In brief
- The Graff Diamonds Hallucination is the most expensive watch in the world, valued at about $55 million.
- The auction record belongs to the Patek Philippe Grandmaster Chime Ref. 6300A, sold for CHF 31 million in 2019.
- Paul Newman’s Rolex Daytona sold for $17.8 million in 2017 and is still the most expensive Rolex at auction.
- A steel Patek Philippe Ref. 1518 made $17.6 million in 2025, the top watch result of the year.
As of October 2026, the most expensive watch in the world is the Graff Diamonds Hallucination, valued at about $55 million. The most expensive watch ever sold at auction is the Patek Philippe Grandmaster Chime Ref. 6300A, which fetched CHF 31 million (about $31 million) at Christie’s in Geneva in 2019.
This ranking mixes two kinds of watches. Jewellery watches from Graff, Chopard and Jacob & Co. are valued mainly for their diamonds, and their prices are figures reported by the makers or the press. Mechanical watches from Patek Philippe, Breguet and Rolex are ranked by public auction results or published valuations.
The top end of the market keeps moving. Phillips reported $290 million in watch sales for 2025, and its November 2025 Geneva sale raised $83 million, the highest total for any single watch auction.
Also readLuxury Gifts for Men 2026: 12 Premium Picks Worth Buying| Rank | Watch | Price | Year / basis |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Graff Diamonds Hallucination | $55 million | 2014, reported value |
| 2 | Graff Diamonds The Fascination | $40 million | 2015, reported value |
| 3 | Patek Philippe Grandmaster Chime Ref. 6300A | $31 million | 2019, Christie’s auction |
| 4 | Breguet Grande Complication Marie-Antoinette | $30 million | Estimated value |
| 5 | Jaeger-LeCoultre Joaillerie 101 Manchette | $26 million | Reported value |
| 6 | Chopard 201-Carat Watch | $25 million | 2000, reported value |
| 7 | Patek Philippe Henry Graves Supercomplication | $24 million | 2014, Sotheby’s auction |
| 8 | Jacob & Co. Billionaire Watch | $18 million | 2015, reported value |
| 9 | Paul Newman’s Rolex Daytona | $17.8 million | 2017, Phillips auction |
| 10 | Patek Philippe Ref. 1518 in stainless steel | $17.6 million | 2025, Phillips auction |
1. Graff Diamonds Hallucination: $55 million
Graff unveiled the Hallucination at Baselworld in 2014. It is closer to a piece of high jewellery than a conventional watch, with about 110 carats of rare coloured diamonds in several cuts set on a platinum bracelet.
The quartz dial is small and sits at the centre of the bracelet. The $55 million figure is the value reported at launch, not an auction price, and it has kept the Hallucination at the top of most rankings for more than a decade.
2. Graff Diamonds The Fascination: $40 million
Graff followed the Hallucination with The Fascination in 2015. It carries about 153 carats of white diamonds, with a pear-shaped centre stone of about 38 carats.
The centre diamond can be removed and worn as a ring, so the piece works as both a watch and a jewellery set. Like the Hallucination, its price is a reported value rather than a sale result.
3. Patek Philippe Grandmaster Chime Ref. 6300A: $31 million
This is the most expensive watch ever sold at auction. The one-off stainless steel Grandmaster Chime sold for CHF 31 million at the Only Watch charity auction, held by Christie’s in Geneva in November 2019.
The Grandmaster Chime is the most complicated wristwatch Patek Philippe has made. It has 20 complications, including a grande and petite sonnerie, and a reversible case with two dials. Proceeds went to research into Duchenne muscular dystrophy.
4. Breguet Grande Complication Marie-Antoinette: $30 million
Breguet pocket watch No. 160 was ordered in 1783 for Queen Marie-Antoinette of France. It took 44 years to finish and was completed in 1827, after both the queen and Abraham-Louis Breguet had died.
The watch was stolen from the L.A. Mayer Museum for Islamic Art in Jerusalem in 1983 and recovered in 2007. It is not for sale, so the $30 million figure is an estimate.
5. Jaeger-LeCoultre Joaillerie 101 Manchette: $26 million
Jaeger-LeCoultre made the Joaillerie 101 Manchette in 2012 to mark the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II. It is a bracelet watch set with 576 diamonds.
