What Stones are Comparable to a Diamond? Moissanites or white sapphires are most comparable to a diamond. While there are visible differences, these gems will look the closest to a diamond while offering a more affordable price.
Currently, lab-made cubic zirconia (CZ) is the most popular diamond lookalike. At a fraction of the price, it can rival diamond in brilliance (the light it reflects) and dispersion or fire (the colorful flashes that seem to come from within the stone).
What Is Moissanite? Moissanite is an interesting gemstone, because it is both synthetic, and a diamond simulant. It is not, however, a synthetic diamond. It is a diamond simulant because it is made to look like a diamond.
Cubic Zirconia
They're so commonly used as a diamond look-a-like that many people will cite that all non-naturally occurring diamonds are fake diamonds are called cubic zirconias. Cubic zirconia is a lab-made synthetic substance composed of zirconium dioxide.
Moissanite Arguably the best faux diamond in existence, moissanite comprises silicon carbide, which means it is almost of the same hardness as a natural diamond. It also has reasonable colorlessness, although the glow is far more colorful than what you would see in a real diamond.
Moissanites or white sapphires are most comparable to a diamond. While there are visible differences, these gems will look the closest to a diamond while offering a more affordable price. These stones are also high on the Mohs scale of relative hardness, making them suitable for everyday wear.
Cubic Zirconia, also known as CZs, are manufactured gemstones that look similar to diamonds. They are colorless gemstones made up of a crystalline form of zirconium dioxide. Most CZs are clear or white. However, their natural colorlessness allows manufacturers to color them with coloring agents.
This involves taking the diamond and attempting to scratch a mirror. If it leaves a mark on the mirror, it's a real diamond. However, the quality of false stones like cubic zirconia and moissanite has increased, and many can pass this test due to their durability.
The way that diamonds reflect light is unique: the inside of a real diamond should sparkle gray and white while the outside should reflect a rainbow of colors onto other surfaces. A fake diamond, on the other hand, will have rainbow colors that you can see inside the diamond as well.
The most effective way to tell Moissanite apart from a diamond is to use a loupe to look through the top, or the crown, of the jewel at an angle. You will see two slightly blurred lines that indicates a double refraction, an inherent quality of Moissanite. Double refraction is easier to see in some shapes than others.
White sapphires are precious stones like diamonds and are just a notch below diamonds in durability. They're not as refractive as diamonds, so white sapphires give off a silvery rather than a colorful sparkle.
The most common mineral that looks like a diamond is quartz and it is hexagonal form. When looking down on the crystals from the top, with the point of the crystal aimed at your eye, quartz will have six sides and a diamond will have four sides. If you see six sides than you probably found quartz.
A diamond should have a clear, bright yellow or white color. A crystal will be off-white or cloudy looking.
A rhombus is a 2D shape with four straight, equal sides with both pairs of opposite sides being parallel. This shape resembles a diamond and is the shape you'd expect to see in playing cards to represent the suit of diamonds. Rhombuses can be seen in everyday life in various ways.
A real diamond will reflect light easily, and provide you with a disco ball or rainbow-like display. You can use a flashlight or lamp to do this and it will work best with white light rather than yellow. If the stone absorbs the light, then there's a chance that it's a fake.
A real diamond of decent quality will refract light so intensely that you can't see through it. On the other hand, cubic zirconia is more transparent, and you'll be able to see right through it.
An ideal cut diamond shows only a few intensely bright flashes in direct sunlight. A diamond that actually looks good in sunlight splits those few flashes up into ten or twenty smaller sparkles.
If you have a loose diamond to test, fill a regular glass about ¾ of the way full with water. Gently drop the diamond into the glass. If the diamond sinks to the bottom, it's real. If it floats at the surface or just underneath, it's likely a fake.
The first step is to check for any inclusion on the stone with your bare eyes. If you're unable to see any inclusions with your bare eyes, then use a magnifying glass of at least 10X magnification to find out if the gemstone contains any inclusions. If you found any, then they are real gemstones.
There is nothing that can scratch a diamond except another diamond. A mineral like talc, on the other hand, is a 1 on the scale. You could scratch it with any hard material, even your fingernail. Natural talc is one of the softest minerals in the world.
Are White Sapphires Like Diamonds? With a similar look to that of diamonds, a white sapphire ring can offer a beautiful, more affordable alternative to the traditional engagement ring center stone. However, there are distinct differences in the durability, brilliance, and appearance of the two gems.
Place the gemstones in a glass of water and watch. If it floats, then it is probably a fake stone. Real diamonds will sink to the bottom of the glass, while cubic zirconia will float to the surface.
Under natural light, diamonds give off white light. Cubic zirconia will show more fire. Both effects are beautiful and depend on personal preference. If you're looking for that telltale diamond sparkle, however, you won't find it in a cubic zirconia stone.