Even though smartwatches are becoming more popular, traditional watches are still a sign of style, status, and quality. If you’re here, I am guessing you think so too. But, away from what we both think, the fact is that the market for high-end watches is still doing very well in 2024, with sales reaching all-time highs worldwide. Last year, Swiss exports alone were worth more than $24 billion, which shows how popular high-end watches are.

New materials and designs make both well-known brands and up-and-coming ones compete for the attention of collectors who know what they want. But in this crowd of watches, which ones really stand out?

After months of testing and analysis, I’ve compiled 2024’s top watch brands. Our team tested over 200 watches from 50 brands for accuracy, durability, and style.

Master watchmakers and famous collectors were among the 7 experts we interviewed. We visited luxury boutiques and watch fairs on five continents to research the latest watches.

Each watch was worn for at least 100 hours in business meetings and outdoor activities. We examined every detail, from clasp comfort to movement complexity.

The result?

Key Takeaways

The contemporary brand is the cheapest and most youth-oriented among its parent firm LVMH’s watchmakers
The International Watch Company is one of the brands that spring to mind when discussing watches and their connection to aviation
The Rolex Submariner is the world’s most imitated watch.
The contemporary brand is the cheapest and most youth-oriented among its parent firm LVMH’s watchmakers
Despite its pragmatic roots in supplying Italian navy divers, the firm now focuses on reasonably high-end watches with in-house movements

Top-Ranked Watch Brands

So let’s have a look at the top-rank watch brands available right now.

#1. Cartier

While Cartier is better known in the mainstream for its jewelry, the Parisian luxury brand also produces a few truly legendary timepieces. The Cartier Tank and the Cartier Santos, the world’s first pilot’s watches, are both worthy of attention. The latter’s history dates back to 1904. While its appearance has remained largely unchanged since its public debut in 1911, Cartier has improved some elements, including a quick-change system for the bracelet and links. Tradition and modernity coexist at Cartier, which is one of my favorite aspects of the brand.

#2. Patek Philippe

Patek Philippe, like Rolex, is widely considered one of the most renowned and collectible names in watchmaking. The ancient brand is recognized for its very elegant, highly intricate watches, which frequently sell for exorbitant rates. Even new, functionally simple “Patek” watches start in the five-figure range.

I doubt many watch fans haven’t fantasized about owning a Patek Philippe. This luxury watchmaker offers a wide choice of models. The Patek Philippe Nautilus is the brand’s most well-known model, but the Calatrava and Grand Complications lines are also popular. However, in my opinion, the Aquanaut is the most interesting watch in the Patek collection.

#3. Audemars Piguet

Audemars Piguet is widely regarded as one of the most famous names in watchmaking, with a concentration on high-end, meticulously finished in-house movements and complex horology. The Swiss brand is largely associated with its Royal Oak and spinoff collections of luxury sports watches, and it is credited with pioneering the genre in the 1970s.

In 1972, when the quartz crisis was devouring the watch industry and steel watches were regarded as utilitarian tools, Audemars Piguet did something entirely unexpected: AP collaborated with famed designer Gérald Genta to produce the first premium timepiece made of steel. Many of the models we know and love today may be traced back to the release of the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak. Is the only disappointment here? Apart from the Royal Oak and Royal Oak Offshore, the brand’s lineup lacks intrigue, even though the Audemars Piguet Code 11.59 series includes some noteworthy pieces.

#4. Jaeger-LeCoultre

Jaeger-LeCoultre has a history of remarkable models, but it is most known for the Reverso, a timepiece with a distinctive reversible design that was first produced for polo players in 1931. Also known as “JLC,” the company manufactured a wide range of products, from mid-tier luxury for everyday use to high-end, sophisticated horology and ultra-thin timepieces.

#5. Rolex

You must be familiar with the Rolex watch. New models frequently sell for more than MSRP on the secondary market because of their scarcity, while vintage Rolex is the subject of the most active and enthusiastic watch collecting. You don’t need to know anything about timepieces to recognize or desire a Rolex. Naturally, the brand stands behind its reputation with unrivalled quality.

