What are "certified" diamonds?

Although many establishments refer to their diamonds as "certified," there's actually no such thing as a "certified diamond." What these establishments are referring to is a diamond that has a laboratory-created grading report (or "cert") that describes it.

Only grading reports issued by an independent laboratory (or one with no vested interest in buying or selling diamonds) accurately describe the clarity, color, fluorescence, proportions, symmetry, and weight of a diamond.

They also provide a plot of the diamond—a diagram marking all of the stone's unique, microscopic characteristics and flaws. This is the best tool to identify a diamond.