How to Customize Your Engagement Ring with Brilliant Earth

Bottom Line Up Front

Brilliant Earth has a ring builder that lets you put together an engagement ring piece by piece. You pick the setting, the center stone, and the metal. You can start with a setting and add a stone, or start with a stone and build the ring around it.

I’ve walked through this process many times. It’s one of the smoothest ring builders I’ve used. You can do it all online, on your phone, or at one of Brilliant Earth’s 40+ stores if you want to see things in person.

Here’s What We’ll Cover:

• Option 1: Start with a Setting
• Option 2: Start with a Natural Diamond
• Option 3: Start with a Lab Grown Diamond
• Option 4: Start with a Gemstone
• A Quick Guide to the 4Cs
• How to Get the Ring Size Right
• Digital Tools, Stores, and How to Shop
• After You Buy: Resizing, Returns, and Upgrades
• FAQs

Option 1: Start with a Setting

If your partner has dropped hints about ring style, starting with the setting is usually the right move. The setting is what gives the ring its overall look. Think of it as the frame. Everything else builds off of it.

Brilliant Earth’s design team builds all their settings in-house. You’re not going to see these same designs at other stores. Solitaires, halos, hidden halos, three-stone designs, and a lot more. Hundreds of options across a wide range of styles.

Within each setting, you’ll also choose:

• Metal type: Your options are 14K and 18K yellow gold, white gold, rose gold, and platinum.
• Prong style: Classic prongs hold the diamond with less metal so more light gets in. A bezel setting wraps metal around the stone for a smoother look with no prongs sticking up. If you’re not sure which to pick, compare them side by side in the ring builder. You’ll see the difference right away.
• Accent details: Pavé bands, side stones, and milgrain edging can add detail without requiring a larger center stone.

Once you lock in a setting, the tool pulls up diamonds and gemstones that fit it. You can rotate the setting in 3D and look at it from every angle before you decide.

Option 2: Start with a Natural Diamond

If the center stone matters most to you, start there and build the ring around it. That’s a completely reasonable way to shop.

Brilliant Earth carries over 100,000 natural diamonds. You can filter by shape, carat weight, cut, color, clarity, and price. You can also go deeper with things like length-to-width ratio and fluorescence. The 360° viewer lets you rotate and zoom in on individual stones. Two diamonds that look the same on paper can look very different in real life. That viewer helps you spot the difference before you buy.

Every Brilliant Earth natural diamond meets their Beyond Conflict Free™ standards. Less than 1% of natural diamonds worldwide qualify. Each stone is traced to its origin.

Option 3: Start with a Lab Grown Diamond

The process for starting with a lab grown diamond is the same. You browse, filter, and compare across the same shapes and sizes. Lab grown diamonds are usually less expensive per carat, which gives you more flexibility on size or setting. They look the same to the naked eye as natural diamonds. Some people want a natural stone. Some prefer lab grown. There’s no wrong answer.

Option 4: Start with a Gemstone

Not everyone wants a diamond. Some of the best engagement rings I’ve seen are built around a colored gemstone.

Brilliant Earth carries sapphires, emeralds, rubies, aquamarines, morganites, and more. A deep blue sapphire set in yellow gold looks completely different from a classic diamond ring. If your partner has a favorite color or a birthstone that means something to them, that’s a good reason to go this route.

The process works the same way. Pick your gemstone, then pair it with a setting, metal, and accents.

A Quick Guide to the 4Cs of Diamonds

If you’re building a diamond engagement ring, you should know the basics of the 4Cs.

• Cut is the most important C. It controls how well a diamond works with light. A well-cut diamond sparkles. A poorly cut one looks dull, even if it scores high in every other area. Always put cut first.
• Color measures how colorless a diamond looks, on a scale from D (colorless) to Z (noticeable warmth). Most people can’t tell the difference between a D and a G once the stone is set in a ring. Going a grade or two lower is one of the easiest ways to save money.
• Clarity refers to tiny marks inside the diamond called inclusions. The key idea is “eye-clean,” meaning the marks aren’t visible without magnification. You don’t need a Flawless stone. You just need one that looks clean to the naked eye.
• Carat weight is the diamond’s weight, not its visual size. Elongated shapes like ovals and pear cuts tend to look larger per carat because they spread weight across a wider surface.

