Luxury goods usually have one thing in common: an extra large price tag. Luxury watches are no exception. However, the following examples are in a league of their own. So you better hold on tight. We present the world’s most exclusive and expensive watch brands and tell you what the world’s most expensive watch is.
The Price of Luxury
When people talk about expensive luxury watches, they usually mean prices that seem out of proportion to the material costs. When it comes to simpler models without particularly elaborate complications, you can use the following approximate values as a guide:
- Stainless steel watches: up to approx. $10,000
- Stainless steel and gold watches: up to approx. $20,000
- Yellow gold watches: up to approx. $50,000
- Watches in rose or white gold: up to approx. $65,000
- Platinum watches: up to approx. $85,000
It should also be noted that the official list price and the actual market value of a watch can sometimes be worlds apart. This applies in particular to watches that are only available with long waiting times (if at all) in brick-and-mortar stores. On marketplaces like Chrono24, such models are usually available immediately, but – according to the laws of supply and demand – only at a hefty markup. That’s why, for example, watches from the market leader Rolex are generally regarded as expensive, although their list prices are rather moderate compared to other luxury watch manufacturers.
The 7 Most Expensive Watch Brands in the World
While million-dollar luxury watches are the exception rather than the rule, some brands have made it their mission to offer their creations at prices that take your breath away. We present: the hautevolee of haute horlogerie.
1. Patek Philippe
Patek Philippe is one of the oldest independent watch manufacturers in the world. The name stands for prestige and exclusivity, for which Patek demands handsome sums. The most affordable watch in the current Patek catalog – the stainless-steel quartz watch (!) Twenty-4 4910/1200A – has a recommended retail price of $17,420. The MSRP for simple three-hand watches with a mechanical movement is on average somewhere between 25,000 EUR and 55,000 EUR. Compared to the luxury manufacturer’s top models, however, even these sums seem like a bargain. For highly complicated watches such as the platinum reference 6301P with a sonnerie and minute repeater or the Sky Moon Tourbillon 6002R in rose gold, Patek asks $1.56 million and $1.92 million respectively. However, the Grandmaster Chime 6300/403G takes the cake. This watch, equipped with 20 complications, has a list price of $5.1 million. And that’s nothing compared to what collectors are willing to pay for particularly rare Patek watches. The legendary Henry Graves Supercomplication, for example, was worth a good $26 million to one collector. The Grandmaster Chime 6300A-010 – a unique piece made of stainless steel – even fetched around $33 million at auction. This makes the family-run brand not only one of the oldest watch manufacturers but also one of the most expensive brands of our time.
2. Jacob & Co.
If you’d rather have a dragon, a concert piano, or a roulette table on your wristwatch than a conventional dial, the watchmakers at Jacob & Co. have just the thing. They combine the highest quality materials with phenomenal craftsmanship and creativity. The usual functions of a wristwatch – displaying the time and date – often take a back seat in the collections of this New York-based company. Highly complicated mechanical gadgets such as solar systems or music boxes are placed in glass cases around the wrist. As if that weren’t enough, individual elements of these watches are often made of precious stones or other high-quality materials. The prices are then often in excess of a million. While models in collections such as the Five Time Zone may seem affordable, many of Jacob & Co.’s watches are priced in the six-figure range, making the company one of the most expensive luxury watchmakers.
3. Richard Mille
As a rising star of haute horlogerie, Richard Mille presents a glimpse into the future of watchmaking. The brand is a favorite of stars and is synonymous with modern approaches and avant-garde designs. High-quality materials reinterpreted in a futuristic style – that is precisely what makes the brand stand out and impresses the rich and beautiful in particular. Tonneau-shaped cases and skeletonized dials are characteristic of Richard Mille – as are high prices. Even without diamonds, the technocratic design language of these fine timepieces demands a rather high price and is capable of taking firm steps toward the millions. Even in pre-owned condition, watches from the brand rarely change hands for less than $100,000. Particularly high-priced examples include the Richard Mille Pink Sapphire RM07-02, which you can buy in unworn condition on Chrono24 for around $2 million, and the RM 56-02 Tourbillon Sapphire, which is limited to ten pieces and will set you back about $2.4 million.
4. Ulysse Nardin
Like Richard Mille, Ulysse Nardin is a relatively young player in the luxury watch universe. However, with collections such as the Genghis Khan or the Royal Blue Mystery Tourbillon, the brand impressively demonstrates that it feels more than at home in price ranges well over $500,000 or even above the million mark.
