Resources

A Diamond Is a Diamond — Regardless of Where It Was Born

Pick up a lab grown diamond and a mined diamond of identical cut and carat weight. Place them side by side under a loupe. You will not be able to tell them apart — and neither will most jewellers without access to specialised spectroscopic equipment. That is not a marketing claim. It is a measurable, documented fact backed by the Gemological Institute of America, the Federal Trade Commission, and every major independent grading body in the world.

So what exactly is a lab grown diamond? It is a diamond — chemically, physically, and optically — produced in a controlled laboratory environment rather than extracted from the earth. Both lab grown and mined diamonds are made of pure carbon atoms arranged in a cubic crystal lattice structure, which means they share identical hardness (10 on the Mohs scale), the same refractive index of 2.42, and the same thermal conductivity. The only difference is origin: one took roughly 1 to 3 billion years to form deep within the earth’s mantle; the other takes a matter of weeks in a laboratory.

For first-time buyers in Hyderabad and across India, this distinction matters enormously — not because it changes what you’re wearing, but because it changes what you pay and how that stone was produced.

How Lab Grown Diamonds Are Actually Made

There are two methods used to grow diamonds in a laboratory, and understanding both helps you make a more informed purchase.

HPHT (High Pressure High Temperature) is the older of the two, first successfully demonstrated by General Electric in 1954. The process replicates the conditions found approximately 150 to 200 km beneath the earth’s surface, where temperatures reach around 1,300–1,600°C and pressures exceed 870,000 pounds per square inch. A small diamond seed is placed in a growth chamber alongside a carbon source — typically graphite — and a metal catalyst such as iron or nickel. As the chamber heats and pressurises, the carbon dissolves, migrates toward the cooler seed, and crystallises into diamond. The entire growth cycle takes anywhere from a few days to a couple of weeks.

CVD (Chemical Vapor Deposition) works on an entirely different principle. Developed in the 1980s and now the more widely used method for gem-quality stones, CVD builds diamonds atom by atom from a carbon-rich gas. A thin diamond seed is placed in a vacuum chamber, which is then filled with hydrocarbon gases — typically methane mixed with hydrogen — and heated to around 900–1,200°C. Microwave energy or lasers ionise the gas into a plasma state, causing carbon atoms to break free and deposit onto the seed in layers, gradually forming a diamond crystal. Because CVD does not require extreme pressure, it tends to allow finer control over the final stone and is well suited to producing the large, flat rough material used in popular cuts like round brilliants and emerald cuts.

Both methods produce stones with the exact same crystal structure, hardness, and brilliance as natural diamonds. A trained gemologist using advanced instruments can detect subtle differences — HPHT stones may contain trace metallic inclusions from the catalyst, while CVD stones occasionally show trace silicon — but neither variation affects the stone’s beauty, durability, or optical performance in any meaningful way.

Identical to Mined Diamonds: What the Science Actually Says

The question buyers most often ask is some version of: are lab grown diamonds real diamonds? The answer is unambiguous. Lab grown diamonds are composed of the same material, graded by the same criteria, and tested with the same instruments as mined diamonds. In 2018, the US Federal Trade Commission formally updated its definition of a diamond to include lab grown stones, recognising what scientists had long established.

Where lab grown and mined diamonds do differ — beyond origin — is in trace element signatures that only advanced spectroscopy can detect. A natural diamond’s nitrogen content might produce a slightly different UV fluorescence pattern, while a CVD diamond sometimes contains trace silicon. These are laboratory-detectable markers, not quality differences. They do not affect how the stone looks, how it wears, or how it performs under light.

Both types are graded using the same 4Cs framework: Cut, Colour, Clarity, and Carat weight. Cut determines how well the diamond interacts with light — it is the single biggest driver of brilliance. Colour is graded on a D-to-Z scale, where D is perfectly colourless. Clarity measures the presence and nature of internal inclusions or surface blemishes. Carat refers to the stone’s weight, with one carat equal to 0.2 grams.

