Pre-owned watch data shows which Rolex models are smart investments
Watch marketplace Bob's Watches published a report on Thursday that analyzed 15 years of its Rolex sales data, including over 50,000 transactions. The data shows the evolution of Rolex prices on the secondhand market, and the models that had a strong return on investment.
Several models soared in value from 2010 to 2025 — one increased over 600% during the time period, and another has a resale value of over $20,000 today.
Overall, the high-end watch market has the lowest volatility of any asset class, according to a study published in February on Social Science Research Network. Watches have a low correlation with stock market fluctuations and, depending on the model, tend to appreciate in value over time.
Some gain more value than others. Trends and fluctuating demand affect which models are bought and sold most in the pre-owned market.
The pre-owned watch market peaked between 2020 and 2022 as luxury goods became popular during the pandemic.
Rolex, one of the Big Three independent watch brands (along with Patek Philippe and Audemars Piguet), has continued to fare relatively well as the pre-owned watch market has fallen from that peak.
Rolexes are "tangible assets you can wear, insure for a fraction of their value, and pass down, unlike stocks, they don't disappear at market close," Bob's Watches CEO Paul Altieri told Business Insider.
For those hunting for an investment piece, these three watches gained the most value on the pre-owned market, according to the sales data from Bob's Watches.
Rolex Datejust
According to Bob's Watches, the Rolex Datejust was the most-traded collection from 2010 to 2025. Its average resale value 15 years ago was $1,150. As of May 2025, it was worth around $8,500, a 639% appreciation over the period.
The watch is down about 14% from its peak of $9,926 in March 2022. According to Bob's Watches, some of its best models include references 16013, 16233, and 69173, which refer to the code used to identify a specific model.
Altieri said the Datejust's appreciation "might surprise people who think dress watches are never as exciting as sports models," but that the watch has "broad appeal."
Rolex Submariner
The Rolex Submariner has shown strong collector demand and steady appreciation in value. According to Bob's Watches, its value peaked in May 2022 at $18,889.
"We've never seen steel sports models run hotter than during" the two-year period between 2020 and 2022, Altieri said.
The average resale value of the watch dipped in 2023 but has been recovering, according to the data, and is now worth $17,295.
"The Submariner data shows this wasn't just hype," he said.
Bob's Watches said its best-selling models include references 16610, 116610, and 16613.
Rolex GMT-Master II
Bob Watches found that the value of GMT-Master II Rolex models has risen 506% since 2010, reflecting demand for vintage Pepsi and modern Batman models named for their unique colors. The sales data show steady growth from 2010 to 2017, before peaking at $23,992 in November 2021.
As of 2025, its resale value is $20,595, showing its resilience in the pre-owned market. Some of the best-selling models on Bob's Watches include references 116710 — known as the Batman— and 16710, which are the classic Pepsi or Coke watches.
"It's not just its 24-hour bezel — it's the stories behind every red-and-blue 'Pepsi' or black-and-blue 'Batman' edition that fuel its collectibility and price momentum," Altieri said.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Bloomberg
2 hours ago
- Bloomberg
When Will Luxury's Perfect Storm Pass?
The bling industry's reporting season will be grim. But there are signs the worst might soon be over. Save Luxury is out of fashion. The sector is facing a perfect storm. Chinese spending, the industry's growth engine for so long, has stalled. There are question marks over whether US shoppers, who held much promise after President Donald Trump's election in November, will pick up the bling baton. And over-aggressive pricing has shut out many younger customers who gorged on Gucci handbags and Rolex watches during the pandemic. It will take time for this indigestion to work its way out of the system.
