Three engagement rings by designer Lorraine West. From top, they are 18-karat yellow gold with an oval-cut diamond; platinum with an emerald-cut diamond; and 18-karat rose gold with a round diamond. Yellow gold and ovals are two of the top engagement ring trends right now, while the popularity of round diamonds endures. (Photo courtesy of Lorraine West)
New York—There is a scene in the Gen X-favorite HBO series “Sex and the City” that helps to illustrate how diamond engagement ring trends have evolved since the turn of the millennium.
A pivotal part of the season 4 episode “Just Say Yes,” the scene revolves around the show’s main character, Carrie, telling her friends about her displeasure in finding an engagement ring in her boyfriend Aidan’s bag.
She is not sure she wants to marry Aidan and, what’s worse, the ring was “not good.”
“It was,” Carrie shares over brunch, “a pear-shaped diamond with a gold band.”
Samantha and Charlotte are disgusted by Aidan’s choice, with Charlotte gasping out this brief-yet-telling review: “Ick.”
Jewelry historian and author Marion Fasel remembers the episode well and explains why the idea of a yellow gold engagement ring was so repulsive in 2001.
At that time, almost all engagement rings featured white metal because diamond quality—not size—was the main point of emphasis, she explains.
White metals, like platinum and white gold, make a diamond appear more colorless and enhance its brilliance.
“There used to be just a law that the metal on an engagement ring would be white and reflect on the stone. Really, platinum was the metal for a very long time and white gold was the alternative,” Fasel said.
Today, many of the old “laws” around engagement ring buying no longer apply.
Consumers are increasingly opting for yellow gold, fancy shape diamonds, and more substantial settings in which the gold is as important to the design as the diamond.
Circa 2001 Carrie Bradshaw would be in shock.
The Precious Metal Earlier this month, The Knot released its 2026 “Real Weddings” study, a survey of more than 10,000 U.S. couples who wed between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2025.
The study is designed to provide an overview of the U.S. wedding industry—how much people are spending on weddings, what they are prioritizing, and how they are proposing.
Many of the findings from The Knot’s 2026 survey echo what already is known in the fine jewelry world.
First, when it comes to precious metals, yellow gold continues to gain ground, though overall, more people still go with a white metal for their engagement ring.
In The Knot’s study, 48 percent of survey-takers said their engagement ring was a white metal: 35 percent have a white gold ring, and 13 percent have platinum.
Lorraine West’s “Waves” engagement ring in platinum featuring a 1-carat, G-color, VVS2 emerald-cut diamond (price upon request). West said the style was inspired by the on-stage movements of actress, dancer, and singer Josephine Baker. (Photo courtesy of Lorraine West)
Yellow gold came in at 39 percent, with The Knot noting that the percentage of couples choosing yellow gold has more than doubled over the past five years.
While it’s hard to pinpoint exactly when engagement rings started trending toward yellow, Fasel said she thinks tastes began shifting about a decade ago.
She attributed the change to more celebrities choosing yellow gold and the overarching popularity of yellow gold in non-bridal jewelry.
Consumers want their engagement ring to coordinate with the rest of their jewelry.
Fasel and Esther Lee, The Knot’s editorial director, also pointed to a notable celebrity endorsement of the style—the yellow gold three-stone engagement ring American actress Meghan Markle received from Prince Harry in 2017.
“People want a wedding ring that flows with their other jewelry.” — Lorraine West, Lorraine West Jewelry
A newer engagement ring trend expected to continue in 2026 is thicker bands, as well as more bezel- and burnish-set center stones, a trend Fasel has noticed increasing in the last three years or so.
“It feels modern compared to the classic silhouette of a solitaire,” she said. “You want something you’ll be less concerned about [damaging]. It feels less vulnerable to me, and that feels modern.”
Designer Lorraine West, who has been creating bespoke engagement rings since 2011, agreed.
“It’s safe, it’s beautiful, and also contemporary, not as traditional,” she said.
This style available from Stuller showcases more than one diamond engagement ring trend. It is yellow gold with a bezel-set marquise-shaped diamond and a thicker band. The engagement ring mounting is 14-karat yellow gold and retails for $2,076, center stone not included.
Katelyn Meche, director of bridal at Stuller, said the movement toward more bezel-set centers and cigar-band-style shanks is a sign that the maximalist trend in jewelry—chunky gold chains and big hoop earrings—is working its way into the bridal market.
Many consumers want an engagement ring that goes with their everyday jewelry.
As West put it, “People want high style, they want uniqueness. They want something minimal with a twist, or bold but can blend with some of their other minimal pieces.
“People want a wedding ring that flows with their other jewelry.”
The Center Stone While there is always talk of colored gemstones increasing in popularity for engagement rings, diamonds remain far and away the most popular choice for engagement ring center stones.
“One thing has remained true for 500 years and that is, there is always a diamond at the center [of an engagement ring],” said Fasel, who authored a book about the history of diamond engagement rings in 2024.
“To people, I think a diamond engagement ring is an engagement ring.”
However, natural diamonds face increasing competition from lab-grown stones.
