What people designing their own engagement ring chose: DreamRing data, October 2026

People who design their own engagement ring in DreamRing pick ovals far more often than rounds. Of 60 people who chose a center stone shape between October 6 and October 23, 2026, 22 picked oval (37%) and 5 picked round (8%). Most were designing for themselves (54 of 67), most were open to a lab-grown stone (48 of 56), and about a third set no budget limit (18 of 57).

Where these numbers come from

DreamRing is an iPhone app. Before it shows any designs, it asks a short set of style questions: what the ring is for, who will wear it, shape, metal, lab-grown or natural, budget, and where you expect to buy. The app records each answer as an anonymous event with a random ID made on the phone, with no name, email or account attached. This report counts the last answer each person gave to each question.

The group is 67 people who said they were designing an engagement ring, from App Store installs between October 6 and October 23, 2026. Not everyone answered every question, so each table shows its own total. These are app users who chose to design a ring, not a random sample of couples, and small counts move a lot. We will update this page each month as the numbers grow.

Who the ring is for

Who will wear it	People	Share
Me	54	81%
Someone else, and they know	10	15%
Someone else, as a surprise	3	4%

Four in five were designing their own ring. That lines up with The Knot's 2026 Real Weddings Study, where 79% of people who received a ring said they helped choose it.

Shape

Center stone shape	People	Share
Oval	22	37%
Marquise	8	13%
Cushion	8	13%
Radiant	6	10%
Emerald	6	10%
Round	5	8%
Pear	4	7%
Let the app pick	1	2%

Among couples who married in 2025, round and oval were nearly tied, at 26% and 25% of center stones in The Knot's study. In DreamRing, oval was picked more than four times as often as round. Every shape other than round, taken together, made up 90% of picks. One likely reason: people who open a design app want to see something other than the default, and a round is the default. For how the two leading choices compare in size and price, see Oval vs round engagement rings: how they compare on the hand.

Lab-grown or natural

Center stone	People	Share
Lab-grown	27	48%
Open to either	21	38%
Natural only	8	14%

86% were open to a lab-grown stone. In The Knot's study, 61% of 2025 engagement rings had a lab-grown center stone, so this group leans lab-grown even more than recent buyers.

Metal

Metal	People	Share
Yellow gold	29	52%
Silver or platinum	23	41%
Mixed metals	3	5%
Rose gold	1	2%

Budget

Budget	People	Share
Under $5,000	20	35%
$5,000 to $10,000	12	21%
$7,000 or more	2	4%
$10,000 or more	3	5%
No limit	18	32%
Not sure yet	2	4%

"Under $5,000" includes the 2 people who chose a lower band (under $2,000, or $2,000 to $4,000) in an earlier version of the question. The options changed during October, which is why "$7,000 or more" appears beside "$5,000 to $10,000". For context, The Knot puts the average 2025 engagement ring at $4,600.

Where they plan to buy

Expected place to buy	People	Share
Not sure yet	39	70%
A local jeweler	14	25%
A big jewelry house	2	4%
Online	1	2%

Most people had not chosen a jeweler when they started designing, and only one planned to buy online. If you're in the same spot, our guide to turning an AI design into a ring a jeweler can make covers what to bring and what to ask.

Timing

When they expect to buy	People	Share
Not sure yet	28	42%
Soon	18	27%
In 3 to 6 months	11	16%
In 6 to 12 months	10	15%

Using these numbers

You're welcome to cite this page. Please link to it and describe the group accurately: people who designed an engagement ring in the DreamRing app between October 6 and October 23, 2026, with 56 to 67 answers per question. For national averages, use a large survey such as The Knot's Real Weddings Study.