For certification, two laboratories dominate the lab grown diamond market. IGI (International Gemological Institute) was among the first to specialise in lab grown diamond grading and is widely used by retailers globally — its reports detail the 4Cs, the growth method (CVD or HPHT), and a unique verifiable report number. GIA (Gemological Institute of America) applies the same rigorous standards to lab grown stones that it uses for natural diamonds, and its reports are considered a global benchmark. In India, SGL (Solitaire Gemmological Laboratories) is also commonly used and offers accessible verification. Any reputable lab grown diamond should come with a certificate from one of these bodies — without it, you have no independent proof of what you are actually buying.

The Price Difference — and What It Means for You

In 2026, lab grown diamonds typically retail for 70 to 85% less than mined diamonds of equivalent quality. A 1-carat natural diamond with high specifications costs roughly $5,200 to $6,800 in most markets, while a lab grown diamond of the same grade costs between $900 and $1,400. At larger carat weights, that gap becomes even more pronounced — a 2-carat mined stone with excellent specs can run $15,000 to $20,000, while the lab grown equivalent tends to fall in the $3,500 to $5,000 range.

The lower price does not reflect lower quality. It reflects the absence of mining infrastructure, the scalability of laboratory production, and the fact that labs can grow diamonds on demand rather than waiting on geological scarcity. The price gap has been widening steadily as production technology has improved and competition among growers has increased.

What this means practically: a first-time buyer who might have budgeted for a 0.75-carat mined diamond can often access a 1.5-carat lab grown stone of higher colour and clarity at the same price point. The savings can go toward a better cut grade, a more intricate setting, or a higher metal quality — choices that have a direct, visible impact on how the finished piece looks and feels.

One caveat worth noting: lab grown diamonds tend to hold less resale value than mined diamonds, because new stones can be grown on demand while mined supply is finite. If you are buying a diamond primarily as a financial asset, that distinction matters. If you are buying it to wear — for an engagement, an anniversary, or simply because you want a beautiful piece of jewellery — the resale consideration is probably less relevant than the quality and value you receive at the point of purchase.

What to Look for When Buying Your First Lab Grown Diamond

A few practical points that tend to get overlooked in the excitement of shopping:

Prioritise cut above all other factors. Cut is the only one of the 4Cs that is entirely within human control, and it has the greatest impact on how much a diamond sparkles. An Excellent or Ideal cut grade in a lower colour or clarity range will almost always look more brilliant than a poorly cut D/IF stone. For round brilliants, aim for Excellent cut, Excellent polish, and Excellent symmetry. For fancy shapes — ovals, cushions, emerald cuts — look for Very Good or better across those criteria.

Insist on a certificate from IGI, GIA, or SGL. The certificate should match the laser inscription on the stone’s girdle. Verify the report number directly on the issuing lab’s website before completing any purchase.

Understand what you are looking at in terms of colour and clarity. For most buyers, a colour grade of E, F, or G is visually indistinguishable from D once the stone is set in metal. Similarly, VS1 or VS2 clarity stones are eye-clean — any inclusions present are invisible without magnification. Choosing G/VS2 over D/IF can free up significant budget for a larger stone or better setting without any visible compromise.

Ask specifically whether the stone is CVD or HPHT grown. Both are legitimate and produce beautiful diamonds. Some buyers have a preference; most do not. But a seller who cannot or will not answer that question is a seller worth being cautious about.

At Elevé Diamonds, every piece in the collection is built on IGI-certified lab grown diamonds, with full transparency on growth method and grading. The brand draws on over eight decades of jewellery craftsmanship through its Tibarumal heritage, and its designs range from everyday-wear diamond earrings and diamond necklaces to bespoke engagement rings — all conflict-free and made without the environmental cost of mining. For buyers in Hyderabad approaching lab grown diamonds for the first time, that combination of certified quality and design depth is a reasonable place to start.