The Knot and De Beers Group Engagement Expectations Study Reveals What Women Really Want in a Marriage Proposal

NEW YORK, US – Media
OutReach – 13 December 2021 – Just ahead of “engagement season,” the period between Thanksgiving
and Valentine’s Day, De Beers Group and The Knots “Engagement Expectations”
study reveals new insights around marriage proposals in a post-COVID environment.
Nearly 300 women in a serious relationship were surveyed about expectations
related to the proposal
process, from where and how it takes place to the selection of the engagement
ring. The findings highlight an increased interest in intimacy and connection
when it comes to the proposal itself, and an almost universal desire among women to
have some involvement in the selection of their engagement ring.

According to a study conducted by De Beers Group and The
Knots on “Engagement Expectations” in a post-COVID environment, 96%
of respondents would like to have some involvement in the selection of their
engagement ring.

De Beers Forevermark Engagement Rings

From Left to Right

Forevermark Setting™ Three-stone Ring

Forevermark Icon® Collection Classic Solitaire Ring

Forevermark Icon® Collection Solitaire Pavé Ring

While most pre-engaged
women still want their
partner to propose to them, they want the experience to be more personal and
unique. Grand gestures and elaborate public displays were
less appealing to respondents, with a solid majority saying
the ideal way to pop the question would be one person proposing to the other
(98%), planned ahead of
time (66%),
and in a private place (66%). 

The pressure may be
off when it comes to staging a grandiose ask, but nearly every woman surveyed
(96%) said she wanted to have some involvement in the selection of her
engagement ring, and would not want it to be a
total surprise. Three-fourths of pre-engaged females have thought a lot or
some about their engagement rings and most are increasingly preferring more
personalized and unique engagement rings. The primary choice for an engagement
ring remains a diamond, with the majority citing this as their first
choice.  But contrary to popular
opinion, pre-engaged women are less focused on how big the
diamond is than on the shape, style and setting of the stone.  When
it comes to purchasing the ring, about 2 in 10 respondents expect both
partners to contribute to the cost; most women (76%) expect their partner will
pay.    

While females desire more intimate
proposals, the majority (85%) feel there is more pressure on their partners
to plan a unique proposal than in their parents’ generation. Additionally,
the majority (68%) also believe that ring designs today are more unique than
in their parents’ generation, and one in five feel the exchange of rings has
more meaning and significance today.

Methodology

The Knot and De
Beers Engagement Expectations Study was fielded on Instagram in October 2021 among 296 females in a serious
relationship. A majority of female respondents (77%)
participating in the survey believe they will be engaged in the next two
years. Most were between the ages of 18 and 34.