Zales 2023 Review [Should Buy Diamonds Here]

Zales offers nothing better than an online jewelry store like James Allen or Blue Nile. Moreover, while known for providing jewelry for working-class families, it has fallen out of fashion. This downfall is because it offers low-quality diamonds and engagement rings for a price tag that cannot compete with what is offered online.

Apart from the 700 Zales stores found across the USA, there are 130 Zales Outlet stores in the States. This offers accessibility that many other stores cannot give, being widely available in the country. Besides, they have 190 stores under a different names in Canada.

Zales' specialty is diamond jewelry, with a relatively wide variety of in-store and online engagement rings. These engagement rings come in different diamond shapes, cuts, and styles but are more expensive than they are worth—often an issue with brick-and-mortar jewelry stores.

Wide inventory: With so many stores across the country, including an online store, there is a wide variety of engagement rings to choose from at Zales. Though individual styles are not abundant, most people can find what they seek.

Accessibility: Most people in the USA will not have to travel far to find Zales Jewelers, given the number of stores. It offers security when viewing an engagement ring firsthand and if need be, returning it.

Create your own: Zales Jewelers offer something that many brick-and-mortar chain stores do not: customized jewelry. You can choose a diamond by cut, color, carat, or clarity and pair it up with an engagement ring setting. It offers some freedom if you do not find a ready-made ring.

Wedding bands: One upside to Zales is that they offer a relatively good selection of wedding bands to match the engagement rings sold. These are not as overpriced as engagement rings but still hold a higher price than other online jewelry stores.

Being a brick-and-mortar jewelry store, Zales needs to own their inventory, which comes at a high cost. This cost and other overheads that go into running chain stores push the prices of jewelry and engagement rings up.

One would be happy to pay a higher price for the convenience of walking into a store and a good quality ring, but this is where the problem comes in. The quality of the Zales' diamonds and engagement rings often does not match the outstanding quality sold at James Allen or Blue Nile. Hence, the extra money you spend goes to waste.

Zales does offer some creativity when it comes to creating your engagement ring. You can access their design suite online, choose a Vera Wang Custom, start with a setting, or start with a loose diamond.

It is pretty easy to follow each step offered. The design suite features a great layout of diamonds, settings, ring heads, metals, and other items that go into creating your ring. Besides, there is a personalized engraving option as well.

The Zales website is what you would expect of a chain jewelry store site. It is clean, with some pretty colors and sale tabs everywhere. You have to sift through a few tabs to eventually get to the engagement ring page, allowing you to filter styles and shapes.

Once you have clicked on an engagement ring you are interested in, you are greeted with a pretty clear picture of the ring and diamond and valuable information you could need before making a purchase—no 360-degree videos of the rings.

The site's purchasing part is easy. There is a handy customer service button to click that opens up a chat if you need any help.

You will experience a different level of customer service whether you shop in-store or online with Zales, though their returns and warranties are relatively standard between each.

Full-time Customer Support: There is a full-time customer support option online, where you can easily chat with a relevant person if you have any questions or queries. However, this is not the case in-store as almost every store has a closing time.

Return Policy: Jewelry can be returned within 60 days of the purchase date in good condition with original certificates. Cash refunds are offered to customers with the original receipt. Alternatively, a gift card may be issued for the same value.

In-Store Services: Zales offers many in-store services, one being Diamond Breakage Coverage. If your diamond chips break or are lost from the original setting, Zales will replace them with one of similar value free of cost. They also offer a lifetime cleaning and inspection service to keep your diamond ring in the best shape possible.

Zales offers a Diamond Credit Card that gives customers exclusive coupons, jewelry inspection, cleaning reminders, and a chance to pay off their purchases. The financing options range between 6 to 36 months and require zero down payments.

We highly recommend that you spend your budget online. To do so, head to James Allen or Blue Nile to receive proper value for your time and money and get a beautiful ring with proper certification. Please do not overpay for a likely poor-quality ring that will not hold its value over time.

Zales Jewelers might have many locations across the USA, but you should spend your money on something other than one. Online wins hands-down here, and you and your wallet will thank yourself for taking your business there.