Moissanite vs Diamond: 4 Key Differences

Moissanite and diamond are both popular among jewelry buyers. However, moissanite and diamond have key differences that may help you determine which gem to buy for your jewelry collection.

Moissanite is a naturally occurring mineral that was first discovered in 1893. It is a rare mineral in nature. Furthermore, it is very expensive compared to lab-created alternatives without any standards of production. However, these lab-grown alternatives have made moissanite common and affordable compared to diamonds.

4 Key Differences between Moissanite and Diamond

 Diamond has dominated the jewelry market for a long time along with other gems. However, moissanite, especially the lab-grown option is a preferred alternative to it. Therefore, it is a case of moissanite vs diamond in the jewellery market for jewelry lovers.

1. Value and Price

As far as price goes, diamonds are more expensive. While moissanite is slightly less expensive than diamond, it follows closely behind in popularity. Due to the scarcity of moissanite, lab-grown options have flooded the market. Even with that, moissanite jewelry products remain competitive and are great diamond alternatives.

Diamonds continue to lead moissanite in terms of price. However, moissanite will serve the same purpose and give an almost similar experience for you. This is especially if you are working on a budget. With lab-grown moissanite, you can easily get custom options to meet your specific needs.

2. Fire and Brilliance

A gem’s refractive index determines its ability to reflect light (or lack thereof). While there are some differences between Moissanite and Diamond, they both have a high refractive index. This is a key factor in how it affects light and color.

Moissanite has some optical phenomena that is similar to diamond’s as well as exhibiting fluorescence. However, Moissanite has more of a glimmering quality to it as opposed to diamonds scintillation.

Moissanite has a refractive index of 2.65-2.69, while diamond’s RI is 2.42-2.44. Due to moissanite’s high RI value, it appears brighter than a diamond in most lighting conditions. In simple terms, moissanite has more fire or sparkle than diamond due to its high refractive index value.

3. Hardness and Durability

Moissanite and diamond are both durable and resistant to heat. However, moissanites’ durability is better in comparison because diamond’s cleavage planes make them more fragile. Therefore, moissanite is harder and more durable than a diamond on the Mohs scale of hardness.

Moissanite Heat Resistance moissanite is more than that of diamond. When heated, moissanite can resist temperatures of up to about 1800-degrees Celsius, breaking down at around 2000 degrees Celsius.

Moissanites are more electrically conductive than diamonds. In that case, they are better at carrying an electrical charge.  Its high dielectric strength makes it more likely to survive lightning strikes than diamonds. However, not all moissanites will be able to survive a lightning strike.

4. Color of Moissanites and Diamonds

The range of colors seen in mined gems is due to the environmental factors that influenced them when they were growing. Clear or white Diamonds are more valuable and desirable because consumers want what is natural. They do not want anything forced upon them with manmade techniques like dyeing a stone yellow!

Natural moissanite is speculated to come from space meteorites. Most of what is commonly found in the market are grown in labs. Production levels have reached acceptable limits with high consistency results achieved over the years.

Most of the moissanite products you will find in the market are colorless. For those who appreciate perfection, Moissanites are a perfect fit. These lab-grown gems range from D-I colors. Most importantly, all moissanite jewelry products offer high-quality stones. They are guaranteed to be DEF (colorless) or VS2 clarity!

Important Advice

There is nothing wrong with buying either moissanite or diamond. Each gives its value and experience. However, do not give moissanite disguised as diamond. If you do not have enough to spend, moissanite products can fit in perfectly.

Both diamonds and moissanites are rare commodities in their natural form. However, lab-grown moissanite has helped to meet the increasing demand in the market.  Again, their close resemblance should not mean they are the same. These four key differences should help you get the difference between them. Moissanite is superior to diamonds on various fronts.