Which metal should I choose for an engagement ring?
White precious metals for engagement rings
Silver: Avoid this at all cost! Silver is much too soft for everyday wear. Over time it will bend out of shape & lose gemstones. The only time you should consider a Silver engagement ring is as a temporary stand-in ring.
White gold: An important thing to consider is that white Gold purchased from most jewellery stores needs a costly, regular maintenance. This is because most jewellers ‘Rhodium plate’ their white Gold. The true colour varies from shop to shop & is often a yellowish-brown colour. This is masked with a white metal plating called Rhodium. Jewellers often tell customers that this plating lasts a year or two but this is simply not true. It wears of at the back after just weeks or months if you are lucky.
Plated white Gold looks like Platinum. The colour of natural white Gold (which is rarely seen in jewellery shops) can vary. It might be yellowy, yellowish-brown, creamy coloured, or a warm off-white grey. The colours vary so much due to the alloys that are mixed with the Gold to make it white.
RING jewellers is one of the few jewellers in the UK that does not plate their white Gold. Instead, they use nicer alloys which gives the white gold a beautiful colour that doesn’t need covering up.
As with all colours of Gold white gold it is available in different carats. In the UK we favour 9ct & 18ct but jewellery made overseas often comes in 10ct & 14ct. The higher the carat, the more the equivalent ring costs so a lower carat can free up budget to go towards the gemstone.
Platinum: Platinum is naturally very white & is stronger than white gold. It is also denser & therefore weighs a little more but in a ladies engagement ring the additional weight is minimal. Until very recently the only downside of Platinum was the fact that it was the most expensive metal used for engagement rings but this is no longer the case! At current prices (August ’25) stable Platinum prices along with a prolonged spike in Gold prices mean that Platinum is cheaper than 18ct white gold.
Palladium: Palladium comes from the same family of metals as Platinum. Its properties are remarkably similar to Platinum. It is a similar colour & strength but weighs a little less. The only downside of Palladium is that not many jewellers work in it so it may be tricky to find. At current prices (August ’25) Palladium costs more than 9ct white gold but less than 18ct. It used to be much cheaper but a spike in gold & palladium prices meant that it is now close to Platinum.
Gold coloured engagement rings
UK jewellers usually offer the choice of 9ct or 18ct Gold. The carat refers to the purity. 9ct Gold is 37.5% pure Gold whereas 18ct is double this purity at 75%. Engagement rings made overseas sometimes come in different carats like 10ct or 14ct.
Technically 9ct Gold is slightly harder than 18ct but a well-made ring (in a good depth & weight) should last a lifetime in either carat providing it is only subject to normal wear & tear.
When it comes to the colour 18ct Gold is a rich yellow colour. 9ct is slightly more coppery coloured although not a coppery as rose Gold (discussed below).
There is a big price difference between 9ct & 18ct Gold because the higher carat not only contains double the pure gold but this, in turn, makes the equivalent ring heavier.
Rose Gold engagement rings
Although it is not as popular a choice as the other precious metals rose Gold rings can look stunning especially with a coloured stone like a Pink Diamond or a Morganite.
As with yellow & white Gold rose Gold rings in the UK are usually available in a choice of 9ct rose or 18ct rose Gold.
9ct rose looks almost exactly like copper. 18ct rose Gold still has a lovely warm colour but looks a lot more like yellow gold due to the higher purity of Gold.
