2 Carat Diamond Price
What a 2 carat diamond costs in 2026 — by grade, by shape, and natural against lab-grown.
Natural median about $25,000Lab-grown $3,500–6,000About 8.1 mm across, round
In September 2026 a natural 2 carat round diamond graded G–H color and VS2 clarity, with an excellent cut and a GIA report, costs about $22,000–28,000 — around $25,000 at the median. A lab-grown diamond of the same grade costs about $3,500–6,000. Better color and clarity raise the natural price quickly, and natural diamond jewelry typically resells for 30–50% of what it cost.
Figures reviewed September 2026
Two carats is where natural and lab-grown prices part company most visibly: a natural two carat of a common grade cost roughly five times a one carat in September 2026, while a lab-grown two carat cost around a fifth of the natural price. The step at 2.00 carats makes 1.90 carats the classic value alternative.
A well-cut 2 carat round measures about 8.1 mm across — only about a quarter wider than a one carat. At this size color and inclusions are easier to see, so VS1 clarity and G color are the safer choices, particularly in step cuts.
2 Carat Diamond Price by color and clarity
| Color | VVS2 | VS1 | VS2 | SI1 | SI2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| D | $47,000 | $39,000 | $36,000 | $30,500 | $24,500 |
| E | $44,500 | $37,000 | $34,000 | $29,000 | $23,000 |
| F | $42,000 | $35,000 | $32,000 | $27,000 | $21,500 |
| G | $35,000 | $29,000 | $26,500 | $22,500 | $18,000 |
| H | $30,500 | $25,500 | $23,500 | $20,000 | $16,000 |
| I | $27,000 | $22,500 | $21,000 | $17,500 | $14,000 |
| J | $23,000 | $19,000 | $17,500 | $15,000 | $12,000 |
Mid figures for a 2 carat round brilliant with an excellent cut, from the Diamond Price Calculator — calibrated in September 2026 to published prices for GIA-graded stones. Each figure sits inside a range of about ±18%.
| Shape | Indicative price, G VS2 | Face-up size |
|---|---|---|
| Round | $22,000–31,500 | 8.1 mm |
| Oval | $19,000–27,000 | 10.1 × 7.2 mm |
| Cushion | $18,500–26,500 | 7.6 × 6.9 mm |
| Princess | $18,000–26,000 | 7.0 mm |
| Emerald | $17,500–25,000 | 9.1 × 6.5 mm |
| Pear | $18,500–26,500 | 10.8 × 7.0 mm |
Fancy shapes cost less per carat than rounds because cutting them wastes less rough. Elongated shapes spread their weight over a larger face-up area and look bigger for the same carat weight.
A 2 carat natural, lab-grown or moissanite
| Stone | Indicative price, same look | Typical resale |
|---|---|---|
| Natural | $22,000–31,500 | About 35% of the price paid |
| Lab-grown | $3,900–5,700 | About 10% of the price paid |
| Moissanite | $660–950 | About 5% of the price paid |
Round, G VS2, excellent cut, from the Lab-Grown vs Natural vs Moissanite calculator. Only natural diamonds keep a meaningful secondary market; lab-grown prices have fallen year after year as production has scaled.
Buying just under the step
Price per carat steps up at 2.00 carats, so a 1.90 carat stone with the same grades costs noticeably less while measuring only about 0.1 mm narrower across a round. On a hand the difference is effectively invisible; compare real quotes for both weights before you choose.
Where prices are heading in 2026
Natural diamond prices have been falling since their 2022 peak, and the decline was steepest below a carat. Rapaport's RapNet index for 1-carat SI diamonds fell 24.1% through 2025 before the decline eased in early 2026, and a tracked cohort of 1-carat natural stones was down a further 14.4% between January and mid-September 2026.
Lab-grown prices fell faster still for several years, and in 2026 a lab-grown stone costs roughly a fifth of a natural one at a carat and a seventh at three carats. That gap is the main reason natural prices under a carat have come down: the budget end of the market has moved to lab-grown.
Questions we are asked
- How much is a 2 carat diamond?
- In September 2026 a natural 2 carat round diamond graded G–H color and VS2 clarity, with an excellent cut and a GIA report, costs about $22,000–28,000 — around $25,000 at the median. A lab-grown diamond of the same grade costs about $3,500–6,000. Better color and clarity raise the natural price quickly, and natural diamond jewelry typically resells for 30–50% of what it cost.
- How big is a 2 carat diamond?
- About 8.1 mm across for a well-cut round brilliant, roughly a quarter wider than a one carat. An oval of two carats is about 10.1 × 7.2 mm.
- Why is a 2 carat diamond so much more expensive than two 1 carat diamonds?
- Because large rough is much rarer than small rough. Price per carat more than doubles between one and two carats, so a single two carat stone costs close to five times a one carat of the same grades.
- The Diamond Price — natural and lab-grown price chart by carat, September 2026
- Rapaport — decline in diamond prices eases (RapNet index, February 2026)
Indicative US retail figures, never an appraisal or a quotation. A grading report, the stone itself and a jeweler who can see both are what price a particular diamond.
Lovenhall DiamondRead the stone itself
This page reads the market. The instrument reads the stone in front of you — the four Cs estimated from a photograph, with a range beside them.