Impressive craftsmanship paired with the finest materials, creative designs and a certain underdog image give Ulysse Nardin’s expensive watches a special charm. One of the nice things about this small watchmaker is that fans of the brand do not necessarily have to spend a fortune to get one of these timepieces on their wrist, as the manufacturer also offers wonderful watches at more moderate prices. Ulysse Nardin is thus positioning itself as a brand of extremes that manages to combine technical know-how with absolute craftsmanship.
5. Vacheron Constantin
Vacheron Constantin, which has existed since 1755, has more than earned its place in the world of fine watchmaking as part of the “Holy Trinity” (Vacheron Constantin, Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet) and has always impressed with its fabulously high level of craftsmanship. “Do better if possible, and that is always possible.” These words, from co-founder François Constantin, date back to 1815 and are still the house motto. The models from collections such as Métiers d’Arts in particular know how to surpass themselves time and again in terms of craftsmanship and beauty. As a tribute to the art of watchmaking and goldsmithing, the timepieces in this line combine two crafts and draw their inspiration from art, history, and different cultures around the world. The watches in this expensive collection feature, for example, fine gold accents with the Chinese zodiac signs, hot air balloons commemorating the first steps in aviation, dials with the celestial spheres of Copernicus, and dials in the style of old nautical charts. With prices in excess of $100,000 for the standard range and fast approaching the million mark, Vacheron Constantin is also one of the most expensive watch manufacturers.
6. Breguet
Abraham-Louis Breguet is considered one of the most important figures in watchmaking history. As a gifted watchmaker and inventor, he made decisive contributions to the development of the watch industry. His inventions include innovations such as the first automatic self-winding mechanism, the pare-chute shock protection system, and the Breguet hairspring that bears his name. Breguet is also responsible for the tourbillon, considered the supreme discipline of fine watchmaking. Although he did not invent its function or the basic idea, he was the first to design and implement it. Breguet’s high-quality and refined watches are undoubtedly among the biggest names in haute horlogerie and can easily command prices in excess of $200,000. Even among the ten most expensive watches, the brand can hold its own with a highly complicated pocket watch that was once made for the French Queen Marie-Antoinette. With a value of around $32 million, this watch is definitely a top-class timepiece and leaves no doubt that Breguet is also one of the most exclusive and expensive watch manufacturers.
7. Graff Diamonds
The fascinating story of London’s “King of Diamonds” began on a jeweler’s workbench. Laurence Graff, the jeweler to presidents and kings, always firmly believed that working with diamonds was his destiny – one look at his creations leaves no doubt about that. Prices for his comparatively simple wristwatches are already in excess of $10,000 and reach into the mid five-figure range. However, if Graff says “Contact us” when it comes to the price, then you can be sure to expect to pay the equivalent of a handsome luxury yacht. The brand is also responsible for some of the most expensive wristwatches in the world. The Fascination, for example, has a price tag of a good $43 million. In return, you will receive a timepiece set with white diamonds weighing a total of 152.96 carats, the highlight of which is a 38.13-carat flawless colorless diamond. Prefer something more colorful? Then go for the Graff Hallucination for just under $60 million. This watch is covered with colored diamonds in pink, blue, green, yellow, and orange. The gemstones weigh a total of 110 carats. Graff has certainly earned the title of the most expensive watch brand, even though the manufacturer’s specialty is actually haute joaillerie.
How much does the world’s most expensive watch cost?
Expensive watch brands are all well and good – but which models are actually the world’s most expensive watches? We’ve compiled the top 10 most exclusive timepieces in the world for you and reveal how much the world’s most expensive watch costs:
- approx. $60 million: Graff Diamonds Hallucination
- approx. $44 million: Graff Diamonds The Fascination
- approx. $34 million: Patek Philippe Grandmaster Chime 6300A-010
- approx. $33 million: Breguet Ref. 160 (Marie-Antoinette Grande Complication)
- approx. $28 million: Jaeger-LeCoultre Joaillerie 101 Manchette
- approx. $27 million: Chopard 201-Carat
- approx. $26 million: Patek Philippe Henry Graves Supercomplication
- approx. $20 million: Jacob & Co. Billionaire
- approx. $16.7 million: Rolex Daytona 6239 “Paul Newman”
- approx. $12 million: Patek Philippe Grande Complication 1518
