GCAL expands 8X cut grading to cushion diamonds

A cushion diamond that looks bright in one tray and flat in another can now be graded with a stricter, more standardized lens. GCAL by Sarine has expanded its 8X cut-grade program to cushion brilliant diamonds, a move aimed at one of the hardest fancy shapes to compare by eye and a welcome tool for retailers trying to explain why two stones with the same carat, color and clarity can perform so differently in light.

The new GCAL 8X Cushion Cut Grade was announced on May 20, 2026 and is available for qualifying natural and lab-grown cushion brilliant diamonds. GCAL says the program is meant to give the market a more transparent way to judge cut quality in a shape where outline, rounded corners, facet structure, contrast pattern, light return and the bowtie effect can change the look of a diamond dramatically from stone to stone.

At the center of the system is GCAL’s eight-part evaluation: polish, external symmetry, proportions, optical brilliance, fire, scintillation, optical symmetry and shape aesthetics. The lab introduced 8X in 2023 and had already extended it to oval, princess, radiant, pear and marquise cuts before turning to cushions. That matters because fancy shapes now make up a larger share of submissions, and the pressure to distinguish top performers is rising as shoppers look beyond round brilliants for more distinctive silhouettes.

GCAL says each qualifying cushion comes with a certificate that includes detailed cut-quality analysis, light-performance documentation, imaging and the lab’s money-back guarantee. The company also says fewer than 1% of Cushion Brilliant Cut diamonds qualify as 8X, underscoring how selective the standard is. For buyers, that kind of filter can reduce guesswork at the counter; for retailers, it offers a clearer way to justify pricing when two cushions may carry similar paperwork but very different optical results.

The launch also arrives as the diamond trade keeps adjusting to a market reshaped by lab-grown stones. In Sarine Technologies Ltd.’s February 27, 2026 FY2025 results, the company said 61% of engagement rings in the United States were lab-grown in 2025. Sarine reported FY2025 revenue of US$29.6 million and a loss of US$3.9 million, even as it said new recurring-service revenues were gaining recognition. In that climate, a stricter cushion grade is less about branding than about a simple retail problem: helping the best stones stand out when the ones next to them can look deceptively similar.