The four C's. A polished diamond's value increases according to its carat weight, colour, clarity and cut. This combination is known in the diamond trade as "The 4 C's".

Diamonds come in many different colours ranging from "Blue white", to black and from pink to orange blue or green. A diamond's colour is considered by some to be its most important characteristic. The most commonly traded stones are in the Blue white or D colour, to Cape or K colour stones. The top colour of a diamond is known as the D colour, followed by E, and then continues all the way through the alphabet until Z, which is considered a fancy colour.