52% of Engagement Rings are Now Lab Grown
March 12, 25
(IDEX Online) - More than half of all couples are now buying a lab grown diamond engagement ring, according to research carried out in January for The Knot wedding website.
A survey of almost 17,000 couples who married in 2024 found that 52 per cent opted for lab grown - the first time the balance has tipped from natural.
The figure for 2023 was 46 per cent and in 2019 it was just 12 per cent.
Couples are now spending less and getting bigger stones, according to the newly-published The Knot 2025 Real Weddings Study.
"The rise in popularity of lab-grown stones is fueling the decrease in the average cost of an engagement ring," it says.
"2024 served as a continuation of that trend with proposers spending $5,200 on average for their ring. This is a decline from $5,500 in 2023, and $5,800 in 2022.
"Back in 2021, it was $6,000. Lab-grown stones typically begin at a lower price point than mined stones which is reflected in the average cost.
"A proposer purchasing a lab-grown engagement ring could expect to spend $4,900 versus spending $7,600, on average, for a mined diamond engagement ring."
The average carat weight of an engagement ring bought last year was 1.7 carats, says the study, up from 1.5 carats in 2021.