Story Highlight
– Luxury watch recovery continues in Q3 2026.
– Vacheron Constantin shows strongest performance, 6.7% rise.
– Rolex struggles, index declines by 0.2% in Q3.
– Secondary market inventory up nearly 20% year-on-year.
– Audemars Piguet and Cartier also report price increases.
Full Story
Luxury watch prices on the secondary market have shown continued recovery during the third quarter of 2026, with Vacheron Constantin and Patek Philippe particularly excelling, while Rolex has struggled to maintain its momentum.
The latest Quarterly Dial report from Chrono24, released today, indicates a 0.7% increase in its ChronoPulse Index from July to September, marking a total annual increase of 7.5%. The index peaked at 1,471 points at the end of September, the highest figure in three years, following rises of 2.8% and 1.9% in the preceding quarters.
These findings align with a recent report by Morgan Stanley, which, utilising data from WatchCharts, noted a fifth consecutive quarter of price increases above 1%. However, the WatchCharts index suggests an even stronger resurgence, recording a 1.2% rise in Q3 and an annual increase of 8.3%. Both reports, however, indicate a discordant recovery, with Rolex lagging behind several competitors.
In fact, Chrono24’s data highlights that Rolex’s performance was weaker than indicated by WatchCharts. The index for the renowned Swiss brand declined by 0.2% over the quarter, in stark contrast to the 0.5% growth observed by WatchCharts. Despite this, Rolex prices are still 6% higher year-on-year, according to Chrono24. Morgan Stanley attributes Rolex’s underwhelming performance to stagnant demand coupled with an increase in supply. Their research reveals that inventory levels among the leading six brands grew by nearly 20% year-on-year, which may restrain future price increases.
Vacheron Constantin emerged as the standout performer in the latest report, with its prices soaring by 6.7% in Q3, 8.2% over six months, and an impressive 17.7% over the past year. Patek Philippe also saw a 3% rise in Q3, matching a reported increase of 2.6% by WatchCharts, and its prices climbed 17% annually, boosted significantly by strong sales of select Nautilus models.
Audemars Piguet, part of the esteemed trio of luxury Swiss watchmakers, reported a 2% rise according to Chrono24 and 1.2% as per WatchCharts. Cartier was highlighted as another beneficiary, with WatchCharts noting a 2.4% increase in Q3, while Chrono24 recorded a modest 0.7% upswing. Analysts suggest that evolving collector preferences towards square and rectangular designs may influence this trend, as evidenced by the presence of several square-cased models among the top performers.
Sales in the secondary market outside the leading brands, now including Cartier and Vacheron Constantin, have remained relatively modest, leading to variances in the reports due to differing tracking methodologies. For instance, TAG Heuer saw a reported 1.8% bump according to WatchCharts, while Chrono24 recorded a 3% drop. In the case of Omega, Chrono24 noted a 1.7% increase compared to just 0.6% from WatchCharts.
Chrono24’s report highlighted Panerai as an unexpected success, with a 4% quarterly rise, marking its first positive year-on-year growth in four years. Conversely, Breitling witnessed a 3.4% decline, while Tudor fell by 1.3%. Hublot was the only brand tracked by Chrono24 to show a negative twelve-month result, down 5.5%, while Breitling remained virtually stable.
Despite discrepancies between the findings of Chrono24 and WatchCharts, the overall evolution of the market reveals a consensus. Following a period of declining prices after the speculative surge of early 2022, both indices now indicate a slow but steady upward trajectory, reminiscent of the dynamics seen in classic economic bubbles.
Balazs Ferenczi, head of brand engagement at Chrono24, remarked, “Vacheron Constantin and Patek Philippe holding the top two places [by quarterly price rise] at the same time is a notable result.”
