Here comes an age old question/debate… as the title suggests, how much did or would you spend on an engagement ring? Whether it be an amount you thought was appropriate and reasonable, or whether you copped some pressure from the Mrs etc.
Looking forward to hear some opinions or experiences :-)
As someone who works in the industry, what are your thoughts on lab diamonds?
What do you think Certified or uncertified Diamonds? I have been told Under 1ct go uncertified over 1ct go certified. Do you agree?
Whats the most expensive ring ?
3 months pay is the guide
lol i said the same thing and people negged me. i guess that's offensive to some….
That is tradition. Neg all they want. Not saying I like it… It is what it is.
https://www.whowhatwear.co.uk/how-much-to-spend-on-engagemen…
You can read for yourself…
See rule 1.
All the guys are clicking "less that 1000" and all the girls "More than 5000" which means there are more females on ozbargain than males.
Or perhaps OzBargainers are actually more well off than perceived. Or maybe they're on OzB to be a cheap arse because they've blown all their money on the ring.
I've always got a funny feeling if we're honest about our income then the distribution would sit somewhere between OCAU and Whirlpool's job and salary threads i.e. not low at all. Don't forget, bargain hunting/tightarsedness are just blood sport/traits for some.
I spent 21k . But about 10k minimum I would recommend (if you can afford it) .
Not worth getting yourself into alot of debt over though. Dont want to start marriage with money troubles.
That must be one big ass diamond.
Are you looking to buy or sell OP? If you are looking to buy then maybe we should set up a bulk purchase group for Melbourne on Ozbargain and shop around for good stones as a collective. If you are looking to sell then I would like to see some good deals for members:)
What do OZbargainers think? Would you pay a bit more to buy from an Australian Seller for a ring being sold through James Allen / Blue Nile? I don't know how warranties/disputes would work out with those guys since they are in another country. I would rather buy locally and pay a little more just to protect myself from defects. Opinions?
Haha as mentioned in my reply to another comment, I made this thread more so out of curiosity since I had been discussing this with a few mates at the time, amd opinions were very varied so I decided to take it to the polls and see what the OzB thinks. My time hasn't quite come yet (probably in 2-3 years) but yes I'd be looking to buy when the time comes.
Based on a few comments I've read there seems to be a few people who went down the "custom" route via a boutique jeweler, so they'd also make a good source for sourcing locally and potential bulk discounts.
$20 literally
Smart, AliExpress FTW
Just lie and say it’s worth more than it really is.
Agreed, they will only care for how its looks unless they a gold digger and shallow
No concept of engagement diamond rings or wedding bands in our family (22ct gold jewellery is what's normally expected). But hubby proposed with a Ceylon Sapphire ring that I absolutely love (it has a story behind it and means more as it shows a lot of thought went into it). Not sure how much it was. But he did give me a platinum diamond ring on the wedding which is lovely and was about $6000.
Personally I would have been happy with just the Sapphire. (or like someone suggested above, a watch!)
Gifts have to be according to the receiver. That's what makes it special. If they like a large sparkling diamond and you can afford it, so be it.
I really don't like the idea of spending a lot of money on a ring. I'd probably just grab one from Cashies, chuck it into a metal guy to get it looking new and use that. I wouldn't want to spend more than $400-$500.
For the wedding/ceremony itself, just a simple BBQ with friends is fine.
I bought my fiancé a diamond ring worth 20K
Id prob look around 15-20k
All the negs on the higher value rings tells me alot about the demographic of ozbargains users. In some circles $15k-$20k is considered standard. $4 would be laughed on. Im fairly confident this comment will get negged. I would start the bandwagon but i cant neg my own comment.
i got negged for suggesting 3 months salary :P
2-3 months salary seems to be the common idea, however theres no hard n fast. Its upto the individual really
I'd be interested to see the stats showing ring value vs length of relshp. I have my thoughts on what it would look like. In any case it's good for the economy.. or rather diamond sellers. Also not too sure if anyone's mentioned it here but check out how engagement diamond rings became the norm in some parts of the world through a massive advertising campaign in New York. It's fascinating viewing/reading.
I picked my engagement ring and it was a pretty inexpensive affair. There are a few reasons for this but the main ones are I have no real interest in jewellery and I am not able to wear it much because of my job. I picked one I really like and I still love it to this day. I am a geologist and know how arbitrary the value of gemstones are. I picked one I love that is not considered precious, but suits me just fine. That being said most of my friends have something in the $1000-$5000 range and the vast majority have a diamond of some sort.
If you need to drop your bank onto a pointless value inflated diamond to make your partner happy, then maybe you should look for a better partner.
My amazing lady was more than happy with a MOISSANITE ring, which for all intensive purposes is better than a diamond that is 10 times its price.
We took our change from $1000 and had a wonderful night out, no one knows the difference in the ring other than us, and we don't care.
