Top 60 Luxury Watch Brands

What Are The Top 60 Luxury Watch Brands Of 2023? 

1. Rolex
2. Patek Philippe
3. Audemars Piguet
4. Vacheron Constantin
5. Cartier
6. Richard Mille
7. Jaeger Lecoultre
8. A. Lange & Sohne
9. Breguet & Fils
10. Tudor
11. Piaget
12. Chopard
13. Omega
14. Breitling
15. IWC
16. Hublot
17. Blancpain
18. Zenith
19. Tag Heuer
20. F.P. Journe
21. Bovet Fleurier
22. Jaquet Droz
23. Grand Seiko
24. Bremont
25. Panerai
26. Bvlgari
27. Glashutte
28. Ulysse Nardin
29. H. Moser & Cie
30. Nomos Glashhutte
31. Harry Winston
32. Chanel
33. Corum
34. Van Cleef & Arpels
35. Louis Vuitton
36. Girard-Perregaux
37. Arnold & Son
38. Parmigiani Fleurier
39. Porsche Design
40. Montblanc
41. Tiffany & Co.
42. Hermes
43. Longines
44. Franck Muller
45. Roger Dubuis
46. Speake Marin
47. Baume & Mercier
48. Ball
49. Bell & Ross
50. Perrelet
51. Meistersinger
52. Alpina
53. Hamilton
54. Glycine
55. Maurice Lacroix
56. Tissot
57. Rado
58. Doxa
59. Frederique Constant
60. Oris

1. Rolex

Despite the soaring popularity of Rolex’s women’s and men’s watches, each timepiece is still made by hand. Internationally recognized as a status symbol, Rolex watches are forever in high demand. Especially the Rolex Daytona and Rolex Submariner.

Rolex is a clear number one brand that scores perfectly with all of the criteria applied. Born in the early twentieth century Rolex has devoted their now unparalleled manufacturing capability to creating high end watches of utmost quality and durability.

This has paid off for the company and their customers. Rolex watches hold their value across the board unlike any other watch in the marketplace. They are produced with the finest quality materials to the highest standards. As such, they are expected to be precise for a lifetime and more.

Rolex is exclusively owned by a private foundation and their decision making is consistently long term driven. This also means their sales data is not public. Based upon some public information, such as independent “chronometer” testing, Rolex produces and sells in excess of 800,000 watches per year. Ask any retailer in any country what watch sells the best, to all generations, the answer will be Rolex. 

The company identifies itself with quality, precision and achievement. Their name is respected in every corner of the globe and their presence has reached the summit of Mt. Everest as well as the greatest depths of the Pacific Ocean. 

• Key models: Datejust, Day-Date, Submariner, Daytona, GMT-Master II, Explorer, SkyDweller
• Price range: $5,100 – $120,000+  
• Approximate average price: $11,800
• Approximate annual production: 810,000 
• Ownership: Independent and owned by the Wilsdorf Foundation
• Company motto: A Crown for Every Achievement
• Rolex fun fact: Other than their Cellini dress watches, all Rolex watches are in their Oyster Perpetual family and these words would be found on every dial. Oyster signifies the waterproof case and Perpetual signifies the automatic, self winding movement inside.  

2. Patek Philippe

When it comes to craftsmanship of a watch case, and especially of a watch movement, Patek Philippe breaks to the top. They receive particularly high scores and praise from a significant group: the watchmakers themselves. In the world of high horology a complication is a good thing. And Patek Philippe is expert at producing such good things.

Many of their mechanical movements are built to go far beyond telling time. This manufacturer has the skill sets that can produce:

• perpetual calendars
• minute repeaters
• world timers and handcrafted plates
• bridges and parts that are surpassed by none

Patek Philippe produces some of the most coveted and highend timepieces in the world, fetching millions of dollars for some of their rarer models. This prestigious watch brand with a history of innovative designs, has long been favored by royalty.

“You never actually own a Patek Philippe. You merely look after it for the next generation” is not only an award winning campaign it is also a truism of the brand. They are generational and every year forward in time serves to prove just how special they are.

The powerhouse auction houses of the world feature historical and vintage timepieces from the Patek Philippe annually. They draw the same, if not greater success as they would from the works of art from Picasso or Rembrandt. 

• Key models: Nautilus, Calatrava, Aquanaut, Gondolo, Twenty-4 and all Grand Complications
• Price range: $15,000 – $300,000 
• Approximate average price: $40,000
• Approximate annual production: 58,000
• Ownership: Independent and owned by the Stern Family
• Patek fun fact: In 2021, new stainless steel Nautilus models that retail for $34,890 consistently sell in the secondary market for over $100,000. A 2021 version with an olive green dial just sold at auction for $363,600.

3. Audemars Piguet

Still owned today by its original founding families, Audemars Piguet is one of the oldest watch manufacturers in the world.

Right now the premiere model in the Audemars Piguet lineup, the Royal Oak, is so desired that it is a ghost in the marketplace. Like Patek Philippe’s Nautilus model, the Royal Oak often fetches prices well over suggested retail. Audemars has a legacy of fine watchmaking dating back to 1875. But it was in 1972 that the company shifted towards a path of greatness by introducing this iconic model.

The Royal Oak is simple, rugged, thin and highly recognized by the inner circle of enthusiasts who appreciate the brand. Audemars Piguet is also adept at grand complications and they continue to earn high credibility with annual creations that push new boundaries of what a mechanical timepiece can do. Their motto is “to break the rules, first you must master them.” 

• Key Models: Royal Oak, Royal Oak Offshore, Millenary, CODE 11.59, Complications
• Price range: $13,000 – $150,000+  
• Approximate average price: $37,000
• Approximate annual production: 42,000
• Ownership: Independent and family owned
• Audemars Piguet fun fact: The most expensive Audemars Piguet sold was a signed Audemars Piguet Geneve Leap Year Perpetual for $545,000 in 2015.

Amongst the global community of watch enthusiasts there are three high horology watch manufactures that do not get the same celebration as Patek Philippe but are held in special regard nonetheless. These form what many watch enthusiasts refer to as their “holy trinity.” These top luxury watch brands are Audemars Piguet, Vacheron Constantin and A. Lange & Sohne.

4. Vacheron Constantin

Vacheron Constantin has one of the deepest histories on this ranking, having been a master of the art of watchmaking uninterrupted since 1755. One of the esteemed members of the holy trinity of high horology, they have mastered vast complications and their cases, dials and movements are works of art.

Their current brand message is that their timepieces are “one of not many.” This means that at their core, they devote their expertise and energy to the crafting of the best timepieces possible without the need to create and sell volume. Their watches are truly rare and special. Like some of the offerings from other top luxury watch brands, Vacheron models such as the Overseas are seemingly impossible to find. 

• Key Models: Patrimony, Overseas, Metiers d’Art, FiftySix, Historiques
• Price range: $18,000 – $250,000+ 
• Approximate average price: $28,500
• Approximate annual production: 27,000
• Ownership: Richemont Group
• Motto: The original company motto are the words of founder François-Constantin: “Do better if possible and that is always possible.”
• Vacheron fun fact: The Vacheron Constantin Reference 57260 introduced by Vacheron Constantin in 2015 is regarded as the most complicated watch in the world. It is a mechanical pocket watch which features 57 complications.

5. Cartier

The House of Cartier is world renowned for high jewelry and their exceptional watch designs. Propelled for over a century by their advanced creative touch. Their manufacturing expertise has become equally responsible for their great brand success.

Their watch models are clean and highly recognized designs that appeal to clients for possessing both simplicity and style. Through the years they have judiciously relied on outside companies for many components in their timepiece production satisfying many without necessarily drawing the interests of the elite aficionados.