It uses the Calibre 101, one of the smallest mechanical movements ever made, first produced in 1929. The $26 million price is a reported valuation.
6. Chopard 201-Carat Watch: $25 million
Chopard presented the 201-Carat Watch in 2000. As the name says, it carries 201 carats of white and coloured diamonds.
Its best-known feature is a spring mechanism. Three large heart-shaped diamonds open like petals to show the small dial hidden underneath.
7. Patek Philippe Henry Graves Supercomplication: $24 million
This gold pocket watch sold at Sotheby’s in Geneva in November 2014 for CHF 23.2 million, about $24 million. It held the auction record for any watch until 2019.
It has 24 complications and 920 parts. Patek Philippe delivered it to New York banker Henry Graves Jr. on 19 January 1933, after about eight years of design and assembly.
8. Jacob & Co. Billionaire Watch: $18 million
Jacob & Co. unveiled the Billionaire Watch in 2015. It is made of 18-carat white gold and covered in about 260 carats of emerald-cut diamonds, with a skeleton tourbillon movement.
Boxer Floyd Mayweather was reported to have bought one. The price is the figure the brand gave at launch.
9. Paul Newman’s Rolex Daytona: $17.8 million
Paul Newman’s own Rolex Cosmograph Daytona Ref. 6239 sold at Phillips in New York in October 2017 for $17.8 million. It was a gift from his wife, Joanne Woodward, and it remains the most expensive Rolex sold at auction.
Its “exotic” dial style is now known in the trade as the Paul Newman dial. Read more in our list of the most expensive Rolex watches of all time.
10. Patek Philippe Ref. 1518 in stainless steel: $17.6 million
A stainless steel Patek Philippe Ref. 1518 sold at Phillips in Geneva in 2025 for $17.6 million. It was the highest price for any timepiece at auction that year and the most ever paid for a vintage Patek Philippe wristwatch.
The Ref. 1518, launched in 1941, was the first perpetual calendar chronograph made in series. Most were made in gold, and only four steel examples are known, which explains the price.
How we ranked these
We ranked watches by the highest price we could confirm: a public auction result where one exists, and otherwise the value published by the maker or reported by the press. Auction prices include the buyer’s premium. Swiss franc results are converted at the rate reported at the time of sale.
Some big results sit just outside the top 10. A set of four Patek Philippe Star Calibre 2000 pocket watches sold for $11.9 million at Sotheby’s in December 2025, and an F.P. Journe FFC prototype made $10.8 million at Phillips the same month, a record for an independent watchmaker.
Sources: Rapaport, 2025 watch auction records; duPont Registry, Phillips top sales of 2025.
Frequently asked questions
What is the most expensive watch in the world?
The Graff Diamonds Hallucination is the most expensive watch in the world, valued at about $55 million. Unveiled in 2014, it carries about 110 carats of rare coloured diamonds on a platinum bracelet. The figure is a reported value, as the watch has not been sold at public auction.
What is the most expensive watch ever sold at auction?
The Patek Philippe Grandmaster Chime Ref. 6300A is the most expensive watch ever sold at auction. The one-off stainless steel piece sold for CHF 31 million, about $31 million, at the Only Watch charity sale held by Christie’s in Geneva in November 2019.
What is the most expensive Rolex ever sold?
Paul Newman’s own Rolex Daytona Ref. 6239 is the most expensive Rolex ever sold. It made $17.8 million at Phillips in New York in October 2017. The watch was a gift from his wife, Joanne Woodward, and its dial style is now called the Paul Newman dial.
What was the most expensive watch sold in 2025?
The most expensive watch sold in 2025 was a stainless steel Patek Philippe Ref. 1518, which made $17.6 million at Phillips in Geneva. It became the most valuable vintage Patek Philippe wristwatch ever sold at auction. Only four steel examples of the Ref. 1518 are known.
Why are Graff watches so expensive?
Graff watches such as the Hallucination and The Fascination are priced mainly on their diamonds, not their movements. The Hallucination carries about 110 carats of rare coloured diamonds and The Fascination about 153 carats of white diamonds, which puts their reported values at $55 million and $40 million.
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