How do I add sockets to an item?

Solution 1:

Diablo III Base Game

According to Blizzard, the Artisan cannot add sockets, and the game guide is erroneous (to be updated in the future):

Artisans cannot add sockets to items. That information about the jeweler in the game guide of our website is erroneous and we're in the process of updating it.

Socketing was a feature that was in the game very early on, but ultimately it didn't end up enhancing the play experience as we had hoped.

Solution 2:

There is no way to add a socket to an item using vanilla Diablo 3.

As of Reaper of Souls, the Mystic can enchant an item to add a socket, assuming the following are true:

• The item can potentially have a socket (i.e. you can't enchant gloves to add a socket)
• The item has no sockets currently

If an item does have sockets, and you choose to re-roll the Sockets statistic, you could potentially add more sockets if the item can have more (i.e. a chest has 2 sockets, you could re-roll the sockets stat to potentially get a 3rd socket).

In addition, as of patch 2.1.0, you can add a socket to a weapon if you find a Ramaladni's Gift. This will only add a socket to a weapon if the weapon doesn't already have a socket.