The 6 Best Places to Buy Diamonds in Israel (2026)

Updated October 2026 · 6 picks

The best place to buy diamonds in Israel is the Bursa district in Ramat Gan, built around the Israel Diamond Exchange — the largest diamond exchange in the world — where dealers sell certified loose stones far closer to the trade than any high-street shop. Buy the stone there, have it set in Tel Aviv, and reclaim the VAT on departure. Six, below.

1. The Israel Diamond Exchange, Ramat Gan — Bursa district, Ramat Gan

The largest diamond exchange in the world, and the centre of the Israeli trade.

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The Israel Diamond Exchange is the heart of the country's diamond industry: linked towers in Ramat Gan holding hundreds of member dealers, brokers, cutters and polishers, and the largest exchange of its kind anywhere.

The trading floors are members-only, so private buyers come in by appointment with a particular dealer or on an arranged visit. That appointment is the thing worth organising before you travel, because it is what separates buying here from buying in a shop.

Go with a specification rather than a budget: a cut, a colour, a clarity and a carat range, and an insistence on an independent grading report. Dealers here are used to that conversation and it is the one that gets you a fair price.

Good to know: Bring photo ID, and book the dealer appointment before you fly.

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2. The Bursa district showrooms — Ramat Gan

Where most retail diamond buying in Israel actually happens.

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The streets around the exchange are lined with office towers full of diamond businesses, and a good number of them keep showrooms that are open to private buyers without a member's introduction.

This is where most visitors end up, and it is a perfectly good way to buy, provided you treat it as several appointments rather than one: see three dealers, ask each for certified stones to the same specification, and compare the three reports rather than the three sales pitches.

Prices are negotiable, commissions are common on guided visits, and nothing should be signed on a first meeting.

Good to know: If someone brings you here on a tour, assume there is a commission in it, and get a second quote elsewhere.

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3. Eilat — the VAT-free zone — Eilat

No VAT at the till rather than a refund afterwards.

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Eilat is a free-trade zone and retail sales there are exempt from Israeli VAT at the point of purchase, which on a diamond is a meaningful difference and avoids the airport refund process entirely.

The jewellery shops cluster around the malls and the hotel strip, and they are set up for exactly this trade. The range is narrower than Ramat Gan and the stones are generally already set.

The exemption does not change the grading. Ask for the same independent report you would demand anywhere else, and do not let the tax saving stand in for a price comparison.

Good to know: The VAT exemption is not a discount on the stone. Compare the pre-tax price too.

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4. Yaniv Fine Jewelry — Tel Aviv

A fine jewellers who will set a stone you have bought elsewhere.

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Buying the stone and buying the piece are two different transactions, and the classic Israeli route is to do the first in Ramat Gan and the second with a Tel Aviv jeweller who makes in-house.

Yaniv has been making in its own Tel Aviv studio since 1982, in 18K gold, platinum and natural diamonds, which is the right workshop for a stone you have taken some trouble over.

Agree in advance what happens if the stone is damaged in setting, and get the certificate number recorded on the job sheet.

Good to know: Have the stone weighed and the certificate number checked in front of you when you hand it over, and again when you collect.

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5. Malka Jewelry — Dizengoff Street, Tel Aviv

Goldsmiths on the premises — the convenient setting option in central Tel Aviv.

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Malka's Dizengoff flagship keeps its goldsmiths in the shop, so a stone brought in for setting does not disappear to an unnamed workshop for a fortnight.

They work in gold and diamonds and take custom commissions, and the in-house bench makes the practicalities — sizing, settings, adjustments — a good deal quicker than the usual arrangement.

Central enough to visit twice in a short trip, which is what a commission actually requires.

Good to know: Ask to see the setting in progress. If the bench is in the shop, that should be an easy yes.

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6. Gan HaHashmal — Central Tel Aviv

Independent designers, for a stone set in something other than a solitaire.

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If the stone is bought and the question is what to do with it, the Gan HaHashmal studios are the most interesting few streets in Israel: independent jewellers, working benches, contemporary design.

The work here is deliberately not the standard six-claw solitaire, which is the point — a good stone in an unexpected setting is the kind of piece you cannot buy ready-made.

Smaller studios than the fine jewellers, so ask about insurance while the stone is with them, and get the job in writing.

Good to know: Ask who physically holds the stone overnight. A small studio should have a clear answer.

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Frequently asked questions

Why is Israel a diamond centre?

Israel built a cutting and polishing industry in the mid-twentieth century that became one of the world's main trading hubs, centred on the exchange in Ramat Gan. The industry is export-led, which is why the density of dealers, brokers and cutters in a few towers has no equivalent anywhere else in the region.

Can anyone walk into the diamond exchange?

No. The trading floors are restricted to members, and the complex is a secure site. Private buyers get in by appointment with a specific dealer, or on an organised tour. A great deal of retail buying happens instead in the public showrooms in the surrounding Bursa district towers, which anyone can visit.

What certificate should I insist on?

An independent laboratory report — GIA for preference, with IGI and HRD also common in the Israeli trade. Check the report number on the laboratory's own website rather than on a printout, and look for the number laser-inscribed on the girdle. An in-house valuation is not a grading report and is not a substitute for one.

Are prices actually lower than at home?

On the stone, usually yes, because you are buying closer to the trade. On the setting and the finished piece, less so. The way to test it is to take a specific certified stone — same cut, colour, clarity, carat and report number convention — and compare that like for like with a quote from home, after the VAT refund.

What about lab-grown diamonds?

Lab-grown stones are widely sold in Israel too, and graded by the same laboratories. They are a different product at a different price, so be clear which one you are being quoted on, and make sure the invoice and the report both say so explicitly. A reputable dealer will state it without being pressed.

How do I take the stone home safely?

Keep it in your hand luggage with the certificate and invoice, declare it where your home country requires, and present it at the VAT refund desk at Ben Gurion before departure if you are claiming. Arrange insurance before you fly, not after. For anything substantial, ask the dealer about secured shipping instead.

1. The Israel Diamond Exchange, Ramat Gan — Bursa district, Ramat Gan

2. The Bursa district showrooms — Ramat Gan

3. Eilat — the VAT-free zone — Eilat

4. Yaniv Fine Jewelry — Tel Aviv

5. Malka Jewelry — Dizengoff Street, Tel Aviv

6. Gan HaHashmal — Central Tel Aviv

Frequently asked questions

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