The speculative peak of early 2022 is now four years behind us, and the market that emerged is calmer, deeper and considerably more sensible than the one that preceded it. Here is an honest assessment of where pre-owned Rolex prices sit in 2026 and what it means for a buyer.
What happened, briefly
Between 2020 and early 2022, steel sports Rolexes traded at multiples of retail, driven by cheap money, lockdown savings and a genuine supply shortage. The correction that followed removed most of that premium over roughly eighteen months.
What it did not do is take prices below where they had been before the run-up. The floor held.
What held value
Steel sports references with box and papers held best — Submariner, GMT-Master II, Explorer. Discontinued references with finite supply held better still: the 116500LN Daytona, the aluminium-bezel 16710 GMT, the 116610LV Hulk.
The Datejust, which never participated in the speculative run, was barely affected in either direction. That is an argument for buying one.
What fell furthest
Anything bought above retail as a trade. Gem-set and precious-metal sports watches, which had run hardest, corrected hardest. And unworn "investment" pieces bought at 2021 grey-market prices, many of which are still under water.
The lesson is old and keeps needing relearning: watches bought as assets behave like assets, and assets fall.
What has quietly appreciated
Two-tone Rolesor, after fifteen unfashionable years. Solid gold Day-Dates, from a very low base. Vintage Tudor. Small vintage Datejusts. And the last generation of aluminium-bezel sports watches, as supply thins.
The pattern is consistent: the things nobody wanted five years ago are the things that have moved.
What it means if you are buying now
It is a better time to buy than 2021 by a very wide margin. Prices are rational, supply is good, and the pressure to decide immediately has gone.
Our 2376 watches run from £3,070 to the top of the market, with 1258 under £10,000. That breadth of stock at sensible prices was not available three years ago.
What we would not predict
Where prices go next. Anyone who tells you confidently is guessing. What we would say is that buying a watch you will wear, at a fair price, in good condition, with verified provenance, has never been a bad decision — and that is a different proposition from buying one you expect to sell.
Browse the collection
Browse the current market across our full collection — 2376 watches from £3,070, priced against live stock.
Frequently Asked Questions
They have been broadly stable since the 2022-23 correction. Nobody can tell you what happens next.
Better than 2021 by a wide margin: rational prices and good supply.
Steel sports models with box and papers, and Datejusts, which barely moved in either direction.
