Palladium is a platinum group metal, which also includes platinum, ruthenium, osmium, iridium, and rhodium. These metals are found together in nature and have similar qualities. They are white in color, extremely durable, and unaffected by elements in the air that make other metals tarnish. Palladium was first used for jewelry when platinum was declared a strategic metal and reserved for military use in 1939.

Women's Palladium Wedding Bands:

Artcarved Women's Palladium "Sussex" Wedding Band
Celebrate that special moment with a wedding band that's stylish yet subtle. A brushed-finished center offers a textured look that appeals to the eye. Glossy ridged edges give it a modern twist.
$525


Goldman Women's Palladium Milgrain Wedding Band
An intricately-patterned center is the highlight of this palladium wedding band. It is bordered by milgrain details and capped off by glossy edges. It shows a modern twist on the classic band. Milgrain is the raised beaded edge on the ring that is done with a special engraver's tool.
$399


Artcarved Women's Palladium "Parrish" Wedding Band
This wedding band features a hammered finish around the center of the band. Glossy edges border the center with fancy milgrain detailing in between.
$435

High Purity Alloys
Palladium alloys used for making jewelry products are typically 95% pure palladium and 5% of other platinum group metals such as iridium and ruthenium. The palladium alloys are white, hypo-allergenic, lightweight, durable, and easy to finish and polish. These alloys have a specific gravity close to that of 14k white gold, and are close to half the weight by volume of platinum making them an excellent choice for jewelry.

Durability
The natural white color of palladium is permanent and unlike white gold does not require rhodium plating. Rhodium plating wears away over time making white gold jewelry more yellow in appearance and requires the owner to have the setting re-plated to renew the white color. This is not necessary with palladium.

950 Palladium is more durable than white gold. Wear testing has shown a 15% longer wear ratio. This is similar to how platinum wears versus gold. Over time, palladium will show the signs of everyday wear, but the surface is easily restored to the original luster by cleaning and polishing.

Palladium versus Platinum
In virtually all jewelry circles, platinum is still considered to be the king of metals. Platinum wedding bands are 60% to 70% heavier than gold or palladium wedding bands. They are extremely durable and will last much longer than comparable gold wedding bands. Also, high world-wide demand for platinum has driven prices much higher recently, making platinum wedding bands a great investment. Even the name Platinum denotes the highest standard available. If your budget allows, platinum is still the most highly prized and expensive of all metals.

Palladium, however, offers many of the same desirable characteristics of platinum, at a much lower price. It is as white as platinum and whiter than white gold. Palladium wedding bands provide wearers with the same durability and premium white beauty that platinum wearers have learned to treasure. The best part is that palladium wedding bands cost a little more white gold, but much less than platinum wedding bands.