Guides
Clarity grades describe inclusions inside a diamond and blemishes on it. They do not, by themselves, tell you whether you will see those marks across a room.
From cleanest to most included, the grades run FL, IF, VVS1, VVS2, VS1, VS2, SI1, SI2, and I1. Flawless and Internally Flawless are rare. Very Very Slightly Included means a skilled grader sees marks under 10× that are extremely difficult to find. Very Slightly Included means minor inclusions. Slightly Included means noticeable at 10× and sometimes visible face-up. Included means obvious.
Labs plot the important marks. The plot shows type and location. Location decides whether a grade looks clean: a feather on the girdle hides under a prong, a dark crystal under the table does not.
Eye-clean means you do not see inclusions at normal viewing distance, without a loupe. VS2 and better are usually eye-clean. Many SI1 stones are eye-clean too, especially rounds, if the inclusion is small and off-center.
The grade is the lab’s 10× judgment. Your eyes are the face-up judgment. Use both.
Moving from SI1 to VS2 often removes doubt. Moving from VS1 to VVS1 rarely changes what you see and can cost a lot, particularly on natural diamonds.
Emerald and Asscher cuts show inclusions more readily because of their open facets. A clarity grade that is quiet in a round can be obvious in a step cut. Raise the floor for those shapes.
Set a floor (VS2 if you want fewer surprises, SI1 if you will inspect photos). Then open the video on every shortlisted stone. Reject dark, central inclusions even when the grade looks acceptable.
The clarity guide and the VS comparisons on Carat Mate go grade by grade. The listing is where you test them on a real stone.
Carat Mate lists certified loose diamonds for shoppers in the United States, Canada, the UAE, London, and Australia. Prices are in USD everywhere. We ship to the United States, Canada, the UAE, London, and Australia.
