Top Luxury Watch Brands In The World – Shopping for a luxury watch requires a fair amount of knowledge on everything from movements to complications to cases.
Best Luxury Watch Brands In The World:
What typically separates a luxury watch brand apart from other brands is how well the brand positions their mission/legacy, craftsmanship, and materials.
Legacy: Luxury brands are generally driven by an original founding member’s impetus or driving factor – they carry that legacy into everything they do to continue the legacy of the brand.
Craftsmanship: Often the most differentiating factor, most luxury watch brands feature more meticulous hand craftsmanship and rigorous functionality and accuracy testing. Simply put, generally there is more hands-on time involved in making a luxury watch.
Materials: Luxury watch brands will more often than not experiment with new materials or include precious metals or gemstones in their design.
1. Rolex:
Founded in: 1905 | Price Range: $5,800-$75,000 | Made in: Switzerland
Rolex is a name that needs no introduction. Known as “The Crown,” this Swiss watchmaker has established itself as a symbol of prestige and excellence. Founded in 1905 by Hans Wilsdorf and Alfred Davis, Rolex has been at the forefront of innovation in watchmaking, introducing numerous groundbreaking technologies such as the first waterproof wristwatch, the Oyster, in 1926. Rolex watches are renowned for their durability, accuracy, and timeless designs.
Rolex is particularly famous for its iconic models, including the Datejust and the Submariner. The Datejust, introduced in 1945, was the first self-winding wristwatch to display the date in a window on the dial. The Submariner, unveiled in 1953, revolutionized diving watches with its exceptional water resistance and robust construction.
Today, Rolex continues to push boundaries with innovative materials and improved movements. The brand focuses on maintaining its reputation as a status symbol while appealing to modern tastes with updated designs.
2. Omega:
Founded in: 1848 | Average price: $2,000-$80,000 | Made in: Switzerland
Swiss brand Omega has been the official timekeeper of the Olympics since 1932 and they also supplied watches to the British Armed Forces in the 1940s. Their Speedmaster watch was worn by astronauts on the Apollo 11 mission and its graced the wrists of several James Bonds. As a result, Omegas are typically both sporty and sophisticated. “From a mechanic’s point of view, I like Omega movements—such as caliber 1120 and 861—because they’re well-constructed workhorses,” says New York City watchmaker Ron Gordon. “The cases are also functional and incredibly sturdy.”
3. Patek Philippe:
Founded in: 1839 | Price Range: $21,000-$485,000 | Made in: Switzerland
Patek Philippe consistently tops the list of best watch brands in the world and is a status symbol like no other. Founded in 1839, the Swiss company is the last family-owned independent watch manufacturer in Geneva.
4. Audemars Piguet:
Founded in: 1875 | Price Range: $25,000-$300,000 | Made in: Switzerland
Founded by childhood friends Jules-Louis Audemars and Edward-Auguste Piguet in 1875, Audemars Piguet is perhaps most famous for its Royal Oak collection, which since its debut in 1972, has become an obligatory status symbol for every A-lister from hip hop legends to elite athletes. Now it has some competition: In 2019, the brand released a new collection, Code 11.59.
5. Cartier:
Founded in: 1847 | Average price: $2,000-$60,000 | Made in: France
Cartier watches have graced the wrists of everyone from Jackie Kennedy to Mick Jagger to Kate Middleton. And while the Cartier Panthere has reached cult status, the Cartier Tank watch is arguably the brand’s most famous. It was introduced in 1917 during World War I and is said to be a bird’s eye view of the inside of a tank, inspired by the Renault FT-17 talks rolling past watchmaker Louis Francois Cartier’s window.
6. Grand Seiko:
Founded in: 1960 | Average price: $2,300 – $350,000+ | Made in: Japan
Japanese brand Grand Seiko was first introduced to the world in 1960. That goal that drove the conception and mission of the brand was easy to grasp but difficult to accomplish: perfection. Grand Seiko wanted to create the most accurate, reliable, comfortable, and beautiful timepieces on Earth. While some things have changed for brand over the past 6 decades, they still hold true to their ideals of always trying to design better, push horological technology, and reach new heights of wrist comfort for Grand Seiko Owners.
Perfection in design for Grand Seiko generally tends to mean simplicity of form and/or the clearest/most aesthetically please iteration of a timepiece visual inspiration. Whether it’s a timepiece to commemorate the changing of the seasons and the celebration of Cherry Blossoms (SBGA413) or a timepiece that pays homage to the wind blowing snow off the Hokkaido Mountains (SBGA211), Grand Seiko employs a deft, measured, but thoughtful hand in everything they create.
A Grand Seiko would be a great watch purchase for someone in the market for a timepiece that was under the radar but packed with subtle meaning that would only really recognized by other enthusiasts.
7. Vacheron Constantin:
Founded in: 1755 | Price Range: $12,300-$131,000 | Made in: Switzerland
Vacheron Constantin is among the oldest luxury watch manufacturers in the world, founded in Geneva by Jean-Marc Vacheron in 1755. The watches, which are known for their extensive complications, have been worn on the wrists of famous figures like Napoleon Bonaparte and Harry Truman.
8. Audemars Piguet:
Founded in: 1875 | Price Range: $25,000-$300,000 | Made in: Switzerland
Founded by childhood friends Jules-Louis Audemars and Edward-Auguste Piguet in 1875, Audemars Piguet is perhaps most famous for its Royal Oak collection, which since its debut in 1972, has become an obligatory status symbol for every A-lister from hip hop legends to elite athletes. Now it has some competition: In 2019, the brand released a new collection, Code 11.59.
9. Breitling:
Founded in: 1884 | Price Range: $3,300-$67,000 | Made in: Switzerland
Founded in 1884, Breitling is especially well-known as a particular favorite of aviators—the brand even teamed up with Scott and Mark Kelly, the only twins to have traveled in space, and employs a team of pilots who travel around the world doing acrobatic display flights in fighter jets.
10. Jaeger-LeCoultre:
Founded in: 1833 | Price Range: $4,800-$100,000 | Made in: Switzerland
Established in 1833 in the Swiss Jura Mountains, Jaeger-LeCoultre is known for its clever designs. One of its most notable—and coveted—styles, the Reverso, features a face that flips over to protect itself within the watch casing.
11. Montblanc:
Founded in: 1858 | Price Range: $1,200-$29,500 | Made in: Switzerland
Fine state-of-the-art craftsmanship is at the heart of every Montblanc timepiece, and especially in the Montblanc 1858 collection, which is a reinterpretation of 1920s and ’30s Minerva watches used for military exploration.
12.Van Cleef & Arpels:
Founded in: 1906 | Price Range: $7,800-$448,000 | Made in: France
Van Cleef & Arpels’s Alhambra motif has been a coveted status symbol since its invention in 1968. This watch is the best of both worlds: an elegant timepiece and stunning piece of jewelry, all in one.
