Diamonds can get incredibly expensive. Unless you are buying Zales diamonds, then you can get your brilliant ring at more affordable prices.
Online shipping for diamond rings has become more convenient, and Zales is among the well-chosen retailers for people looking for exquisite but cheap rings.
One of the primary reasons why Zales diamonds are popular with many online ring shoppers is because it has a wide range of sparkly jewelry pieces at a much lower price tag.
When it comes to cheaper engagement rings, nothing beats Zales diamonds. But its cheaper price tag comes with a catch.
For one, you can’t filter out the diamond quality when ring shopping at Zales. The diamond retailer also doesn’t specify the 4C’s you need to determine a stone’s quality.
That includes the diamond’s carat weight, color, cut, and clarity. Zales might provide one or two details about the 4C’s of the diamond, but often incomplete.
Ultimately, Zales lets you buy sparkly, elegant jewelry that can make you feel and look good at a price that you can afford. But it might not be the best diamond investment for some people are looking.
Amazon also has a nice collection of cheaper engagement rings:
Check out more about why Zales diamonds are so cheap and if you can find one with excellent quality in its product line.
Table of Contents
Reasons Why are Zales Diamonds So Cheap?
Zales diamonds are one of the cheapest diamond rings you can purchase online, but they have a low price range for a reason. Some of the diamonds sold at the store come with an IGI certification and not GIA. In other cases, diamonds don’t come with certification at all.
There are three main reasons why Zales diamonds are incredibly cheap compared to other online diamond retailers.
Their diamonds come with an IGI certification if any.
If you are looking for a high-quality diamond, you better look for those certified by the GIA lab, and they don’t come cheap. Zales diamonds, on the other hand, carry IGI certification instead of one from GIA. IGI lab isn’t the most consistent when it comes to diamond grading. Because of the loophole in their grading, it’s why Zales jewelry often comes cheap.
In other cases, diamonds don’t have any certification at all. That makes them even cheaper.
You can’t filter out rings based on diamond quality.
One of the first steps to do when investing in a diamond ring is to choose the diamond quality you want or the quality you can afford. Most online diamond retailers offer this feature for shoppers on their websites. Unfortunately, that isn’t possible when shopping for diamonds at Zales.
You can filter out your ring search by metal type, setting type, and diamond shape, but not the diamond quality.
Another reason why you can’t specify the stone quality when shopping at Zales is that they don’t offer loose diamonds. The store only sells pre-set diamond rings, unlike other diamond retailers where you can choose a quality loose diamond to build your ring from there.
Little to no information about the 4C’s of the diamond.
The 4C’s are what defines a high-quality diamond from a low-quality diamond. But when shopping for any diamond jewelry at Zales, you can barely find any information about the stone’s color, clarity, cut, and carat size.
Essentially, when you’re ring shopping at Zales, you choose one based on whether you like the ring’s look from looking at the photo. You can’t filter out your search whether you want a 2-carat emerald cut engagement ring or a 3-carat brilliant-cut diamond with excellent quality.
However, Zales has a design suite where you can custom create the engagement ring of your dreams based on diamond shape, quality, carat weight, and overall ring design. Still, the IGI certification won’t do your ring any good in terms of quality.
Do Zales Diamonds Have Good Quality?
You can still find Zales diamonds that are good, but the quality is often significantly lower than diamonds certified by the GIA.
The certifications of some of their diamonds are from the widely criticized IGI gem lab. So, if a diamond has good quality, it is still often considered poor or fair quality by industry standards because of the IGI certification it comes with. Still, Zales is a good diamond retailer to check out if you want a sparkly jewelry upgrade that will look good on any outfit without costing a fortune.
They have a range of fine jewelry and everyday basics. But always check out the product description before buying any Zales jewelry as they also have fashion jewelry in their diverse collection.
When it comes to the quality of their diamonds, Zales has never claimed to provide high-quality jewelry. The store has a disclaimer that some of its merchandise may not always look exactly like the one in the photo. So, while the product photo looks ultra-sparkly and flawless, you might not be getting the same quality in real life.
Who Is Behind Zales Diamonds?
Morris and Willian Zale are the brothers behind the first-ever Zales store in Wichita, Texas, in 1924.
The two brothers started a credit plan that allows average US customers to buy jewelry items, electronics, and appliances. It started the approach and standard that Zales stores sell its products to this day.
In 1957, the Zale brothers opened their first-ever Zales store inside a shopping mall. Their goal was to mass-market jewelry items around the US. Appealing to customers by selling as much diamond jewelry as possible for the lowest price is the beginner of the Zales story.
Our Zales Diamonds Review
Zales is not all negative, and the store markets its products to a different range of customers. Instead of offering diamond jewelry to those who want to make a significant diamond investment, Zales diamonds are mainly for those looking to buy a sparkly diamond ring without breaking the bank.
Shopping for diamond jewelry at Zales has a few perks.
Zales has a wide selection of diamond rings and settings.
Zales has a wide selection of diamond rings and different ring settings you can choose from. You can always go through the store’s collection to find the ring style that fits your personality or your outfit.
Convenient engagement ring shopping.
Diamond shopping at Zales is convenient as you can shop by jewelry stone material, style, metal color, and price range. There’s also a style group you can browse quickly, whether you are looking for bridal sets, three-stone rings, solitaire rings, classic rings, or halo rings.
Lifetime Diamond Commitment.
Buying Zales diamonds also gives you access to the store’s Lifetime Diamond Commitment so that you can enjoy the beauty of your jewelry for a lifetime. The diamond commitment is available for all diamond purchases within $200 or more.
The LDC includes perks like diamond breakage coverage, lifetime cleaning, and inspection, and guaranteed trade-in value for all diamond solitaires and bridal sets.
Create a one-of-a-kind engagement ring.
If you want to custom-create an engagement ring, you can do so at Zales. You can choose from the four available diamond shapes: round, princess, cushion, and oval-cut diamonds.
You can also customize the diamond carat weight between 0.25Ct to 2.0Ct and the diamond quality from good (I/I1), better (I/SI2), or best (I/VS2).
Other custom features include the ring setting style, primary stone, mounting style, ring shape, side setting, side stones, side stone length, metal type, and engraving.
Bottom Line
Zales is good if you are looking for a diverse collection of cheap diamond jewelry. The store is worth checking out if you want to purchase an elegant-looking sparkly engagement ring that won’t cost a fortune. Unfortunately, it might not be the best jewelry store to consider if you want to make a diamond investment.