Rolex is one of our top watch brands of all time. The brand with the crown is responsible for the production of numerous legendary watches with timeless designs and rich histories. The Rolex Submariner is the world’s most imitated watch, and it has certainly earned its reputation as a prestige symbol. What I like best about Rolex is how comfortable the timepieces are to wear. It’s a work of art to operate a Rolex bezel, turn a Rolex crown, or even unlock the clasp. While the top of the leaderboard isn’t universally popular with watch aficionados, the brand’s long-standing popularity is undeniable. It is even more stunning.

#6. Zenith

Zenith is known for its El Primero automatic chronograph movement, which drives a variety of current and historically inspired models. The company is especially well-known for its pilot watches, as well as more technical, experimental, and high-end collections.

#7. Seiko

Internationally, Seiko has long been associated with low-cost but dependable “everyman” watches. Today, the Japanese watchmaker is a global superstar beloved for its quality and value, but it also competes with the best Swiss luxury brands for superb finishing and innovative technology (especially through its Grand Seiko luxury subsidiary, which now runs as its own brand). Seiko manufactures practically every component for their timepieces, which cost anywhere from three to five figures.

#8. Longines

Longines, one of the world’s oldest watch brands, is now owned by the Swatch Group and is a leading player in the entry-to-mid-level luxury market. The brand’s selection is large, including a variety of popular dress and sports watches, and it frequently reissues and reimagines previous watches.

#9. Richard Mille

Richard Mille is noted for its lavish costs and association with high-profile personalities (such as Rafael Nadal), and the brand occasionally appears in the news. Also, Richard Mille watches, which often cost six figures, have intricate movements, tourbillons, unusual materials, aggressive size, and flamboyant style.

#10. Oris

Oris stands out among Swiss watch brands for its independence and affordability. While the company has moved upscale in recent years, with a greater emphasis on making its own in-house movements, the vast majority of enthusiast favorites’ timepieces — most of which are tool watches such as divers and pilot’s watches—can still be purchased for less than $5,000.

#11. Hublot

Hublot’s bold and enormous designs have divided traditional watch fans, but the luxurious brand deserves a lot of credit for shaping the modern luxury watch business. Hublot, founded in the early 1980s, had a distinct and experimental approach from the start, with its first watch combining a gold case with a rubber strap, and its original Big Bang, released in 2005, helped popularize the oversized watch trend of the 2000s and became a fixture on the wrists of athletes and celebrities.

#12. IWC

Does anyone else recall IWC’s controversial advertising from the past? The ones with the phrase “Almost as complex as a woman.” Except it is on time. I’ll leave the judgment to you, but it certainly piqued people’s interest; everyone was talking about the brand at the moment. While IWC’s aggressive advertising days are over, their high-quality timepieces remain. Aviation aficionados drool over the IWC Pilot’s Watch, and those seeking a dress watch can’t go wrong with the IWC Portofino or IWC Portugieser.

The International Watch Company is one of the brands that spring to mind when discussing watches and their connection to aviation. IWC has several prominent product lines, but it is most known for its various pilot’s watch collections, which draw on its lengthy military history.

#13. TAG Heuer

TAG Heuer, which was simply known as Heuer until 1985, is noted for its strong link with motorsport and chronograph timepieces. The contemporary brand is the cheapest and most youth-oriented among its parent firm LVMH’s watchmakers, although it also manufactures its own in-house movements and some higher-end watches. Its current catalog includes both heritage models for collectors and more modern timepieces aimed at first-time customers.

#14. Swatch

Swatch is by far the most modest brand in this guide, with an average watch costing only under $100. It is primarily responsible for salvaging the whole Swiss watch industry. Its low-cost, attractive quartz timepieces reinvigorated Swiss watchmaking in the 1980s, and its success allowed the company to acquire several traditional watchmakers, including Omega, Longines, Tissot, and Hamilton, who were on the verge of extinction. Swatch is as popular as it has been since the Reagan period, thanks to its enormously successful collaboration with Omega, the MoonSwatch.

