Diamond Clarity Chart: What Each Grade Means

Diamond clarity is a grade for how many internal and surface characteristics a stone has, how big they are, where they sit and how much they show. The GIA scale has eleven grades in six categories, from Flawless at the top to Included 3 at the bottom, and every grade is judged under 10x magnification, not by the naked eye. That last detail is the one that changes how you shop. Most of the grades in the middle of the chart describe marks a grader can find with a loupe and you will not see on the hand, which is why a very high grade is often a premium you pay for a difference nobody can see.

The GIA clarity chart

GIA, the Gemological Institute of America, created the clarity scale used across the trade. Other labs use the same grade names. Here is the full chart with each grade in plain words.

Within a category, the 1 is the higher grade. VVS1 is cleaner than VVS2, and VS1 is cleaner than VS2.

Two terms in that chart need defining. An inclusion is a characteristic inside the stone, such as a tiny crystal, a feather (a small crack), or a cloud of minute points. A blemish is a characteristic on the surface, such as a scratch, a small chip or a polish line. Flawless means neither. Internally Flawless means no inclusions but at least one blemish.

What the grader is actually looking at

GIA states that clarity depends on five factors: the size of the characteristics, their number, their position in the stone, their nature, and their relief, meaning how visible they are against the surrounding diamond. A single large feather near the edge of the table, the flat top facet, is graded differently from a small crystal near the point at the bottom, even if both are one inclusion.

Position matters because of how light travels through the stone. A mark directly under the table is in the line of sight and easy to see. The same mark near the edge or hidden beneath a facet junction can disappear when the stone is set. A mark that reaches the surface of the stone, or sits near the girdle where a prong can cover it, is different again, and an inclusion near the edge can also affect durability if it is a feather that could extend with a hard knock.

Nature matters because different inclusions look different. White clouds and tiny pinpoints are usually less visible than a dark crystal or a large feather. Relief matters because a dark spot in a colorless diamond shows more than a pale one.

That is why two stones with the same grade can look different, and why the grade alone cannot tell you whether a specific diamond looks clean to you.

Magnification is not what you see

The most important thing to understand about the chart is that 10x is a standard, not a typical viewing condition. Ten power magnification means the stone appears ten times larger than it does in life. Grading is done with a loupe or microscope, in controlled lighting, with the stone held and turned by a trained grader who is looking for flaws.

GIA's own description of the scale notes that many of these characteristics will likely not be visible to the naked eye. Nobody wears a ring under a microscope. When you look at a diamond on a hand, in ordinary light, from a normal distance, you are looking at something a grader would have to work to find a mark in, for many of the grades in the middle.

The practical consequence is that the grades from VS1 through SI1 can include stones that look identical to a flawless stone at arm's length. The difference between those grades is real and measurable under the loupe, and for most buyers it is not visible at all.

Eye-clean: the term that matters more than the letters

Jewelers use "eye-clean" to describe a diamond whose inclusions you cannot see without magnification. It is a trade term, not a GIA grade. A lab grade does not say whether a stone is eye-clean, so no report can tell you that. It depends on the particular stone.

As a general rule used across the trade, the grades from FL through VS2 are widely treated as eye-clean, and SI1 stones are often eye-clean but not always. SI2 and lower grades increasingly show marks you can see with the naked eye, and the I grades usually do. This is a rule of thumb, not a guarantee. Within SI1 in particular, the quality of the individual stone varies a lot: one SI1 may have a tiny pale crystal near the edge, and another may have a dark mark right under the table.

That variation is why an SI1 that has been looked at carefully can be an excellent value, and an SI1 bought sight unseen from a certificate is a gamble. The reverse is also true. A VS2 with an inclusion that sits where light hits it can look worse than the same grade with the mark tucked under a crown facet.

Clarity grades, one at a time

FL and IF. These are the top of the chart and the rarest. The difference between them is a surface blemish, which an experienced grader would find under magnification and which you cannot see on a normal hand. Because rarity drives the price, the premium over the next grade can be large and buys no visible difference.

VVS1 and VVS2. Characteristics here are extremely difficult to find even for skilled graders at 10x. For almost every buyer these are indistinguishable from flawless in wear. They are chosen by collectors, by people who want the top of what is available, and by buyers who value the grade for its own sake.

VS1 and VS2. These are the grades most often recommended for a balance of price and appearance. The characteristics are minor and found at 10x with some effort, and stones are generally eye-clean. VS2 is common in engagement rings because it sits at the edge of what is widely considered eye-clean while costing less than the grades above it.

SI1 and SI2. Characteristics are noticeable at 10x. SI1 is where careful selection pays. A good SI1 can be eye-clean and cost meaningfully less than a VS2. SI2 is the grade at which many marks become visible with a close look, and it is where buyers need to examine the actual stone, not the report.

I1, I2 and I3. Characteristics are obvious at 10x and, in GIA's words, may affect transparency, brilliance and durability. These stones can show marks to the naked eye, may look cloudy or have visible cracks, and a large feather can be a durability concern. They cost far less and are a deliberate choice, such as for a stone chosen for size over appearance, not a default.

