Natural Diamond Prices Fall in August 2023

It was just reported today in our industry that the decline in the wholesale natural diamond prices were intensifying due to high inventories of diamond dealers.  One carat natural diamond prices are down 4.7% in August and half carat diamonds down 8.6%, which is are record monthly drop.

According to industry price indexes, the average wholesale price per carat of all diamonds in their database was $11,081.29 in July 2023, down from $11,235.61 a month ago. This means that the diamond prices moved lower by an average of 1.4% in July 2023. One of the factors that may have influenced this trend is the increasing popularity of lab-grown diamonds, which are cheaper and some people feel are more environmentally friendly than natural diamonds. Lab-grown diamonds have the same physical and chemical properties as natural diamonds, but they are created in a laboratory instead of being mined. The retail price of a 3-carat lab-grown diamond has dropped by more than half between Q1 2021($20,565) and Q1 2023 ($9,305)2. Some experts predict that the demand for lab-grown diamonds will continue to grow in the future, especially among younger consumers who value sustainability and social responsibility. However, some people still prefer natural diamonds for their rarity. We don’t know what the future holds, but if past trends continue, the prices for natural diamonds will continue to fall as more young couples buy lab-grown diamonds.  

For a link to the graph and press release by Rapaport, click here