Sure getting a ring is the done thing, but use the "other" 8k and go on an amazing holiday, or put it towards your house deposit.
Smart man (and lady) - You'll go the distance :)
My wife bought an 'engagement' ring after we got married lol - It was a $50 ring from ebay. You'd be surprised how many people stop and ask her about the ring. She tells people her husband is a high flyer lol.
Agree with everything you say. FYI it's "intents and purposes", not intensive purposes.
I love some pedantry on this particular phrase. It might be the most common phrase that people get incorrect.
"which for all intensive purposes is better than a diamond that is 10 times its price."
no it's not. It's lab grown. Completely different.
If your partner is happy with lab grown silicone, sure it's fine. But to say it's better than a diamond is absurd. It also looks different to a diamond
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DAQ5rfIwztw
The Moissanite shines like a disco ball and has an artificial look to it .
The reality of an engagement ring is in 6 months time no one will care about your ring.
And none of your friend's or family will know the difference from a good moissanite.
Less the 1k for a ring and the next years purchase of matching earrings.
If your partner has an issue with moissanite then imo you have other issues to deal with. 👍🏼
pretty sure your family and friends know they are just not saying anything. its easy to spot the difference and id never want to have to explain to someone its not a real diamond i went the cheapo route
More than $5000.. (profanity) hell some people are sheep.
5 figures. Ozbargainers are just a bunch of tight asses so not really a good demographic here shrugs
But I didn't get into debt for it as I had been saving for a while. Don't go into debt for a ring.
I went through this recently for an engagement ring for my partner. I bought a 7.5mm cushion cut highest quality moissanite in a trinity setting so that the main stone was flanked either side by man made sapphires. All in 14k white gold ring from Chinese alibaba store Tianyu Gems.
They made it exactly as the images I had sent them. A 7.5mm cushion cut moissanite is equivalent to a 1.5carat diamond in physical appearance. DEF color and flawless quality.
It looks amazing. SERIOUSLY amazing.
We've been recently shopping around for a wedding band to match it… I made her ring have a setting that has made it difficult to get a fitted wedding band. So we've gone to a lot of expensive custom jewellers, and they all oooo'd and aaahhh'd at the quality and size of the diamond. My missus loves that it cost less than 2k (that's what I told her, when it actually cost less than 600!) and she doesn't need to be constantly worried about accidentally doing something to it.
In hindsight I would have got 18k gold, and would have made the setting sit more in-line with so that a normal band would fit… and I would have bought a wedding band and eternity ring with moissanites (to fit the engagement ring) at the same time. Would have saved me the last 3 saturdays in going to various jewellers around the city….
Australian stores are going to make 2x rings with diamonds in 18k gold for $2k each. I could have the same 2x rings from Tianyu gems with moissanite stones for <$800 total.
Oh, and i Bought matching earrings at the same time as I bought the engagement ring.
cool story, bro
Funny how some people are so focussed on Diamonds.
I'm with you all the way.
I'd hate to have spend 10k on a ring, when your friend's and family look at it once and then its just a bit of bling.
yet the girl looks at it everyday for the rest of her life..
It looks the same for all reasonable purposes, you are drinking a shit version of the capitalist crazy juice if you think otherwise.
@KiwiInAust: and she still sees it every single day and other do too knowing its a cheapo ring for the rest of her life… good one
My partner and I got matching eternity rings, which we chose after looking around for a while, for less than $500 the pair on etsy.
I recommend avoiding diamonds, and not mentioning that it's for an engagement ring when buying.
Other than that, consider your partner's preferences and what they do all day. No point spending a fortune on ring they can't wear cause it gets in the way or might get damaged.
How much did I spend ? 0
Engagement is not a common practice in the culture I was born and raised. We dated, got to know each other well, got parent’s blessings and planned the wedding to make it official. No dramas.
Haha consider yourself lucky then! As long as you're both happy that's all that matters.
$1600 bridal set, she picked it out and was one we both really liked the look of.
The one I got was about $299 on sale from Michael Hill. No diamonds as we both hate the industry.
There is absolutely 0 reason to buy anything over $500.
this is the wrong forum to ask this question on. You're going to get 90% of people who eat rice and water their whole lives and have never spent a dollar in their life due to fear of spending. try a lifestyle or ring forum, you'll get better results
Offered to get the missus a Tiffany's ring to replace the cheap non-diamond one I used to propose when we were students, for our 10th wedding anniversary. Being an ozbargainer, I was going to use a mate's staff discount and /or company's discount.
She thought it was a waste of money and decided she wanted a 3rd kid instead.
Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night, wondering what my life would have been like if only I've bought that Tiffany's ring…
"Me-sa tired!"
More like me-sa not getting any…. Jk*
*In case the missus reading this.