Buzz Feed
7 hours ago
- Buzz Feed
21 Subtle Signs Someone Is Secretly Rich, But Hiding It
A few weeks ago, I was scrolling when I came across a post from user Againmrbrown on the popular Ask Reddit page asking, "What's a subtle sign someone is rich but hiding it?" and naturally, my curiosity was piqued. I thought the answers were fun enough to share, so here are some of the best: "'Are you rich?' 'Well, we are comfortable.'" "Dressed like Adam Sandler." "The lack of fucks given." "I used to teach English abroad. In one class we were doing our introductions, telling everyone our names and what we do. One guy introduced himself, and the whole class drew breath after he said his last name. Turns out he owned one of the biggest construction companies in the country. Guy carried a shabby briefcase and drove a beat-up RAV4. You couldn't tell he was loaded at all. My kind of guy." "I used to work with a guy who turned up late on his very first day. It was 1:30 in the afternoon when he arrived and said, 'To be fair, I'm the first person in my family to have a job in 500 years.'" "They can complain about costs, but it never stops them from doing necessary work or updating things. If you pay attention, you can notice who actually is stopped by barriers to purchasing things or buying services." "I used to work for Mercedes and Audi. The people who buy $150k cars outright are the ones who come in wearing almost-scruffy clothes. The people who come in wearing suits or chinos and sunglasses and Rolexes? They're not buying anything expensive." "The richest person I have ever met drove a 1999 Mercury and dressed like he delivers pizzas. He owns large apartment buildings around the country and works higher up at a large bank for his day job. Bought a $2 million house in cash and let it sit for two years while he did another $2 million of renovations, but looking at him, he's just a regular guy, no fancy clothes or 'I'm better than you' attitude. His favorite restaurant is Chili's, if that tells you anything." "They always prefer to spend money rather than time. I was waiting in line for a music festival with a friend. A festival we already had tickets to. He realized that the 'preferred' line was empty. So he straight up bought everyone in our crew preferred tickets, just so we could jump the line. That was, like, the only advantage. We literally all ended up with two tickets, because he didn't want to wait 20 minutes." "Wearing nameless clothes, no flashy brands or vending machine-style jewellery. You'll never hear them talking about money; if you do, they'll never remark about how much they have or earn, and if they're a stranger, they will probably lie about their job to keep you from suspecting them of having money." "Nice teeth and nice shoes. They also don't talk about money." "No debt. They buy stuff as they need it, without having to wait until payday or save up. Having money provides a degree of spontaneity that us non-rich can't grasp." "I've cooked for a lot of rich people. There's a big difference between people who grew up rich (were born into money) versus the people who made something for themselves." "Both are generally not going to be overly flashy if they're actually rich. People who are born into money usually don't realize that most of the world is struggling, so they'll talk about their multiple homes, travel, and other expensive experiences as if it's normal conversation, and like you should be able to relate. Most likely, they grew up sheltered and detached from reality. I've noticed these people are pretty socially awkward and don't have a lot of genuine friends in their lives, so they'll be REALLY tight with their immediate family. They'll have some flashy things, but it'll be silly expenses — a dumb sculpture, spending ridiculous amounts of money on their dog, a drug addiction, etc." "The people who earn their money are usually aware of the difference between them and most of the world. They can even still hold onto frugal tendencies. So it'll be more subtle clues: jewelry (on a woman, look at their ring), name brand or designer clothes, bags, sunglasses, how their hair, teeth, and skin look perfect, what kind of car they drive…" "When their 'old' clothes still look better than your brand new ones." "No cellphone case." "Their children are living in an expensive apartment, traveling a lot, have expensive hobbies, maybe even a severe coke habit. First generation rich are usually humble and not flashy, but that's very rare with subsequent generations." "They've got a certain ease in their attitude, never worrying about money or showing off, making decisions right then and there and not worrying about how to pay." "Having an extremely curated aesthetic and going away on trips with family more than once a year." "What's a big tell? How much someone spends on their hobbies." "They keep a Modigliani in the bathroom. (This happened to me: my partner, who was an art history major, commented after we left a very modest apartment that there was a Modigliani in the bathroom.)" And finally: "You can never really tell. There are fancy people who are rich and there are people who try to be fancy but are living in debt. There are people who look like crap who are filthy rich, and there are people who look like crap who are poor. Some rich people are humble, and others are assholes; you can never really tell unless you have access to their bank accounts." Tell me all your thoughts in the comments below. Or, if you have your own anecdote to add, feel free to leave that too! I love hearing what you have to say.
