Natural vs Lab-Grown Diamonds: Which Certificate is Best for Them?

Our guides have comprehensively covered many topics around diamond jewellery and designs. From loose diamond stones to precious rocks mounted on a ring, you can browse through our guides on diamonds to get a better and clear knowledge around these beauties. Melorra has also explained to its reader about different diamond certificates that authenticate precious stones and their 4Cs.

And among many topics discussed in our guide pages about diamonds and their jewellery, one is the difference between natural diamonds and lab-created diamond stones. However, you still do not know if all diamond certificates are right for every diamond type. In this guide, we’ll help you understand, which diamond certificate is best for natural diamond stones and which is best for lab-created precious stones.

What is Natural Diamonds?

Any precious stone that is found and mined from Earth’s surface is a natural diamond. They develop under organic and natural environment conditions inside the surface of Earth and rise up to the crust through volcanic eruptions. For billions of years, these sparkly beauties stay hidden forming their structure and colour, which when mined by people take place on your beautiful jewellery designs.

In their initial form, natural diamonds are rough. They are cut and polished to become jewellery ready. But you can always buy rough natural diamonds, if you wish so.

Best Certificate for Natural Diamonds

There are several diamond certifying agencies across the world that grade these stones based on their appearance, 4Cs, and weight. Every agency has a different grading method, but they usually have same grading fundamentals and scale. For natural diamonds, you can look for the below diamond certificates before buying diamond jewellery items:

·         GIA: The first and foremost diamond certificate to look for is GIA. They grade diamonds on jewellery as well as loose diamonds in some cases. GIA certificates are also useful for coloured stones (natural or treated).

·         AGS: Next to GIA, natural diamonds with AGS certificate is popular in many nations. They grade natural diamonds of different cuts that lack fancy colours.

·         EGL: Famous in European regions and India, EGL diamond certificate is yet another option for natural diamonds. However, they are often used in European regions and influence diamond price in those nations.

·         SGL: In India, you can rely on SGL certified diamonds for buying jewellery items or loose stones that are natural.

What is Lab-created Diamonds?

Diamond stones that are not mined from their natural habitat but created in the lab by scientists are called as lab-created or lab-grown rocks. They are real stones with the only difference being their source of origin; while natural stones are found in the Earth, lab-grown rocks are created in a lab. Their physical and chemical structure is similar to the diamond stones that are formed and mined from the Earth.

Best Certificate for Lab-grown Diamonds

·         IGI: Popular in India, IGI grading has made a name for itself for certifying lab-created diamond stones. Their certificate for ‘synthetic’ diamonds are best if you’re buying real lab-created stones.

Note: IGI also provides grading for natural diamonds. Additionally, IGI offers another certificate solely for coloured diamonds (natural and treated).

We suggest you check out our guide pages and also look for right gold rate in India along with the gold coin prices on the website.