Tiffany & Co. engagement ring is probably the most popular piece of jewelry in the world. Every woman wants to receive that little blue box with a cute bow and every man wants to purchase it for his significant other. These rings don’t come cheap, in fact, they’re very expensive. But, it doesn’t have to be like that. There is a way to get a real Tiffany & Co engagement ring for much less. How? Let’s find out!
Tiffany & Co.
The company was founded back in 1837 in New York City as a stationery and fancy goods store. It took about 20 years, in 1853, for Tiffany & Co to start focusing on jewelry after it was taken over by Charles Tiffany. This brand does more than selling jewelry, it has shaped American culture in many ways. Little is known that this company is behind Lombardi trophy, MLS championship trophy, and a number of World Series rings.
While Tiffany & Co is a company that does so many things, it’s engagement rings are widely popular. But they do come at an expensive price not everyone can afford. Nowadays, it is possible to find these rings online and pay less, but is that really a better choice?
With an aim to uncover if purchasing online is more convenient than paying the full price for Tiffany & Co ring, we did a little test.
The Test
A
s mentioned above, the purpose of this test was to evaluate whether buying some engagement ring online is more convenient than Tiffany & Co and how do they compare. For the purpose of the test, we opted for:
Online diamond sellers are a popular choice nowadays because they give buyers an opportunity to avoid state sales tax by having the ring sent to a state where the store doesn’t have its presence. For example, James Allen has physical stores in New York and Maryland so any other state is tax-free. With Tiffany & Co. that’s almost impossible because they have their stores everywhere.
How Does Tiffany Jewelry Compare?
James Allen ring characteristics: 1.00ct H color SI 1 clarity square cushion cut and 18k white gold 2.0mm Art-Nouveau pave set diamond engagement ring.
On the other hand, Tiffany Novo is a 0.53ct cushion cut ring set in platinum with four sleek, tapered prongs, the round brilliant diamond.
Both rings are similar in appearance but different enough to avoid copyright infringement.
The difference in prices is evident. One-carat cushion cut from James Allen cost about $5000 while 0.53ct cushion cut from Tiffany had a staggering price of $6859. What’s more, the cheapest one-carat Novo diamond at Tiffany’s cost $13,700.
In terms of grades, the ring that was purchased online fared better with H SI 2 and eye clean appearance. It was a visually better diamond compared to Tiffany’s I VS2. Why? The reason is simple, eye clean will always look the same regardless of the actual clarity grades.
If we bear in mind that the ring from Tiffany would have cost about $9000 more than the ring from James Allen and add state sales tax to the amount, it turns out an engagement ring from Tiffany & Co is three times more expensive.