This is changing as in recent years they have begun to create exceptional watches of all kinds on their own. Their production volume has become one of the highest in the category all without losing their quality standards. Their upward move on this list is an indication that Cartier is a proven powerhouse watch brand that is getting even stronger.

• Key Models: Tank, Santos, Ballon Bleu, Ronde, Drive, Panthere, Tortue
• Price range: $3,000 – $250,000+ 
• Approximate average price: $5,200
• Approximate annual production: 490,000
• Ownership: Richemont Group
• Motto: A Cartier motto is to “never copy, always create.” This establishes them not only as jewelers of the first rank but innovators as well.

6. Richard Mille

Richard Mille is the fastest growing manufacturer on this list landing at number 6 after only being born in 2001. With limited production their average price per unit is an impressive six figures. They build and market a specifically designed watch to a specific type of client.

To understand what makes Richard Mille wrist watches special, envision how legend Raphael Nadal wears the watch on his wrist as he strikes 110mph tennis balls. Then consider how the Richard Mille company vision is to build “a racing machine on your wrist.”

The tonneau shaped watch design is bold and modern. They are built exceptionally well inside and out, almost always showing off the beauty of their stylized movement with a skeletonized front. They have become some of the most sought after watches amongst professional sports stars and elite watch collectors around the world. 

• Key Model: Tonneau
• Price range: $80,000 – $2.5 million+ 
• Approximate average price: $184,000
• Approximate annual production: 4,600
• Ownership: Independent and family owned
• Richard Mille fun fact: Rafael Nadal is not the only Richard Mille client athlete to wear the brand while he plays. McLaren F1 drivers Daniel Ricciardo and Lando Norris wear them as they race and NFL great Odell Beckham Jr. wore, at least once, a team-themed RM 11-03 as he caught sideline passes.

7. Jaeger Lecoultre

Internationally renowned for its intricate designs, Jaeger-LeCoultre is also famed for creating the world’s smallest watch caliber.

In the 1930’s Jaeger-LeCoultre answered the question of how to best protect their vulnerable wristwatches with a novel model design called the Reverso. It remains their signature watch of today.

They were constructed with Polo players in mind, and the intensity with which they play. The rectangular shaped Reverso could flip over easily so that the delicate dial and crystal would face down and be protected. While a solid case back withstands the trials of the match.

Based on this now highly recognized system Jaeger has been able to invent advanced designs of complication and elegance. Such as the Reverso Duoface featuring a two in one concept. For example, one side of a Reverso Classic Duoface may have a silver arabic dial. Then when you flip it over you can transform it into a black index dial.

In one watch you possess two dials with contrasting aesthetics and functionality. The brand is strong in the world of round wristwatches too. With classic and sporty Master Compressor and Master Control models made from steel and precious metals. 

• Key models: Reverso, Master Compressor, Master Control, Geophysic, Rendez-vous
• Price range: $7,250 – $500,000+ 
• Approximate average price: $11,500
• Approximate annual production: 100,000
• Ownership: Richemont Group
• Jaeger Lecoultre fun fact: In an early scene of the 1999 movie “A Thomas Crowne Affair,” the lead character is a debonair billionaire and art thief played by Pierce Brosnan. While caught in 5th Avenue traffic moments before a dramatic midday museum heist, the star is purposely shown flipping his Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Duo. This is to convey his anticipation of his plan as well as to foreshadow the dual sides of his life and penchant for switching high priced works of art. 

8. A. Lange & Söhne

A. Lange & Söhne was an established and flourishing German brand for a century prior to the beginnings of WWII. The ensuing destruction of war followed by decades long occupation by Soviet forces shuttered A. Lange & Söhne along with all other fine watch manufacturers in the historic German watchmaking city of Glashutte.

As freedoms returned the brand was reawakened in the early 1990’s, a period considered to be a second founding for the brand. True enthusiasts immediately began to pursue the manufacturer’s limited timepieces for their clean and clear, distinctly German, lines. Lange Söhne watches are built to tell time with clarity and few ornate features.

Their signature oversized date windows are not for flash, it is done to more easily see the date. While case designs sway simple, the capabilities and craftsmanship of the movements reveal levels of engineering. These plant the brand firmly as the third member of the high horology holy trinity.

• Key models: Lange 1, Saxonia, 1815, Zeitwerk, Richard Lange
• Price range: $17,500 – $500,000
• Approximate average price: $35,000
• Production: 4,500
• Ownership: Richemont GroupA company motto is “State-of-the-art Tradition” as well as an original quote from founder Ferdinand Lange “The entire pursuit of a watchmaker should be the perfection of each and every watch.”

9. Breguet

The discussion of the watch brand Breguet requires a discussion of watchmaking history. Abraham Louis Breguet is a legend in the world of watchmaking and is considered a father of high horology. In the late 1700’s he handmade intricate bespoke timepieces for the elites of France and Europe including special productions for Napoleon, King George IV, King Louis XVI and Queen Marie Antoinette.

Some of these commissioned pieces took decades to complete, and in the process Breguet invented mechanical capabilities never used before and still used today. His signature invention is the tourbillon, an advanced movement complication that rotates the entire escapement to offset the detrimental influence of gravity on timekeeping. Other achievements pioneered by Breguet include advances in the self winding mechanism, hairspring design, shock absorbers and artistic designs for dials and hands. He took great steps to miniaturize the mechanical movement and is widely credited with the first wristwatch in 1810.

The modern Breguet invests material and effort to design and create timepieces that rise to the standards and ambitions of their great namesake.

• Key models: La Marine, Classique, Tradition, Classique Complications
• Price range: $10,000-$350,000+ 
• Approximate average price: $28,000
• Approximate annual production: 23,000
• Ownership: Swatch Group
• Breguet fact: The grand complication commissioned in 1783 for Marie Antoinette did not make it on time. She met her demise in 1793 while the timepiece was finished and delivered in 1827. 

10. Tudor

Tudor was started by Hans Wilsdorf in 1946, the same industry genius who started Rolex. Tudor is essentially a younger sibling (or cousin) brand to the great and more established manufacturing giant. Their shared DNA is clear. Tudor watches are durable and mostly sports watches with strong waterproof cases, screw down crowns and self winding movements.

There were points in decades past where Tudor watches were seen as too similar to Rolex even sharing parts such as case backs that read Rolex Oyster. Tudor of the 21st century has grown and evolved along a newer path. Guided by their motto “Born to Dare” the younger brand has license, and a mission, to build their high quality wristwatches a new way. They feature new materials like brass or titanium.

A version of their Pelagos watch has a left handed winding crown. Black Bay models with different colored bezels hit the marketplace with red hot demand. Tudor even features their own proprietary movement. The result of these design and production choices is a brand that stands apart from Rolex and delivers the best value pricing in the industry.

The world has taken notice, overall Tudor production has quietly risen to over 200,000 watches annually and the brand has landed at number 10 on this list.

• Key models: Black Bay, Prince, Pelagos, Royal, Clair de Rose, Heritage Chrono
• Price range: $2,000 – $16,000 
• Approximate average price: $3,800
• Approximate annual production: 210,000
• Ownership: The Wilsdorf Foundation
• Tudor fun fact: The brand has featured and maintained two distinct logos through the years. One is a knight’s shield and the other is a rose.

11. Piaget

Piaget watches are known for their elegance. Their watch cases are primarily gold and their profile is always thin. Piaget earned a reputation for creating the thinnest mechanical wristwatches back in 1957 when they produced the manual wind Caliber 9P which housed a 2mm thin movement inside.

