Carat Weight

We measure different objects with various units; for diamonds and gemstones we use the "carat". There are exactly 100 "points" to one carat.

Accordingly, there are:

25 points in a 1/4 carat (.25ct) stone,
50 points in a 1/2 carat (.50ct) stone, and
75 points in a 3/4 carat (.75ct) stone.

This unit of measurement is important not only to the appearance of a diamond but also plays a major role in the price of the stone as well. (This is why the cutting of a diamond directly affects the carat weight.) It is important to remember that carat is a weight and two diamonds with the exact same weight may appear to be different sizes due to the cutting proportions. When diamonds are priced, the value of an individual stone correlates to the carat weight. As you might have guessed, the rarity of a diamond increases with its weight. Since diamonds are priced per carat, a two-carat diamond would therefore be more expensive per carat than a one-carat diamond with similar color, clarity, and cutting.

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