Princess Cut Lab Grown Diamond Engagement Rings: The Square Shape That Rivals Round Brilliance

Princess cut was the undisputed #2 engagement ring shape in the US for nearly two decades. Then the oval wave hit. Between 2015 and 2025, princess cut’s market share dropped from roughly 15% to around 5-7% (TheDiamondPrice.com, National Jeweler).

Most trend pieces frame that as a decline story. They’re missing the real story.

Less demand means lower premiums on a shape that still outperforms nearly every fancy cut for brilliance. Princess is a brilliant-cut diamond with 50-58 chevron-pattern facets that produce bold, structured flashes of light. It fires like a round. And it retains roughly 80% of the rough crystal during cutting, compared to 40% for rounds. Stack that manufacturing efficiency on top of the lab-grown discount, and you get one of the best value-to-sparkle ratios in the engagement ring market.

This guide covers what makes a princess cut lab grown diamond engagement ring worth considering, what specs matter, and the practical details that most buying guides skip.

What Makes Princess Cut Different

The modern princess cut was developed between 1961 and 1979, with the final form credited to Betzalel Ambar and Israel Itzkowitz. It’s a square (or near-square) shape with brilliant-cut faceting on the pavilion, arranged in a distinctive chevron pattern. Think of it as round brilliant sparkle packed into a geometric frame.

Unlike step cuts (emerald, Asscher) that create broad flashes in a “hall of mirrors” pattern, princess cuts scatter light the way rounds do. Short, intense flashes of white and spectral color. A well-cut princess is the most brilliant of all fancy shapes, returning approximately 70% of entering light compared to the round’s 90%+ (The Diamond Pro). No other non-round shape comes close.

It’s also the only square shape with brilliant faceting. Cushion cuts are also squarish with brilliant facets, but they have rounded corners and softer proportions. Princess is sharper. More architectural. If you want geometry with fire, this is the shape. For a broader look at how each shape compares, see our types of engagement rings guide.

The Value Equation

An octahedral rough diamond crystal can be sawn in half to yield two princess cuts, each retaining roughly 80% of its half. Rounds waste about 60% of the rough to achieve circular symmetry. That efficiency gap translates directly to price: princess cuts typically cost 20-40% less than round brilliants at the same carat weight and quality.

With lab-grown pricing on top, the math shifts dramatically. A 2-carat lab-grown princess in D-F color and VVS-VS1 clarity runs approximately $1,200-$3,200. A comparable natural round would cost $18,000-$30,000. You’re looking at 80-90%+ total savings when you combine the princess cut’s manufacturing advantage with lab-grown production.

That kind of gap changes what’s possible. A 2.5-carat princess with top specs costs less than a 1-carat natural round. For detailed budgeting across all shapes, see our lab grown engagement rings by budget guide.

Ideal Proportions and Specs

GIA does not assign cut grades to princess cuts (or any fancy shape). Your GIA report will include polish and symmetry, but no overall cut assessment. IGI, however, now grades princess cuts from Excellent to Poor, including light return evaluation. That’s one reason IGI certification matters more for this shape. Every Beyond Carat diamond is IGI certified. For more on the grading lab differences, see our 4Cs of lab grown diamonds guide.

Here are the numbers to look for:

Parameter	Ideal Range	Notes
Length:Width	1.00-1.05	Below 1.03 reads as perfectly square. Above 1.06 starts looking rectangular
Depth %	68-75%	Princess cuts carry weight deeper than rounds. Below 65% risks light leakage
Table %	67-75%	Larger table means more transparency and brilliance
Polish	Very Good to Excellent	Surface quality affects light return on every facet
Symmetry	Very Good to Excellent	Misalignment shows in the face-up chevron pattern

The L:W ratio is the first spec to check. Most buyers want a square princess (1.00-1.05). A 1.05 is visually indistinguishable from 1.00 to the naked eye. Above 1.06, the stone starts looking slightly stretched. Some buyers prefer that intentionally for a rectangular princess look. No wrong answer, but know what you’re choosing.

Chevron Count: The Spec Nobody Talks About

Each side of a princess cut’s pavilion has chevron-shaped facets arranged in rows. The number of rows (typically 2, 3, or 4 per side) changes how the diamond sparkles, and most grading reports don’t specify it.

