WatchCharts May 2025 Market Update: The Big Three Still Performing Relatively Well
by Hamza Masood
Hamza Masood is the Business Development Manager at WatchCharts.com, which has kindly allowed us to share their monthly Market Updates.
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What Happened in April 2025?
The WatchCharts Overall Market Index fell by 0.3% in April, following a slight gain in March. We continue to see mixed performance for the Big Three secondary market brands for the third quarter in a row; Rolex and Audemars Piguet prices fell by 0.5% and 0.7% respectively, while Patek Philippe prices rose by 0.7%.
WatchCharts Overall Market Index charts 12-months to May 2025
The Big Three also continue to perform relatively well compared to the rest of the market, with Patek Philippe in particular being the second best performing brand last month among those at the $3,000+ price point.
Performance by Brand in April 2025
As has been the case since the start of the 2025, secondary prices for the vast majority of brands continue to decline. Among those with an average secondary value of $3,000 and above, Bulgari was the best performer last month, appreciating by +1.1% while Cartier prices also rose by +0.6%.
The worst performers in March were Zenith and Blancpain, both dropping by more than 2%.
WatchCharts performance by brand chart
Today, secondary prices for many brands sit are at 4-year lows, while retail prices climb ever-higher – particularly due to the impact of tariffs in the US. As the gap between retail and market widens, the secondary market now offers some of the best deals seen this decade.
Some of the best and worst performing collections of April are listed below.
| Brand | Collection | Delta % |
| Omega | Railmaster | +1.7% |
| Patek Philippe | Aquanaut | +1.2% |
| BVLGARI | Octo | +0.9% |
| Vacheron Constantin | Patrimony | -3.1% |
| Blancpain | Villeret | -3.2% |
| IWC | Da Vinci | -3.8% |
What’s up with rising Patek Philippe prices?
Patek Philippe was one of the few brands to see an increase in secondary prices in April (by +0.7%), and has been on a somewhat steady uptrend since mid-February. This has been primarily driven by references from the Nautilus and Aquanaut collections, with both steel and precious metal models seeing price appreciation.
Both the rising cost of gold, as well as the discontinuation of several models from these collections earlier this year (which we discussed in our February update) could be contributing to Patek’s positive market performance.
Recent additions to our Price Guide
We’re continually expanding our catalog of watches for which we track prices, which now includes more than 27,600 unique references. In this section we highlight a few recently released watches for which we recently started publishing market prices.
The Omega Aqua Terra 150M in 41mm a with turquoise dial is a striking watch in person with its ombre blue dial and black markers and hands that distinguish it from all other Aqua Terra models.
The watch was announced shortly before Christmas 2024, with a retail price of $6,600; its current WatchCharts market price is approximately $5,700.
The IWC Ingenieur 40 in steel with blue dial is arguably the quintessential current-production Ingenieur. While the model line was reintroduced by IWC in 2023, this dial was only launched in December 2024, with a retail price of $11,400; its current WatchCharts market price is approximately $8,300.
* Hamza Masood is the Business Development Manager at WatchCharts.com. You can check out previous Market Updates at https://watchcharts.com/articles/category/dispatch and there are more market insights and analysis on their YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/watchcharts
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April 2025 WatchCharts Market Update: Demand for the Most Desirable Brands Remains Strong
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