What Is Diamond Cut?

The most important of the 4Cs, cut refers to how a diamond’s facets interact with light. It is determined by symmetry, proportion and polish. More than any other factor, cut determines the beauty of the stone. Tiffany diamonds, from the smallest to the largest stone, are always cut to prioritize brilliance over carat weight.

Why Is Diamond Cut Important?

Put simply, cut is responsible for the quality of a diamond’s sparkle. If a diamond is cut poorly, it will appear dull even if it has a high color and clarity grade. If a diamond is cut well, it will reflect and refract light for maximum brightness and sparkle. At Tiffany, our in-house artisans are committed to crafting the most expertly proportioned diamonds, and all of our round brilliant engagement diamonds are rated triple excellent as a result. This precision is what sets Tiffany diamonds apart.

What is a Triple Excellent Cut?

The Triple Excellent Cut refers to round brilliant diamonds of the highest grade throughout the industry. To receive this highest rating, a diamond must meet Tiffany's “Excellent” standards across three elements: precision of cut, polishing and symmetry. Ultimately, a triple excellent diamond maximizes light reflection and brilliance, giving the stone an unparalleled brilliance.

What Impacts Diamond Cut Quality?

Cut is the only one of the 4Cs that is affected by human hands. Two diamonds may have the same clarity, color and carat weight, but cut is what determines whether or not one is superior to the other. Three factors alone determine a diamond’s cut:

Precision of cut
How the size and angles relate to the different parts of the stone.

Symmetry
How precisely the various facets of a diamond align and intersect.

Polish
The details and placement of the facet shapes as well as the outside finish of the diamond.

Diamond Cut Chart

While most jewelers accept “excellent,” “very good,” “good,” “fair” and “poor” cuts, Tiffany refuses to compromise by cutting our diamonds to meet exceptional standards. Non-Tiffany diamonds are sometimes cut too deep or too shallow, allowing light to escape through the sides and bottom. They can also have misaligned facets, which interrupts the movement of light.

The gemological standards in this section refer only to individually registered engagement diamonds set in certain ring styles.

Types of Diamond Cuts

All Tiffany diamonds are masterfully cut to maximize brilliance. There are three diamond cuts used to craft every diamond shape: brilliant cut, step cut and mixed cut.

Brilliant Cut

The brilliant cut is the most popular facet arrangement. It is made of triangular and kite-shaped facets, all arranged to optimize brilliance, or light return. The round brilliant diamond, which has 57 to 58 facets, is the most brilliant of the diamond cuts. Cushion, oval, marquise, pear and heart-shaped diamonds are also cut using the brilliant faceting style and are similar to the round brilliant in degree of sparkle.

Step Cut

Step-cut diamonds have trapezoidal facets that run parallel to the diamond’s girdle, resembling a set of stairs. This faceting style emphasizes a diamond’s color and clarity. The most well-known step cut is the emerald cut.

Mixed Cut

Mixed cuts have a combination of brilliant and step-cut facets. The Tiffany True® diamond is a mixed cut with a crown made entirely of step cuts and a brilliant-cut pavilion.

Frequently Asked Questions

Diamond cut is determined by symmetry, proportion and polish. Diamond cutting is the process of turning a rough stone into a faceted one. More than any other factor, cut determines the beauty of the stone. Tiffany diamonds, from the smallest to the largest stone, are cut to exacting standards.

The round brilliant diamond, which has 57 to 58 facets, is the most brilliant of the diamond cuts. Cushion, oval, marquise, pear and heart-shaped diamonds are also cut using the brilliant faceting style and are similar to the round brilliant in degree of sparkle.

It’s important to note that diamond cut and diamond shape are not the same thing. A diamond’s cut determines how its facets interact with light. A shape describes the geometric appearance of a diamond. Cut defines what the shape of a rough diamond will be—not the other way around. This is why diamond shapes are often interchangeably referred to as cuts.

Tiffany & Co. has nearly 1,500 in-house artisans. Master artisans cut and polish Tiffany diamonds in our Botswana, Cambodia, Vietnam, Mauritius and Belgium facilities to the highest standards.

The 4Cs