They continue to earn their slim reputation with their Altiplano Ultimate 910P which is a 4.3mm thin automatic movement which has 238 components some of which are “barely thicker than a hair’s breadth.” 

• Key models: Polo, Altiplano, Emperador
• Price range: $15,000 – $250,000 
• Approximate average price: $18,000
• Approximate annual production: 19,000
• Ownership: Richemont Group
• Piaget fun fact: While the 910P mentioned above is the slimmest automatic the absolute slimmest mechanical watch (manual wind) is their 900P measuring just 3.65mm.

12. Chopard

During the 1970’s and 1980’s Chopard grew beyond just watches and began creating diamond jewelry. Today they are known as a manufacturing house adept at both. As they were fathered by a watchmaker, Louis-Ulysse Chopard, the company remains strong in the watch category producing sophisticated models like the Alpine Eagle, high horology pieces in their L.U.C. line and sport models such as the Mille Miglia and Classic Racing.

Their high jewelry craftsmanship has influenced their watch designs inspiring the creation of elegant diamond covered Imperiale models and perhaps more significantly inspiring the production of popular and fanciful Happy Diamond and Happy Sport models. These watches showcase floating diamonds that move inside the crystal of the watch and often feature fun and fanciful colors and themes. 

Being an independent, private and family owned company has given Chopard the ability to be great in both of their manufacturing worlds.  

• Key models: Alpine Eagle, Happy Sport, Classic Racing, Mille Miglia, L.U.C., Imperiale
• Price range: $3,500 – $200,000+ 
• Approximate average price: $6,800
• Approximate annual production: 70,000
• Ownership: Independent and owned by the Scheuffle family
• Motto: “The Artisan of Emotions since 1860.”

13. Omega

Jeff Bezos just wore an Omega Speedmaster Moonwatch on his quick summer trip to space. It was his choice to embrace the legacy of the “Original Moonwatch” and bring this significant chronograph back to the place above the Earth where it was made famous. In the 1960’s, several Mercury and Apollo astronauts in training chose manual wind Omega Speedmasters as their watch to personally wear.

When it came time for mission-go, NASA judiciously made the Speedmaster an official part of a U.S. astronaut’s equipment. Omega holds triumphant claim to the fact that it has made its way to the moon and back several times over. This has made the Speedmaster Moonwatch, in all of its variations, a focal point for collectors and Omega enthusiasts.

Omega has lots more going for it back on Earth including an appealing and broad product lineup and global marketing campaigns. Seamasters and Planet Ocean models are ruggedly designed to survive the water. The De Ville line is classic and priced to be attainable. You will find Omega worn on the wrist of the modern James Bond and you will see the Omega colors and brand fly high in Olympic arenas every four years as they are the official timekeeper of the event. 

• Key models: Seamaster, Speedmaster, Planet Ocean, Aqua Terra, De Ville
• Price range: $2,500 – $125,000
• Approximate average price: $5,800
• Approximate annual production: 500,000
• Ownership: Swatch Group
• Company motto:  “Omega-Exact time for life.”
• Omega fact: While the Omega Speedmaster is most famous for being worn by Buzz Aldrin in 1969 as he walked on the moon, its greatest impact made by this watch on the Apollo program was the assist that the chronograph gave to the Apollo 13 crew during their heroic efforts to return to Earth in a broken spacecraft. With major systems including clocks inoperable, Jack Swigert timed an exact 14 seconds of rocket burn on the Speedmaster while Jim Lovell visually piloted the craft at just the right angle and speed. Any second of difference could have resulted in failure.

14. Breitling

Breitling has been tied to the world of aviation for over a century due to their watch designs and strategic partnerships. Born in 1884, the manufacturer soon began pioneering chronograph watches as early as 1915. The functionality of this stop watch style benefited soldiers and would soon be adopted as a necessary tool by early pilots.

Breitling has contributed many patents and innovations for the chronograph steadily through the decades and their strength in this category remains high. The design works well for Breitling as this type of watch with three smaller dials running while the outer hands tell time visually mimics the dashboard of an airplane. 

• Key models: Navitimer, Chronomat, Emergency, Breitling for Bentley
• Price range: $2,000 – $100,000 
• Approximate average price: $5,800
• Approximate annual production: 140,000
• Ownership: Private equity group CVC Capital Partners 
• Motto: “Instruments for Professionals.” 

15. IWC

IWC has been identified for their Pilot style watches from their start. Like Breitling, IWC was born at the end of the 19th century during a period when their timepiece production immediately served the demands of soldiers and soon thereafter pilots. Their design choice was to make a watch bold and legible so that it could be easily seen by the active pilot. That is why their models then, and today, typically feature clear white numbers and markings against a large and clean black background.

Their line now has broadened to feature several models with different characteristics such as the classic Portofino, the Portugieser chronograph, the diver’s Aquatimer.

• Key models: Pilot, Portofino, Portugieser, Aquatimer. Ingenier
• Price range: $4,000 – $250,000+ 
• Approximate average price: $8,000
• Approximate annual production: 150,000
• Ownership: Richemont Group
• Company motto: “Probus Scafusia” or “good, solid craftsmanship from Schaffhausen.”
• IWC fun fact: The founder of IWC Florentine Ariosto Jones was born in New Hampshire and learned the watchmaking trade in Boston. He started IWC in Schaffhausen Switzerland with the idea that he could utilize their high skilled and, at that time, low wage watchmaking workforce to produce great watches for the American market.

16. Hublot

In 2004, the then young watch company Hublot reinvented itself and stormed to higher significance and sales success truly with a “Big Bang.” They purposely positioned themselves in contrast to a very traditional and conformist watch world by using non traditional styles, materials and messaging. Their Big Bang line had a personality that was bold and brash and quickly matched the desires of customers around the world who shared this temperament.

For Hublot, watches were no longer just made from steel or gold, they could be made from carbon fiber, ceramic, tantalum and their straps were almost always their signature rubber. Most were made to be big with case frames as large as 48 millimeters wide. Hublot watches would not be found in local retailers but exclusively in boutiques and high retailers in the poshest of locations around the world. 

• Key models: Big Bang, Classic Fusion, King Power, MP Collection
• Price range: $8,000 – $1,000.000+ 
• Approximate average price: $22,500
• Approximate annual production: 45,000
• Ownership: LVMH 
• Company motto: “The Art of Fusion.”
• Hublot Fun fact: Hublot is known to be a step ahead with their marketing. Hublot banners and outdoor advertising can be found in key NBA arenas around the US even where the public cannot see it. It is positioned in the locker room hallways and tunnels where only the players can. For Hublot, the players are prized partners and clients.

17. Blancpain

Blancpain is a pure and traditional watch brand. While many companies in the category are able to claim hundreds of years of age, Blancpain’s origination year 1735 stands recognized as the earliest date on record. Traditional watches come from a traditional company.

The Villeret is slim, steel or gold, and can have various complication levels starting with just the simple date. Variations can build to include complete calendars, moon phases and tourbillons as movement manufacture has been the company’s strength for centuries.

The other Blancpain model of significance is their diver’s watch, the Fifty Fathoms. This watch began diving 200 meters beneath the water’s surface back in 1953 and continues to rank with the Seamaster and Submariner as the most iconic diver’s watches ever made. 

• Key models: Villeret, Fifty Fathoms
• Price range: $7,500 – $500,000+
• Approximate average price: $18,500
• Approximate annual production: 23,000
• Ownership: Swatch GroupBlancpain fun fact: In 1991 Blancpain created a Grand Complication called The Blancpain 1735. The complex design included a minute repeater, moon phase indicator, perpetual calendar, a split seconds chronograph and a tourbillon.  

