The global lab-grown diamond market size was $22.79 billion in 2023, and according to Fortune Business Insights, it is expected to increase from $25.89 billion in 2024 to $74.45 billion in 2032. This isn’t just growth—it’s a total reshape in how we conceptualize one of the oldest luxury industries in the world.
But the craziest part of the whole lab-created diamond market is that it’s not just taking market share from regular digs. This is fundamentally reshaping consumer expectations regarding luxury goods, triggering a transformation of retailers’ shelves and altering the entire functioning of a supply chain. It’s literally fascinating watching a 100+ year industry get disrupted in slow motion.
The Numbers Tell a Story (And It’s Not What You’d Expect)
Let’s start with what’s actually happening in the lab-grown diamond market size because the statistics are mind-blowing. After rapid growth and sales nearing USD9 billion in 2024, the lab-grown diamond jewelry market has slowed, reports Research and Markets. But that’s not necessarily bad news for the industry.
What we’re seeing is the natural evolution of any disruptive technology. The initial explosive growth phase is leveling off into something more sustainable, which actually signals that lab-created diamonds are moving from “interesting alternative” to “legitimate market segment.”
The current market reality:
- With every year, the global diamond market is occupied by lab-grown diamonds, and by 2025, the market share is estimated to be over 21 percent.
- Lab-grown diamond demand is responding, with the latter surging from 3.5 percent in 2018 to 18.5 percent in 2023.
- The traditional mining companies are scrambling to adapt their business models
- Consumer preferences are shifting toward ethical and sustainable options
- Retailers adding lab-grown options to capture new market segments
How Lab-Grown Diamonds Are Disrupting the Diamond Industry (Spoiler: It’s Not Just About Price)
The story of how lab-grown diamonds are disrupting the diamond industry goes way deeper than just offering cheaper alternatives. We’re talking about a fundamental shift in how younger consumers think about luxury, authenticity, and value.
But traditional mining companies aren’t just sitting around watching their market share disappear. Some are pivoting hard—adding lab-grown divisions, investing in technology, basically hedging their bets on both sides of the market. Smart move? We think so.
The disruption isn’t just about economics:
- Environmental consciousness is driving purchasing decisions
- Transparency is becoming a competitive advantage
- Technology enabling new production capabilities
- Consumer education changing perceptions of “real” diamonds
The Expanding World of Lab-Grown Diamond Jewelry
One reason the lab-grown diamonds market size continues to expand is the sheer variety of
jewelry options now available to consumers. What began with a focus on engagement rings
has evolved into a full spectrum of fine jewelry pieces that rival traditional mined collections.
Engagement Rings and Wedding Bands
Still the market’s centerpiece, the lab-grown diamond jewelry segment started here. Couples are drawn to the ability to customize cuts, carat sizes, and settings without the steep cost barriers of mined stones.
Earrings and Studs
Classic diamond studs are always bestsellers, matching the elegance of diamond earrings with lab-grown, equally glorious, and affordable prices. Cluster earrings (multi-stone) and drop styles are finally gaining some traction, too.
Tennis Bracelets and Necklaces
Historically, these showstopper, high-carat pieces have remained in the realm of the rich and famous. Still, the introduction of lab-grown diamonds means consumers can now wear a statement piece without sacrificing size and sparkle.
Fashion Jewelry
As experimental as the designers may be with asymmetrical cuts, colourful stones, and metal mixing, classic jewelry never loses its charm. Focusing on the modern-day, the designs incorporate lab-grown diamonds that are changing the diamond playing field by giving new avenues to luxury with fine quality and one-of-a-kind rings at lower price points.
An increase in options, of course, redefines consumer expectations. Diamond jewelry buyers have moved beyond big milestone purchases. They are now increasingly treating lab-grown diamonds as everyday luxury purchases.
2025 Global Diamond Market: A Story of Two Industries
Just five years ago, lab-grown diamonds were a niche choice. Today, in 2025, they’ve moved to the center of the diamond market, reshaping the entire industry from production to retail. The challenges facing traditional mining operations are more than just competitive.
Production of natural diamonds has fallen from the record high of more than 175 million carats produced yearly in 2005 and 2006 to 121 million carats produced in 2023, according to McKinsey research.
What Industry Leaders are Saying:
David Kellie, CEO of Natural Diamond Council, stated at the Dubai Diamond Conference in November 2024: “The whole industry needs to come together and support the effort of promoting the natural diamond narrative.“
Meanwhile, the lab-created diamonds growth is creating entirely new business opportunities. Tech companies are entering the jewelry space, startups are challenging established retailers, and even fashion brands are launching their own lab diamond jewelry lines.
What the 2025 landscape looks like:
- Mining companies diversifying into lab-grown production
- New players entering the market with tech-first approaches
- Retailers offering both options to capture different consumer segments
- Supply chains are becoming more transparent and traceable
What Traditional Players Are Doing (Hint: They’re Not Giving Up)
The lab-grown diamonds vs. natural diamonds market share battle is creating some fascinating strategic moves from established players. De Beers announced that starting in 2025, it will provide country-of-origin information for rough diamonds larger than 1.25 carats—basically doubling down on the “natural story” angle.
But other traditional companies are taking different approaches. As noted by Signet in their lab-grown diamond invoices: “Because lab-grown diamonds can be produced in abundance, they are less expensive and make larger-size diamonds more affordable. Their relative abundance may not ensure that the value will hold over time.“
Strategic responses from the traditional industry:
- Enhanced traceability and origin certification
- Investment in lab-grown production capabilities
- Focus on ultra-luxury natural diamond segments
- Marketing campaigns emphasizing natural diamond uniqueness
The Consumer Psychology Shift
The actual fuel behind this innovation in the jewelry industry is not technology, but rather the paradigm shift in the luxury spending mindset. Now millennials and Gen Z are asking another question: Where does this come from? What’s the environmental impact? Is this purchase consistent with our values?
The lab-created diamonds industry has built its entire value proposition around answering these questions in ways that feel good to modern consumers:
Key factors driving consumer adoption:
- Environmental consciousness outweighs traditional luxury markers
- Transparency is becoming more important than brand heritage
- Value perception shifting from rarity to quality and ethics
- Social media influence normalizing lab-grown options
What This Means for the Industry’s Future
The first thing to know about thefuture of lab-grown diamonds is that they will not replace natural diamonds. Instead, they’re creating a dual market—one for each consumer and each wallet. What we are seeing is not a fad but a real change in the way people all over the world buy and connect to diamonds.
This is not a temporary aberration — the foundations of consumer behavior, technology potential, and business models have shifted permanently here.
For traditional mining companies, the challenge isn’t just competing on price—it’s articulating why natural origin matters in a world where lab-grown alternatives are chemically identical and often superior in quality.
The Bottom Line on Diamond Disruption
The disruption of this diamond industry by the lab-grown diamond industry is a lesson on how technology, changing values of consumers, and business practices can actually upend even the oldest of industries.
It’s not just about cheaper diamonds, it’s about new paradigms of luxury, authenticity & value. The diamond market worldwide in 2025 will go to those companies that get what the contemporary consumer wants, vs. what they did. At the end of the day, though, be it soil or lab, people still want pretty, purposeful jewelry.
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Company Name: Rosec Jewels LLC
Contact Person: Ankit Gupta
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City: New York
Country: United States
Website: https://www.rosecjewels.com