Like it or not, sometimes a happy couple, either right away, or down the line, decides that marriage is not the best thing and makes the decision to part. Sometimes the parting is filled with sorrow, such as when one party unceremoniously dumps the other, or straight from the get-go, a potential fiance has already bought an engagement ring, assuming she will say yes, but the answer is a flat, “no way Jose.” Regardless of the setup, whether acrimonious or just remaining friends, the fact is there is an excess engagement ring, that the parties are ready to part with.

But how to sell it? The five fundamental ways

There are generally five ways to sell an engagement ring. The first is at a local pawn shop. Pawnshops have ready cash available for valuable jewelry. While this is the most immediate way to sell an engagement ring, plan on getting only around 55 to a maximum of 75 percent of the worth of the ring. Secondly, there is the online seller to buyer route. Craigslist is free, while it will cost you a few dollars to sell on Etsy and eBay. The great thing about selling online is that you set the price, and if you are not in a hurry, and don’t mind rejecting a lot of lowball offers, you may sell a ring for up to 80 percent of its value. We say 80 percent because unless you are extremely lucky, realize there is always a
substantial penalty for selling an engagement ring. Engagement rings are like cars, the minute you drive them off the lot, they depreciate in value.

The third option is to sell your engagement ring at auction. A typical auction house will charge 20 percent of the value the engagement ring sells for, and unless it’s a stunner, there is no guarantee you will get anywhere near what it is worth. Also, realize that most auction houses do not have an auction every day. You may have to wait a week or a month for the ring to come up on auction. The one value is that if the engagement ring is a real stunner, there can be a bidding war at auction for the ring.

Next, there are local jewelers and diamond exchanges in large cities like New York City. Selling at a local jewelry store is not a great option because most people do not realize that jewelry stores typically sell their engagement rings at a 300 percent markup. So what do you think they will evaluate your ring at? Probably no more than 25 percent, if that.

Finally, there is selling your engagement ring to a professional buyer, online. All in all, whether you are extremely lucky, you can sometimes get between 59 and 78 percent of the value of your ring, and as these are professional evaluators, they operate relatively quickly.

The bottom line for how it works

Besides being a loser in love, most people are shocked at how little they will get for selling their engagement ring. There are tremendous markups in the jewelry industry, and it’s not true that diamond rings are a rarity. When selling an engagement ring, expect to lose money, deal with a lot of people that just want a bargain, and expect a lot of waiting in the process. Sell engagement ring because you no longer want it, not for the money it will buy. To sell, the best option is to go direct to an online, professional buying company and be done with it. And the next time you fall in love? Buy a cheap, simple band, and put the money down into something that will appreciate like a house.