When a bride and groom get married, the only thing they see as a daily reminder of their commitment to each other is their wedding rings. It's no wonder people set aside about 3% of their total wedding budget on their rings. Marriage is a permanent commitment, so wedding rings should be high quality. This doesn't mean that couples can't save on this purchase. Joanna Saltz writes for theknot.com, "The average price for a gold band is around $150. For a platinum band, the average rises to $600 or $700. Diamonds can add considerably more to the cost."
When you spend this kind of money, it is important to figure out what's right for you in terms of style, form and function, and quality. With these things in mind, check out these great places to buy cheap wedding rings:
Goldspeed.com - This place is well known for its discount wedding bands. It has been featured in The Wall Street Journal, Newsweek, and even Internet Retailer's Top 50 retailers (Best of the Web 2006). They have over 28,000 items up to 78% off retail price. They also offer free shipping for purchases over $200.
Overstock.com - This place has discounts on rings, some sold up to 80% off the retail price! To give you an idea of what that looks like, a ring sold for $650.00 at retail only costs $179.99 at overstock.com (72% off). Each wedding band shows the markdown percentage, retail price, as well as the overstock price so you know exactly what you are saving. You can shop by metal type, bride's rings, groom's rings, or top sellers. Overstock.com prices because they buy excess inventory from manufacturers.
Bluenile.com - This Company has become the largest internet retailer of certified diamonds and fine jewelry. They have been featured in The New York Times, Money, and Forbes. Also, they been given the Bizrate.com's Circle of Excellence Platinum Award. Bluenile.com has received this reward consistently since 2002, and can boast to be the only jeweler to have ever received this award. You can search by price and product to meet your wedding budget goals.
Another option is to look for rings at estate sales, antique jewelers, or froogle.com if your budget is really small and you wouldn't mind getting used rings. Some people recommend this option for those on a really small budget and then upgrading rings on the 3rd wedding anniversary.