Lab grown and natural diamonds are both real diamonds, and the choice between them is one of the first any diamond buyer faces. This guide explains what actually separates them, how they compare on price in New Zealand, how each holds up over time, and where they sit on ethics, so you can choose with the full picture.
Lab grown and natural diamonds are both real diamonds, identical to look at and identical in what they are made of. The only real difference is where they came from: one is grown in a lab in a matter of weeks, the other formed in the earth over a very long time. Lab grown costs far less for the same size and quality, which is why it has become so popular, while natural carries the rarity and history of a mined stone.
Are lab grown diamonds real diamonds?
Yes. A lab grown diamond is a real diamond, not an imitation. It has the same carbon crystal structure as a mined diamond, the same hardness, the same brilliance and the same fire, and it is graded on exactly the same 4Cs by the same laboratories. Placed next to a natural diamond, it is a diamond in every sense that matters to the person wearing it.
We call these cultured diamonds, in the same way a cultured pearl is a real pearl that had a helping hand to begin. The word people search for is "lab grown", so that is what we use here, but the idea is the same: a genuine diamond, grown rather than mined. Both are offered at Noble, and both are ethically sourced.
Left to right: a lab-grown CVD rough, a lab-grown HPHT rough, and a natural diamond rough, all shown before cutting and polishing.
How lab grown diamonds are made
Lab grown diamonds are made by recreating the conditions that form a diamond in the earth, only faster and above ground. There are two methods. High Pressure High Temperature, or HPHT, squeezes and heats carbon much as the earth does deep underground. Chemical Vapour Deposition, or CVD, builds a diamond up atom by atom from a carbon rich gas. Both start from a tiny diamond seed and grow a full crystal in a matter of weeks.
A natural diamond forms the same way in principle, carbon under heat and pressure, but over a vastly longer time and far below the surface, before being mined and cut. The end result of both paths is the same material. What you are really choosing between is time and origin, not quality.
Lab grown is not the same as a diamond simulant
This is the point most worth understanding, because it is where the confusion sits. A lab grown diamond is a real diamond. A diamond simulant, like cubic zirconia or moissanite, only looks like one. Simulants are different materials altogether, and while they can sparkle convincingly at first, they behave differently over time and can be told apart quite easily.
Cubic zirconia is much softer than diamond, so it scratches and clouds with everyday wear and tends to look tired within a few years. Moissanite is harder and hard wearing, but it throws noticeably more rainbow flash than a diamond, which some people love and others find gives it away. Neither is graded as a diamond by the GIA or IGI, because neither is one.
| Stone | What it is | |
|---|---|---|
 |
Natural diamond | A real diamond formed in the earth. Hardest material used in jewellery, lasts for generations. |
 |
Lab grown diamond | A real diamond grown in a lab. Identical hardness, brilliance and make-up. Graded on the same 4Cs. |
 |
Moissanite | A different material that resembles diamond. Very hard, but with more rainbow flash. Not a diamond. |
 |
Cubic zirconia | A soft, inexpensive imitation. Scratches and clouds over time. Not a diamond. |
One more thing follows from this. Because a lab grown diamond is genuinely a diamond, no one can tell it apart from a natural one by eye, not even a jeweller with a loupe. It takes specialised laboratory equipment to read the tiny differences in how each one grew. That is exactly why a grading report from the GIA or IGI matters, and it is worth reading our guide to diamond certification to understand which is which.
How much cheaper are lab grown diamonds?
Lab grown diamonds cost far less than natural ones of the same size and quality, usually somewhere between half and a fifth of the price. In New Zealand, a one carat lab grown diamond of a good colour and clarity commonly falls somewhere around $1,000 to $3,500, where a comparable natural diamond often sits closer to $5,000 to $9,000. Exact prices move with the 4Cs and the day, so treat these as a guide rather than a quote, and note that diamond prices in New Zealand generally run a little above the United States because of import costs, GST and the size of the market.
The reason is supply. As the technology matured, a great deal more lab grown diamond came onto the market, and prices fell accordingly. For a buyer, the practical upshot is simple and appealing: the same budget buys a noticeably larger or higher grade stone if you choose lab grown, which is why so many people now do.
How each holds its value over time
Natural diamonds have a longer track record of holding their value, helped by their scarcity, and a mined diamond has historically kept a meaningful share of its worth. Lab grown diamonds are newer and far more plentiful, so as a category they tend to hold less of their original price, and that is worth knowing rather than glossing over.
For most people, though, this matters less than it first sounds. A diamond is nearly always bought to be worn and kept, or handed on, rather than sold again, so the day to day value is the joy of wearing it. If a piece is specifically meant as an heirloom or a store of value, that leans towards natural. If the goal is the most beautiful diamond for what you want to spend, lab grown makes a very strong case. Neither is the wrong answer.
Are lab grown diamonds more ethical?
Lab grown diamonds have a genuine ethical appeal, with a couple of honest caveats. Because they are grown rather than dug, they avoid the land disturbance and water use that mining can involve, and they carry no risk of funding conflict, which removes the hardest thing to prove about any mined stone: its full history. That is a real and reassuring advantage.
The caveats are fair to mention. Growing a diamond uses energy, and how clean that footprint is depends on how the facility is powered, so a lab grown diamond is at its best on renewable energy. And responsible, well run mining supports the livelihoods of many communities, so choosing mined is not an unethical choice either. At Noble, every diamond we offer, natural or cultured, is ethically sourced, so you can choose on the qualities that matter to you rather than worry about the sourcing.
Which should you choose?
There is no better or worse here, only what you value. Both are real diamonds, both look identical, and both are ethically sourced at Noble.
Choose lab grown if you want the largest, brightest diamond for your budget, which is why it has become the popular choice. Choose natural if the rarity, the history and the longer record of holding value mean more to you. The stone will look the same either way, so let it come down to what feels right.
Whichever way you lean, the 4Cs still decide how a diamond looks, so it is worth reading how to choose a diamond next, and our wider guide to diamonds ties the whole picture together. You will find both natural and cultured diamonds across our diamond studs, tennis bracelets, tennis necklaces and pendants.
