Report: Lab-Grown Stones Now in Majority of Newly Appraised Engagement Rings

For the first time, more than half of newly appraised engagement rings hold a lab-grown center stone, according to The BriteCo Jewelry, Diamond, & Watch Price Index 2026, the first edition of a new annual report from BriteCo, a jewelry and watch insurance provider.

The index draws on jewelry and watch appraisals recorded from January 2019 through June 2026, across all 50 states and Washington, D.C. Its 52 charts cover engagement rings, wedding bands, earrings, bracelets, necklaces, pendants, eternity and anniversary bands, fancy colored diamonds, colored gemstones, precious metals, and luxury watches, with state-by-state breakdowns, seasonal patterns, and projections through 2028. BriteCo says the index will be updated every year, and all of its charts and data are free for publishers to use.

Key Takeaways

• Lab-grown diamonds appeared in 51% of newly appraised engagement rings from January through June 2026, up from 6% in 2019.
• Engagement rings had a median sales price of $6,939 in 2025. The median appraised value, the insurance replacement value, was $9,676.
• Natural diamond engagement rings had a median sales price of $12,961 in 2025, versus $4,557 for lab-grown.
• The median engagement ring center stone doubled in size, from 1.01 carats in 2019 to 2.0 carats in 2025.
• Yellow gold overtook white gold as the most common jewelry metal in the index, 39% to 38% in 2025. White gold held 51% in 2019.

Two Prices for Every Piece of Jewelry

Every piece in the index carries two numbers, and the difference between them is the report’s foundation. Sales price is what buyers typically paid, estimated from thousands of sales recorded alongside appraisals.

Appraised value is the insurance replacement value, what it would cost to replace the piece at retail today. The appraised value is typically higher than the sales price to account for inflation, sales tax, or discounts provided at the time of sale. In 2025, the median engagement ring sales price was $6,939 while the median appraised value was $9,676.

“Every piece of jewelry has two prices. There is the price you paid at the counter, and there is the price it would cost to replace the piece today, which is what insurance is based on. Most people never see both numbers side by side. This index shows both, for every category, every year since 2019,” said Dustin Lemick, CEO of BriteCo.

The Lab-Grown Tipping Point

Lab-grown adoption climbed every year of the index, from 6% of engagement rings in 2019 to 47% in 2025 and 51% in the first half of 2026. Prices moved the opposite direction. The median lab-grown diamond sales price fell from $4,622 per carat in 2019 to $2,057 in 2025, while natural diamonds ran $8,428 per carat. The result is two markets at very different price levels: a median natural diamond engagement ring sold for $12,961 in 2025, a lab-grown ring for $4,557.

Bigger Stones, Different Gold

Falling lab-grown prices coincided with a doubling of the typical center stone, from 1.01 carats in 2019 to 2.0 carats in 2025. Metal preferences shifted just as sharply. White gold fell from 51% of jewelry pieces in 2019 to 38% in 2025, letting yellow gold take the lead at 39%, while platinum grew from 11% to 16%.

The BriteCo index reports lab-grown adoption and engagement ring prices for all 50 states and Washington, DC.

The full index, including every chart, the state-level breakdowns, downloadable data, and the complete methodology, is available at https://brite.co/research/jewelry-diamond-watch-price-index/.