For years, the default ‘good watch’ was stainless steel. Preferably something sporty, Swiss and substantial enough to let everyone in the room know you were wearing it. But tastes have changed. Watches are getting smaller, dressier and considerably more jewellery-like, and suddenly yellow gold makes a lot more sense.
That doesn’t necessarily mean spending five figures on something hewn from 18-carat precious metal. Today’s gold-watch spectrum runs from inexpensive gold-tone Casios and Timexes to PVD-coated Swiss automatics, two-tone pieces and the full-fat stuff from the likes of Cartier, Rolex and Vacheron Constantin.
The appeal is much the same whichever end you enter from. Gold brings warmth to an outfit in a way an everyday stainless steel watch simply can’t. It works particularly well with the browns, creams, olive greens and other earthy colours currently dominating menswear, and even the simplest watch becomes significantly more interesting when rendered in yellow metal.
Here’s why gold watches are having a moment, what you need to know before buying one and the brands doing them best.
Table of Contents
- Why gold watches are trending again
- Why buy a gold watch?
- Solid gold vs gold plated vs PVD
- The best gold watch brands for men
Why gold watches are trending again
Part of gold’s comeback can be traced to the broader shift taking place in watches. The oversized sports watches that dominated the 2000s and 2010s have been giving way to smaller cases, dress watches, unusual shapes and designs that blur the distinction between watch and jewellery.
Cartier has been particularly influential. The Tank, Santos and increasingly sought-after vintage models have helped make smaller, more elegant watches desirable again. The fact that high-profile men are increasingly wearing them has helped too.
There’s a strong ’70s and ’80s influence at play too. Integrated bracelets, champagne dials and compact cases all lend themselves naturally to gold. Throw in menswear’s current appetite for warmer colours and suddenly yellow metal feels less Gordon Gekko, more considered finishing touch.
Why buy a gold watch?
Steel is easy. Gold has personality.
Even a relatively restrained gold watch brings another texture and colour into an outfit. It looks particularly good alongside navy tailoring, brown suede, selvedge denim, cream knitwear and olive outerwear, and it can turn something as basic as jeans and a white T-shirt into an outfit that feels deliberate.
There’s also enormous variety. A small gold dress watch on leather can be extremely subtle. A chunky gold integrated-bracelet watch is anything but. And you don’t actually have to buy gold to get involved.
Solid gold vs gold plated vs PVD
This distinction is worth explaining before getting into the brands.
Solid gold is exactly what it sounds like. Luxury watches generally use 18-carat gold, and the precious-metal content contributes significantly to the price. With gold prices reaching exceptional levels in 2026, that difference has become particularly noticeable.
Gold plating involves applying a thin layer of gold over another metal. It's inexpensive and gives you the real colour of gold, but eventually the plating can wear through.
Gold-tone/PVD watches generally use stainless steel with a coloured coating. There might be little or no actual gold involved, but modern coatings can be considerably more durable than traditional thin plating. This is the sweet spot if you're primarily interested in the look rather than precious-metal content.
Then there's two-tone, combining steel and gold or gold-coloured components. If a full gold bracelet feels a bit much, it's an easier way in.
The best gold watch brands for men
Casio
Start at the shallow end. Casio's gold-tone digital watches cost comparatively little and arguably look better for being inexpensive. The retro styling means there's no pretence involved: nobody thinks your £50 Casio is solid gold, and that's precisely the point. Go for one of the compact Vintage models and wear it with everything from tailoring to a sweatshirt.
Timex
Another excellent entry point. Timex is particularly good if you want something that feels more traditionally watch-like than a digital Casio. Look towards its retro reissues and smaller dressier designs, where a gold-tone case works particularly well.
Seiko
The next logical step. Seiko offers everything from inexpensive gold-tone watches to considerably more sophisticated mechanical pieces, making it one of the easiest brands through which to explore the look. Its enormous catalogue spans accessible quartz models, Seiko 5 and dressier Presage pieces.
Tissot
The PRX was practically made for gold. Its integrated bracelet and distinctly 1970s silhouette become even more convincing in yellow metal, and there are several ways to buy into the look. Tissot also offers models incorporating genuine 18K gold, providing an interesting stepping stone between affordable gold-tone watches and five-figure luxury pieces.
Longines
A good option for something quieter and more grown-up. Longines' classical designs lend themselves particularly well to gold, especially when paired with a leather strap rather than matching bracelet. Look towards the brand's dressier collections if you want a watch that won't immediately dominate an outfit.
Tudor
For anyone who likes the idea of Rolex gold but would rather not spend Rolex money. Tudor has produced some excellent two-tone pieces, offering a useful halfway house between the practicality of steel and the visual impact of yellow gold.
Cartier
Arguably the brand most responsible for making gold watches feel cool again. Cartier approaches watches almost as jewellery first and timekeeping instruments second, which means yellow gold looks completely natural across models such as the Tank, Santos and Pasha. If you're buying one great gold dress watch and don't particularly care about conventional watch-nerd rules, start here.
Omega
Omega offers a slightly different proposition. Models like the Speedmaster and Seamaster allow gold to be applied to familiar sports-watch shapes, while the brand's proprietary gold alloys add another layer of interest. It's a good choice if a tiny rectangular dress watch isn't quite your thing.
Rolex
There are gold watches and then there's a gold Rolex. The Day-Date remains the archetype: precious metal, fluted bezel, President bracelet and absolutely no attempt to fly under the radar. The Datejust, GMT-Master II and Daytona provide other routes in, including two-tone options for anyone unwilling to go full Tony Soprano.
Piaget
If the current appetite for slim, elegant watches continues, Piaget is extremely well placed. The brand has decades of experience producing ultra-thin movements and jewellery-like watches, and vintage Piaget has become particularly desirable among collectors and fashion-conscious watch buyers alike. Gold feels less like an optional material here than part of the brand's DNA.
Vacheron Constantin
At the pointy end of the list sits one of Switzerland's great historic manufactures. The Historiques 222 is arguably the ultimate expression of the current gold-watch mood: compact, slim, integrated and unmistakably 1970s. It's a sports watch, technically, but one that wears more like an extremely expensive piece of jewellery.
Patek Philippe
If budget has ceased to have any meaningful relevance, Patek Philippe belongs on the shortlist. Its gold Calatravas demonstrate how restrained precious metal can be, while complications and sports models push things into serious collector territory. This isn't an entry point into gold watches. It's where the rabbit hole eventually leads.