2 chevrons per side create fewer, larger facets that throw bold broad flashes. Strong brilliance, similar to the chunky sparkle of a well-cut round. Best for buyers who want dramatic light performance.

3 chevrons per side balance brilliance with fire. Most diamond experts consider this the sweet spot for princess cuts.

4 chevrons per side produce a crushed-ice sparkle pattern with many pinpoint flashes. More scintillation but less defined brilliance. If you like how crushed-ice cushion cuts look, you’ll appreciate this.

Check 360-degree video or ask the vendor. This detail has more impact on how your princess looks in person than most of the numbers on the grading report.

Color, Clarity, and the Lab-Grown Advantage

Princess cuts show slightly less body color than cushion or emerald cuts because the brilliant faceting breaks warmth into smaller, harder-to-detect flashes. That’s useful to know. But with lab-grown diamonds, there’s no need to settle for near-colorless at all.

Beyond Carat offers D, E, and F color, the colorless range on the GIA scale. In natural diamonds, stepping from G up to D adds thousands. In lab-grown, the gap between colorless and near-colorless shrinks to a fraction. Why compromise when you don’t have to?

Metal	Recommended Color
Platinum / White Gold	D or E
Yellow Gold	E or F
Rose Gold	E or F

For clarity, princess cuts are forgiving. The chevron faceting breaks up inclusions across many small facets, making flaws harder to spot than in step cuts. Beyond Carat offers VVS1, VVS2, and VS1 only. At these grades, inclusions are invisible without magnification. GIA defines VVS as inclusions “so small that even a trained grader has difficulty seeing them under 10x.” No guesswork. No studying inclusion maps hoping your specific stone is the exception.

Combine D-F color, VVS-VS1 clarity, and IGI-certified Excellent cut, and you get the full premium spec sheet at a fraction of what it would cost in natural. That’s the point of going lab-grown.

Corner Protection: The One Non-Negotiable

Princess cuts have four sharp corners, and those corners are the most vulnerable point on any diamond shape. A direct knock can chip them. That’s not a flaw. It’s physics: sharp points concentrate force.

The fix is straightforward. Choose a setting that covers the corners.

V-prong solitaire is the standard for princess cuts. A V-shaped metal claw wraps each corner, absorbing impacts before they reach the diamond. The Celeste Grace Princess and Elena Radiance Princess in our engagement ring collection use this approach.

Bezel wraps metal around the entire perimeter. Maximum protection, sleek modern look. One note: a bezel in white gold can reflect slightly warmer tones into the stone, so going one color grade higher is worth considering.

Halo surrounds the center stone with smaller diamonds. Adds corner coverage, boosts perceived size by 15-20%, and frames the square shape beautifully.

Cathedral uses raised arches from the band that cradle the stone higher, adding structural support to the corners. The Evelyn Chevron Princess uses this style.

Channel-set side stones complement the geometric lines of a princess perfectly. Metal walls protect the side stones and add structural support to the center diamond’s corners.

For a full comparison of all settings, see our engagement ring settings guide.

Princess vs Round: An Honest Comparison

This is the comparison most princess cut shoppers run eventually.

Factor	Princess Cut	Round Brilliant
Brilliance	~70% light return. Brightest fancy shape	~90%+ light return. Industry benchmark
Sparkle pattern	Bold chevron flashes, structured fire	Uniform, balanced pinpoint sparkle
Price per carat	20-40% less at same specs	Most expensive per carat
Face-up size (2ct)	6.9mm sides (9.8mm diagonal corner-to-corner)	8.2mm diameter
Cut grading	Not graded by GIA. Graded by IGI	Full cut grade from both GIA and IGI
Durability concern	Sharp corners need V-prong protection	No vulnerable points
Band compatibility	Sits flush with straight wedding bands	Sits flush with straight wedding bands

Round wins on absolute light performance and ease of shopping. Princess wins on value, geometric style, and bold flash pattern. If you want maximum sparkle per dollar, princess is the stronger play. If you want the safest, most universally recommended shape, round is hard to argue against.

Both are brilliant cuts. Both work in every setting. The choice comes down to whether you prefer a circle or a square on your finger.

For comparisons with other shapes in our guide series: oval, cushion, emerald, and pear.

