Are Lab-Grown Diamonds Real Diamonds?

Answer

Lab-grown diamonds meet the scientific definition of a diamond, but they are manufactured products rather than natural gemstones. Although they share many of the same physical properties as natural diamonds, they do not have the same natural origin, geological rarity or finite supply that distinguish natural diamonds.

Key takeaways

Lab-grown diamonds are manufactured products, not naturally formed gemstones.

Natural diamonds are valued for their unique geological origin, rarity and finite supply.

Lab-grown diamonds can be produced repeatedly using HPHT or CVD technology.

Professional grading reports clearly identify whether a diamond is natural or grown in a laboratory.

The term “synthetic” refers to a gemstone created in a laboratory rather than through natural geological processes.

What makes a diamond a real diamond?

The term “real diamond (opens in a new window)” is often used to distinguish natural diamonds from lab-grown diamonds (LGDs). Natural diamonds come to be through natural diamond formation (opens in a new window), a rare geological process that takes millions to billions of years beneath the Earth’s surface, while LGDs are manufactured in controlled laboratory environments¹.

Are lab-grown diamonds chemically the same as natural diamonds?

LGDs and natural diamonds are both made of crystallized carbon, giving them the same chemical composition. However, chemical composition is only one characteristic, and it does not determine a diamond’s origin, rarity or long-term value².

How are lab-grown diamonds made?

LGDs are created using High Pressure High Temperature (HPHT) or Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD). They are manufactured in controlled laboratory environments and can be produced on mass in just a few weeks³.

Can jewelers tell the difference between lab-grown and natural diamonds?

If a diamond has a GIA or IGI grading report, its origin will be clearly identified. GIA uses separate grading systems for natural diamonds and LGDs, while professional jewelers and gemologists can also use specialized equipment to confirm whether a diamond formed naturally or was created in a laboratory⁴.

Are lab-grown diamonds considered synthetic diamonds?

In gemology, LGDs are classified as synthetic diamonds because they are created in laboratories rather than formed naturally⁵.

What does “synthetic” mean in gemology?

In gemology, the word synthetic describes how a gemstone is produced. It indicates that a gemstone was created using technological processes rather than natural geological ones⁶.

FAQs

Do lab-grown diamonds have the same hardness as natural diamonds?

Natural diamonds and LGDs both rank 10 on the Mohs hardness scale because they share the same crystal structure. If you’re wondering what a lab-grown diamond is (opens in a new window), it is a diamond created in a laboratory, so hardness alone does not reflect its natural origin or rarity.

Are lab-grown diamonds certified differently from natural diamonds?

LGDs can be certified by gemological laboratories such as GIA, but their grading reports clearly identify them as laboratory-grown and are separate from reports issued for natural diamonds (opens in a new window).

Are natural and lab-grown diamonds graded the same in terms of clarity?

If you’re wondering what’s the highest diamond clarity (opens in a new window), the top grade for natural diamonds is Flawless (FL). GIA grades natural diamonds using its traditional clarity scale, while LGDs are assessed using broader descriptive terminology, helping clearly distinguish them from natural diamonds⁷.

Do natural diamonds hold value better than lab-grown diamonds?

As with anything that is both beautiful and rare, natural diamonds hold value (opens in a new window) over time because they are a finite natural resource. LGDs are manufactured and can be produced in increasing quantities, which has contributed to falling prices⁸. When something is produced on mass and has very few distinguishing qualities that make it unique, desirability decreases.

Sources

Gemological Institute of America (GIA). What Is a Real Diamond? https://4cs.gia.edu/en-us/blog/what-is-real-diamond/. Date accessed: 22 July 2026. ↩︎
Gemological Institute of America (GIA). What Is the Difference Between Natural and Laboratory-Grown Diamonds? https://www.gia.edu/gia-news-research/difference-between-natural-laboratory-grown-diamonds. Date accessed: 22 July 2026. ↩︎
Gemological Institute of America (GIA). What Is the Difference Between Natural and Laboratory-Grown Diamonds? https://www.gia.edu/gia-news-research/difference-between-natural-laboratory-grown-diamonds. Date accessed: 22 July 2026. ↩︎
Gemological Institute of America (GIA). What Is the Difference Between Natural and Laboratory-Grown Diamonds? https://www.gia.edu/gia-news-research/difference-between-natural-laboratory-grown-diamonds. Date accessed: 22 July 2026. ↩︎
Cape Town Diamond Museum. Real Diamonds vs Synthetic Diamonds. https://www.capetowndiamondmuseum.org/education/real-diamonds-vs-synthetic-diamonds/. Date accessed: 22 July 2026. ↩︎
Gemological Institute of America (GIA). Observations on HPHT-Grown Synthetic Diamonds. https://www.gia.edu/gems-gemology/fall-2017-observations-hpht-grown-synthetic-diamonds. Date accessed: 22 July 2026. ↩︎
Gemological Institute of America (GIA). What Is the Difference Between Natural and Laboratory-Grown Diamonds? https://www.gia.edu/gia-news-research/difference-between-natural-laboratory-grown-diamonds. Date accessed: 22 July 2026. ↩︎
Natural Diamond Council. Lab-Grown Diamonds. https://www.naturaldiamonds.com/natural-diamond-types-and-alternatives/lab-grown-diamonds/. Date accessed: 22 July 2026. ↩︎