If you’ve ever stood in front of a diamond case, scrolling through descriptions that throw around terms like “flawless,” “VS1,” or “SI2,” and wondered if all the hype about natural diamond clarity applies to lab grown diamonds—you’re not alone. As a lab grown diamond jewelry supplier, I get this question every single day, from brides planning their engagement rings to casual shoppers picking up earrings for a birthday gift. Most people assume clarity is a “natural” standard, a metric exclusive to diamonds formed over billions of years deep in the Earth’s crust. But the truth is, clarity for lab grown diamonds is measured by exactly the same grading scales as natural diamonds—what changes is why those inclusions exist, and what that means for your jewelry. Lab Grown Diamond Jewelry
Let’s start with the basics of diamond clarity, because if we skip that, the rest of this conversation doesn’t land. The Gemological Institute of America (GIA), the gold standard for diamond grading worldwide, defines clarity as a measure of how many internal features (called inclusions) and external blemishes a diamond has. These features form when a diamond is growing, whether that growth happens 100 miles underground over 3 billion years or in a high-tech lab over 6 weeks. Natural diamonds form under extreme heat and pressure in the mantle, so their inclusions are often traces of other minerals, tiny crystals of olivine or garnet trapped as the diamond crystalizes, or even cracks from the pressure shifts that carry it up to the surface. Lab grown diamonds, meanwhile, grow in controlled environments—either inside a press that mimics the Earth’s mantle (HPHT, or High Pressure High Temperature) or in a chamber that uses carbon plasma (CVD, or Chemical Vapor Deposition). Their inclusions are usually tiny imperfections from that controlled growth: a stray nitrogen atom that didn’t bind properly, a microscopic gap in the crystal lattice, or a tiny seed fragment left over from the starting diamond used in CVD growth.
For years, one common myth in the diamond industry was that lab grown diamonds were “flawless by default” because their growth is controlled. That’s not true, though—even in a lab, tiny variables can throw off a crystal’s formation. Early lab grown diamonds, from the 1970s and 80s, had far more visible inclusions than most natural diamonds, which is why a lot of older jewelry had a stigma. But today’s technology has fixed that. Modern HPHT and CVD processes are so precise that most lab grown diamonds graded by GIA land in the same clarity ranges as natural diamonds: from Flawless (FL, no internal or external features visible under 10x magnification) all the way to Included (I3, obvious inclusions even without magnification). The difference comes in what those inclusions mean for you as a jewelry buyer, and that’s where my team and I see the biggest shift in how shoppers think about lab grown diamonds.
Let’s break down the clarity grades side by side, because this is where things get concrete. If you hold a round brilliant natural diamond with VS1 clarity (Very Slightly Included 1) under a 10x loupe, you might see a tiny crystal inclusion or a faint feather, barely visible, and only in a specific angle. A VS1 lab grown diamond? That same tiny imperfection, same faintness. The same goes for SI1 (Slightly Included 1)—natural or lab grown, the inclusions are small enough that they don’t affect the diamond’s sparkle, and you’d never spot them with the naked eye. Even VVS grades (Very Very Slightly Included) are nearly identical between the two types of diamonds. The only real difference? A natural VVS might have an inclusion from a mineral that was part of the Earth’s crust when the diamond formed, while a lab grown VVS has an inclusion from a tiny misstep in the lab’s growth process.
Where lab grown diamonds do have an edge, though, is in the rare cases where clarity flaws could matter for durability. Because natural diamonds form over millions of years, their inclusions are often more random—deep cracks or fractures that can weaken the stone if it’s knocked or dropped. Lab grown diamonds have inclusions that are almost always evenly distributed throughout the crystal, and because their growth is controlled, those fractures are far less common. I’ve had a customer come to me last year, a teacher who wanted a diamond for her wedding band that she’d wear every day while grading papers and handling kids, and she was worried that a natural diamond’s inclusion could chip if she caught it on a pencil or a desk. She went with a VS2 lab grown diamond, and 18 months later, she’s still sending me photos of it—no chips, no fading, nothing wrong. That’s not to say natural diamonds are fragile, but when you’re talking about daily wear, the consistency of lab grown inclusions is a quiet benefit a lot of shoppers don’t know about.
Another point that comes up all the time: does clarity affect sparkle, and is there a difference between natural and lab grown diamonds here? The short answer is no, not really. Sparkle in a diamond comes from how well it reflects and refracts light, which is determined by cut, color, and carat weight—not clarity. Even an SI1 clarity diamond will sparkle just as brightly as a VVS1, unless the inclusion is so large and dark that it blocks light from passing through. That same rule applies to both natural and lab grown diamonds. A common mistake shoppers make is thinking that a “higher clarity” diamond is more brilliant, but that’s not how grading works. We see this all the time with customers who come to us thinking they need a flawless lab grown diamond to get that “perfect” sparkle, and we explain that for everyday jewelry, an SI1 or VS1 is more than enough, and saves them hundreds of dollars. As a supplier, that’s part of our job—not just selling diamonds, but helping customers make informed choices that fit their budget, not the outdated rules the natural diamond industry pushed for decades.
