How Much to Spend on an Engagement Ring 
Generally, when buying an engagement ring, you should buy the very best ring you can without hurting yourself.  This is something you will only buy once in your life, but it will be on her finger until it’s unrecognizably old and wrinkly; the story of the ring will get told to maybe hundreds of people; one of your children or someone else in your family will inherit it.  It's a worthy investment.

The DeBeers group (biggest diamond company in the world) has suggested that the appropriate amount to spend on an engagement ring is equal to 1 month's salary.  The industry in general has snapped up this idea.  But of course, every situation is unique.

Once you know your budget, you should understand what that amount of money can buy and set your expectations accordingly.  Be prepared to make decisions about whether you’d rather have something “bigger” or something smaller “of higher quality.” Another choice may be whether you’d rather have a lesser grade very precious stone or a high grade semi precious stone.  The pages of this website on individual gemstones will give you a sense of the price range to expect for jewelry made of a particular gemstone.

 

(For an explanation of diamond grading, see Diamonds)

Your budget gives you some parameters in which to look.  So once you know this you might want to figure out what kind of engagement ring she might like or where the best place to buy an engagement ring might be...

Still have a question? Ask it on our gemstone forum