FY 2025 | De Beers Group |
| De Beers average realized rough price | $142/ct (down 7% from $152/ct) | FY 2025 | De Beers Group |
| De Beers total revenue | $3.5 billion (rough sales $3.0 billion) | FY 2025 | De Beers Group |
| De Beers underlying EBITDA | a $511 million loss (includes $424M of trading losses from stock rebalancing) | FY 2025 | De Beers Group |
| De Beers production guidance | 21–26 million carats at c.$80/ct unit cost | 2026 (guidance) | De Beers Group |
De Beers absorbed a $511 million underlying loss in 2025 and still chose to mine less rather than sell cheaper — Q2 output fell 36% while the average realized price slipped only 7% on the year. That is the scarcity playbook stated in the company's own numbers, and it is why the natural price has not chased lab-grown down. Expect the two markets to keep diverging, not converge.
What It Means
Two markets now, one purchase order.
Put the four datasets together and the structure is plain. Lab-grown behaves like a manufactured good: production costs fall, capacity rises, prices trend down to a cost floor, and the value migrates to design, service, and sourcing. Natural behaves like a scarcity asset: the producer defends price with volume, and the stone keeps its role as the store of value at the counter.
For the retailer writing the purchase order, the consequence is that margin has moved from the stone to the supply chain. When a lab-grown center is a three-figure cost, what decides profitability is how few hands the piece passes through, how fast it turns, and whether the metal was priced honestly against a dated gold spot — not which stone type sits in the setting. Our stocking guide walks that decision case by case.
Where Clazoire fits
Our stake, stated plainly.
Clazoire manufactures both: natural diamonds with GIA certificates and lab-grown with IGI, set in 14K–18K gold, factory-direct from Surat with minimums from 1 unit on most styles. We publish these statistics because our buyers price against them — the same way we publish a dated wholesale gold price index so a store can check our math. Browse the catalog or open a wholesale account if the numbers make the case; cite the page either way.
Sources & Methodology
Check every number yourself.
- Lab-Grown Diamonds Continue to Disrupt Industry in 2025 (BriteCo research report) — BriteCo, via Rapaport News, 2025.
- Lab-Grown Diamond Wholesale Prices Down 26% in 2025, Signs of Stabilization Emerge (Q4 2025 Lab Diamond Wholesale Price List) — Edahn Golan Diamond Research & Data, January 2026.
- Production Report for the Second Quarter of 2025 — De Beers Group, July 2025.
- Preliminary Financial Results for 2025 — De Beers Group, February 2026.
- Lab Grown Diamond Market Size, Share & Growth Report (2026–2034) — Fortune Business Insights, 2026.
Each figure states the period it covers and was last verified against its primary source on July 3, 2026. Figures that could not be traced to a primary source were dropped rather than estimated. Prices move; treat these as dated benchmarks, not quotes. Spot an error or hold newer primary data? Send a correction via our contact page and we'll update the page and credit the fix. This page is free to cite with attribution.
To cite this page
Clazoire Wholesale, "Lab-Grown vs Natural Diamond Prices: 2025–2026 Statistics", https://wholesale.clazoire.com/stats/lab-grown-vs-natural-diamond-prices — figures verified against primary sources on July 3, 2026.
Embed this chart (free, attribution link required)
<a href="https://wholesale.clazoire.com/stats/lab-grown-vs-natural-diamond-prices"><img src="https://wholesale.clazoire.com/stats/lab-grown-vs-natural-diamond-prices/og" alt="Lab-Grown vs Natural Diamond Prices: 2025–2026 Statistics — Clazoire Wholesale" width="600" style="max-width:100%;height:auto;border:0"/></a> <p style="font-size:12px">Chart: <a href="https://wholesale.clazoire.com/stats/lab-grown-vs-natural-diamond-prices">Clazoire Wholesale</a>, verified July 3, 2026.</p>
The Specifics
The numbers, answered straight.
At retail in 2025, BriteCo put the average 1-carat natural diamond at $4,200 (typically $3,000–$6,000) and the average 1-carat lab-grown at about $1,000 or less — roughly 76% lower on those two averages. The wholesale gap moves faster than the retail gap: Edahn Golan's price list recorded lab-grown wholesale prices down another 26% across 2025.
48% of U.S. engagement rings purchased in 2025 contained a lab-grown diamond, and 42% of all diamond jewelry sold that year contained lab-grown stones, per BriteCo's 2025 research report. The average lab-grown center stone also grew from 1.31 carats in 2019 to 2.45 carats in 2025 — buyers are spending the discount on size.
Yes, but the fall is slowing. Wholesale prices declined 26% year on year in 2025, yet the Q4 2025 quarter-on-quarter drop was just 4.7% — the smallest since lab-grown diamonds entered the market, per Edahn Golan's Q4 2025 price list. Smaller goods actually rose 10–20% after Chinese HPHT producers stopped cutting prices near $10 per carat of rough.
By cutting supply rather than price. De Beers produced 21.7 million carats in 2025, down 12% from 24.7 million, and realized an average $142 per carat, down 7% — while absorbing a $511 million underlying EBITDA loss. Its 2026 guidance of 21–26 million carats keeps output managed, which is why natural wholesale prices have not collapsed toward lab-grown levels.
Every figure on this page is traced to a named primary source — De Beers Group production and financial reports, BriteCo's 2025 lab-grown vs natural report, Edahn Golan's quarterly wholesale price lists, and Fortune Business Insights' market sizing — with the period each number covers stated next to it. Figures that could not be verified against a primary source were dropped rather than estimated.
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