Best Things To Buy At Blue Nile 2024 - Forbes Vetted

Whether you’re buying jewelry for yourself or for a loved one, the whole process is complicated, personal, and well, expensive—so you want to get it right. Despite being one of the largest online retailers for fine jewelry, Blue Nile excels at making the jewelry buying process feel bespoke and intimate. They have an extensive selection, access to diamond experts, competitive pricing and a favorable return policy. We love their timeless engagement rings, elegant studs, statement making gemstone rings and stylish necklaces and bracelets.

Blue Nile features a wide selection of jewelry, with both classic and unexpected styles. They also ... [+] offer expert help, easy returns and competitive prices.

If you’re looking for a sentimental solitaire pendant, special studs or the perfect ring to propose, Blue Nile is an editor favorite at the Forbes Vetted team. Ahead we rounded up the best things to buy at Blue Nile, without overspending in the process.

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For classic brides who like clean lines, this simple setting lets whatever diamond you choose take center stage. Choose from a 14k or 18k white, yellow or rose gold setting, and select from a variety of natural or lab grown diamonds.

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Halo settings can make your center diamond appear larger, and they add even more sparkle to whatever stone shape you select. This style features a single row of micro-pavé set round brilliant-cut diamonds. This setting is available in 14k or 18k white gold, yellow gold or rose gold.

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Three-stone engagement rings are intended to symbolize past, present and future. That sweet sentiment gives even more appeal to this style—featuring two trapezoid-shaped stones flanking a center stone—which has a look that’s balanced and timeless. Choose from yellow gold, white gold, rose gold or platinum settings.

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For brides who want a less common engagement ring style, this features an impressive profile with specialized detailing: It has a hexagon halo with baguette and round diamonds, and the sides of the setting and the band have even more diamonds for extra sparkle.

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Take your hoops up a notch with this 14k white gold style, which features bezel set round brilliant cut diamonds surrounded by milgrain detailing for extra sparkle. At a 5/8-inch size, these are a great silhouette for wearing all day, and they’ll shine bright for nighttime, too.

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Diamond studs are an elegant, unfussy accessory that add polish to any look. This lab grown pair features a classic four-prong setting and is available with a white gold or yellow gold setting.

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A subtle pop of color adds something unexpected to a traditional style. This stud features a round sapphire surrounded by a micropave diamond halo. If blue isn’t your color, this style is available with a variety of other gemstones, too, such as citrine, garnet, amethyst or aquamarine.

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While pearls can sometimes feel stuffy or dated, this pair has a fresh feel. Petite blue sapphire gemstones surround freshwater cultured pearls for a look that’s crisp, clean and endlessly stylish. We love these as a chic wedding earring.

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Paperclip necklaces—which means the style features looser, elongated links that mimic the shape of a paperclip—offer great visual contrast when paired with chains that have a smaller profile, and they look nice styled with a pendant or charms. This 18-inch chain is available in 14k yellow gold, white gold or rose gold.

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Eternity necklaces have made a huge comeback of late, and they’re being worn layered for everyday as well as for topping off a formal look. This 16-inch chain features graduated brilliant cut round diamonds for a look that’s both blingy and classic. It has a 7 carat total diamond weight, but Blue Nile also has 5, 10 and 20 carat weight styles.

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This single-diamond style is understated but high impact—the simple setting showcases the diamond without distracting from its sparkle. It has an 18-inch cable chain with a lobster claw clasp and looks great framed by a strapless, v-neck or button up top. This comes in a variety of diamond carat weights (.25, .5, .75 or 1 carat) and metal types (white gold, yellow gold or platinum).

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Initially called an eternity bracelet, this style is meant to represent eternal love. (Fun fact: It didn’t gain the moniker of “tennis bracelet” until tennis star Chris Evert regularly played in one in the 1970s and 1980s.) Equal parts flashy and demure, this brilliant bracelet features 100 prong set diamonds. It comes in white gold, yellow gold or rose gold. A box clasp will keep this style safely on your wrist, whether you’re at work, an event or actually playing tennis.

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This unique piece—with alternating textured and polished gold links—reflects a bygone era with its intricately woven design. Reviewers love the craftsmanship, but some say the 8-inch length can run large on smaller wrists.

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Pearls are said to symbolize so many different things—wisdom, love, good fortune and more—but no matter what, they’re always a significant and meaningful gift for a loved one. With white freshwater pearls strung on an 8-inch hand-knotted silk blend cord, this polished strand is ideal as a milestone jewelry gift or for passing down from generation to generation.

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Garnets are said to symbolize things like love, passion and commitment. This oval garnet gemstone is surrounded by pave round brilliant diamonds in an 18k white gold setting. Not only is this the January birthstone, it’s also ideal for a Valentine’s Day or as a holiday gift.

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This high impact ring will garner lots of compliments. The sizable center cushion cut aquamarine is flanked by two trillion-cut light blue aquamarines, making this cocktail ring a special-event show stopper. This setting comes in 14k white gold or rose gold.

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Emeralds are May’s birthstone, and they represent new beginnings and loyalty, among other things. This chunky band has five emeralds with alternating rows of diamonds for maximum contrast and sparkle. Many reviewers report having received this as an anniversary gift. (If you or your significant other prefer red gemstones, there’s also a ruby version.)

At Forbes Vetted, we’re specialists in jewelry, having covered stories such as the best online jewelry stores, the best lab grown diamonds and the best places to buy engagement rings. We frequently consult gem experts and jewelry designers to gain insight on gem shapes, characteristics and quality as well as jewelry trends.

Blue Nile is known for offering high quality pieces that are reasonably priced. When shopping for engagement ring stones, you can filter by price to determine the specific diamonds that will work for you. Bear in mind that if you’re engagement ring shopping and you begin by choosing your setting, you’re first seeing the price for the setting only—the price of the diamond will add a significant expense as you make further selections. Blue Nile’s website has lots of information on the 4Cs and how diamond shape affects price, and they offer expert help from diamond and jewelry experts 24 hours a day via their customer service line.

Blue Nile also has a sale section with lots of great pieces, and they have financing options. If at any point in the future you’d like to change your diamond for a different one, they even have a diamond upgrade program.

When ordering jewelry that has not been customized, many pieces are offered with next-day shipping so you could potentially have your item in just a day or two. This is particularly helpful when you’ve forgotten an anniversary or a holiday has crept up on you. When you review specific pieces on Blue Nile, there is clear “ships by” information on each product page so you don’t have to go a long way through the checkout process to find out how long it will take for an item to ship.

Blue Nile offers free engraving in script or block styles on select items. Engraving typically takes a few days, but the time frame can depend on the complexity of the engraving. It’s best to contact customer service for clarification if you need something by a specific date. For custom or special orders, expect eight to 12 weeks for items to ship.

Blue Nile offers fast free shipping on all orders, and items are discreetly packaged to prevent theft or peeking from your significant other. Domestic orders more than $500 are shipped overnight, while domestic orders less than $500 are shipped via two-day service. FYI: A signature is required for deliveries. If you need your order expedited, you can opt for a shipping upgrade during checkout.

Items can be returned or exchanged from 30 days after they were shipped, and return shipping is free within that timeframe. Engraved rings can be returned for credit (the engraving fee isn’t credited), but engraved jewelry items other than rings cannot be returned. If you receive an item as a gift, you can exchange it for merchandise credit within 30 days of purchase.