There are many metrics by which we could measure Rolex’s complete domination of the watch market. The most obvious, and IRL, barometer being the sheer ubiquity of the most successful Rolex watches – the Datejust, Sea-Dweller and Submariner among them – on the wrists of both men and women, everywhere. For something a little more mathematic, however, we can look to RepTrak.

Every year, the data boffins at the corporate reputation outfit use a nifty piece of proprietary software to analyse consumer sentiment around the world. The Global RepTrak 100 ranks the companies that consumers perceive as being the most reputable. During the past decade, the furthest down the rankings Rolex has slipped is sixth place. For five out of those 10 years, Rolex has occupied the top spot. RepTrak ranks not just luxury brands, but global companies in general.

We could, alternatively, consult the cold, hard numbers. In 2024, according to Morgan Stanley’s annual luxury watch industry report, Rolex’s revenue was around £9.49 billion. Cartier, in second place, turned over around £2.85 billion. Omega, in third place, approx. £2.14 billion. Audemars Piguet was next, with £2.13 billion; followed by Patek Philippe, with £2.09 billion. Tally up those figures, and you’ll see that Rolex is currently outselling its four biggest competitors combined.

Then there’s market share. In 2024, almost 32 per cent of watches (by value) exported from Switzerland rolled off a production line owned by Rolex. That’s staggering. The world’s most successful car manufacturer is the Toyota Motor Corporation. Toyota’s market share, by comparison, barely breaks 10 per cent. As of 2023, Apple’s share of the smartphone market was around 28 per cent.

Demand for Rolex watches far exceeds demand for watches from any other manufacturer. It is a level of demand that, despite Rolex producing more than one million watches per year (1.18 million in 2024, compared to 500,000-700,000 at second-place Omega), far outstrips supply. Cue waiting lists that can stretch for years, and the emergence of a pre-owned watch market on which you can ‘flip’ certain models for almost double the price the second you’ve walked out of a store (of course, no stores carry actual stock, just display pieces).

The story of how and why Rolex became the colossus it is today has spawned several books. Indeed, there are two weighty tomes on the bookshelf behind me as I write this. Vintage Rolex, by David Silver of The Vintage Watch Company, charts the course of Rolex in more than 1,800 photographed watches. Nicholas Foulkes’ Submariner: The Watch that Unlocked the Deep stretches to 252 pages – and concerns just one model.

The aim of this article, then, is not to explore Rolex as a cult. There are plenty of crevasses of the internet already dedicated to doing just that. But to provide an overview of every watch in the current Rolex portfolio. To point out the (subtle, let’s be honest) differences between a Submariner, Sea-Dweller and GMT Master II (the clue’s in the bezel, mostly); and between a Datejust and Day-Date (the Datejust displays only the date, the Day-Date displays both the date and day of the week, basically).

Read on for a complete guide to every current Rolex watch…

Rolex Submariner

Launched: 1953

Current sizes (mm): 41

Claim to fame: Along with Blancpain's Fifty Fathoms, Rolex's Submariner can lay claim to being the world's first watch designed specifically for deep-sea diving, helping establish the design codes that continue to characterise dive watches today – namely, unidirectional bezels, locked crowns, and highly legible dials with glow-in-the-dark hands and minute counters.

Backstory: The Submariner was the first wristwatch guaranteed to be waterproof to a depth of 100 metres (330 feet). First adopted by the diving community, the Submariner quickly found favour among the general public, entering popular culture thanks to appearances in several early James Bond films (Fleming's character, incidentally, wore a Rolex Oyster Perpetual in the books). In 1967, Rolex introduced the Submariner Date, with a date window at three o'clock. The Submariner has since become one of the most successful watches, both in terms of sales and status, ever made.

Official starting price: £8,100 for Reference 124060

Rolex Cosmograph Daytona

Launched: 1963

Current sizes (mm): 40

Claim to fame: Celebrating Rolex's growing association with motorsport, the Daytona took its name from Florida's Daytona International Speedway. The Daytona is one of the most sought-after watches in the world, commanding years-long waiting lists and sky-high prices on the pre-owned watch market. In 2017, a Daytona worn by the actor Paul Newman sold at a New York auction for (approx.) £13.2 million, making it the most expensive Rolex ever sold.

Backstory: Designed to help track the times of cars racing around a track, the Daytona was one of the first watches to feature a tachymeter scale on its bezel. Early Daytonas didn't feature the word 'Daytona' on their dials – and famously struggled to find a market. From 1988 to 2000, Rolex Daytonas were powered by Zenith's El Primero movement. Since 2000, the watches have run on an in-house calibre. Available in yellow gold, white gold, and platinum, the most sought-after model today is the stainless steel version.