Wait, let’s address the elephant in the room, though: the rare cases where inclusions are visible to the naked eye, whether natural or lab grown. That’s the Included grade, I1, I2, I3. For natural diamonds, an I1 clarity stone might have a large dark inclusion that makes it look cloudy, while a lab grown I1 stone’s inclusion is usually a tiny dark spot from nitrogen, same as a natural one, but less likely to be spread across the entire stone. Again, durability comes into play here. I’ve seen natural I2 diamonds with deep fractures that run through the middle, which can split if you hit them at the right angle. Lab grown I2 diamonds almost never have those deep fractures, because their growth environment is controlled—there’s no shifting tectonic plates or volcanic activity to create those deep cracks. That’s a big reason why more and more jewelers are shifting to lab grown diamonds for everyday pieces like stud earrings or tennis bracelets, where you want durability without sacrificing clarity.
Let me also talk about a common misconception that’s stuck around because of old marketing: lab grown diamonds are “less pure” than natural ones because their inclusions are man-made. That’s not true. A diamond is a diamond, no matter where it grows. The atomic structure is exactly the same—carbon atoms bonded in a cubic lattice. The only difference is the origin of those tiny imperfections. When a lab grown diamond has an inclusion, it’s not a “flaw” that makes it worse; it’s just a part of its story, same as a natural diamond’s inclusions tell the story of billions of years under the Earth’s crust. I’ve had designers working with me create custom jewelry where they highlight those tiny inclusions—engraving a tiny line around a VS2 lab grown diamond to draw attention to its unique growth story, and customers love that. It’s a small touch, but it shifts the way people see clarity: not as a “flaw score” that makes a diamond more or less valuable, but as a unique detail that makes each stone its own.
So where does this leave you when you’re shopping for diamond jewelry? If clarity is important to you, don’t assume that a natural diamond is automatically clearer or better than a lab grown one. GIA grading applies equally to both, so you can check the clarity certificate for any lab grown diamond we supply, just like you would for a natural one. For most people, a VS1 or VS2 clarity lab grown diamond is perfect—no visible inclusions to the naked eye, affordable, and durable enough for everyday wear. If you’re looking for a statement piece, like a pendant or a cocktail ring, you might opt for a VVS1, but even that comes with the same sparkle as a natural VVS, for a fraction of the cost. And if you’re on a tight budget, an SI1 lab grown diamond is indistinguishable from a higher clarity stone to anyone but a trained gemologist with a loupe.
As a lab grown diamond jewelry supplier, my team and I make a point to be transparent about clarity, because we know the old marketing from the natural diamond industry made shoppers feel like they had to overpay for “perfect” stones that they’d never even notice are perfect. We include the GIA certificate for every single diamond we sell, so you can see exactly what clarity grade it has, what inclusions it has, and confirm for yourself that it’s up to your standards. We also work with customers who might be nervous about making the switch from natural diamonds, walking them through the grading process, showing them side-by-side comparisons of natural and lab grown diamonds of the same clarity, so they can see for themselves that there’s almost no difference.
I’ll wrap this up with a personal anecdote from last month, when a groom came to me to buy an engagement ring for his fiancée. He’d been saving for a natural diamond, and was eyeing a VS2 natural diamond that was going to cost him $3,200. We showed him a VS2 lab grown diamond of the same carat weight, same cut, same color, for $1,100. He brought his fiancée in to see them side-by-side, and she couldn’t tell the difference. They used the $2,100 they saved to take their dream honeymoon to Italy, and a month later, he sent me a photo of their wedding on the Amalfi coast, with her engagement ring on full display. That’s why what we do matters—clarity doesn’t have to be a barrier to beautiful, affordable jewelry, and lab grown diamonds are proving that every single day.
If you’re in the market for lab grown diamond jewelry, whether it’s an engagement ring, wedding band, stud earrings, or a custom piece, I’m here to help you navigate clarity grades, cut preferences, and all the other details that go into choosing the right diamond. We work with individuals, small businesses, and designers, so if you’re looking to source bulk pieces or create a custom collection, don’t hesitate to reach out for a procurement consultation. No high-pressure sales, no confusing jargon—just honest answers, transparent grading, and diamonds that are built to last, whether they’re for everyday wear or a once-in-a-lifetime moment.
Emerald References
- Gemological Institute of America. (2024). Diamond Clarity Grading. Retrieved from GIA.org
- National Jeweler. (2023). Lab Grown Diamond Durability: Comparing Inclusions Between HPHT and CVD Stones.
- American Gem Society. (2022). The Truth About Lab Grown Diamond Clarity Grading.
- World Diamond Council. (2021). Natural vs. Lab Grown Diamond Growth and Inclusion Characteristics.
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