“Younger consumers have a completely different shopping mentality and a completely different outlook to natural diamonds than, say, the baby boomers or the Gen Xers our industry has thrived off of for so long.” — Sherry Smith, The Retail Smiths
On the first episode of the “My Next Question” podcast, guest Sherry Smith said recent data shows sales of finished natural diamond engagement rings were down 4 percent in 2025, while the number of units sold and the average retail sale slipped 2 percent.
Sales of completed lab-grown diamond engagement rings, meanwhile, were up 31 percent, number of units sold increased 30 percent, and average retail sale was flat.
Industry analyst Edahn Golan, who guested alongside Smith on the podcast, said his data shows that more than 50 percent of engagement rings sold today are set with lab-grown diamonds, while The Knot’s study has that number at 61 percent.
The Knot’s Lee said “economic pragmatism” is the No. 1 reason couples are choosing lab-grown diamonds. They are more affordable, and couples can get more—as in a bigger, better color, higher clarity diamond—for their money.
On the podcast, Smith said the younger consumers “have a completely different shopping mentality and a completely different outlook to natural diamonds than, say, the baby boomers or the Gen Xers our industry has thrived off of for so long.”
Another diamond engagement ring trend that’s expected to continue in 2026 is fancy shape diamonds.
According to The Knot’s study, oval diamonds (chosen by 25 percent of couples) are almost equal in popularity to round diamonds (chosen by 26 percent of couples) now.
This “Curva Twist” diamond ring by designer Vanessa Fernández features a 4.01-carat moval-cut diamond set in 18-karat yellow gold (price upon request). The moval is a blend of two of the most popular fancy shapes for diamond engagement rings, the oval and the marquise.
“I call the [popularity of the] oval the ‘Hailey Bieber effect,’” Lee said, with Fasel also noting the impact of the model and businesswoman’s “gorgeous” engagement ring.
“Rounds are still No. 1, but the oval is everywhere,” Fasel said. “To me, a round almost feels a little too classical at this point. It’s just a bit too tailored for young women.”
Other cuts included in The Knot’s study were the emerald, pear, marquise and princess—once the No. 2 diamond shape on the market—all of which came in at 8 percent.
Cushion cuts (which, in The Knot’s study, includes the old mine-cut and the elongated cushion) and radiant-cut diamonds were both at 6 percent.
Stuller’s Meche said the company has seen growth over the years in the popularity of ovals, but round still holds the clear majority of share.
She said the shapes that have increased the most in popularity over the past year are emerald, marquise, and the elongated cushion cut, the modern cousin of the old mine-cut diamond, which is what Travis Kelce chose for Taylor Swift’s engagement ring.
The “Lakme” diamond ring from Los Angeles-based brand HOWL (Handle Only With Love) is 18-karat yellow gold with a 3-carat round bezel-set diamond (price upon request). Round diamonds remain a popular choice for engagement rings.
West also mentioned the enduring popularity of rounds among her customers, as well as emeralds and marquises.
“Round is always No. 1, in my opinion. No. 2 emerald cut, No. 3 marquise.”
“Some women who wear heels a lot, wear dresses, they’re going to look at the marquise as something very unique, something very feminine.”
For designers, the marquise “just lends so much design creativity,” West said.
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The Selection Process In addition to the physical characteristics of engagement rings, The Knot’s study lends insight into how couples are shopping for rings and how much they’re spending.
According to The Knot, the overall average amount spent on an engagement ring in 2025 was $4,600.
That is down from $5,200 in 2024, $5,500 in 2023, $5,800 in 2022, and $6,000 in 2021, The Knot said in last year’s Real Weddings study.
Most couples surveyed (79 percent) said the individual who received the ring participated in the selection process in one way or another, and one in four couples (25 percent) said they shopped for their engagement ring together.
These findings again line up with what jewelry industry experts have noted in recent years.
“Today, couples often shop together, and the pressure to spend is therefore reduced.” — Edahn Golan, Tenoris
In National Jeweler’s 2025 State of the Majors issue, Golan, co-founder of data analytics firm Tenoris, also noted a five-year decline in the average price of diamond engagement rings and a cultural shift in the way couples shop for rings.
He wrote, “In the past, men would consult the women close to their significant other—mothers, sisters, friends, etc.—about what ring to buy. Often, the advice concluded with a warning, ‘And remember, don’t be cheap!’ That pressured grooms-to-be to spend more.
“Today, couples often shop together, and the pressure to spend is therefore reduced. Getting a large diamond at a much lower price is now not only possible but also acceptable.”
The joint interest in the engagement ring budget makes sense given that many couples’ finances are intertwined before they become legally bound.
In The Knot’s study, 70 percent of the couples surveyed said they lived together before they got engaged while 50 percent reported owning a pet together.
Lee said the increased participation in the engagement ring buying process is part of broader trend in weddings that she describes as “equitable planning.”
Both partners participate in decisions about all aspects of the wedding, from the photographer and the flowers to the food, the reception site, and the guest list.
“It’s their wedding; it’s not just one person’s wedding,” she said.
