How to buy your first luxury watch
By CNN, April 28, 2026Navigating the world of “haute horologie,” the highest form of watchmaking, can be rather intimidating for a beginner.
If you’ve found yourself in the enviable position of shopping for your first luxury timepiece, you will likely have more questions than answers. From understanding the terminology, to knowing where to shop, the questions to ask yourself before you set foot in a store (or auction house) and how to avoid buying a fake, we’ve asked experts for their top tips.
1. Learn the lingo
Just like buying a car, there are some technical terms prospective watch buyers can benefit from knowing. Here are a few:
Crown: A small knob found on the side of the watch used to change the date and time. On a manual watch, the knob is used to wind it so the movement keeps going.
Movement: The complex mechanisms that make the watch run.
Bezel: The frame that holds in place the crystal protecting the watch face.
Lug: The parts that connect the watch case to the bracelet (strap).
2. Decide if you want a new or pre-owned watch
Are you looking for the latest model from a trending brand, or are you interested in investing in a piece of history, or a timeless classic? If it’s a new release, bear in mind these often come with a lot of fanfare — and a long waiting list — so you may find yourself lusting after a watch that simply can’t be purchased within the timeframe you’d like.
Luxury watchmakers often require buyers to effectively “prove” their commitment to buying a popular model by asking them to buy less coveted models before they can purchase the watch of their dreams, which can have waiting lists that can be months or years long, said the head of Sotheby’s Asia watches department, Joey Luk.
3. Buy a watch for the right reasons and consider what you need from it
Don’t get sucked into hype around a watch. This is a personal investment that you’ll likely want to love wearing for a long time. Also, be careful if resale value is your main motivation.
Tim Stracke, founder and chairman of leading watch resale platform Chrono24, said, “I always advise, don’t first of all look at the financial returns,” he said. “Look at the emotional return; what do you really like, what makes you smile every time you look at a piece?”
Sotheby’s Luk agrees: “Always pick your favourite watch,” she said. “If you don’t like the watch and you just bought it for investment, then it’s going to be a waste, because it’s going to sit in the safe forever.”
4. Try it on. Comfort is key
Avoid buying anything you can’t try on yourself. Just because a watch looks good in an ad or on a celebrity’s wrist, it might not suit you. Watches can look very different in real life. Collector Carlos Pang, another co-founder of The Horology Club, found this with the Patek 3940.
“It’s a 36mm diameter watch, which for a lot of people might be a bit small, looking at the specs. But, once you try it on, the way the case is (designed), it’s a bit fuller.”
5. Like a watch, but can’t afford it? See if the designer made any others
While on the lookout for a watch to wear to his wedding, Pang saw a six-figure Audemars Piguet watch.
“I really liked that watch… but at that time I didn’t have much money,” he said.
Instead, he did his research and found the designer, in this case Gerald Genta, who had made watches for other brands that were more affordable.
“I went with the IWC Ingenieur in the end. I bought it secondhand, and that’s the watch I wore to my wedding. I still have that one today.”
6. Take it slow
Don’t rush into the decision, in fact, it’s sometimes best to shop without any real intention to buy, said Chan.
“Give yourself time to figure out and try different things, whether it’s going to watch meets to check out watches, going to different stores, going to auction houses, but just experiencing more things so that you know yourself more and what you like.”
Watch enthusiast groups like The Horology Clubs organise meets where members bring timepieces from their collections to show and discuss. You can find the nearest one to you with a quick search on the internet and on social media.
Chrono 24’s Stracke adds: “A watch purchase is often a purchase for life… don’t mind taking the time even if it takes half a year, a year or even longer to find the piece you really want.”