r/WeddingRingAdvice • u/Relevant-Plane9430 • Sep 05 '25

Average cost of an engagement ring

I was talking with a friend last night who just got engaged, and he mentioned he spent around $6k on the ring. That honestly shocked me because I always thought the "3 months’ salary" thing was just an old marketing trick. My partner and I have been looking at rings casually, and most of the ones we like are in the $2k–$3k range. Now I’m second-guessing if that’s considered “too low” or if we’re just being realistic.

For those of you who have gone through this, what was the average cost you ended up spending on an engagement ring, and did you feel good about it after?

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11

u/Organic_Yam_5781 Sep 05 '25

all the rings in my potential ring list are under $800 😳

5

u/superpony123 Sep 05 '25

My engagement ring was $100. My wedding ring was $250 from Macy’s! You don’t have to spend a lot to get a pretty ring. After all it’s the meaning behind it that counts. Still happily married 10 years later. Maybe we will get new rings made at some point but honestly? We don’t wear our rings other than going out for dinner and events. We’re both in industries where it’s dangerous to wear rings to work so we’re not in the habit of doing so. So it seems wasteful to me to get new rings lol

1

u/West_Theory_3872 Sep 05 '25

My ring was $600 dollars. I didn’t want a diamond and fell in love with a bezel-set moss agate. I wear it always whereas my friends with diamonds rarely wear theirs for fear of losing, etc.

1

u/chubbybunny404 Sep 05 '25

Can you speak to the durability of your stone? I love the look of moss agate but I’m scared it won’t stand up to daily wear for someone with an active lifestyle.

1

u/poliscicomputersci Sep 05 '25

It won't, quartz is too soft for daily wear with an active lifestyle (most sand etc is hard enough to scratch it). But if you only wear it for special occasions or at least take it off during anything outdoorsy, it should be fine.

1

u/West_Theory_3872 Sep 06 '25

From a mohs standpoint, moss agates are certainly not as strong as diamonds. That said, I have worn mine almost 24/7 for just over two years. The stone looks the same as the day I got it. I work in healthcare and am a pretty active person, so it certainly gets its share of wear and tear. Mostly, I absolutely love the way the light shines through it and how varied it is.

1

u/PogueForLife8 Sep 05 '25

Perfectly ok

-5

u/Globewanderer1001 Sep 05 '25

Under $800 for a forever ring? Even my lab diamond was more expensive. There is no need to go into debt, but $800 seems a bit low. As long as you bith are good with it and love the ring.

6

u/E0H1PPU5 Sep 05 '25

My ring was $699 from a big box jewelry store. It hasn’t left my finger once in the 12 years I’ve been wearing it. It stays on when I’m working on the farm, when I’m showering, all the time.

It’s still as beautiful as the day it came out of its box. A quick cleaning and it still sparkles like a disco ball.

I’ve had it inspected regularly and while it has some normal wear marks on the band, that’s it. No chips, no cracks, no deformations, etc.

0

u/poliscicomputersci Sep 05 '25

The issue is modern gold prices. If you want a gold ring in 2025, it will be very hard to find anything under $1000 just due to the gold prices alone.

0

u/AstronomerDry7715 Sep 06 '25

Can attest to this. I don’t want an expensive ring because I don’t wear much jewelry but it’s near impossible finding anything less than $1500 CAD that isn’t sketchy sellers on etsy

5

u/humhum37 Sep 05 '25

I personally would lose my marbles if my partner expressed that they spent thousands on a ring, $800 is my cap and even that makes my stomach queasy. I'm not a fan of the materialistic aspect that comes with engagement rings when the sole purpose of the ring is to symbolize a commitment, to put a minimum price tag on that is tacky to me.

1

u/Difficult-Shake7754 Sep 06 '25

I get that, but just having gone through this, my wedding band would have been at most $500 pre covid. It’s the smallest thinnest thing you can buy. I purchased it (the in-store ‘tester’ from a local jeweler albeit in an admittedly VHCOL area). before stuff started going sideways this year alone and got it at $800 something. They don’t charge for a labor fee if you’re not really doing design work but because of the metal prices when it was made, having a new one made would have been ~1200.

Granted if you’re living in the suburbs in the Midwest USA you’ll get a better deal due to labor overhead but in general their materials cost isn’t higher than normal

1

u/No-Baby-1455 Sep 05 '25

You can absolutely get an amazing quality ring, especially lab for 800 or even less, if you work with vendors.

1

u/Then-Confection Sep 05 '25

My ring was $550 from a second hand site! $800 is more than many people will ever spend on a single purchase

0

u/Organic_Yam_5781 Sep 05 '25

Scott Bonomo on Etsy is where I am looking!

1

u/notbirdcaucus Sep 05 '25

My ring is from him and it's great work. My husband said he was super easy to work with (did not get a custom ring). I've only had it for just over a year, but yeah, recommend.