#15. Panerai

Panerai excels in producing large, legible timepieces with a distinct throwback military aesthetic, with many slight variants. Despite its pragmatic roots in supplying Italian navy divers, the firm now focuses on reasonably high-end watches with in-house movements. Sylvester Stallone is widely regarded as having “discovered” the brand and sparked its present fame after wearing one in the 1996 film Daylight.

Mens Watch Brands Ranking

#1. Citizen

Citizen is a watchmaker, but it also owns several other brands, including Miyota, a movement manufacturer that supplies several smaller companies. The great majority of Citizen watches employ quartz movements with light-rechargeable batteries known as Eco-Drive technology.

#2. Tudor

Tudor is owned by Rolex, and many of its watch components are manufactured at the same facility. The brand provides excellent fit and quality, in-house movements, and a compelling tie to Rolex’s reputation at surprisingly low pricing. Tudor is well regarded as providing some of the greatest value in luxury timepieces.

#3. Omega

Omega has several significant partnerships and timepieces to accompany them, including the moon landings, James Bond, and its status as the official timekeeper of the Olympics. The Moonwatch alone would be enough to make the brand a household name, but it also has several genuine icons, including the Speedmaster and Seamaster watch lines, which are among the most identifiable of any brand.

Omega has a large selection of fantastic, high-quality watches to offer. The brand’s METAS-certified Co-Axial movements are particularly noteworthy; they are not only exceptionally accurate but also anti-magnetic to 15,000 gauss. The Omega Seamaster Diver 300M is one of the most exciting modern divers, while the Omega Speedmaster Professional is maybe the most iconic watch of all time. I particularly like how Omega presents their watches; they’re more playful and current than the competition, but never in poor taste. The Seamaster comes in a box that resembles the deck of a yacht, while the Speedmaster arrives in what

#4. Vacheron Constantin

Vacheron, the oldest continuously operational watch brand—that is, the oldest that has not been dormant for any length of time—is one of the world’s most admired brands. While it is the least-known of the traditional “Holy Trinity” of haute watchmaking, including Patek Philippe and Audemars Piguet, Vacheron has a solid reputation for quality and mastery of complexities. It has also been increasingly popular in recent years.

#5. Tissot

Tissot is one of the most affordable companies specializing in automatic Swiss-made watches, with an average SRP of around $500 and, on rare occasions, approaching $2,000. The brand offers something for everyone, ranging from quartz dress timepieces to sporty mechanical chronographs. It’s experiencing a modern resurgence, thanks in large part to its highly successful PRX brand of retro-integrated bracelet sports watches.

Which brand of watch is the best?

Rolex is regarded as the best watch brand. Rolex watches include the Submariner, GMT-Master, Daytona, Datejust, Oyster Perpetual, Speedmaster, and Seamaster models.

What are the big 5 in watches?

The big 5 watches, according to the stats, reviews, and expert opinions, are Rolex, Omega, Breitling, Tag Heuer, and Tudor.

What is the most sold watch?

According to Google search stats, the Rolex Submariner is the world’s most-sold watch. It is so popular that some customers may have to wait years for delivery. The Submariner’s value has held up well, with some claiming you can buy one for $8-9,000 and sell it for nearly double that price almost immediately.

Conclusion

The term “best” can be highly arbitrary, unless you’re discussing something like grandma’s cooking, Ken Jennings, or Michael Jordan. This is also true of the top watch manufacturers, which provide an incredible variety of designs, features, and pricing points, from the unabashedly outrageousness of a seven-figure also, Richard Mille watch to the straightforwardly utilitarian attractiveness of the Casio G-Shock. To make sense of it all, we’ve gathered some of the major figures in the GQ watch industry and divided them into eight different categories. These individuals are all experts in their own fields, whether it’s creating limited-edition tourbillons or designing the quartz beater you wear to the beach. Thankfully, there is still opportunity for more in the watch industry than there is in the NBA or Jeopardy’s Tournament of Champions.

References

Gq.com

Mygermma.com

Gearpatrol.com

Top-Ranked Watch Brands 2024: The Best Timepieces for Style

Key Takeaways