Official starting price: £13,600 for Reference 126500LN

Rolex GMT-Master II

Launched: 1982

Current sizes (mm): 40

Claim to fame: The GMT-Master II was an evolution of the original GMT-Master from 1955, which allowed airline pilots to track different time zones. The GMT-Master II featured a key upgrade: it introduced an independently adjustable hour hand, allowing the wearer to set the local time without affecting the GMT hand.

Backstory: The two-tone bezel of the GMT-Master II has made the watch particularly popular among collectors, spawning a variety of nicknames. In 1989, for example, Rolex launched a model with a red and blue bezel which became known as the 'Pepsi', as well as a black and red edition, nicknamed the 'Coca-Cola'. In 2013, a GMT-Master II with a blue and black bezel (pictured above) became known as the 'Batman'. Each is highly sought-after today.

Official starting price: £9,450 for Reference 126710GRNR

Rolex Sea-Dweller

Launched: 1967

Current sizes (mm): 43

Claim to fame: The first Rolex to incorporate a helium escape valve (HEV), allowing it to descend to a depth of 610 metres (2,000 feet).

Backstory: Developed in collaboration with dive watch specialist Doxa and the Cousteau Society, the original Sea-Dweller was designed to withstand the extreme pressure of deep-sea diving. By the early '70s, the depth rating of the Sea-Dweller had increased to 1,220 metres (4,000 feet), a rating that stands today. Capable of withstanding depths 10 times greater than the Submariner, the Sea-Dweller has become the Rolex of choice for professional divers.

Official starting price: £11,750 for Reference 126600

Rolex Deepsea

Launched: 2008

Current sizes (mm): 44

Claim to fame: Capable of withstanding pressures at 3,900 metres (12,800 feet), the Rolex Deepsea has one of the highest depth ratings of any series-produced watch.

Backstory: The Deepsea was the most capable dive watch in the world at the time of its release in 2008. In 2012, a version of the Deepsea, the Deepsea Challenge, survived being mounted on the outside of the submersible that director James Cameron took to the bottom of the Mariana Trench, the deepest point on Earth (nearly 11,000 metres/36,000 feet). Omega's Seamaster Planet Ocean Ultra Deep Professional, elsewhere, claims a rating of 15,000 metres, but has only reached a depth of 10,928 metres.  

Official starting price: £12,500 for Reference 136660

Rolex Yacht-Master

Launched: 1992

Current sizes (mm): 37, 40, 42

Claim to fame: Rolex's dressiest dive watch

Backstory: Developed as a sleeker, more elegant answer to the rugged Submariner or Sea-Dweller, the Yacht-Master was originally only available in premium materials, namely yellow gold and Rolesor (a combination of steel and gold). Versions in titanium and steel have since been launched, but the Yacht-Master's more refined styling means you are much more likely see it above water, than below.

Official starting price: £10,000 for Reference 268622

Rolex Sky-Dweller

Launched: 2012

Current sizes (mm): 42

Claim to fame: Rolex's more sophisticated travel watch

Backstory: As you'll have noticed from the watches above (and will continue to see in the watches below), Rolex doesn't go into the whole complications thing too hard. We have date windows and GMT functions, but that's about it. Except in the case of the Sky-Dweller, which incorporates a dual time function and an annual calendar. The GMT-Master II is, of course, also a travel watch, but only boasts a 24-hour hand and 24-hour bezel. Think of the Sky-Dweller as its chicer brother, featuring a secondary time zone displayed via an off-centre 24-hour disc.

Official starting price: £14,150 for Reference 336934

Rolex Datejust

Launched: 1945

Current sizes (mm): 31, 36, 41

Claim to fame: The first self-winding wristwatch to feature a date window on its dial that changes automatically at midnight. The Datejust also introduced Rolex's now-iconic Jubilee bracelet.

Backstory: The original Datejust, launched to commemorate the brand's 40^th anniversary, and arguably the brand's first flagship model, landed in 18-karat yellow gold and featured the now characteristic fluted bezel. Celebrating its 80^th anniversary in 2025, the Datejust is one of the world's oldest continually-produced watches. While Rolex doesn't break down sales figures by model, it is thought the Datejust is one the company's best-selling watches of all time, ergo one of the best-selling luxury watches from any brand.

Official starting price: £6,200 for Reference 278240

Rolex Day-Date

Launched: 1956

Current sizes (mm): 36, 40

Claim to fame: Known as the Presidents' watch for its popularity among U.S. presidents and world leaders.

