What are Vintage Watches?

What are the best vintage watches at this moment? And when does one talk about a vintage watch instead of a second-hand one? You can buy a vintage watch and have a nice quality, a beautiful story and at a sharper price than a new one. Sometimes. We will tell you what to look out for with vintage watches.

Timo Klinge

Chief Entertainment Officer

Updated at: 14/12/2023

What are Vintage Watches?

Basically, we have become familiar with the term vintage in recent years. Whether it concerns watches, cars, furniture or something else: it has a story. And so it is not new, not retro, but rather old and charming. But what are those vintage watches anyway? The basics are simple: watches older than 25 years are considered vintage. And preferably the watch should tell a story: every scratch, dent or other imperfection is seen as an emotion. The story around it. Such as a unique watch worn by a famous actor, athlete or politician.

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How expensive are vintage watches?

The price of a story sometimes differs. You can of course buy a vintage Rolex Datejust for around €7,000 in good condition, with box and papers. Sometimes these watches are so polished that the 'vintage look' is gone. And that can be a sin. Another alternative is the Omega Speedmaster Professional. And this watch is slightly more affordable: you can find a nice one from around €4,000. If you want to go a little further back in time, you can also buy a beautiful vintage watch from Omega, Cartier and with a bit of luck a Rolex Oyster Perpetual for about €1,000 to €3,000. If your budget for a vintage watch is large, you can of course go wild. For example, you can buy a Rolex Daytona Paul Newman from €200,000. A serious amount, but also a serious watch. Fortunately, you can buy a Red Sub Submariner (the well-known diving watch) for less: bring around €14,000 and you're in the right place.

The story of vintage

We wrote it a few times already: the story is of course beautiful. At least, we hope so. Because that's why vintage watch enthusiasts buy these pieces: as a collection, as an investment, but just for the story. And that makes the world of vintage watches unique. We continue to make history. All together. Are you in the market for a vintage watch? Just check out all of the vintage watches online.

Do you have any questions? Want help with a search for your next treasure? Feel free to open the live chat, call or e-mail us.