In the normal range of the diamond color-grading scale, the more colorless a diamond is, the higher it is graded on the scale. In terms of pricing, diamonds with a higher grade will be more costly, while diamonds rating lower on the scale, thus having more color, will normally prove to be less costly. However, when a diamond has a great deal of color, or extremely high color saturation, it may rate the grade of FA, or Fancy.

These are the fancy grades of diamond color and because of these grades; the cost of the diamond may actually go higher than the finest of the D grade of diamonds. In order to establish which diamonds are which colors, diamond color-grading scales have been created. Most of these color-grading scales were not founded with any measure of scientific rigor, therefore are no longer used.

Today, there are far fewer diamond color-grading scales in use, allowing anyone to view the results of rigorous testing for color-grading in a written report for a particular diamond. The grading scale ranges from the colorless D to the highly colored Z. It is important to be aware that while most diamonds are graded on a scale measuring the varying degrees of their lack of color, or whiteness which is not the only sought after type of diamond.

There are those diamonds in which various colors are prominent enough to arouse desire for their rarity and distinguished characteristics.