Lab-Grown Diamond Trends

When lab-grown diamonds first became widely available, the assumption was that people would use them to spend less. That is not what is happening. Most couples keep the budget they had in mind and spend the difference on the ring itself: a larger stone, a higher grade, a more personal setting.

Every trend below follows from that one change. When the centre stone costs a fraction of what it once did, choices that used to be a stretch become realistic, and the question shifts from what can we afford to what do we actually want.

For decades the round brilliant was the default. It still sparkles more than any other shape and it is still a beautiful choice, but elongated shapes are taking ground that would once have gone to round without a second thought.

Oval

The defining shape of the moment. It looks larger than a round of the same weight, lengthens the finger, and keeps much of the round’s brilliance.

Elongated cushion

Soft corners, a long outline and a slightly vintage character. It has the presence of an oval with more old-world romance.

Emerald cut

Long, clean step-cut facets that reward a stone of high clarity, which lab-grown makes far more accessible.

Pear and marquise

The most finger-lengthening shapes of all, and increasingly chosen for east-west and toi et moi designs.

Elongated shapes spread their weight over a longer surface, so they cover more of the finger per carat. With lab-grown, that extra presence comes without the jump in price it once carried. Our diamond shape guide covers every shape in detail.

Old mine and old European cuts, the hand-cut diamonds of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, are back in the conversation. Their chunky facets, high crowns and small tables give a softer, flickering light rather than the bright sparkle of a modern brilliant, and a sense of history no modern cut quite matches. Taylor Swift’s engagement in 2025, with an antique-style cushion diamond in yellow gold, put the look in front of millions.

A lab-grown diamond can be cut in an old mine style, but it can never be antique: a genuine old mine cut is, by definition, more than a century old, and good original examples are scarce because so many were recut into modern shapes. For most people the answer is a modern cushion or an old-mine-style lab-grown stone, with the vintage character carried by the setting: a bezel, a hand-engraved gallery, a slim band in warm yellow gold.

The colourless diamond is still the most popular choice by far. But a growing number of people are choosing stones with a gentle warmth, from a soft yellow tint through to champagne, for their individuality and their softer glow.

The key is the metal. A warm diamond in platinum can look slightly tinted. The same stone in yellow gold looks deliberate, as though the whole ring was designed around it, which it should be. That pairing sits naturally alongside the antique revival. Our gold vs platinum guide explains how metal colour reflects into a stone.

Natural pink, blue and intense yellow diamonds are among the rarest and most expensive gems on earth. Lab-grown fancy colour diamonds bring those colours within reach of an ordinary engagement ring budget for the first time, and we expect them to become noticeably more common.

One thing to know: the colour in many lab-grown fancy colour diamonds is produced or enhanced by treatment after the stone is grown. That is normal and stable, but it should always be disclosed, and the grading report should say so. Read it before you choose.

Colour and clarity grades that were once reserved for the very largest budgets, D to F colour and VVS clarity, are now common in lab-grown engagement rings. It is easy to see why: the step up costs far less than it does in a natural stone.

Our advice is the same as ever. The grade you cannot see is the grade you should question. A well-cut G VS2 diamond looks white and clean on the hand, and cut decides the sparkle far more than the last step of colour or clarity. If the higher grade gives you peace of mind and fits the budget, it is a fine choice. Just make sure the cut came first. Our guide to the 4Cs explains how the grades trade against each other.

With the stone costing less, more of the budget is going into making the ring personal. The design details we expect to see more of in 2027:

East-west settings

An oval, emerald or marquise turned sideways across the finger. Subtle, unexpected and low on the hand.

Bezels and rubovers

A clean rim of metal around the stone, modern and protective, and a natural partner for antique-style cuts.

Chunkier bands

Wider, more sculptural bands that give the ring weight and presence, moving away from the very fine bands of recent years.

Hidden halos

A ring of small diamonds beneath the centre stone, seen only from the side. A detail for the wearer.

Toi et moi

Two stones on one band, often in two different shapes, or a diamond beside a coloured stone.

Our engagement ring settings guide explains each of these in full.

More people now come to a first consultation with a folder of saved images, screenshots and AI-generated sketches. We welcome all of it. A reference shows what someone is drawn to far faster than words can.

What a picture cannot tell you is whether a ring can be made, worn every day and kept safe for decades. That is the designer’s job: to keep what you love about the image and turn it into a ring that works on a real hand. We design and we make every ring for one person, so a reference is a starting point rather than a template.

Trends are useful for one thing: showing you what is possible. They are a poor guide to what you will still love in thirty years. The most lasting engagement rings are rarely the most fashionable ones. They are the ones designed around a person.

So take what resonates from this list and leave the rest. If you are unsure, the oldest advice still holds: a well-cut stone, a setting built for the life it will lead, and a design that looks like the person wearing it.