Budget Friendly Engagement and Wedding Rings
It’s proposal season and many future grooms were wondering how to pop the question without blowing their bank account (especially since the average engagement rings costs $4,225).
Debi Wexler, CEO of Whiteflash.com, is here to show you some recession-friendly engagement ring trends. After all, you’ll want to save that money for the Big Day.
Alternative Metals
- Platinum and gold are the go-to metals for wedding rings, but they come with a hefty price tag
- There are plenty of metals on the market that are still beautiful, elegant and less expensive
- Palladium is a growing trend that happens to have a similar look and feel to platinum, but can cost about 75% less
- If you’re more of a traditionalist, choose white gold over platinum. White gold costs 45% less than platinum
Simple Settings
- For the past couple of years there’s been a trend towards micro-pave diamond bands, diamond halos, etc., which can all add to the overall cost of a ring
- These days, some brides-to-be are opting for a more simple, subtle and chic setting
- Diamond Solitaires are less expensive than embellished options, like three-stone rings
- A simple, traditional prong setting or channel set band is also more cost-efficient than an elaborate tension or bezel setting
Double Duty
- Who says you have to have an engagement ring and a wedding band?
- One hot new trend is choosing a beautiful wide band with multiple rows of diamonds and making that your engagement ring and wedding band. Although the ring may cost more than a regular engagement ring, this double-duty ring can help you save more in the long run since you won’t need to buy a wedding band too
Buy Shy and Save
- Shop for diamonds that weigh just under certain weight thresholds. You won’t even notice the difference in size
- Buy a .90-carat diamond instead of a 1-carat diamond and save more than $1,000. Plus, the diameter of a 1-carat diamond is 6.5 millimeters, versus a .90-carat diamond’s 6.3 millimeters.
- A 2-carat diamond will cost approx. $19,000 to $20,000+, whereas a “shy” 1.90 diamond of the same quality will cost you $15,000 to $16,000. That’s at least $4,000 in savings!
Additional Money-Saving Tips
- Go for the wedding set upfront. You’ll spend much less if you buy a matching or coordinating ring/band set, as opposed to choosing individual rings. You’ll save even more if you buy a “trio” (engagement ring, and his/her band set)
- Deal with a merchant who offers a solid trade-up benefit on your feature diamond. This will allow you to upgrade to a larger stone in the future and keep you comfortably within budget today.