How Each Carat Size Looks on Your Hand

Princess cuts carry more weight in depth (the inverted pyramid below the table) than rounds, so they can appear slightly smaller face-up at equal carat weight. But here’s the counterpoint: the corner-to-corner diagonal of a 2-carat princess measures roughly 9.8mm, compared to a round’s 8.2mm diameter. That diagonal catches the eye on the finger.

Carat	Approximate Size (mm)	On-Finger Notes
1.00	~5.5 x 5.5	Clean, classic presence on sizes 4-6
1.50	~6.2 x 6.2	Noticeable. A popular starting point
2.00	~6.9 x 6.9	Statement territory. 9.8mm corner-to-corner diagonal
2.50	~7.5 x 7.5	Commanding. Lab-grown puts this well within reach
3.00	~8.0 x 8.0	Significant visual impact. Runs roughly $2,100-$5,500 lab-grown

At 2-3 carats, princess cuts hit their stride. That’s the sweet spot for lab-grown buyers: sizes that would cost $25,000-$60,000 in natural rounds, available for a fraction in lab-grown princess.

What Most Guides Won’t Tell You

The “black cross” is normal. Some princess cuts show a dark X pattern when viewed from directly above. That’s the chevron facets doing their job. Tilt the stone slightly and the cross breaks into flashes of light. A subtle cross in overhead lighting is standard scintillation. A persistent dark cross in every angle, though, suggests a poorly cut stone.

Princess cut is the least trendy it’s been in 20 years. That’s a feature. Oval is everywhere right now. Every other Instagram proposal features one. Princess stands out precisely because fewer people are wearing it. If you don’t want your ring to look like everyone else’s, that declining market share works in your favor.

Wedding bands sit flush. Unlike pear, marquise, or oval (which can create gaps), a princess cut sits flat against a standard straight wedding band. No contour band needed. No gap to work around. This is a genuine practical advantage that rarely gets mentioned. See our guide on 2026 engagement ring trends for more on how brides are styling their ring stacks this year.

Not all princess cuts sparkle the same way. A 2-chevron princess and a 4-chevron princess look like different shapes in person. Always check video, not just photos. And always check the L:W ratio to confirm you’re getting the square (or rectangular) silhouette you expect.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are princess cut engagement rings outdated?

Princess cut’s market share has declined from about 15% to roughly 5-7% over the past decade (TheDiamondPrice.com). But “less popular” doesn’t mean dated. It means fewer people are buying them, which translates to lower prices and a look that stands apart from the oval-heavy mainstream. The shape itself hasn’t changed. The brilliance hasn’t diminished. Only the trend cycle shifted.

Do princess cut diamonds chip easily?

The four sharp corners are more vulnerable to impact than rounded shapes. But this is entirely manageable with the right setting. V-prong and bezel settings wrap metal around each corner, shielding them from direct contact. Millions of princess cuts are worn daily without issues. Just don’t leave corners exposed with thin, single prongs.

How does a princess cut compare to a round for sparkle?

A well-cut princess returns roughly 70% of entering light, versus 90%+ for a well-cut round (The Diamond Pro). Princess is the most brilliant fancy shape, but round still holds the top spot for raw light performance. The sparkle patterns differ too: princess produces bold, structured chevron flashes while round creates more uniform pinpoint sparkle. Both are brilliant cuts. It’s a preference call.

What is the best setting for a princess cut?

V-prong solitaire is the most popular choice. It wraps a V-shaped metal claw around each corner for protection while keeping the stone fully visible. Halo and bezel settings also work well. The only rule: all four corners need coverage. For a complete setting breakdown, see our engagement ring settings guide.

Why are princess cut diamonds cheaper than rounds?

Manufacturing efficiency. A rough diamond crystal yields two princess cuts at roughly 80% material retention each. Round brilliants waste about 60% of the rough to achieve their circular shape. Less waste, lower cost per carat. This makes princess one of the best value propositions in the diamond market, and the advantage compounds with lab-grown pricing.

---

At Beyond Carat, every princess cut engagement ring features an IGI-certified lab-grown diamond with D-F color, VVS-VS1 clarity, and Excellent cut. The crystal structure is identical to mined. The price isn’t. Explore our engagement ring collection to find yours.