The 4 C's of Diamonds: Carat, Cut, Color & Clarity

The 4 C's are the major visual attributes of a diamond. They include Carat, Cut, Color and Clarity. These 4 characteristics are graded and categorized to identify the size and quality of the diamond. They also help is differentiating between similar diamonds and establishing the diamond's value and price.The grading scales for the 4 C's are established by the Gemological Institute of America or GIA. The standardized grading scale practices allow consumers and gemologists to accurately identify diamonds. Once you've mastered the 4 C's you'll be ready to effectively select a diamond that works within your price range and maximize the quality and size factors within that price. This guide will effectively educated you on the basics so you know what to look for and how to evaluate a diamond and its quality/value.

Carat: The Most Visual C - Size

Diamond carat is its weight and reflects the diamond’s size. The larger the diamond, the rarer and more valuable it becomes. Carat is the most visible C. Not to be confused with karat (a measure of gold purity), a 1.00 carat or ct diamond weighs 0.20 grams. The size of a diamond is measured in millimeters by length and width or in other words the diameter of the diamond. It typically takes about 250 tons of rock mining to produce just 1.00ct of diamond. That is why diamonds are rare and expensive.

Diamonds within each carat range have average millimeter sizes so you can approximate their visual size. Although each diamond is unique, these millimeter measurements are typically the norm, especially since diamonds today are cut with machines to ensure precision. To truly understand the diamond’s size, evaluate the measurements. Well cut Round diamonds have less depth than well cut fancy shaped diamonds (diamonds other than Round).

carat size chart with round diamonds showing the millimeter size of each popular diamond size Shop by Cut

Diamond pricing increases exponentially, not linearly, as diamond carat weight increases. Once a diamond hits it’s critical weight, the price bumps up. The critical weights are: 0.30ct, 0.40ct, 0.50ct, 0.70ct, 0.90ct 1.00ct, 1.50ct, 2.00ct, 3.00ct, 4.00ct, 5.00ct, 10.00ct. Diamond cutters will do everything they can to keep the diamond weight at or above each critical weight.

The average diamond carat weight is 0.90ct. Consumers prefer Carat above the other C’s of diamonds because carat is the most visual C. When pricing diamonds, think about carat on one side and the other 3 C’s on the other side. In order to fit your diamond budget, as you increase carat, you may need to reduce the other C’s. Vice versa, if you increase the other C’s, you may need to decrease carat. See our Diamond Carat Guide for more in depth information.

Cut: The Diamond's Sparkle








Shop by Cut

Color: Diamond's Shade or Tint


A diamond's color is the soft tint of shade of yellow/brown that is seen inside the diamond. All diamonds on the GIA D through Z scale are considered white although on the lower end they can have a tinge of yellow color. Color is a natural element in diamonds. The more yellow/brown the tint of color, the less the sparkle of the diamond because light performance/reflection is reduced. Color is essentially a visual distraction that affects sparkle. The grade is a representation of how much that color shade can be seen. Diamond color is grading by evaluating the body color of the diamond on a pure white background, face down. From face up, color is harder to identify.

the GIA color grading scale from D - Z showing diamonds with their color shading Shop By Color

Clarity: The Diamond's Unique Imperfections

During the diamond growth process, microscopic impurities or imperfections become present within the diamond. These imperfections are known as diamond inclusions. Inclusions are extremely common within diamonds and are essentially birthmarks that give every diamond uniqueness. The inclusions cummulatively make up the diamond's clarity. This clarity is measured by gemologists and graded on a scale. Diamonds range in clarity from FL - I3. Inclusions are examined at 10x magnification. See our Diamond Color Guide for more in depth information.

10x zoom magnified diamond example, typical for diamond clarity grading
10x zoom
10x zoom with I1 clarity inclusions
10x zoom with SI2 clarity inclusions
10x zoom with SI1 clarity inclusions
10x zoom with VS2 clarity inclusions
10x zoom with VS1 clarity inclusions
10x zoom with VVS2 clarity inclusions
10x zoom with VVS1 clarity inclusions
10x zoom with IF clarity inclusions
10x zoom with FL clarity inclusions

When evaluating the 4C's, clarity is the third most important characteristic because most imperfections cannot be seen unless under at least 10 times magnification. ( Cut is the most important 4C to consider). To maximize your budget, consider an SI quality diamond, knowing that it may have very slight inclusions visible to the naked eye if the stone is examined very closely. See our Diamond Clarity Guide for more in depth information.

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