The two most recognized Swiss watch brands in the world are benchmarked and go head to head in this comparison. Which do you think is the best?
People will often call us asking for advice on choosing between an Omega or a Rolex watch and we are happy to share our extensive experience with both brands. This comparison of Omega and Rolex presents you with information that will help you decide which is the best brand to suit your particular needs.
Warranty
Both brands have pretty impressive warranties. In the luxury watch industry, you will usually see a 2-year warranty on most watches with most brands. However, both Omega and Rolex offer a superior warranty duration than the average luxury watch brand. Omega has a 5-year warranty on all their watches. Rolex also offers a 5-year warranty on all their watches.
Resell Value
Something to consider when you purchase an expensive watch is what you can expect to get back for it later. This is an area where Rolex shines brighter than Omega and every other brand for that matter. When it comes to resale value, Rolex has the industry in the bag. They are, bar-none, the luxury watch brand with the highest resell value in the world.
When it comes to resale Omega isn’t bad per se. The best Omega watch may fetch a higher average resale value than the worst Rolex but the Rolex brand still dominates the pre-owned market and on average, their watches hold value the best. They are also one of the most knocked-off brands as well. I suppose you take the good with the bad, eh? So, when it comes to resale, which is better Rolex or Omega? Rolex is, bar none, the best when it comes to average resale value with no exceptions.
OMEGA VS ROLEX
Common Features
- Rolex and Omega both have some iconic watches
- Both brands are highly recognized Swiss luxury watch brands
- Both Omega and Rolex are rich in watchmaking history
- Both have an excellent and above industry-average 5-year warranty period
- Both brands have made numerous horological innovations throughout the years
- Both brands have watches that were worn by James Bond in various 007 films
- Rolex and Omega produce some of the most accurate mechanical watches
- Both brands undergo further testing after receiving a COSC certification
- Both brands have been fighting electromagnetic interference with numerous innovations
Brand Recognition
According to Interbrand, an agency that measures brand popularity and brand value for the top Swiss brands. Rolex is the single most recognized watch brand in the world. I read that they have 100% international brand recognition.
You can expect to turn heads just about everywhere with your Rolex. Omega is a close second and is the second most recognizable watch brand in the world and their brand recall is closer to 70% which sounds like a huge difference but is an amazing accomplishment for the Omega brand nonetheless. You can expect to turn about 30% fewer heads with your Omega watch.
We know that both brands are very well recognized but in terms of precision, are Omega watches good? What’s to say about Rolex? Are Rolex watches good? Yes. Both are excellent brands that aren’t just about marketing.
How good are Omega watches? How good are Rolex watches? Both brands have gone above-and-beyond what is considered to be good watchmaking to deliver exceptionally precise timepieces by the highest standards and then some.
In case you haven’t already known this, some of the most accurate watches have a designation from a third-party testing lab called COSC which stands for ‘Contrôle Officiel Suisse des Chronomètres’. They earn the title ‘chronometer’ for their superior accuracy.
Both Rolex and Omega create watches with next-level chronometer designations but which is more accurate Rolex or Omega? I’ve covered the difference in accuracy between Omega’s and Rolex’s most accurate mechanical watches in a previous blog post and will explain exactly how the difference in accuracy works between these two luxury watch brands.
So, when it comes to accuracy, which is better Omega or Rolex? In terms of overall accuracy, Omega wins, since they not only make mechanical watches but also quite a few quartz watches. Quartz watches, as we all know, are more accurate than their mechanical counterparts.
Rolex, on the other hand, doesn’t manufacture quartz watches anymore. They gave it a go a while back but they later re-focused their attention on only manufacturing mechanical watches moving forward.
Both of these watchmakers produce some excellent diver’s watches that offer great water resistance.
You’ll discover that Omega has at the very top of the waterproof food chain the Seamaster ProProf 1200m which has a water resistance of 1,200 meters / 4,000 feet. Other diver watches from this brand include the Seamaster Planet Ocean and Omega Seamaster Professional Diver 300M, all which have a helium release valve.
However, Rolex seems to have really gone the extra mile, or rather 2.7 kilometers with its Rolex Deepsea series which has water resistance up to 3,900 meters / 12,800 feet. This quite literally blows Omega out of the water.
The most impressive feature of the Rolex Deepsea is the difference in Water Resistance compared to the Omega Seamaster ProProf 1200m. While serious diving calls for a minimum of 1650 feet and up of water resistance, the Rolex Deepsea boasts a over twelve thousand feet of resistance.
Unless you’ve been living under a rock in the Himalayas for the last 50 years, you probably already heard the term ‘EMF’ which is an acronym for electromagnetic frequency. Every electronic device known to man emits these frequencies and they screw up the timekeeping in mechanical watches. This is a growing pain for watchmakers who strive to keep them as accurate as possible and they are fighting back.
You’ll be happy to know that both Rolex and Omega make antimagnetic watches. Rolex has the Milgauss which is magnetic resistant up to 1000 gauss and Omega has many watches featuring the words Master Co-Axial Chronometer or a Master Chronometer designation. This means that the watch is tested and certified by a lab called METAS for many things including magnetic exposure up to 15,000 gausses making it 15x more efficient than the Rolex Milgauss. They both tackle the #1 enemy of mechanical watches slightly differently using different approaches but which brand does a better job? I wrote a blog post about these differences to answer this question for just you.
At the entry-level Rolex has a higher price than a new Omega watch. In fact, the cheapest Rolex watch is about double the list price of the most affordable Omega. However, you’ll see that Omega has been on the up-and-up over the past few decades but I think they still have quite a way to go before outpacing Rolex.
A more comparable diving watch to the ProProf 1200m that is made by Rolex would be the Sea-Dweller 4000 series which has the same 4,000 ft water-resistance as the Omega counterpart. But I do suggest that just for the sake of your horological entertainment, read the Deepsea VS Sea-Dweller comparison.
Both of these brands compete head-to-head at every level of watchmaking but being the underdog in terms of resell value and overall brand popularity, Omega puts up a very good fight.
Chronographs: Daytona VS Speedmaster
Diver’s Watches: Submariner VS Seamaster
Everyday Watches: Explorer VS Aqua Terra
Anti Magnetic Watches: Milgauss VS Aqua Terra
Both of these brands offer several iconic watches. Omega had the first watch on the moon, affectionately known as the Moon Watch and Rolex has a few of their own. In fact, most recently, the Rolex Cosmograph Daytona worn by Paul Newman was auctioned off at over $17,000,000 making history as the most expensive watch ever sold. You can read about a few of the more noteworthy watches from each of these two brands below.
Omega Moonwatch
Rolex Submariner Hulk
Rolex Batman Watch
James Bond’s Watches
For an in-depth review of each brand that will answer some of the most frequently asked questions, click on one of the FAQ buttons below.
