When you think of the best place to buy pearls, Amazon isn’t the first option that comes to mind. But if you do a quick search on Amazon, you’ll come across pearl jewelry with thousands of happy customers, praising the quality of their pearls and the look of the setting.
Amazon has something to offer everyone and you can definitely find amazing deals here. With a little know-how, you’ll be able to find your dream jewelry here.
The Pros of Buying Pearls on Amazon
There are many advantages to shopping for pearls on Amazon. Here are the top reasons:
1- Wide Range of Options
There’s no denying that shopping on Amazon give you access to a massive range of products. When it comes to pearl jewelry, there’s something for everyone here at a range of budgets.
Amazon pearl jewelry starts at a few dollars and reaches up to thousands of dollars. They have everything from faux pearls to valuable pearl jewelry. You can find freshwater, Tahitian, Akoya and South Sea pearls.
2- Pearl Specialists
If you’ve decided to buy your pearls from a pearl specialist, you’ll find that most of them offer their products via Amazon anyway. For example, the Pearl Source and Pearl Paradise, two of the biggest online pearl specialist retailers, have platforms on Amazon. What this means is that you can easily compare and contrast the products of these retailers on the same platform and if you have Amazon Prime, you can have your items delivered to you for free and in only two days, which is perfect for last-minute gift ideas.
3- Compare and Contrast
I said this before, but I’ll say it again. One of the benefits of buying on a marketplace like Amazon is that you get to see the different products, quality and prices from various vendors in one place, instead of having to go to each individual retailer’s site. This makes it more convenient for you to find the right pearl jewelry for you at the right price.
4- Great Quality
Regarding quality, most of the pearl specialists online offer high-quality, excellent products at reasonable prices. They’re able to keep their costs down because they often don’t have physical stores, but this doesn’t mean that they don’t offer exceptional value.
Some people worry that they won’t be able to find good quality on Amazon when it comes to expensive and important purchases like pearl jewelry. Regardless of where you purchase, it always makes sense to do your due diligence, like check customer reviews, customer service and after sales policies. Amazon does have strict guidelines and policies for vendors, and they go through a certain vetting process. For example, this pearl necklace has over 1900 5 star reviews! Those 1900 people can’t all be wrong.
The Pros of Buying Pearls on Amazon
Even with all the advantages, there are some downsides to purchasing pearl jewelry on Amazon.
1- Limited Artisan and Antique Jewelry
If you’re looking for artisan, antique or rarer pearl varieties, you won’t have a lot of options here. Your best bet to find those would be on Etsy. For example, at the time of this writing, Amazon did not have any Sea of Cortez or conch pearls and had limited vintage pearl jewelry. Their handmade section cannot compete with what Etsy has on offer.
So while you have access to all the main types of pearl jewelry, finding something unique and special on Amazon is harder to do.
2- A Lot of Fakes Around
There’s a lot of faux pearls on Amazon and sometimes they might even be offered as genuine pearls. Most of the time, these are clearly identified as simulated pearls and there’s nothing wrong with selling faux pearls. Not everyone wants genuine pearls and faux pearls offer an excellent alternative to getting the pearl look without the high price tag.
However, sometimes the product descriptions can be misleading. For example, a shell pearl might be described as a real pearl, when it sorta kinda is but isn’t. This happens on most marketplaces so always ask the seller about the exact details of the item.
3- After Sales Service Can Differ
The after sales service might differ from seller to seller which means you need to check what they’re offering before you commit to your purchase. One other thing to consider is whether the retailer offers cleaning or repairing services, which you may get on their individual sites. Some offer loyalty programs and access to exclusive pearl news including informing you when they receive limited edition or highly rare pearl items. When shopping on Amazon, you might miss out on these perks that come with shopping directly from the pearl vendor’s site.
4- You Can’t Touch It
This isn’t just for Amazon but for any online shopping you do. You can’t inspect the piece of jewelry before you buy and you won’t know exactly how it looks until it gets delivered. This means a higher likelihood if you not liking what you receive but considering that physical stores often have huge mark-ups it might still be worth sending back the jewelry or getting it exchanged instead of paying up to 80% times more at times.
The Verdict
At the end of the day, Amazon offers a lot to someone looking for pearl jewelry. You’ll find pearl jewelry that have thousands of 5-star reviews, with customers raving about the quality of the jewelry.
As long as you do your due diligence and take some common sense measures, you’ll be fine shopping on Amazon and probably be able to bag an amazing deal.
