How much should an engagement ring cost??

[Sounbelievablydull]

Humour me here please.
My original ring has disintegrated back has split and one ( v small diamond) has fallen out and is now lost.
Now I never thought I was a jewellery type person ...but... Now I find I'm noticing other people's rings and feeling envious.
So, if I were to put my original ring plus a few bits of trivial hideous 80s stuff together what would I need to come up with to have nice piece of bling???

My mum & dad couldn't afford wedding rings when they got married so everyone in the family gave bits of 'scrap' gold and a jeweller friend melted it down to make their rings. They were completely illegal because they weren't assayed or stamped, can't tell what carat the gold is, but they are priceless for this reason Just thought I would share a sweet story.

Mine was £2,500. I wanted platinum and the diamond is good quality. It has two other stones that are not diamonds too and was handmade by a local jeweller. I adore it, it's the only ring I own. There aren't many engagement rings I liked so we decided we could get exactly what I wanted being as its forever. If you can find something you love for £200 then I think that's fine too. I've seen some very nice vintage rings but never in my size or adjustable to my size without wrecking.

Second hand, vintage or pawn shop is the way to go as another poster said, but as you have said yourself, op, its the wonderful man who give you the ring that matters.
That is the problem with the ott hen & stag weekends and weddings, they only seem to care about showing off, but not about the marriage itself and the relationship!
I lost my wedding ring in the sea, and so dh bought me two very unique rings to replace engagement ring & wedding ring and they mean the world to me.

all my friends seem to have diamond solitaires and they all look the same.

Me too. Diamonds do nothing for me. Celebrity rings that no doubt cost ££££££££ rings just look a bit boring. I'd much rather an antique ring with a ruby or emerald, or even a garnet.

Buy what you like within your budget - for gods sake don't let the man chose and be stuck with it!
Mine was about £1300 ten years ago - my wedding ring was custom made and a whole lot more! (mostly because of DHs mistake!)

My engagement ring was 5k

I don't have one actually, never wanted one.

$2.5million

I'm J.Lo

Just seen the do you wear it every day thing. Yes I do. It comes off to put hand cream on then I stick it back on, never off otherwise. Mine is quite high set so does catch sometimes but that's why I wanted platinum. It can be polished up lovely no bother too. House insurance (bog standard NFU cover) has it covered if I lose it or if it's stolen at home or out and about. Whilst it cost £2.5K it's valuation certificate for replacement cost from the jeweller's that NFU accepted was £4K.

My diamond is only .5 carat which is minuscule compared to a lot I see commuting into London.

Doubt I'll ever be given one, but I think my ideal engagement ring would have an emerald as the main stone, not diamond.

The soppy part of me quite likes those 17thc posy rings with inscriptions on the inside. Like this one that says 'in my choyce i do rejoyce'

Ugh I have a friend who says she won't say yes if the guy doesn't spend over a grand and it's a one off piece etc..

If a man buys you a very expensive ring, that's brilliant you are a lucky woman and I'm actually envious as I would love one. But I have an engagement ring which cost..well not a lot he says he will upgrade when we are in the money but tbh the man of my dreams asked me to marry him and that's all that matters to me.

But if he wants to get me a Tiffany one I won't say no

Mine (engagement, wedding and eternity) were in the thousands and I wear them every day. Generally take them off when I come in the house as I'm washing hands or cleaning the kids up.
I don't feel worried wearing them though not even coming back to UK or in NYC. I doubt anyone would be that desperate to mug them off my finger and we have good insurance.
That being said, I would be devastated to lose them, I cherish them.

Sorry, the point was that you should buy a ring you love, not one that "should" cost $X amount.
Buy a ring that you'll look at and smile, be it $5 or $5k (if that's in your budget...)

I have a beautiful solitaire. Don't really give a shit if previous posters think its "dull". ... Mine certainly isn't!

It's the quality of the metal and the gem that's matters in terms of longevity - I've just been handed down my DM's godmother's engagement ring - which isn't what I would have gone for but it makes me smile every time I look at it so that makes it irreplaceable to me - probably valued at around £350 which I think would buy a good quality ring that would last - don't go for silver - 14k White/gold and a diamond with a nice sparkle makes a ring that should last generations. With vintage rings make sure that the setting is in good condition and that the gem is actually authentic. Rubies make great alternatives to expensive diamonds!

Why don't you find a jewellery maker to use your broken ring to make a new one.
That way it's still your ring

Platinum all the way for me - hate gold.

Mine cost £2500, 15yrs ago. Recently valued at over £3500.
If you add my eternity and wedding rings though, I wear the best part of £10k on one finger.

I don't think I would feel comfortable walking around with jewellery to that value on me. I'm not a ring person, so a basic wedding ring is all I wear.

However much you're happy to spend. But don't go in with £100 and expect a £1000 ring. It's just awkward and depressing for everyone involved.

Mine's 1.5 carat, E, VVS2, so high quality. I don't know how much it's worth, but I will add a disclaimer and say that I married a NY'er, and diamonds are definitely more of a thing there than in England.

They're all insured, I don't ever think about it tbh. I have several quite high value 'right hand' rings that I wear too. I've never thought about the 'too precious to wear' side of it, I have nice jewellery and it seem daft to leave it sitting in a drawer - especially when it's fully insured. Of course I'd be gutted if I lost a piece of my jewellery but life's too short to worry about it and stop you from wearing something you love.

Mine was £4K (eight years ago) but cost less as we had some platinum they could use in the ring. I wear it all the time - in bed, in the shower, while cleaning etc, platinum and diamonds are very durable and it's too tight to fall off.

I love it and enjoy it so much it was worth splashing out and we could afford it. It was probably one months salary before tax at that point. A friend is looking for rings and has a budget of £1.5-2k which is probably quite sensible but will buy a fairly nice sized diamond, although I won't be surprised if they double the budget after a trip to Hatton Garden. I'm quite a convert to diamonds now but it is hard to justify when you have kids and a mortgage. If you can afford it get something lovely, although it could be to mark an anniversary instead - I'm eyeing up a ring as an eternity ring but to wear on the right hand as its fancy and won't fit on the left.

Madame

My DH wanted to get me a c.17th posey ring for our engagement but they are truly expensive - especially if they have 'good' sentiments. The only affordable ones more or less communicated 'yeah, I guess you'll do'.

The ring I eventually got was early c.19th, rose cut diamonds and sapphire, £350. You do get more bang for your buck going antique!