On Brilliant Earth’s site, you can filter and compare stones across all four of these at the same time. That saves a lot of time when you’re figuring out where to spend and where to save.

How to Get the Ring Size Right

Getting the size wrong is one of the most common engagement ring mistakes. A ring should slide over the knuckle with a little resistance and sit comfortably on the finger without spinning.

Measure your ring size more than once. Finger size can shift depending on time of day and temperature. If you can’t get an exact measurement without giving away the surprise, Brilliant Earth offers a free ring sizer you can order online.

If you get the size slightly wrong, Brilliant Earth does free resizing within the first year.

How to Shop: Digital Tools, Stores, and Virtual Appointments

What if the diamond looks different in person? What if the setting isn’t what you pictured? These are fair concerns when you’re about to spend real money.

Here’s what Brilliant Earth gives you to work through that. The 3D setting tool lets you rotate designs from every angle to see the profile, band width, and prong placement. The 360° diamond viewer lets you inspect individual stones the way a jeweler would. And the virtual try-on feature on Brilliant Earth’s mobile site shows you how different ring styles look on your actual hand. You can swap metals, adjust the carat weight, and stack a wedding band on top.

If you want to talk to someone, you can book a virtual appointment for one-on-one video help. Or walk into one of Brilliant Earth’s 40+ stores to try on settings and see diamonds in person. If you’re near a store, I’d go at least once. There’s no substitute for seeing a ring on your finger before you buy.

After You Buy: Resizing, Returns, and Upgrades

Here’s what happens after you’ve bought the ring:

• 30-day returns: If the ring arrives and something isn’t right, you can send it back within 30 days.
• 1-year resizes: Free resizing within the first year.
• Lifetime diamond upgrade: Any loose natural diamond you buy from Brilliant Earth can be exchanged for credit toward a new natural diamond worth at least 1.5x more. Any loose lab grown diamond can be exchanged for credit toward a new lab grown diamond worth at least 2x more. If you want to go bigger for an anniversary down the road, the option is there.

The Bottom Line

I’ve built rings on a lot of different websites. Some make it confusing. Some give you barely any options. Brilliant Earth’s ring builder is the one I keep pointing people toward because it actually works the way you’d want it to.

You pick your path, setting first or stone first, and the tool shows you what fits together. If you get stuck, you can talk to someone on a video call or walk into a store.

Brilliant Earth has been one of my top recommendations for a long time. The ring builder is solid. The engagement rings are well-made. And the sourcing standards are some of the highest in the business. If you’re building a ring from scratch, Brilliant Earth is one of the first places I’d look.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you customize an engagement ring at Brilliant Earth?

Yes. You pick the setting, center stone (natural diamond, lab grown diamond, or gemstone), metal, and accents. You can start with a setting or start with a stone. The whole thing is done through Brilliant Earth’s ring builder online, or in person at one of their 40+ stores.

Can you try on rings at Brilliant Earth before you buy?

Yes. Brilliant Earth has 40+ stores across the U.S. where you can see settings and diamonds in person. There’s also a virtual try-on tool on the mobile site and virtual appointments if you’d rather do it from home.

Does Brilliant Earth offer engraving on engagement rings?

Yes. You can add engraving on many of Brilliant Earth’s engagement rings. Options include a date, initials, a short message, or other personal text inside the band.

What is Brilliant Earth’s return policy for engagement rings?

Brilliant Earth offers 30-day returns and free resizing within the first year. Brilliant Earth also has a lifetime diamond upgrade program for loose natural and lab grown diamonds.

About the author

Mike Fried Mike Fried has over 25 years experience in the diamond industry working with Leo Schachter Diamonds, Moshe Namdar Diamonds, and joining The Diamond Pro in 2007. He is recognized as an industry expert and has been quoted in publications such as Us, People, Page Six, The Next Web and more.