Comparing Costs: Custom Engagement Rings vs. Ready-Made Rings
If you're getting engaged soon, you may have already started looking at your options for engagement rings. One of the main choices you'll have to make when you buy an engagement ring is between a ready-made and a custom ring.
Many buyers believe that custom rings are inherently expensive and outside of the average person's budget, but this isn't necessarily true. Here's what you need to know about the pros and cons of each type of ring, as well as how their prices compare.
Ready-Made Rings
Pros: The major advantage of a ready-made ring is that you can try it on and see exactly how it looks before buying it. This takes most of the guesswork out of selecting an engagement ring. Because they don't involve as much detailed customization, ready-made rings are also available on shorter timeframes.
Cons: The biggest downside of a ready-made engagement ring is that you won't have the range of options that a custom ring will give you. While there's plenty of selection in the ready-made ring market, the design of the ring itself won’t be completely new or unique.
However, with that being said, ready-made rings can still be given a personal touch. You can get custom engravings done on any ring to add your own special touch, and ready-made rings can often be tweaked as well with small changes to fit your style and preferences.
Custom Engagement Rings
Pros: A custom engagement ring gives you almost complete control over the product you receive. From small, personalized touches to completely new designs, you can get just about anything you want in a custom ring.
Cons: Custom rings mean that the final product will take longer than a ready-made ring, which could ultimately drive up the price depending on how intricate your customizations are. If you’re in a time crunch, ordering a custom ring might not be in your best interest.
Do Custom Rings Really Cost More?
One of the most pervasive myths in the jewelry industry is that custom engagement rings necessarily cost more than ready-made ones.
In truth, the difference between the price of a custom engagement ring and a ready-made ring depends on the characteristics of the two specific rings.
In a completely original custom-made ring, the biggest cost difference comes from paying for the CAD (computer-aided design) software and creating a custom mold. But high-end, ready-made rings can still cost just as much as or even more than a custom option.
Several factors affect the price of a ring, whether custom or ready-made, including the size and cut of the central stone, the metal used for the band, the addition of peripheral stones, and the overall complexity of the design.
If you just have some minor alterations made to personalize an existing ring design, you likely won't have to pay too much extra to get exactly what you want. Having an extremely intricate design originally created, by contrast, will have a few additional costs and, depending on the materials used, may cost more than many ready-made rings.
Make Your Dreams Come True
David’s House of Diamonds is the home of many beautiful ready-made designs. If a custom design is what you’re after, fill out our online form with your preferences so we can help you create your perfect engagement ring.
No matter what your needs may be, David's House of Diamonds can help you get the ideal ring to make your engagement truly special.