Clarity grades and the other Cs

Clarity is one of the four Cs, with color, cut and carat weight. They interact, and it helps to know which ones you see and which you do not.

Cut is the one you see most. A well-cut stone returns light and sparkle that can hide small inclusions, and a poorly cut stone looks dull regardless of clarity. Many jewelers advise spending on cut before clarity for this reason.

Size changes clarity visibility. Larger stones have larger facets, which make inclusions easier to see, so a grade that is safely eye-clean in a half carat may need to be higher in a three carat stone. Step-cut shapes such as emerald and Asscher cuts have large open facets that act like windows and show clarity more easily than a brilliant cut, so many buyers choose a higher clarity grade for those shapes.

Color interacts with clarity because a stone that is more colorless shows inclusions more clearly against it. A warmer-toned stone can mask small marks. See our companion guide on diamond color for how that scale works.

How clarity affects price

Clarity is one of the larger price drivers, and the gaps between grades are not even. The cost of moving up a single grade is typically small in the middle of the chart, and the jumps near the top are steep because the number of stones at each grade falls sharply. That is why many buyers get the most value from VS2 and SI1 stones that have been checked for eye-cleanliness, and why paying for FL or IF is a collector's decision, not a visual one.

This guide does not quote a price per grade because prices change with carat weight, color, cut, shape and market conditions, and a table of numbers would date quickly. What does not change is the shape of the curve: price per carat rises quickly as you go from SI to VS to VVS, and the difference in what you can see does not rise with it. Our guide on what determines the value of fine jewelry covers how these factors combine into a final price, and the guide on jewelry appraisal covers why a document and a market price are two different numbers.

Lab-grown diamonds and the clarity scale

Natural diamonds are graded on this scale by GIA and other labs. Lab-grown diamonds were for years graded on the same scale. Starting October 1, 2025, GIA changed its service for D-to-Z lab-grown diamonds. Instead of issuing color and clarity grades, it classifies qualifying stones as Premium or Standard, based on a combination of clarity, color, polish, symmetry and cut. A Premium stone must be VVS or better and D color with Excellent finish, and a Standard stone must be VS or better with E to J color and Very Good finish. Other labs, including IGI, continue to grade lab-grown stones on the same 4Cs scale as natural ones, so you may see either approach depending on the report. If you are comparing a lab-grown stone to a natural one, check which lab issued the report and what its terms mean. Our companion guide on lab grown versus natural diamonds covers the rest of that comparison.

Reading a grading report

A diamond grading report from a lab such as GIA lists the clarity grade and usually includes a plot, a diagram of the stone that marks the position and type of each characteristic the grader found. The plot is more useful than the letter for judging a stone, since it shows where the marks are.

Look at three things. First, where the marks sit. Marks near the center under the table are more visible than marks near the edge. Second, what they are. Pinpoints and clouds are generally less visible than crystals and feathers, and a note that a feather reaches the surface suggests a durability question. Third, whether the report says the stone has been treated. Clarity treatments such as laser drilling or fracture filling exist, and a lab report discloses them.

A report is a document about the stone, not a guarantee of how it looks. It tells you what a trained grader found, and you still need to look at the diamond or ask someone to look for you. A seller who calls a stone "flawless" or "eye-clean" should be able to point to a report or to what they actually see.

Buying clarity on a live stream

A photograph shows a stone at one angle in one kind of light, and a certificate shows a grade, so neither tells you whether a particular stone is eye-clean. A live view lets you ask a seller to turn the stone under a light, to show it from the top and from the side, and to read the clarity plot aloud while you watch.

A New York jeweler such as NYC Watches & Diamonds, which sells watches, jewelry and bags on ShopBidz, is the kind of seller you can watch live. Before you bid on a stone, ask the seller which lab graded it and for the report number so you can look it up with the lab, ask to see the stone under a bright, single light source, and ask whether the grade includes any treatment. Those three questions cost nothing and tell you more than a letter grade does.

A buyer's shortcut

• For most engagement-style stones, a well-cut VS2 or an eye-clean SI1 gives the best balance of price and appearance.
• Move up a grade or two for larger stones and for step cuts such as emerald and Asscher.
• Spend on cut first, because it determines the sparkle you see.
• Read the plot, not just the grade, and look at the stone.
• Ask whether the stone is treated.
• Do not pay for the difference between FL, IF and VVS unless you want the grade itself.

Bottom line

The GIA clarity chart runs from Flawless through Internally Flawless, VVS1 and VVS2, VS1 and VS2, SI1 and SI2, to I1, I2 and I3, and every grade is a judgment made under 10x magnification. Because most of the characteristics a grader finds are invisible to the naked eye, the grades from VS2 to a carefully chosen SI1 often look the same as the grades above them at a fraction of the price, while the I grades can show marks and durability concerns. Use the grade as a guide, read the plot, and make sure that the particular stone looks clean to you before you pay for a letter.