18. Zenith

El Primero is a model name given to Zenith’s chronograph watch and it is also the name of the very important movement inside. This movement has been respected by watchmaking engineers as well as watch enthusiasts for several decades, ever since the movement was first produced in 1969. It is considered by most in-the-know to be the best chronograph movement in the industry. It is, after all, the first to be a fully integrated automatic chronograph movement.

Previous chronographs were manual wind or modular in construction. The movement is so respected, that when Rolex returned to chronograph production in 1988, they contracted with Zenith to use the El Primero base plate as the foundational component of their first automatic chronograph. This cooperation lasted about 12 years and the Daytona models from this period hold an even higher premium than others. The respect earned by this movement gives Zenith credibility and a permanently high status within the watch world.  

• Key models: El Primero, Defy, Elite, Pilot
• Price range: $4,000 – $125,000+ 
• Approximate average price: $9,000
• Approximate annual production: 15,000
• Ownership: LVMH 
• Company slogan: “Legends Live Forever.”

19. Tag Heuer

Tag Heuer is a ubiquitous and very popular high volume brand that has thrived through the decades with well priced stainless steel sports models. The original brand created by Jack Heuer established itself in the 1960’s with racing style chronograph watches marketed alongside autoracing teams and iconic stars such as Steve McQueen. This original company was later purchased by TAG (Techniques d’Avante Garde) and continues to produce diverse and successful models.

• Key Models: Aquaracer, Monaco, Formula 1, Carrera
• Price range: $1,500 – $30,000+ 
• Approximate average price: $2,900
• Approximate annual production: 500,000
• Ownership: LVMH 
• Motto: “Don’t Crack Under Pressure.”

20. F.P. Journe

In recent years F.P. Journe has become a hot brand within the inner, inner circle of watchmaking enthusiasts. With all of his production within the city limits of Geneva, Francoise Paul Journe strives to be the link between the golden age of horological science and contemporary watchmaking.

Founded in 1999 they are young and their production is low and mindful of the outcome for each watch produced. They create about 750 per year and have yielded only 10,000 pieces in their 20 years of service. The watches are high quality and uncommon and this has turned the brand into a magnet for the modern collector looking for something good and truly independent in style and thinking.

• Key models: Classique, Linesport, Elegante, Black Label
• Price range: $30,000 – $250,000
• Approximate average price: $65,000
• Approximate annual production: 750
• Ownership: Independent (20% has been owned by Chanel, another independent,  since 2018)
• Motto: “Invenit et fecit” or “He invented it and made it.”Good quote: In a July 2021 edition of the Wall Street Journal stated that Francoise-Paul Journe, the founder of the watch brand bearing his name, “has earned a reputation as a mercurial (watchmaking) maestro.”

21. Bovet Fleurier

Hold a Bovet in your hand and you will see their commitment to watch craftsmanship and dial artistry. If you cannot, because they are so rare, find some images and read what they have to say about their manufacturing passion.

On their website you will discover that it is their mission to achieve “supremacy in the decorative arts of watchmaking.” With time, effort and high human touch, they carefully produce complete timepieces that have a mechanical excellence but with a concentration on such decorative arts as engraving, enameling and miniature painting.

The owner of the brand, Pascal Raffy, contributes to the passion for excellence by championing the traditions of inhouse components and personalized handcrafting. This, combined with low annual production makes the brand truly exclusive.

• Key models: The Fleurier Collection, The Dimier Collection 
• Price range: $8,500 – $250,000
• Approximate average price: $28,000
• Approximate annual production: 800
• Ownership: Independent and owned by Pascal Raffy as of 2003
• Motto: “Bovet 1822 Engineering Brilliance.”
• Bovet fun fact: The official company name is Bovet Fleurier S.A. Fleurier is the name of the Swiss town in which it is headquartered and made. Parmiaganni Fleurier, another historic watch manufacturer from the same town, purchased the brand in 1989 then sold it to investors in 1990. 

22. Jaquet-Droz

Like Bovet, Jaquet Droz stands apart in the world of watchmaking with their extraordinary and artistic craftsmanship, especially in their dials. A range of dials are artwork born directly from nature, composed of stones, crystals or minerals that possess their own unique beauty.

Many other dials feature enamel paintings, delicately carved and decorated golden sculptures and meticulously applied lines and patterns. Some even feature animation. Special Jaquet Droz timepieces of past and present display mechanically driven characters such as singing birds or a fluttering butterfly. 

• Key models: Grande Seconde, Astrale, Petite Heure Minute, Ateliers D’Art, Automata
• Price range: $9,000 – $350,000
• Approximate average price: $27,900
• Approximate annual production: 3,500
• Ownership: Swatch Group 
• Motto: “Some watches tell time, some tell a story.”Jaquet Droz fun fact: Their work is often linked to a rococo style of art which is characterized by an elaborately ornamental late baroque style of decoration that was prevalent in 18th century Europe.

23. Grand Seiko

This list is dominated by Swiss watchmakers with just a few that are manufactured outside. Grand Seiko is one of those few as their timepieces are fully produced in Japan. In a watch world dominated by the Swiss they have earned their credibility as a solid and well priced mechanical timepiece that chooses the path of simplicity over complexity. They are crisp and clean and easy to read. 

As the branch of the multibillion dollar electronic watch giant Seiko, Grand Seiko was given charge back in the 1960’s to build high standard mechanical chronometers with shock resisting technology. Their purpose was to create a watch that would rival the Swiss brands and be Japan’s own luxury watch brand. Presently, their design, solid construction and price point make them a recognized value. As a result the brand has witnessed considerable sales growth in Europe and the United States.

• Key models: Heritage, Sport, Elegance, Masterpiece
• Price range: $2,000 – $90,000
• Approximate average price: $3,500
• Approximate annual production: 3,500
• Ownership: Seiko Group
• Made in Japan

24. Bremont

Bremont is another non Swiss brand that is strongly competing, and excelling, against its’ Swiss competition. This British brand was born in 2002 and has steadily grown to an annual production of 10,000 watches in just under 20 years.

They are primarily aviation themed as they draw many of their product names, designs and even materials from the world of planes, modern jets and the manufacturing technology that goes with it. Their watches are built to withstand the extreme conditions of a military pilot such as vibration, high g-forces, free-falling and even freezing temperatures. 

Bremont has found success with smart limited edition series watches. They have successfully coordinated the production of limited pieces with various branches of the British and U.S. armed services.

In one creative series of models called Hercules, Bremont micro engineered original birchwood from Howard Hughes’ “Spruce Goose” directly into the rotor of the movement, which is made visible with a sapphire case back.

• Key models: SuperMarine, Martin Baker, Boeing, U-2, Alt1, Solo
• Price range: $3,000 – $28,000
• Approximate average price: $4,800
• Approximate annual production: 10,000 
• Ownership: Nick & Giles English 
• Made in the United Kingdom

25. Panerai

Giuseppe Panerai began making precision instruments and technical equipment in 1860, in Switzerland, to serve the needs of the Italian military. The company evolved and also began making wristwatches for Italian soldiers and sailors. These watches were oversized with a rugged military design.

These watches were not sold to civilians until 1993, and when they finally were, the brand captivated customers with its bold size and distinct look. Panerai watches today remain one of the most recognizable on any wrist.

• Key models: Luminor, Radiomir
• Price range: $4,000 – $150,000
• Approximate average price: $10,200
• Approximate annual production: 70,000
• Ownership: Richemont Group
• Panerai fun fact: The name Officine Panerai translates to “Panerai Workshops.”Panerai fun fact II: Their special Radiomir paint was invented in 1916 and it is derived from a radium based powder that gives longlasting radiance and better visibility underwater or in the dark.

