{"id":26421,"date":"2021-08-07T15:32:19","date_gmt":"2021-08-07T15:32:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.horbiter.com\/which-rolex-model-is-the-best-choice\/"},"modified":"2026-07-11T20:56:49","modified_gmt":"2026-07-11T18:56:49","slug":"rolex-pricing-steel-watches-guide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.horbiter.com\/en\/rolex-pricing-steel-watches-guide\/","title":{"rendered":"Which Rolex model is the best choice?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The unstoppable rise of Rolex among the most desirable luxury watch brands.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

If you talk about watches to a teenager, a middle manager or a top executive, it is very likely that in most cases their choice, if they\u2019re looking into buying a new watch, is geared towards Rolex<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the second and third cases, that choice is not just driven by passion but represents a form of investment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That buyer is aiming to buy not just any Rolex<\/strong> watch, preferably a selected bunch of timepieces like a Rolex Submariner<\/strong>, a GMT-Master 2 or a Rolex Daytona.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"rolex-gmt-master-ii-collection\"I would add, to the timepieces cited above, two other ones, that belong to Rolex<\/strong>\u2018s main competitors: the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Jumbo and the Patek Philippe Nautilus 5711<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A teenager instead, unless he is an avid watch enthusiast, mainly chooses based on brand awareness. My nephew, for example, has turned eighteen and, although he is not a big fan of luxury watches, considers a Rolex<\/strong> as the only possible option should he ever decide to buy a luxury watch, and Rolex<\/strong> is almost exclusively the only watch brand sitting on top of his circle of friends\u2019 list of most wanted watches.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why do people choose a Rolex? Let\u2019s start by discussing the brand awareness first.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

According to an analysis released by Interbrand<\/strong>, the leading company in classifying a consumer brand\u2019s awareness, Rolex<\/strong> ranks third according to their survey of the best Swiss brands, whose latest publication dates back to 2016<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In their \u201cBest Swiss Brands 2016<\/em>\u201c, you may find an abstract below, Rolex<\/strong> ranks third just behind very popular consumer brands like Nescaf\u00e9<\/strong>\u00a0and Nestl\u00e9<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"interbrand-best-swiss-brands-2016\"If we remove all the brands from this list but luxury brands, we reckon Rolex<\/strong> is valued twice as much as Omega<\/strong> watches and is by far the most valuable luxury brand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To fully understand how is this classification conceived, I suggest you deepen Interbrand<\/strong>\u2018s methodology in measuring brand awareness<\/span> for each of the listed brands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I believe Rolex<\/strong> needs no introduction, what I\u2019m willing to highlight\u00a0here is that, contrary to popular belief, the value of a brand, its authoritativeness, is measurable and, therefore, comparable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The growth of the Rolex price list over time and the proof the brand shifted from being a luxury watchmaker to an asset of a person\u2019s investment portfolio.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The most common sentence I\u2019ve often heard from friends and people whether they own a Rolex<\/strong> or not and are looking into purchasing a new or a used watch, is that buying a Rolex<\/strong> is a solid form of investment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Given that investing in shares or other financial products has become riskier than ever before, buying a Rolex<\/strong> is widely recognized as a way to combine passion with safeguarding your money.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In worst cases, a Rolex<\/strong> watch\u2019s resale value is at least in line with its purchase price, given the Rolex<\/strong> price list keeps growing at a steady pace too, year after year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"rolex-gmt-master-ii-pepsi-126710-blro-steel-jubilee-bracelet-calibre-3285-5\"If you\u2019re lucky enough to get your hands-on a Rolex Pepsi<\/strong> or a Rolex Batman<\/strong> at their listed price, there is no better investment you can do, especially in the short and mid-term.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over the last ten years, all the luxury watch brands have steadily increased their price lists, but just a bunch of them are selling their watches above or in line with their suggested retail prices, and Rolex<\/strong> is among them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I would mention another luxury watch brand, let alone it\u2019s a niche brand, to this selected group: that brand is Blancpain<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Swiss brand that launched the first diving watch ever<\/a><\/strong>, the Fifty Fathoms<\/strong>, is by far more technically refined and exclusive than Rolex<\/strong>, and\u00a0produces a few pieces per year, in comparison.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rolex<\/strong>\u2018s greatness is in conveying an image of exclusivity, despite producing, according to estimates, between 800<\/strong>,000<\/strong> and one million pieces per year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From the cheapest, all the way up to the most expensive Rolex: which one to choose among the entry level Rolex watches for him?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

If you were looking for a Rolex<\/strong> or your first ever\u00a0Rolex<\/strong>, and a Rolex Batman<\/strong> or a Rolex Pepsi<\/strong> is not atop your wish list, what might be the best value-for-money option?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you land the official Rolex<\/strong> website, you first get it offers a unique brand experience in the benchmark, and that experience is far above what any other brand can offer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are brands out there offering more exclusive and refined high-end products, featuring incredible mechanical complications and top notch \u201csavoir<\/em>\u2013faire<\/em>,\u201d yet none of them can compete with Rolex<\/strong> when it comes to the overall appeal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"rolex-lady-datejust-gold-diamonds\"The only brand to have partially closed up with Rolex<\/strong> over the years is Omega<\/strong> watches, whose communication strategy has dramatically improved as have their watches.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rolex<\/strong>, like Omega<\/strong>, officially lists the price of all its watches on its website, exclusive pieces like a Pearlmaster<\/strong> or a Datejust in gold and diamonds<\/strong>, for example, excluded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Conversely, if you\u2019re willing to get a comprehensive overview of the price list, it is hard to get and hard is, therefore, to understand which is the most expensive or the cheapest Rolex<\/strong>, in one go.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If we try and extract a list of Rolex<\/strong> watches for men, and we sort them by price, among stainless steel watches, that list looks like the following:<\/p>\n\n\n\n