Carat weight is pretty simple, as it is just how much the stone weighs, right. Some of our clients tell us they are not even sure it should be included in the 4C’s. One even bluntly told us that there are really only 3C’s, the fourth one is just marketing.
However, there is more to carat weight then expected, especially when it comes to the final price of the diamond.
Overview
There are a LOT of diamonds on this planet, but most of them are very small. There are 28.35 grams to the ounce and 5 carats to the gram, so there are about 141.75cts to the ounce. Forgive our use of simple weight calculation, but it helps to explain.
As if that was not a small enough unit of weight, we measure diamonds to the public in one hundredths of a carat. Within the trade we are now often quoted to the thousandth of a carat for a very high quality stone.
Why is Carat a Member of the 4C's?
All very interesting you say, but why is this a member of the 4C’s? Well, simple, it affects the price just as much as cut, color and clarity.
Since most diamonds are very small, the larger they are the more unusual they are, so the more they cost per carat. That does not sound too significant, until you look at the math.
For example, let’s say that a very fine diamond of ½ carat costs $4,000 per carat and the same quality of diamond at one carat costs $8,000 per carat. Well, since you are buying a ½ carat stone at $4,000 for a total price of $2,000 that means that the one carat stone that costs twice as much per carat actually costs Four times as much for the stone!
To make it even more interesting, there are price points at which there are significant price breaks. A stone in the .22ct to .28 ct size range costs less per carat than one in the .29 to .37ct range. There is very little visible difference, but huge price difference. In fact, a 1.00ct diamond costs approximately 20% more than a .99ct diamond of the same quality. By the way, you will rarely find a well cut diamond of .99ct, since it just costs the cutter too much in the way of lost profits than if he should cut the stone just a little more poorly to retain that magic 1.00ct size. But a .95ct diamond can be a tremendous bargain compared to a full carat if you are not insisting on holding out for a full carat. (Guys, be careful here, many ladies want to feel they are worth a full carat, do not get penny wise and pound foolish about her feelings!)
There are other price points that can offer you a very tremendous bargain if you are willing to go just under a certain size. .45ct. instead of .50ct., .65ct. instead of .75ct., a 1.35ct. instead of a 1.50ct., a 1.90ct. instead of a 2.00ct., these are some of the popular size breaks where you can save a lot of money, or spend it depending on your needs.
And that is why Carat Weight is one of the 4C’s.