26. Bvlgari

The House of Bvlgari produces and distributes an array of luxury goods from jewelry to fragrances. Their watches have found appeal and popularity through the decades mostly because they were fashionable. Their models that are being produced today are receiving considerable acclaim. They are striking, stylish, geometric and brimming with innovation.

Their recently produced Octo Finissimo holds record setting thinness across several models. A new thin standard was set for this style watch, and the industry, with the Octo Finissimo Automatic introduced in 2017 at 5.15mm thin. At the most recent Watches and Wonders trade show, Bulgari revealed an Octo Finissimo Perpetual Calendar that is just 5.8mm thin. These recent engineering achievements solidify Bvlgari as a brand that transcends what once may have been a fashion only label and is now firmly seen in the world of advanced watchmaking.

• Key models: Diagono, Bvlgari Bvlgari, Serpenti, BZero1, Octo, Lvcea
• Price range: $2,500 – $220,000
• Approximate average pricing: $9,800
• Approximate annual production: 58,000
• Ownership: LVMH 
• Motto: “Bvlgari, the magnificent Italian jeweler since 1884.”
• Bvlgari fun fact: The company is properly known for its Italian heritage, but it’s earliest roots are in Greece where a silversmith named Sotirios Voulgaris first engaged in what would become the long standing family business. In 1881 he moved to Rome under the name Sotirios Bulgari and in 1884 he opened his first jewelry store.

27. Glashutte Original

Glashutte Original is the second watch brand on this list made in Germany. (One more to follow). The company was founded in 1994 in the city that has been the longtime center of German horology for a very long time, Glashutte. This city, and region, has a wealth of watchmaking suppliers and a wealth of watchmaking talent.

This enables Glashutte Original to build their watches from the ground up under one roof, having all that they need produced directly around them and readily available. Glashutte Original today utilizes core elements of classic German watchmaking such as a three quarter movement plate (not multiple bridges) and large date windows. The result is a combination of modern and traditional German watchmaking brought to life. 

• Key models: Senator, PanoMatic, PanoReserve
• Price range: $4,000 – $200,000 
• Approximate average price: $8,000
• Approximate annual production: 13,000
• Ownership: Swatch Group brand
• Made in Germany
• Glashutte fun fact: The name “Glashutte Original” refers to the original blended group of independent watchmakers and parts manufacturers that collaborated in t e town and region as far back as 1845.

28. Ulysse Nardin

Ulysse Nardin is another Swiss watch builder born in the mid nineteenth century and then put into high manufacturing motion to meet the timekeeping demands of the military.

The company actively supplied the navies of many nations with marine chronometers from the late 1800’s to 1950. Modern UN wrist watches continue to strongly maintain the nautical themes and essence of the brand.

However, the brand is not handcuffed by this theme nor other traditional constraints. This is evidenced by their Freak collection. These specially designed watches are unconventional and according to their website filled with “razzle dazzle.”

The Freak X for example shows the time with a rotating movement, where the central bridge serves as a minute hand and the hours are indicated on a wheel. With this range UN aims to create new timepieces that defy our understanding of what a watch can be.

• Key models: Marine, Diver, Executive Dual-Time, Classico, Freak
• Price range: $4,500 – $500,000 
• Approximate average price: $11,000
• Approximate annual production: 13,000
• Ownership: Kering Group

29. H. Moser & Cie

This mostly undiscovered brand is independent, family owned and makes some striking looking watches with vibrant dial colors. These dials are getting them noticed. Their fume dial, a name that translates to smoke, has gradients of color that give many of their pieces a sense of depth as well as a liveliness.

A wider look at the company reveals a devotion to classic handmade watches and their own inhouse movements.

• Key models: Endeavor, Venturer, Pioneer, Streamliner
• Price range: $15,000 – $100,000
• Approximate average price: $18,500
• Approximate annual production: 1,500
• Ownership: The Meylan family

30. Nomos Glashutte

Commonly called just Nomos, this company is the third watch brand on this list that is made in Germany and in the famed region of Glashutte. They are a young manufacturer making well priced timepieces with very quiet designs created in the Bauhaus spirit.

Their pricing is likely the lowest of any manufacturer delivering inhouse movements. They have been heavily awarded for good design, watchmaking craftsmanship as well as sustainability. Started in 1990, this company has come a long way in a very short period of time.

• Key models: Tangente, Orion, Metro, Autobahn, Minimatik, Ludwig
• Price range:  $1,000 – $20,000 
• Approximate average price: $2,500
• Approximate annual production: 20,000
• Ownership: Independent
• Made in Germany
• Nomos fun fact: Nomos is the Greek word for Law

31. Harry Winston

Harry Winston is a significant American name on the global jewelry stage. They are renowned for diamonds and the highest jewelry creations. They have been referred to as the “King of Diamonds” as well as the “Jeweler to the Stars.”

Their Swiss manufactured watches are often a mirror reflection of their fine gemstones and jewelry mastery. Now under the leadership of the powerhouse watch conglomerate Swatch Group, Harry Winston features luxury timepieces with vast complications, artistic design and ones where diamonds prevail. 

• Key models: Avenue, Opus, Premiere, Midnight, Ocean
• Price range: $10,000 – $400,000
• Approximate average price: $17,200
• Approximate annual production: 8.500
• Ownership: Swatch Group 
• Harry Winston motto: Since the opening of his New York jewelry store in 1932, the slogan has been “Rare Jewels of the World.”

32. Chanel

Chanel is a jewelry and fashion house with commanding success throughout the 20th century. They did not get into the world of watches until 1987, and when they did, their debut was with the elegant and stylish Premiere model, often likened to be more jewelry than watch.

True sales success and recognition came to their watches in 1999 with the unveiling of the J12. This all black ceramic watch caught fire in the marketplace as being fresh, stylish and sporty especially matching the tastes of young women on the move.

Chanel designers reflect on this model as “the first revolution of the watch world in the 21st century.” These early models were quartz or driven by movements manufactured outside of the company. Chanel has recently purchased the movement manufacturer Kenissi in a move to make the J12 and other watches more their own and as a consequence, more significant in the luxury watch landscape.

• Key models: J12, Premiere
• Price range: $3,500 – $250,000
• Approximate average price: $3,900
• Approximate annual production: 68,000
• Ownership: Independent
• Chanel fun fact: The J12 watch is said to draw the J from the J-class yachts as seen raced in the America’s Cup. Others have believed the J comes from the first initial of the designer Jacques Helleu.

33. Corum

Corum is an inventive Swiss watch brand that has been captivating customers, and the industry with imaginative designs since 1955. They have crafted watches from genuine gold currency and produced an entire line of bubble-crystal timepieces that often stood over 20mm above the wrist. They’re creativity has generated a fanbase that anticipates new models and chases after their oddities from the past.

How unique are Corum watches? Their solid gold coin watches are not replications of coins but shaped from the genuine original currency. Their bubble watches are not just different because of their fortune teller style crystals but also for the fanciful dials featuring such imagery as jokers, pirates, skulls, poker cards and even a roulette wheel. Their cleverness runs beyond their crystals and dials.

Their Golden Bridge line is a reimagined and open work movement seen through both the front and back crystals. The movement components and hands are exposed to full view with all of the mechanics centered upon one central spine.

• Key models: Bubble, Coin, Admiral’s Cup, Romulus, Golden Bridge
• Price range: $2,000 – $215,000
• Approximate average price: $3,800
• Approximate annual production: 9,000
• Ownership: Citychamp Watch & Jewelry Group
• Corum fun fact: In order to create a U.S.coin watch, permission needed to be requested and received from the Treasury Department as section 333 of the U.S. criminal code is pretty clear about defacing currency.

