Platinum Rings will retain their original shine far longer than sterling silver rings. However a platinum ring, compared to an identical sterling silver ring could cost much more than two hundred times the price of the sterling silver ring. A gold ring is about one tenth to one twentieth the price of a platinum ring. Platinum is an excellent metal, but very costly.

Platinum is both brilliant and very dense. It has almost twice the density of sterling silver. Therefore there are several reasons for much of the cost difference. The metal itself costs about one hundred and twenty to one hundred and fifty times the cost of sterling silver. Since platinum is also twice as dense as sterling silver the same size ring, considering all dimensions, would weight about twice the weight of a sterling silver ring. Therefore twice the weight of metal would be used. A much more expensive metal, at a much higher weight greatly increases the cost of platinum rings.

The high density explains the durability. The metal is very strong and will not tarnish. However over a long period of time it is subject ware and tiny scratches can occur. Depending on the design, a ring made of platinum may be able to be repolished. The simpler the design the more easy to repolish. A very complex design such as an antique design will present more difficulty to refinish. One negative is that a jeweler must be highly experienced and specially equipped to fabricate platinum. Many jewelry shops will send any platinum repair work out to a jeweler who specializes in working with platinum.

Platinum is an alloy when used in the jewelry trade. However the percentage of platinum in the alloy varies between ninety and ninety five percent. Platinum belongs to a group of rare metals, known as the platinum group metals (PGM). These metals include ruthenium, rhodium, palladium, osmium, iridium, and platinum. Platinum and rhodium are the two most frequently used metals of the group in the jewelry trade. Palladium and iridium are often used in making the platinum alloy. The reason to use a platinum alloy is to increase strength and or brilliance.

The irony is that the very expensive platinum alloy may also be plated with rhodium to produce a very brilliant finish just as sterling silver rings are plated. During the production process a mounting is fairly inexpensive to electro plate with rhodium. To have a rhodium plated ring refinished may cost $75.00 to $200.00 or more.

Due to the high cost of a platinum mounting it is unlikely to see semi precious stones such as peridot mounted in platinum. Diamonds, rubies, and emeralds are the more common Gem stones set in platinum. As the cost of platinum rings increase due to the metal's cost and the cost of gem stones, even more expensive and higher quality gem stones are used to create a very high end expensive luxury product.

A sterling silver ring with a semi precious stone may sell for $12.00 to $30.00, whereas a platinum ring with a high quality gem stone may sell for $10,000.00 to $30,000.00. Both rings might be well worth their retail price, but as with all jewelry the customer must balance the price against the quality of the item they wish to purchase.