Backstory: The Rolex Day-Date was the first wristwatch to display both the date and the day of the week written out in full in a window on its dial. Launched in 18-karat gold or platinum, the Day-Date was positioned as a premium proposition, and remains available only in precious metals (hence the lofty starting price below). Rolex has, to date, never produced a Day-Date in stainless steel.

Official starting price: £34,300 for Reference 128238

Rolex Land-Dweller

Launched: 2025

Current sizes (mm): 36, 40

Claim to fame: Rolex's new kid on the block

Backstory: With its similarly-sized case, fluted bezel and Jubilee bracelet, the Rolex Land-Dweller clearly shares a significant amount of DNA with the Datejust. So far, there are no stainless steel versions available, just editions in precious metals, so consider the Land-Dweller the Datejust’s punchier, slightly more angular big brother. Inside, there’s a new movement that sees Rolex scrap the traditional Swiss lever system, used in every mechanical watch the brand has ever made, in favour of a new patented escapement.

Official starting price: £12,250 for Reference 127234

Rolex Explorer

Launched: 1953

Current sizes (mm): 36, 40

Claim to fame: The watch Sir Edmund Hillary wore while summitting Mount Everest (except, it wasn't).

Backstory: In 1953, Sir Edmund Hillary and sherpa Tenzing Norgay became the first men to summit Mount Everest, supposedly while wearing Rolex Explorers. That's a bit of a myth. As sponsor of the mission, Rolex had given the men watches, but Oyster Perpetuals, rather than Explorers, which were launched in the same year, but only after the ascent. Depending on which account you read, Norgay's watch was strapped to his wrist when they summited, while Hillary's Rolex was either in his pocket, or back at basecamp. Hazy histories aside, the Explorer became a legend in its own right.

Official starting price: £6,400 for Reference 124270

Rolex Explorer II

Launched: 1971

Current sizes (mm): 42

Claim to fame: Rolex's no-nonsense, take-me-anywhere tool watch.

Backstory: Larger, more robust, and more legible than the Explorer, the Explorer II is the watch you'd go for if you actually were, you know, an explorer. Arriving in the early '70s and created specifically with cave divers in mind, the watch featured a fixed 24-hour bezel and an additional orange 24-hour hand – allowing wearers to track day/night cycles or second time zones while operating in low-light environments. The orange 24-hour hand has become something of a calling card, and was enlarged in 2011 when the Explorer II's case was beefed up to 42mm.

Official starting price: £8,550 for Reference 226570

Rolex Air-King

Launched: 1945

Current sizes (mm): 40

Claim to fame: Rolex's time-honoured three-hander.

Backstory: For the Rolex Air-King, it was a case of if it ain't broke... The simple, time-only watch debuted at the end of the Second World War as a tribute to RAF pilots who had flown during the Battle of Britain. The watch remained unchanged, pretty much, until 2007 when it was discontinued. In 2016, the Air-King made a triumphant return, with a larger case (upped from 34mm to 40mm), anti-magnetic shielding, and enlarged 3, 6 and 9 numerals. One of the most retro-looking watches in the Rolex line-up.

Official starting price: £6,600 for Reference 126900

Rolex Oyster Perpetual

Launched: 1931

Current sizes (mm):  28, 31, 34, 36 and 41

Claim to fame: The world's first self-winding waterproof watch.

Backstory: If you’re looking for Rolex in its purest form, see the Oyster Perpetual. The watch combines two of Rolex’s earliest, and most significant, innovations. ‘Oyster’ was taken for the name of the world’s first truly waterproof watch case, which Rolex had invented in 1926; while ‘Perpetual’ referenced the perpetual rotor system, the first self-winding (which is to say, automatic) movement, created by the company in 1931. Recent years have seen the addition of multiple case sizes and dial colours, yet the Oyster Perpetual remains available singularly in steel.   

Official starting price: £4,950 for Reference 276200

Rolex 1908

Launched: 2023

Current sizes (mm): 39

Claim to fame: Rolex's dressiest dress watch. Rolex with its dinner suit on.

Backstory: Named after the year in which Rolex was founded (in London, before the company relocated to Geneva), the 1908 was introduced in 2023 as a spiritual, if not official, replacement for the outgoing Cellini (Rolex’s erstwhile swishest dress watch). Easily the most elegant model within the Rolex portfolio, the 1908 is only available in yellow gold, white gold, or platinum. A small-seconds subdial at 6 o’clock and numerical 3, 9 and 12 markers reinterpret the original Oyster Perpetual of 1931. Inside, the watch is powered by the thinnest movement in Rolex’s arsenal, allowing for one of its slenderest cases, the back of which is made from transparent sapphire crystal glass – a rarity for the brand affectionately known as ‘the Crown’.   

Official starting price: £21,550 for Reference 52508

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