Off-The-Shelf Vs Custom Engagement Rings: Which Are Better?

When choosing an engagement ring, you can either buy a premade ring straight off the shelf or you can order a custom-made ring. Both types of ring have their pros and cons, and it depends largely on your personal preferences as to which one is better. This post lists 5 factors to consider and weighs up which type of ring is best in each category.

Personalization

Off-the-shelf rings are already designed for you. While you can sometimes modify the ring size, you are greatly limited as to how you can alter them. If you have a specific design in mind, it’s possible that you may be able to find the right ring by searching hard. However, more unique designs are going to be tricky to track down.

This is the main advantage of custom rings. You get to fully design everything including the stone shape, stone cut, stone carat, ring shape/setting and ring material. This makes it easier to cater to a specific design. Taking the time to personalize the ring can also make it more meaningful and one-of-a-kind. 

History

While there are many brand new rings that you can buy straight off the shelf, there is also the option of vintage rings. Such rings are ideal for those that like jewelry with history (and a good jeweler should be able to tell you the exact history of the ring and diamond). This guide at Veranda offers more tips for buying vintage jewelry. 

Custom engagement rings have to be brand new and therefore do not carry any history. That said, it is possible to craft custom rings using used diamonds – and such diamonds may still have an interesting story behind them.

Quality

Most engagement rings are made to a very high quality. However, if you’re shopping on a tight budget, you do have to be careful of picking up a ring that could be made more cheaply – and therefore less durable. 

When buying a custom ring, you have more guarantee that it’s going to be high quality. Warranties are more likely to be provided on custom rings. Being able to customize the ring also allows you to choose top quality materials, while the likes of Aura Diamonds also gives you full freedom to pick out the perfect stone.

Time

If you’re planning on proposing very soon, an off-the-shelf ring could be the best choice. You can walk into a shop, buy a ring and propose that day if you wanted to. It’s generally a safer option if you’ve already planned your proposal but haven’t yet bought a ring.

Custom rings take time to manufacture, and there may already be a queue of previous clients to get through. Most custom ring manufacturers have waiting times of a month at least. Some may be able to speed up manufacture if you’ve already set a date, but there’s no certainty they’ll be able to produce it by then if something goes wrong. All in all, always order a custom ring a couple months before any planned proposal to make sure you have the ring on time.

Cost

When it comes to cost, there is no easy answer as to which is more affordable. Both options can be expensive, however there are also ways to lower the price tag in both cases.

Off-the-shelf rings come at many different price levels. To find the best deals, you are generally better off shopping online, because online stores can offer better prices due to less overheads. Premade rings don’t come with any extra manufacturing fee. However, if they were bought in from elsewhere, a jeweler may still have to add some kind of markup. By taking the time to shop around, you may be able to track down cheap prices on the off-the-shelf rings. Used rings can often be particularly cheap provided that they’re not a valuable antique.

Your average custom ring will usually cost more than your average off-the-shelf ring. However, the very freedom to be able to customize a ring also allows you to choose features that will bring down the cost. This could include exploring alternative metals to gold and silver, as well as looking into ways of making the stone cheaper such as choosing a lower carat. 

Conclusion

Off-the-shelf rings are a better choice if you’re looking to make a quick purchase. You can also buy a ring with some history to it if this is something that appeals to you/your partner.

Custom rings are a better choice if you have a specific design in mind and want to give it some personal meaning. You can have a better control over the quality of the ring.