Is a 9 Carat Diamond Too Big?
9 carat diamonds are extremely rare and expensive.
A quality 9 carat stone - H colour, eye-clean with VSI clarity, excellent cut - will set you back ±$200,000. A premium diamond of the same weight can run you $1,000,000 or more.
As cool as “9 carats” sounds, we actually don’t recommend you get one. They’re uncomfortable to wear, heavy on the hand, and unattractive by most measures. We rarely see them and prefer not to work with them.
Let’s dive into some things you may be curious about…
How big is 9 carats?
A 9 carat round brilliant cut diamond is about 13.20mm in diameter and has a face area of 154mm.
A 9 carat diamond is a massive rock that’s very noticeable. It’s about 1.8 grams, so that’s quite heavy. The stone is about the size of a 19th century 3-cent coin, meaning it’ll rub against the finger, stop you from closing your hand fully and make it difficult to hold objects. Because it’s so heavy it’ll keep spinning around your finger. The stone will definitely catch on your hair, scratch your clothes and even the paint on your car or other painted house objects. Getting dressed will be very problematic, and wearing gloves in the cold-impossible. A little shape and size guide can help you understand better.
Colour Me Surprised
9 carat diamonds are huge. This means any colouration is clearly visible. There are two ways to go about this. One is to go for a fancy-colored diamond…The other is to go for a high colour grade.
All diamonds are graded from D to Z, with D being the highest colour grade. With 9 carats, you can really go down a couple of grades and it wouldn’t make any difference. Anything eye-clear is just fine - A, G or H colours. 9 carat stones are beautiful, there’s no doubt about that, but as the colouration on them is super easy to see, it’s almost impossible to find a good stone. You’re very unlikely to find a good mix of colour and this kind of size.
Clarity
Absolutely clear diamonds are very hard to find and so are worth huge amounts of money. How clear and brilliant the diamond appears depends on the clarity. Low-grade diamonds will have flaws that are visible without a magnifying glass.
With 9 carat diamonds, imperfections are more visible than with 3 or 5 carat diamonds. VVS1 or VVS2 grades look clean to the eye and people that buy 9 carat diamonds don’t really go for the FL grade. Actually, it’s very hard to win with such a large stone. It’s either overly expensive, or makes the flaws even more obvious and you don’t even need equipment to see that. With 3 to 5 carat stones, imperfections don’t “scream” so much.
Shape and Cut
When it comes to 9 carat diamonds, different shapes vary in price and may even appear more sparkly than others. Why is that? Certain diamond shapes require higher skill to cut and so more of the raw diamond may be lost than with other shapes. That is why the round diamond is more expensive than a cushion shape, because more of the diamond is cut off in the first case.
Let’s consider the price of a 9 carat diamond of these grades: Colour H, Clarity VVS2, Cut EX, lab: GIA
| Round | $410,000 |
| Princess | $370,000 |
| Heart | $250,000 |
| Pear | $230,000 |
| Asscher | $220,000 |
| Oval | $150,000 |
| Cushion | $150,000 |
| Radiant | $140,000 |
| Marquise | $115,000 |
Have a look at Jennifer Aniston’s gorgeous radiant-cut ring. Though it’s cheaper than the round or princess cut, it looks larger and flashier.
Where to get a 9 carat diamond?
Though we do not generally stock 9 carat diamonds, we can find them for you at Keyzar Jewelry. You can also book an appointment at our New York location, where you can see and discuss all your options.
Having a diamond this expensive always keeps you worried about it being lost, stolen or scratched. At “Keyzar” we can help appraise your diamond.
Is a 9-carat diamond worth it?
All stones up to 5 carat diamonds that we offer at “Keyzar,” come in all shapes and cuts, and are much more practical and comfortable to wear even if you lead a very active lifestyle. They’re lighter and more compact, so they are less likely to attract thieves than larger rings. Smaller diamonds also don’t catch on your hair and clothes and you don’t even realise you’re wearing them. Because they’re lighter, they don’t spin around your finger. You can still wear gloves and get dressed without taking off your ring. A diamond up to 5 carats is large enough to be glamorous and eye-catching. You don’t need to aim for “the more carats the better”. 3 or 5 carat stones have great capacity for sparkle, brilliance and fire.
So you’ve decided to go for 9 carats anyway. What now?
Play with the setting
We recommend a J colour for a platinum or white gold setting ring and a K colour for a gold setting ring with SI2 clarity. Darker metals like gold and rose gold make lower colour grade diamonds appear brighter and clearer, while white gold and platinum really do the trick for high quality diamonds that shine even brighter in this setting. With 9 carats you really need to pick the perfect setting, because any flaws are easily seen.
Go for certified only
An Excellent or Ideal cut is always best and remember to always buy GIA or AGS lab certified diamonds. This way you know the price isn’t inflated by false grades, which are so important, when it comes to 9 carats.
Eye-clear is good enough
If you can’t see the inclusions without special equipment then you’re good to go. You can save some money by going for VS1 and VS2 clarity grade diamonds and nobody will be able to tell the difference.
With 9 carat diamonds you can go down a few grades when it comes to colour and clarity and go for a cut that would make the same weight diamond look even bigger, just like Jennifer and Amal have done.
Same weight, bigger size?
Make the most of your 9 carats! If you really want to be the centre of attention, remember that going for a pear or oval shape will make the ring seem even bigger, without increasing its weight.
Shop online
Finally, shopping online is the perfect option. At “Keyzar” we will guide you through all of your options and help you get the best value for your money.
A 9 carat diamond is going to attract attention wherever it goes. Most people have never seen a diamond of this size except for on TV and social media. The size, though striking, is the main drawback of a 9 carat stone. It’s VERY hard to find a high quality stone that won’t give away all of its flaws and if you do end up finding one, it’s going to be very expensive. Is it possible to find a reasonable mix of price and quality?
Let’s get back to reality though… People mostly buy 3 or 5 carat diamonds that look more modest than 9 carat stones, but are still a high-class luxury item. It’s the most common carat weight you’ll see in real life and is a great investment when picked out correctly, which we can help you do at “Keyzar.” These stones have great capacity for brilliance, sparkle and fire. The price is much more down to earth and higher quality grades are much easier to find. You’d still feel like a superstar without scratching your clothes and constantly having to take your ring off because of how heavy and uncomfortable it is. The larger the better is not always true!