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Yahoo
'I can lend someone £100k in an hour': The life of a pawnbroker
If you've ever spent your morning commute daydreaming about starting afresh with your career, this feature is for you. Each week, our Money team speaks to someone from a different profession to discover what it's really like. Today, we chat to James Constantinou, owner of pawnbroker chain Prestige Pawn. You can't train for it… I was born into wheeling and dealing, buying and selling, so I picked it up from experience. It's something that I love doing, and there's not a course for it. If we're talking about my employees, they are all highly skilled individuals who have trained and become experts in their fields. We have around 60 experts who all excel in a range of specialisms - such as gemologists or art. My skills lie in pulling them together and keeping the work going. Those in their specialised fields will have degrees, diplomas and have studied for years. They can look at the fake Rolexes from today and compare them to the real ones from 10 to 15 years ago - there's almost no comparison. It's really difficult to tell the difference between fake and the real deal in some circumstances. People think my job is lots of TV, helicopters, boats and aeroplanes… But the day-to-day running of the business isn't always like that. There are the normal headaches of staffing rates, leaky air con units and floods - and all other things that go alongside. It's not quite as glamorous as how it's portrayed. It's a misconception to say we charge high and unfair interest rates… The monthly rate starts at 2%, and I don't advise people to take a pawnbroking loan out for a year or two - we only offer up to seven months, and most of our customers redeem in around three. You can't go into the high street and borrow £100,000 within an hour... but in one of my stores, you can, so it's quite rewarding to help people when they need it. When you are approached by someone who needs cash for something urgent and has been to the banks to borrow and denied, and then you're able to step in a way that other lenders aren't able to. There is no typical day… Today I'm at home because we have someone here doing some work, but I'm still on the phone. I've got an E-type Jag appraisal and a cherished number plate, so I'm helping the team. There are guys at Gracechurch Street dealing with some bullion at the moment, so I'm helping with that. Between the team, I'm helping us get deals across the line and closing them. I am interested in items worth £50 to £1m… It's not all about the money. I believe you need more of a passion rather than a skill to do the job well. A normal starting salary in this industry… is around £30,000. The best perk is… getting to see all the amazing assets that come in and drive the fancy cars. I've loved meeting all the fantastic people along the way, too. From where I came from and especially since I left school, I never in a million years thought I would be in this position. Opening the doors to our business in May 2009 was a big moment, and then… Our first customer walked through the door and we jumped out of our seats like "Oh God, someone's actually noticed us!" Two of us ran to the counter to serve him, and he said, "Oh sorry, I thought this was a hairdresser's." We had to point him next door. I make mistakes weekly… If you don't make mistakes, then you don't learn. In the past, we've bought watches and pieces of art that have turned out not to be genuine. That was early doors, so those items wouldn't get us today. As a fledgling business, you're going to make mistakes. It was a hard lesson to learn, but a journey we had to go through. We don't touch stolen goods… This is another misconception that maybe occurred in the 1940s or 50s when the industry wasn't as regulated. I'd say a pawnbroker is one of the last places you'd take stolen goods to. I'm not saying it's never happened in 15 years of trading, but when it has, very early on, those items have ended up in the hands of the police. When people come in, they are recorded, we take copies of their passport and driving licences and ask to see proof of purchase. We're also members of associations where, if a luxury item gets stolen, it gets reported. For example, if a Rolex gets stolen, it gets put on the stolen watch register. The first thing we do before purchasing is check all of these databases to make sure the assets aren't stolen. We are only custodians of goods, we rarely own them… Only about 20% of the items stay with us the full seven months and end up going to market. For those sold, we only look to recoup the money owed to us. Any overage we may receive is returned to the client. This surprises a lot of people, even those with contracts worded as such. We don't often turn people down… and leave them walking away with nothing. Most things have a value of sorts. We usually present figures to people, and I'd say that half or maybe 60% of them are accepted. Sometimes it's not the number they want to hear. Most of the time it's about managing some customers' expectations of their item's worth, especially with the reality of being in a time of economic downturn. Luxury goods are not as buoyant as they were four or five years ago. A man came in recently with a one-off hand-built trike that he bought for £100,000, but it was too specialist for us, and the market was very limited. We let him know that it wasn't one for us. People often think they can make money from royal memorabilia... Limited-edition royal memorabilia from 150 years ago can be worth a lot. But a mass-produced King Charles mug hidden in a cupboard for ten years is worthless. But gold is the opposite… It is a brilliant investment and considered bricks and mortar. But in recent years, we've been seeing massive hikes in its prices and worth - a 66% increase in the past three years. Gold makes a great investment for people with spare money who are looking for higher returns. A diamond bulldog keyring is one of my favourite items... One of the first things that came into the store in 2009 caught my eye. It was a bulldog keyring made of 18-carat gold and a diamond-studded collar. The bulldog was stood on his back legs and is now sitting on my keys. I loved the workmanship and thought it was an unusual item, which is why I've still got it on my keyring now. I get many people commenting about it. It's not worth a great deal, but it is sentimental to me. I don't plan on retiring… I don't want to only have the options to sit at home or play golf. I like to get up in the morning and have a purpose. Even if I'm not going into the office, I'm up at 6/6:30am every day. I tend to work 24 hours and sometimes even sleep dreaming about work and deals. I'm constantly connected and always getting messages on WhatsApp throughout the day. Some of the team go home and message me in the evenings and we'll have a conversation at whatever time because they're just as dedicated and passionate as I am. There's not a time I switch off - unless on holiday.
