Before diving into buying a diamond, you should know how to play the game by unlocking the rules of diamond grading from legitimate laboratories such as GIA, EGL, and other independent laboratories. What is the game being played daily in the diamond market? GIA is commonly known to have a stricter grading than EGL, IGI, HRD and other labs. Hence, a diamond shopper must have extensive research in order to find and compare significant differences in grading accuracy between the diamond grading laboratories as most local jewelers do not disclose all of these for the sake of selling their own stone. An ordinary shopper would assume that just by a diamond certificate that shows a G color, it must really be a G color, which is not always the case! An EGL-USA tends to grade a diamond one color off as compared to GIA. Whereas EGL-Israel grading is often off two color grades compared to GIA. Other grading aspects like clarity, polish, symmetry and fluorescence also vary. But the color strongly impacts the value of a diamond and it is an aspect that a customer is difficult to see. However, the reality still remains that the type of diamond certification must not affect the price of the diamond. But why do wholesale prices differ for diamonds of the same grading but different laboratories? It is simply because the grading standards for each lab are not the same. Let's take for example of two gradings: Diamond A: Cushion 2.50 carat EGL certified, E color, VS1 clarity Diamond B: Cushion 2.50 carat GIA certified, G color, VS2 clarity. At first, we would think that Diamond A has a greater value having two color grades higher and one clarity grade higher than Diamond B. Yet this comparison is partly correct & partly wrong. In a closer examination, if Diamond A is priced more than Diamond B, a diamond laboratory must also be taken into account knowing that some of those labs have more lenient grading standards. Also, the shopper should share the blame. Some buyers want to get the deal so desperately even compromising the quality of a stone just to be satisfied by an impressive certification. You as a buyer should consider that a diamond is not only justified by its grading but by its actual appearance as well. Knowledge and awareness are always the key for a quality diamond.