Groom Calls Off Wedding After Bride 'Felt Hurt' Over Him Using Lab-Grown Diamond Ring, Demands $20,000 Alternative

A man called off his engagement after his fiancée demanded he buy her a more expensive ring. 

In a post on Reddit's popular subreddit r/TrueOffMyChest, the groom explained his decision to call off the wedding just days after the proposal, noting that everything was fine until the bride "somehow" figured out the cost of her engagement ring. When she did, she demanded one with a higher price tag.

"She told me she felt hurt that I would spend so little on her, claiming it reflected her worth and the seriousness of our future marriage," wrote the groom, who bought his fiancée a lab grown diamond ring worth $2,400.

The bride argued that her engagement ring should have been "at least $20,000." Although the groom admitted he could afford a more expensive ring, he countered that they should be more financially responsible, listing several more practical things he could spend his money on.

"I pointed out that there are smarter ways to use $20,000: paying off a car loan, putting it toward a down payment on a house, investing, or even funding her business idea—something we had talked about before," the man explained in his post. "As someone who didn’t grow up with financial stability, becoming financially secure and literate is a major priority for me."

However, the bride insisted she would still feel "bothered" if her ring weren't upgraded.

This response "shocked" the groom, who says he has otherwise been a "supportive and committed partner," and prompted him to reflect on their relationship, ultimately leading him to end it. 

He urged, "Gentlemen: the price of a diamond ring should never dictate the quality of your marriage. I don’t need to be married to know that." 

Although the breakup has been "rough," the man is sticking by his decision because he now knows he and his ex-fiancée have different values.

"I realized this isn’t the kind of marriage I want," he wrote. "It hurts — I won’t lie — but a price tag on a shiny mineral shouldn’t define the foundation of a partnership."

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Redditors took the groom's side in the comment section.

"Dang if she doesn’t want it someone else will eventually," one person commented. "Glad you called it off. She needs to get her priorities straightened out."

Many users even shared the price of their engagement rings, most of which were lower than the original poster's $2,400 claim.

"Mine from my first was $750. The one we were looking at now is about $350. The cost of the ring is not indicative of the strength of someone’s love," another Redditor commented. "OP (original poster) dodged a bullet on this one I’m sad to say. I hope in the future they find a partner that values them as a person more than a shiny object."