The most desirable stone for many women in rings is of course diamonds. These rings are the defacto standard for engagement rings. This is though to be clever marketing by the diamond companies throughout the last century as much as an actual tradition. Choosing a diamond is more complicated than just picking a large stone and slapping it in a nice setting. When you are buying diamonds, apart from doing the most important thing that is making sure that it is conflict-free, you need to consider the cut, clarity, carat and color that you will go for. For a man buying an engagement ring, this is probably his first foray in to buying rings and it can be quite a daunting task. We suggest that if you are in this situation you consult a ring buyers guide to help you.

There are of course lots of other options when it comes to choosing a stone for your ring. You can for engagement, or non-engagement rings go for all kinds of amazing gems. Rubies and emeralds are particularly popular. Not only do these look great with their deep red and green colorings respectively, but they are rare gems that command a price, but it is nowhere near as high as diamonds. This is great, as wearing bold colors such as these, you might want to also buy some matching accessories such as earrings.

There are also stones that are not naturally occurring, but are produced to give much the same effect as expensive gemstones but for a fraction of the cost. Perhaps the most well known of this is cubic zirconia which is commonly used in rings in place of diamonds. These can make a very good alternative for those on a budget.

As you can see there are lots of different types of stones you can get for your ring, it is as much a matter of budget as it is taste and occasion when deciding which one you will buy.

1. White or yellow gold CZ engagement rings offer you solid gold mountings of high quality that are identical to the higher priced rings with real diamonds. You can have a large cubic zirconia for immediate sparkle on your engagement or wedding day and later upgrade to a real stone when you can afford to do so.

2. The same gold settings with diamonds or gems will cost double or triple the price of the cubic zirconia rings. In essence, when you buy a CZ ring in solid gold, you pay for the gold, the craftsmanship and the design, but the cubic zirconia are basically free. To calculate how much the same ring would cost with diamonds is easy. Take he price of the CZ ring and add the cost of the diamonds. It is very unlikely that you will be able to find a diamond ring for less than $800 to over $1,000 in the same design as the CZ engagement ring you have chosen for about $400.

3. If you do not intend to upgrade your CZ stones to another genuine gemstone in the future, the cubic zirconia used to craft the highest quality white and yellow gold CZ engagement rings are usually of a better grade, meaning they are denser and more durable and will sparkle longer and appear less scratched or dull over time. Remember that even if you don’t decide to upgrade to diamonds, a gold setting will allow you to have the CZ stones changed as well, which means that if they get dull after 4 or 5 years of daily wear, you can have another affordable cubic zirconia set in the same setting. This is not possible if you go with cheap electroplated designs or gold vermeil, nor is it possible with any cheap rings that have been bathed, coated or plated.

Choosing quality cubic zirconia rings in gold over the silver or plated versions offers you flexibility, affordability and immediate satisfaction of having the most sparkle and brilliance of a stone in a solid gold mounting that will last.

There are two basic options when it comes to choosing cubic zirconia rings for your engagement. One is to choose a cheap silver setting for the CZ stones and thereby spend only about $50 or $100 for a wedding set. This option is great if you are on a very tight budget and really can’t afford gold. The second option is to choose a high quality mounting in 14k or 18k gold and spend about $200 to $400 on your solid yellow gold CZ engagement rings.