Aliexpress ring ;) ,jokes aside they can look really good and cheap, its all about the looks, not the materials and cost
A ring is not a tool you're not going to being using it like a spanner set
Needed a under $100 option
Completely wrong demographic here to ask this question lol
Id be surpirsed if anyone admitted they got ripped buying the ring here
I'd say buying any kind of ring is anti bargain behavior but I don't care what other people do with their money.
I didn’t get a big ring, but got the best I could afford after factoring in the expenses of what the wedding would cost. She didn’t care what it was.
Brilliant cut, D color, IF, 1ct GIA XXX. Just the diamond on a platinum band
Synthetic diamonds at USD$800 per carat will be sold by de beers "lightbox" in the next few days. Quality is as of yet is unknown and they won't be selling rings but it will be quite cheap to buy and get them set by a jeweller
Let her pick a ring. Under 1000 and you have a win. More and it's up to you to determine worth. Good luck!
Bought her a 1.6 carat, G, VS1, cross heart, Round Diamond separately and do the halo platinum ring custom with it.
They said man has expensive toys, well, nothing beats a single stone that costs as much as a small sedan or more.
It was a nice surprise for her, but yes, I wouldnt want to marry anyone that would say yes only due to the ring :).
Should be under $30k, closer to low 20s.
My advice is don't spend more than $2-3k. In 2007 I spent a little over $9k while being on a salary of $35k, and took about 9 months of really difficult saving to get the money up to pay for it.
5 years later my wife took it off at a restaurant and must have left it there. We both felt like crap about it for a while, but ultimately the loss of the ring didn't hurt our relationship in any way.
Overpriced rings really are just shiny trinkets, going overboard on them will just slow down your progress on buying a home or having a safety net incase something bad happens.
why did you spend so much?
I made the mistake of showing her the ring. She didn't see the initial $2,500ish price but she knew enough about the diamond ratings that we bought the setting but hunted for a much higher spec diamond.
If the ring wasn't lost, I don't know if my post above would be the same, but when it disappeared I wished she wasn't involved in the decision.
Looking back it was OK, because for her it wasn't that the ring was worth X, just that I was prepared to put in the extra work for her. If I could have afforded the $9k ring in a month or two then that wouldn't have been right either.
I don't want to make you feel any worse, but the idea of you putting in months and months of work to get a little pretty rock that is made of something slightly different but looks identical to something for $300 is pretty insane.
You were brainwashed good.
Less than a thousand, since they will leave you eventually anyway.
Why bother getting married?
If a man's word to be loyal in the eyes of a woman is worth less than the promise of a diamond he may as well walk away.
$0
Spent a lot (won't list the actual amount) but it was the right ring for her. She adores it and I can afford it. Get what you can afford. Don't feel like you're bound by some price that you have to hit. Don't worry about the 3 months salary bullshit. Don't bankrupt yourself over a ring. She'll like a house a lot more than a rock. You can get something amazing no matter what your budget is. But hey if you can afford that bling bling, get her the bling bling.
Yeah for sure. I've always been a firm believer of spending within my means. In my case it's more so the cost that comes with what I have in mind (that she'll love and what I can comfortably afford), rather than basing purchases on the amount itself. So pretty much what you did.
use a cheezel or burger ring.
sheesh, why are you even on ozbargain?
;)
I bought my wife's diamond from Israel (no import duties.. came in a consulate bag hahah wtf) then had the ring made locally by a manufacturing jeweler. Cost us about $3700 for the rock (0.73 E VVS1 EX EX EX) and $1100 for the ring (think a tiffany 6 claw design but a thicker band).
Mind you, this was 10 years ago, no idea what it would retail for now
Nothing. We agreed to get married after being together for like 6 years. It was a no brainer - the opportunity cost and outright cost of an engagement ring, party etc was about the same as a holiday. Holiday won. Later we got bespoke wedding rings made from 18ct gold for about $1,500 each.
None, marriage is dumb.
I'm actually really surprised by how much people are saying they spend! I get that it's worth not skimping, but >$4000 seems like a lot to me? We wandered around a few jewellers, but then she fell in love with one in cash converters, so we only ended up spending $800. Plus another $500 on the wedding ring. Spent $50 on a gold wedding band for me, and we're all sorted! :)
I work in jewellery and I'd say a 1ct Round Brilliant is the most popular/common choice. Its about 10k give or take depending on quality on the diamond.
If you want a smaller diamond maybe go for a 0.5ct and get it for just under 4K? And maybe if you have more money along the line for an anniversary just upgrade the diamond for a 1ct and wear the 0.5ct as a pendant.
I recommend choosing a solid diamond as compared to a lot of little diamonds since they don't hold any value. If you cant afford a 1ct and would really like the look for one maybe go for a 0.8 and get a halo around it, the centre diamond would only be a couple of millimeters off on each side.