If your diamond came with a GIA grading report, one of the most useful things you can do before selling it is to look that report up. GIA offers a Report Check on its website where a report number can be looked up. A buyer will very likely do the same, so it pays to know what they will see before you walk in. This article explains how to find the number, what to compare and what to do if something does not match.
Diamond Buyers NYC is an independent referral service, not a buyer, pawnshop or dealer, and it is not affiliated with GIA. When you call or send the form, your details go to an independent buyer in New York, who makes any offer.
Why check before you sell
- You know what the buyer will see. The grades on the report are the starting point of any offer on a reported stone.
- You can describe the stone exactly. A report number and its grades describe the stone before anyone has seen it.
- You catch problems early. If the record does not match your paper, better to find out at home than at the counter.
- You can compare offers fairly. Every buyer is pricing the same description.
Find the report number
The report number is printed on the report itself. If you have the paper, it is there. If you do not, look in the places reports usually end up: the ring box, the receipt folder, insurance papers, a safe deposit box, or the files of whoever bought the stone. A jeweler who sold the stone may have a record of the report too. Write the number down exactly.
Look it up on GIA’s website
Go to GIA’s own website, gia.edu, and open its Report Check. Enter the report number. Use GIA’s site directly rather than a link sent by someone else, so you know the record you are reading is GIA’s.
What to compare
Lay your paper report beside what you find and go through the four Cs, the factors in the grading system GIA developed in the 1950s, one by one.
| Check | What it is |
|---|---|
| Carat weight | The stone’s weight. A carat is 200 milligrams; a point is one hundredth of a carat. |
| Color grade | GIA grades color against masterstones on its D to Z scale. |
| Clarity grade | What a grader sees inside and on the surface. Flawless is the top grade. |
| Cut | How well the stone is proportioned and finished. |
| Shape and measurements | These should match the stone you have. |
| Natural or laboratory-grown | Under the FTC’s jewelry guides a lab-grown diamond must be described clearly as laboratory-grown or similar. |
If something does not match
If the record and the paper do not agree, or no record comes back, do not panic and do not sell yet. Check that you typed the number correctly. Check whether the paper is a GIA report at all: IGI is another laboratory that issues diamond reports, and other laboratories issue their own. If it is a GIA number and still does not match, the stone and the report may have been separated at some point, for example when a ring was reset. A buyer or a gemologist can help you work out which stone you actually have.
A report is not a price
A grading report describes the stone. It does not say what the stone is worth, and neither does an appraisal: an appraisal states a value for a purpose and is not an offer. Only a buyer makes an offer, and a retail price includes the store’s costs and margin, so any offer is lower than what was paid in a store. The guide to diamond resale value explains why.
Selling a stone with a GIA report in New York
With the report checked, you are ready. Bring the original report, the stone or ring, and official photo ID, which a New York City buyer must see and record. Ask for offers in writing and compare more than one. The page on how to sell loose diamonds covers reported and unreported stones, and the step-by-step guide on how to sell diamonds in NYC covers the sale.
Report number in hand? Call, and an independent New York buyer comes back to you.
Questions people ask
How do I check a GIA certificate number?
GIA offers a Report Check on its website, gia.edu, where a report number can be looked up. Compare what you find with your paper report.
What if I lost my GIA report?
Look in boxes, receipt folders and insurance papers, or ask the jeweler who sold the stone. A stone can still be sold without its report; the buyer grades it.
Is an IGI report the same as a GIA report?
No. IGI is another laboratory that issues diamond reports. Look up any report with the laboratory that issued it.
Call the line
One number, answered in New York.