Material Guides · 2026-01-20

Cubic Zirconia vs Moissanite for Fashion Jewelry

How the two stones differ in hardness, brightness and price, and when each is the right call.

The short version

Cubic zirconia is the volume stone. Moissanite is harder and brighter and costs more. Both are set the same way on the same bodies, so the choice is a positioning decision rather than an engineering one.

Hardness, and what it means on the shelf

Moissanite is significantly harder than cubic zirconia. In practice that shows up as edge retention: after a year of daily wear, cubic zirconia facet edges soften slightly and the stone loses a little of its snap, while moissanite holds. For a piece worn on a Saturday night this is irrelevant. For an everyday ring it is the whole argument.

Brightness

Moissanite has a higher refractive index and throws noticeably more fire - more coloured flashes rather than just white light. On a wide tennis bracelet with a long row of stones, this is the most visible difference between the two builds and the easiest thing to photograph.

Which to specify

Specify cubic zirconia when you are competing on price, when the piece is a fashion style with a short life, or when you are testing a design before committing. Specify moissanite when the piece carries your brand's top price point, when it is sold as a gift, or when the row of stones is the product.

Where to Go Next

If you are specifying an order off the back of this, the OEM and ODM page sets out the sequence from enquiry to shipment, and the full catalogue lists all 1,396 styles we currently make.