Lab Diamond Price Index 2026: The Bigger the Piece, the Cheaper the Carat
We divided the price of every white lab grown piece in the Draco catalogue by its diamond weight. The median carat costs CAD 672. Size, not stone, decides the rest.
Draco Diamond publishes this index from its own live catalogue, read October 13, 2026, in Canadian dollars at the 10K gold base. Market figures are cited below. Earlier editions carried market ranges and a quarterly history that could not be traced to a source; they are withdrawn.
A lab grown carat at Draco costs CAD 672, at the median
Across 133 Draco pieces, the median carat of lab grown diamond costs CAD 672 once it is set in 10K gold. Half the catalogue sits between CAD 555 and CAD 994 per carat. The rest sits at the extremes, and size decides which.
The method is simple enough to check. Take the live price of every white lab grown piece, divide it by the total carat weight stated in its title, and take the middle value.1 No market estimates go into it.
This is the first edition built entirely from the live catalogue. It replaces earlier editions, whose market ranges and quarterly history could not be traced to a source, so none of those figures are carried forward.
The lab diamond price index is published by Draco Diamond and read on October 13, 2026. Every figure below can be rebuilt from the prices on the site that day.
Size is the biggest driver of price per carat
The bigger the piece, the cheaper the carat. Pieces of five carats and up cost a median CAD 540 per carat, while pieces under half a carat cost CAD 4,850, about nine times more.
Median price per carat by size of piece
Draco catalogue, 133 white lab grown pieces, 10K gold base, Canadian dollars, October 13, 2026.
Source: Draco Diamond catalogue. Price divided by total diamond weight, median of each band.
Every piece carries a floor of metal and work. A band or a pendant needs gold and a setter's time whether it holds a tenth of a carat or ten carats. Spread that floor over more diamond and each carat gets cheaper.
The diamonds themselves barely change price with size. At wholesale, a two carat stone cost only about 6 percent more per carat than a one carat stone in mid 2026.3 So almost all of the size effect in finished jewellery comes from the setting, not the stone.
Which category has the cheapest carat?
Drop and hoop earrings and eternity rings carry the cheapest carats, at medians of CAD 520 and CAD 603. Rings carry the dearest, at CAD 944, because a ring concentrates metal and labour around relatively little diamond.
| Category | Pieces | Median per carat |
|---|---|---|
| Drop and hoop earrings | 7 | CAD 520 |
| Eternity rings | 7 | CAD 603 |
| Tennis bracelets | 18 | CAD 612 |
| Bridal sets | 4 | CAD 617 |
| Stud earrings | 8 | CAD 625 |
| Pendants | 18 | CAD 670 |
| Necklaces | 8 | CAD 682 |
| Engagement rings | 22 | CAD 880 |
| Rings | 33 | CAD 944 |
Tennis bracelets sit near the bottom at a median of CAD 612. Their stones are small and many, so the clasp and the links are shared across a lot of diamond.
Engagement rings sit near the top at CAD 880. A centre stone and a band carry their own metal and work, and the diamond weight is usually lower than in a bracelet or a set.
Bridal sets sit at a median of CAD 617, close to the tennis bracelets, because most Draco sets carry five carats of diamond across the ring and the band together.
The two cheapest carats in the catalogue are both tennis bracelets: The Clover at CAD 240 per carat and the 31.87 carat emerald cut tennis bracelet at CAD 246.1
Below half a carat, you are mostly buying gold
In the smallest pieces, the diamond is the minor cost. A 0.12 carat stackable band costs CAD 901, which works out to CAD 7,508 per carat. A 0.20 carat Greek key pendant works out to CAD 6,005 per carat.
| Piece | Weight and price | Per carat |
|---|---|---|
| The Clover tennis bracelet | 24.54 ct, CAD 5,899 | CAD 240 |
| Emerald cut tennis bracelet | 31.87 ct, CAD 7,825 | CAD 246 |
| GOAT ring | 15.05 ct, CAD 4,488 | CAD 298 |
| Greek key pendant | 0.20 ct, CAD 1,201 | CAD 6,005 |
| Stackable band | 0.12 ct, CAD 901 | CAD 7,508 |
| Curved floral marquise ring | 0.12 ct, CAD 949 | CAD 7,908 |
Nothing is wrong with that. A fine band or a small pendant is a design piece, and its price is the gold and the work of making it. It simply should not be compared per carat with a tennis bracelet.
The same logic runs the other way. The 15.05 carat GOAT ring costs CAD 4,488, about CAD 298 per carat, because a large diamond weight absorbs the metal and the work.
"Under half a carat, a carat costs 9 times what it does in a piece of 5 carats or more. The gold and the hands are the price, not the stone."
Garrett McMartin, Founder, Draco Diamond
How Draco's carat compares with the market
A median Draco carat costs about US$473 set in 10K gold, at the Bank of Canada rate of October 13, 2026. The average loose one carat lab grown stone lists at $508 at retail, with no metal at all.