34. Van Cleef & Arpels

Pocket watches were the fashion for men at the beginning of the twentieth century, and it was women who first wore, and loved, the tinier counterparts on their wrists calling them wristlets and eventually wrist watches. Van Cleef & Arpels began their watch success story by making jeweled watches that women loved. They were already famed for invisibly fastening gemstones to their jewelry so they were able to readily adapt their skills to watchmaking. Their wrist watches were high jewelry that also told time.

Their watch success today continues to rest upon their established abilities as jewelers as well as their recognizable Alhambra motif. This balanced four curve clover design is a representation of the brand itself and symbolic of quality and good luck. 

• Key models: Alhambra, Pierre Arpels
• Price range: $12,000 – $150,000
• Approximate average price: $24,240
• Approximate annual production: 7,000
• Ownership: Richemont GroupCompany motto: “Timeless beauty.”

35. Louis Vuitton

Louis Vuitton is a powerhouse global fashion brand with deep roots and a broad reach. They create luxury goods of all kinds from jewelry to shoes, from sunglasses to handbags. Their watch selection through most of their years was produced by outside companies and trended fashion first.

The giant brand however, is willing its way to watchmaking respect and success with the 2012 acquisition of high manufacturer and complications experts “La Fabrique du Temps” which translates to “The Time Factory.” As of 2014 Louis Vuitton has been producing significant watches all under one roof. They are young in this realm, but they are very advanced.

This cutting edge time factory has carefully crafted minute repeaters and flying tourbillons. Meanwhile they remain strong in fashion with many other Tambour watches bearing the patterns and colors that Louis Vuitton is known for.

• Key models: Tambour, Voyager, Vivienne
• Price range: $3,500 – $350,000
• Approximate average price: $7,000
• Approximate annual production: unknown
• Ownership: LVMH Group

36. Girard-Perregaux

With roots as far back as 1791, Girard-Perregaux is another revered for two centuries worth of handcrafted watches and movements. Constant Girard is noted for being one of the first to engage in the commercial production of wristwatches in 1880. Their watches today carry their history with everyday sports watches like the Laureato or high horology pieces like a 1945 Tourbillon with Three Gold Bridges.

Speaking of bridges, a signature innovation in their movements is their free bridge. It is a narrow and arrow shaped component that span sections of the movement (or sometimes an open face dial) fixing key parts to the mainplate. These bridges are symmetrical, clean and uncommon. For GP, the bridges are a mark of their innovative history and a proud differentiation from their high horology rivals. 

• Key models: Laureato, Vintage 1945, 1966, Richeville, Bridges
• Price range: $3,000 – $350,000+ 
• Approximate average price: $10,850
• Approximate annual production: 11,000
• Ownership: Kering Group
• Girard-Perregaux fun fact: There are several famous top luxury watch brands with names composed of two surnames. Typically the names are of manufacturing partners like Antoni Patek & Adrien Philippe or Jules Audemars & Edward Piguet. The GP partnership was a marriage. In 1854 Constant Girard wed Marie Perregaux uniting two able watch houses. 

37. Arnold & Son

This watch Swiss manufacturer is a 1995 relaunch of a significant British name from watchmaking history. John Arnold founded his company in 1764 and he devoted his skills to producing accurate and reliable marine chronometers. Most of his inventions and patents were born from his efforts to make his watches more accurate and reliable for sea navigation.

Great Britain was the perfect place to produce such timepieces as their maritime empire demanded portable and accurate timekeeping devices that could not only withstand the harshness of the open seas but the extremes of the tropical climates that the British colonized. Today’s Arnold & Son embraces modern watchmaking while drawing from the styles, symmetry and architecture of John Arnold’s past. They manage to stand apart through complications and they do so without too much flash, an attribute often assigned to their British roots.

Their contemporary lineup features watches with dead beat seconds, twin regulating dual time zones, moon phases, and power reserves that last several days. Modern Arnold & Son also recognizes that exclusivity plays a significant role when it comes to appreciation and respect from the watch world. At under 1,000 timepieces produced annually, they are hard to find.

• Key models: Globetrotter, HMS1, Time Pyramid, HM Perpetual Moon
• Price range: $7,000 – $150,000
• Approximate average price: $18,000
• Approximate annual production: 600
• Ownership: Citizen Group

38. Parmigiani Fleurier

Parmigiani Fleurier draws inspiration from the natural world. “Art is all around us; it is in nature, in the harmony of its proportions, and in the attention paid to each detail.”

So says the company founder and visionary Michel Parmigiani. He started the manufacturer in 1996 after a dedicated career studying and restoring historical mechanical clocks. As a result of his core philosophy towards nature and mechanics the company handmakes timepieces with great attention to design, proportion and overall aesthetic.

• Key models: Tonda, Kalpagraphe, Bugatti
• Price range: $6,000 – $180,000  
• Approximate average price: $14,000
• Approximate annual production: 5,000
• Ownership: Independent
• Company slogan: “Time is Flying.”
• Parmigiani fun fact: The golden number (or golden ratio 1:1.618) is most simply explained as a mathematical and geometric proportion that repeats itself frequently in nature, and evidenced in the spirals of sea shells and the shapes of pine cones. Michal Parmigiani appreciates the golden number so much that it is incorporated into Parmigiani creations. Watch case curves, case lugs, dials and even the lengths of the hour and minute hands are guided by this formula.

39. Porsche Design

Porsche Design watches are sharp, functional and even austere sports watches that fully follow the forms of Bauhaus industrial design previously discussed. Porsche Design is not to be misunderstood as a typical branding endeavor from a car company. They are a watchmaker with true respect albeit primarily for design.

Ferdinand Alexander “Butzi” Porsche began Porsche Design in 1972 just 8 years removed from designing the legendary Porsche 911 sports car. His grandfather was Alexander Porsche who started the carmaker and famously designed the Volkswagen Beetle. This makes it clear that good design runs in the family. The “Butzi” Porsche design principle was that “if you analyze the function of an object its form often becomes obvious.”

Like cars, Porsche Design watches are legible gauges typically with white and black color compositions. They appropriately relied upon other manufacturers to produce their designs through the decades, most notably IWC, Eterna and Orfina. Since 2014 they have been making their own.

• Key models: Dashboard, Flat Six, Chronograph 1 
• Price range: $2,000 – $50,000
• Approximate average price: $3,800
• Approximate annual production: unknown
• Ownership: Porsche Design Group which is owned by Porsche SE (owned by Volkswagen)
• Porsche Design fun fact: All black watches have become popular with just about every sports watch manufacturer showcasing at least one version of such a chic look in their line. The Porsche Design Chronograph 1 released in 1972 was the first such all blacked out watch.

40. Montblanc

After decades of building a strong reputation and dominating sales success upon writing instruments, Montblanc decided in 1997 to take the plunge into the world of watchmaking. They built a watch factory that year and then in 2007 took an even greater step.

In that year they acquired Minerva, a significant industry movement manufacturer known for creating exceptional handcrafted movements since 1858. In this acquisition Montblanc attained instant expertise and therefore a higher degree of credibility. 

• Key models: Timewalker, Star, Sport, Meisterstuck, 1858
• Price range: $1,000 – $250,000  
• Approximate average price: $3,400
• Approximate annual production: 105,000
• Ownership: Richemont Group

41. Tiffany & Co

Tiffany & Co is arguably the most significant American name in luxury with appeal around the world. They are certainly one of the most historic retailers. What they are not is a watch manufacturer. The wristwatches that they have sold for decades have been made by partner or third party watchmakers.

That stated, their name and blue box promise make their watches popular, appreciated and a can’t miss gift. Now part of LVMH, the brand Tiffany & Co is poised to take advantage of watch connections and partnerships with any of their new siblings such as Tag Heuer, Hublot or Zenith.

• Key models: Atlas, Portfolio, Resonator
• Price range: $2,000 – $25,000
• Approximate average price: $3,000
• Approximate annual production: unknown
• Ownership: LVMH
• Motto: “Beautiful design makes a beautiful life.”

42. Hermes

There are lots of good things that Hermes is acclaimed for in the world of luxury goods. Their leather goods are a quality unparalleled in the world. Hermes and their Birkin branded handbags have a waiting list and there is a waiting list to get on that list. Their stores define what it means to be in a good location.

If a great watch brand is using a Hermes strap they are sure to brag about it. This brand appeal and momentum carries over to their lesser known watch category. There you will find clean and comfortable watches mostly designed for ladies. They feature signature Hermes leather straps, “H” motifs and an equestrian aesthetic that connects to their brand origins as saddle makers. 

• Key models: Heure H, Cape Cod, Clipper, Kelly
• Price range: $1,800 – $50,000
• Approximate average price: $3,200
• Approximate annual production: 105,000
• Ownership: Independent
• Hermes fun fact: Hermes started as a horse saddle and harness workshop and grew into a retailer selling related travel bags and accessories. When their Parisian shop was in full swing in the early twentieth century they even sold top luxury watch brands such as Jaeger-LeCoultre and Rolex. 

43. Longines

Longines produces and sells a lot of watches annually. Review any industry charts and you will see their name quietly reach near the top in dollar and unit sales. Recent production numbers show them producing nearly 2 million watches a year and a 2017 report listed their revenue at 1.5 billion Swiss Francs. They have good quality and they are value priced.

Their line has models that appeal to both gentlemen and ladies. In recent years they have chosen a marketing path successfully linking them to significant equestrian and alpine skiing events around the world. 

• Key models: Conquest, HydroConquest, DolceVita, Conquest Classic, Evidenza
• Price range: $800 – 16,000
• Approximate average price: $1,400
• Approximate annual production: 1,800,000
• Ownership: Swatch Group
• Motto: “Elegance is an attitude.”
• Longines fun fact: Auguste Agassiz supposedly drew the name for his company from the “les longines” or the long meadows that his factory was settled in.

44. Franck Muller

Together with his business partner Varten Sirmakes, the acclaimed watchmaker Franck Muller began a watch company in his name. This was ignited by the success he found by individually making one-of-a-kind and highly complicated watches for private clientele. With his newly formed company he would be able to increase production yet remain small.

He and his brand became a celebrated name in the watch world from Europe to America throughout the 1990’s. In the modern Swiss luxury watch landscape today, we see several young and independent watch brands driven by a visionary watchmaker that are trying to create the same successful script.

• Key models: Curvex, Crazy Hours, Casablanca, Long Island, Conquistador, Vanguard, Master Banker
• Price range: $3,000 -$250,000
• Approximate average price: $15,500
• Approximate annual production: 23,000
• Ownership: Independently owned by Vartan Sirmakes
• Company slogan: “Master of Complications.”

45. Roger Dubuis

Roger Dubuis is another small, high horology watch manufacturer born in the 1990’s and named for its prolific creator. The company remains devoted to the manufacture of high complications and ones that have a more charismatic design.

Skeleton architecture, double tourbillons, flying tourbillons, minute repeaters and decorative dials and movement parts are all parts of their repertoire. 

• Key models: Excalibur, Golden Square, King Square
• Price range: $10,000 – 300,000
• Approximate average price: $17,500
• Approximate annual production: 6,200
• Ownership: Richemont Group
• Company slogan: “Dare to be rare.” 

46. Speake-Marin

Speake-Marin is a young Swiss independent manufacturer on the road to hand make their watches in house, highly complicated and in limited supply. Their  timepieces feature designs with a single hand, jumping hours, perpetual calendars, tourbillons, minute repeaters, fired enamel dials and hand engraved multi level dials. Their Vintage collection, ironically, is an example of their young and forward thinking.

In this line Speake-Marin creates new watches with a vintage look on the outside while being a nearly exact recreation of a vintage movement that they are paying tribute to on the inside. With their London Chronograph Bronze watch for example, Speake-Marin watchmaking engineers recreate the iconic Valjoux 72 movement just as it was in the 1960’s.

• Key models: One & Two, Vintage, Haute Horlogerie, Art Series
• Price range: $5,000 – $400,000
• Approximate average price: $25,000
• Approximate annual production: 500
• Ownership: Independent
• Motto: “Fight, Love and Persevere.”

47. Baume & Mercier

Baume & Mercier offers an affordable range of models driven by both automatic and quartz movements. They are simple and visually clean designs typically unadorned with complications other than a date or chronograph. With average pricing under $2,000, they have long been considered a good value for anyone interested in wearing or gifting a genuine Swiss made timepiece. 

• Key models: Hampton, Capeland, Classima, Riviera
• Price range: $1,000 – $50,000 
• Approximate average price: $1,500
• Approximate annual production: 95,000
• Ownership: Richemont Group
• Baume & Mercier fun fact: Three key and popular Baume & Mercier models each have a signature shape. The Capeland is always round, the Hampton is always a rectangle and the 12 sided Riviera is always a dodecagon.

48. Ball

Ball watches have strong links to American railroad history and their modern lineup is named and designed to reflect this connection. The pocket watch and later the wristwatch were needed as portable timekeepers for early train engineers as well as railroad patrons. The Ball Watch Company was started in Cleveland, Ohio, 1891, at the hub of American railroad activity.

Watches of this era, and for this purpose, needed to meet accuracy standards to ensure that the trains would run on time and more importantly, not collide. Ball watches are now made in Switzerland. In addition to echoing the themes of nineteenth century railroad travel, the watches are made to meet the rigorous standards for timekeeping and wear established during that famous era.

• Key models: Engineer Hydrocarbon, Engineer III, Engineer II, Engineer Master II, Trainmaster, Conductor, Roadmaster and Fireman
• Price range: $1,000 – $30,000
• Approximate average price: $2,400
• Approximate annual production: unknown
• Ownership: Private and Independent

49. Bell & Ross

Bell & Ross produces Pilot’s watches that take the idea of recreating an aviation instrument for the wrist all the way. They are all inspired by airplane instruments as well as the lifestyle of a pilot. The company professes to create watches that are able to withstand extreme temperatures, violent shocks and high pressures.

All circumstances found in a day in the life of a military pilot. Their cases are consistently square and just like aviation construction, they utilize a range of materials that includes, steel, ceramics, carbon fiber, titanium and tantalum. 

• Key models: Instruments, Experimental, Vintage
• Price range: $1,500 – $75,000
• Approximate average price: $6,800
• Approximate annual production: 15,000
• Ownership: Independent – founded by Bruno Belamich and Carlos Rosillo
• Bell & Ross fun fact: On some of their models you will find a single screw centered and featured on the case back with the tempting words “Do not unscrew” written beside it. Follow their instructions and leave it alone. It holds the crown assembly in place. Similar type instructions can be found on the outside structure of military craft so this touch is yet another tribute to aviation design.

50. Perrelet

For a watch company from 1777, Perrelet successfully produces a very modern look in their current and most popular lineup of watches.

They also achieve what several other watch companies hope for but fall short of. That is a sport watch with a truly unique look.

Perrelet Turbine watches are especially sporty and definitely unique. These watches display a fixed dial with a free and fast spinning disc behind it.

It has no function at all. It serves to attract attention, it is visually fun, and it conveys motion. It looks like the turbine engine of a jet about to take off. 