The comparison needs one caution. Most of the index is multi stone pieces, whose small stones cost less per carat than one large stone. The fairer match is the ring medians: CAD 880 for engagement rings and CAD 944 for rings, or about US$619 and US$664.45
At the other end, wholesale sets the floor. A one carat D VVS lab grown diamond traded for $87 per carat in the third quarter of 2026, and high grade loose stones list at $800 to $900 per carat at retail.23
For a buyer the practical reading is simple. If a quote for a ring sits far above CAD 944 per carat at a similar weight and grade, ask what the difference pays for.
What is in the index, and what is not?
The index covers 133 white lab grown pieces with a stated carat weight, priced at the 10K gold base on October 13, 2026. It leaves out 22 fancy colour and gemstone pieces, 4 pieces on sale and 3 pieces with no stated weight.
Carat weight is the total weight stated in each listing. Where a listing states both a centre stone and a total, the total is used. Price per carat is the listed price divided by that total, rounded to the dollar. Prices are in Canadian dollars throughout, with US dollar conversions marked as such.
Weights come from the listing titles, which state total carat weight. Stone counts and gold weights are not part of the index. Earrings follow their own metal scale: 14K adds 18 percent to the base and platinum 35 percent.
Fancy colour pieces are excluded because their stones are priced on a different basis. Sale prices are excluded because a temporary discount would distort the median. Both groups stay in the catalogue; they are simply outside this index.
The index will be rebuilt each quarter from the live catalogue, so the median can be tracked over time from this edition forward.
How to use a lab diamond price index when you buy
Use a price index to check a quote, not to pick a piece. Compare inside one category, divide by the total weight, separate the metal, check the grade and note the date.
A ring and a tennis bracelet are different products. Compare a quote with the median for its own category and its own size band, not with the catalogue as a whole.
Use the total carat weight of every diamond in the piece, not just the centre stone. That is how the index is built, and it is the only way two quotes line up.
The index uses the 10K gold base. On Draco rings and bracelets, 14K gold adds 18 percent and platinum 45 percent, so adjust before you compare.
Two pieces at the same price per carat can carry different colour and clarity. Read the IGI report before you treat a low figure as a bargain.
This index was read on October 13, 2026. Wholesale prices rose about 2 percent in the third quarter, so an older figure may already be out of date.
Every Draco piece carries 30 day returns, the Lifetime Authenticity Guarantee, free resizing, and free insured worldwide shipping to 25 markets, delivered duty paid with nothing collected at the door, and signature on delivery. Each piece is IGI certified and ships with its report, which can be provided on request before purchase and verified free at IGI.org.
Browse tennis bracelets, earrings and rings, or price a commission at create your piece.
The index, answered
What is the average price per carat of lab grown diamond jewellery?
At Draco the median is CAD 672 per carat of diamond weight, across 133 white lab grown pieces set in 10K gold on October 13, 2026. Half the pieces fall between CAD 555 and CAD 994 per carat.
Why do small diamond pieces cost more per carat?
Because the metal and the work cost about the same at any diamond weight. In the Draco index, pieces under half a carat cost a median CAD 4,850 per carat and pieces of five carats and up cost CAD 540, about nine times less.
Which lab grown diamond jewellery has the lowest price per carat?
Tennis bracelets, drop and hoop earrings and eternity rings. The cheapest carat in the Draco catalogue is The Clover tennis bracelet, 24.54 carats for CAD 5,899, about CAD 240 per carat.
How does Draco's price per carat compare with loose diamond prices?
The median Draco carat, set in 10K gold, is about US$473 at the Bank of Canada rate of October 13, 2026. The average loose one carat lab grown stone lists at $508 at retail, per StoneAlgo. Ring medians, the fairer comparison, run about US$619 to US$664.
How is the Draco lab diamond price index calculated?
Each white lab grown piece's live price at the 10K gold base is divided by its stated total carat weight, and the median is taken. Fancy colour pieces, pieces on sale and pieces without a stated weight are excluded.
How often is the index updated?
Each quarter, from the live catalogue. This edition was read on October 13, 2026 and is the first built entirely from live prices.
References
- Draco Diamond, Draco Diamond catalogue, live prices, 133 white lab grown pieces, October 13, 2026.
- Edahn Golan Diamond Research, Was the Bottom Reached? Lab-Grown Wholesale Prices Rise in Q3 2026, October 7, 2026.
- Edahn Golan Diamond Research, Lab-Grown Diamond Statistics: Background, Trends, Prices (updated August 2026), accessed October 13, 2026.
- StoneAlgo, Lab grown diamond price indexes, 1, 2, 3 and 5 carat, accessed October 13, 2026.
- Bank of Canada, Daily exchange rates, US dollar to Canadian dollar, October 13, 2026.
Send us a comparable band and we will beat it almost every time
Same IGI certified specification, direct pricing, about half the listed price of Blue Nile and Brilliant Earth on bridal sets (55 percent below at the median, October 2026). Founder reviewed, no obligation, a quote back in one to three business days. Every Draco band is IGI certified, E to F colour, VS2 and better, with 30 day returns, a Lifetime Authenticity Guarantee, free resizing, free insured worldwide shipping to 25 markets, and signature on delivery.