• Key models: Turbine, First Class, Seacraft
• Price range: $2,500 – $70,000
• Approximate average price: $5,000
• Approximate annual production: 10,000
• Ownership: The Festina Group

51. Meistersinger

This young German watch company draws design inspiration from way back in history, from sundials. Founded by Manfred Brassler in 2001, MeisterSinger is best known for producing single handed wristwatches rather than two or three. In their design a single hand travels precisely around the dial of the watch with clearly delineated indices at the edges to show minutes. This concept is simple and at the same time very revolutionary.

• Key models: Circularis, Lunascope, Perigraph, Pangaea, Metris, No. 01, No. 02, No. 03 
• Price range: $1,000 – $20,000
• Approximate average price: $2,400
• Approximate annual production: 10,000
• Ownership: Independent – Founded and directed by Manfred Brassler
• Made in Germany

52. Alpina

This Swiss watch brand was born in 1883 and then found its place in the 1930’s by meeting the demands and desires of Swiss Alpine skiers. This customer group wanted a sports watch to keep up with their lifestyle and activity.

From this demand founder Gottlieb Hauser came up with 4 rules for these early wristwatches. They were to be created antimagnetic, anti shock, water resistant and crafted from stainless steel. As a result, Alpina watches are therefore considered the first sports watch which remains their core identity today. 

• Key models: Alpiner, Seastrong, Startimer
• Price range: $500 – $7,500
• Approximate average price: $900
• Approximate annual production: unknown
• Ownership: Citizen Group
• Alpina fun fact: Their red triangle symbol represents the Matterhorn, one of the highest summits in the Swiss Alps.

53. Hamilton

Hamilton watches were a pride of Lancaster, Pennsylvania since 1892. They thrived at a time when the American pocket watch and wristwatch industry was strong. Ohio, Massachusetts and especially Pennsylvania were centers of production serving the American demand.

Not many of these companies lasted past the 1960’s but Hamilton did, by finding new roots in Switzerland. Their motto “American Spirit, Swiss Precision” defines their story today. Their quality construction and relatively low pricing places them as one of the best values in its category.

• Key models: Khaki Field, Khaki Aviation, Jazzmaster, Broadway
• Price range: $500 – $12,000
• Approximate average price: $1,700
• Approximate annual production: 160,000
• Ownership: Swatch Group

54. Glycine

Glycine is known for making world timing aviation watches that are often traditional, sometimes quirky and always functional for a pilot.

The Airman is the name of a primary model and Glycine earned its early reputation building this 24 hour tool watch for commercial and military pilots in the 1950’s and 60’s. It was appreciated for its rugged build and ability to track multiple time zones with its unique locking bi directional 24 hour bezel.

• Key models: Airman, Combat, Incursore
• Price range: $500 – $5,000
• Approximate average price: $2,500
• Approximate annual production: unknown
• Ownership: Invicta Watch Group

55. Maurice Lacroix

Maurice Lacroix offers a range of traditional and value proceed watch options to serve their global customers and generate a strong volume of annual business. It is their Masterpiece collection that yields them attention and respect.

In this category they are known for mechanical creativity and technical know-how and delivering both at a fair price. A customer can purchase a Masterpiece model in stainless steel that features a significant complication such as retrograde registers, mysterious seconds, small seconds and phases of the moon in a range from $5,000 to $14,000. This is a very good value. 

• Key models: Masterpiece, Aikon, Pontos, Les Classiques
• Price range: $1,500 – $70,000 
• Approximate average price: $8,500
• Approximate annual production: 65,000
• Ownership: Independent Company slogans: “Tomorrow’s Classics” and “Success is a journey, not a destination.”

56. Tissot

Tissot watches are Swiss made and mass produced. They reach this list because the sheer volume of their business makes them hard to ignore. They produce and sell between 2 and 3 million watches annually and around 40% are automatic movements.

They have become a very hot item in their category especially since their partnership with the NBA in 2015. Their brand presence is seen in every arena and as the NBA has increased in popularity, especially global popularity, the Tissot brand has realized a commensurate reward.

• Key models: T-Sport, T-Classic, Heritage, Le Locle
• Price range: $250 – $5,000
• Approximate average price: $600
• Approximate annual production: 2,600,000
• Ownership: Swatch Group

57. Rado

The watch industry has embraced ceramic as a key and often primary component for modern wristwatches. Just about every brand utilizes it and does so proudly. Rado was the first brand to adopt this material.

The company long endeavored to make a scratch proof watch and in 1986 the introduced a ceramic bracelet and then in 1990 the created a ceramic case. They continue to set the standard for scratch resistance models and along the way, produce a very chic, often monochromatic look. 

• Key models: Ceramica, Sintra, D-Star, Integral, 
• Price range: $900 – $10,000
• Approximate average price: $2,500
• Approximate annual production: 215,000
• Ownership: Swatch Group

58. Doxa

The Doxa Sub 300 was a diving watch of choice for many diving professionals in the 1960’s. Jacques Cousteau being one of them. The brand had faded away and in recent years it has found its way back. The current and basic version of their storied original is the Sub 200.

This model is as capable and sturdy as other Swiss made equivalents and at $990 it is an incredibly good value. Deeper diving models remain good values as well. Dive watch enthusiasts are excited about the Doxa return and welcome any offerings the brand has in store next.

• Key models: Sub 200, Professional, Sharkhunter, Searambler, Carribean, Divingstar, Aquamarine
• Price range: $500 – $5,000
• Approximate average price: $2,400
• Approximate annual production: unknown
• Ownership: The Jenny Family

59. Frederique Constant

Frederique Constant is just over 30 years old and currently earning a reputation for being a worthy watch brand generally priced below $3,000. The brand has a good plan. Their aim is to bring to market a quality automatic Swiss watch, with or without a complication, and do so at a considerably more affordable price than the competition.

For example, a stainless steel ultra thin automatic from a more established Swiss brand may be priced around $17,000. Look at Frederique Constant’s offering and you will see it priced at $8,000. A Frederique Constant steel perpetual calendar comes in at $9,095, a steel flyback chronograph at $3,995 and a steel worldtimer at $4,195.

It would be difficult to find such pricing from any manufacturer in the top half of this ranking. Value pricing is working for Frederique Constant and they can expect it to bring more attention their way.

• Key models: Manufacture, Slimline, Classics, Runabout
• Price range: $900 – $50,000
• Approximate average price: $1,900
• Approximate annual production: 130,000
• Ownership: Citizen Group

60. Oris

The company slogan “Real watches for real people” indicates their aim to be a functional, automatic watch for the working class. With deep Swiss roots and an independent approach, Oris is committed to building quality mechanical watches that can measure well against the competition.

Their newest slogan unites their strong sense of independence together with their vision to innovate on behalf of the customer. “Oris goes its own way.”

• Key models: Artelier, Aquis, Big Crown, Classic, Divers
• Price range: $600 – $15,000
• Approximate average price: $2,700
• Approximate annual production: 43,000
• Ownership: Independent
• Company slogans: “Things must make sense” and “Oris goes its own way.”

We have just ranked and reviewed 60 watch brands. Amongst these brands we have found many common threads that connect them. So many have rich histories. There are stories of partnerships, families, invention and risk.

Some companies link all the way back to the renaissance of mechanical watches in the eighteenth century while others were formed to serve the demands of an industrialized nineteenth century.

While it’s good to see so many from these eras still thriving today. It is equally rewarding to see so many new and independently thinking watch houses come to life in our modern era and bring new designs and new approaches to a traditional craft.

Some brands produce over a million watches a year while others keep it under 1,000. They all remain in the valiant service of making customers happy with the best micro engineered, time telling machines possible.

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