Rolex Submariner Date
The first steel Submariner with a ceramic bezel. Broader lugs than its predecessor and a clasp you extend without tools.
We buy Rolex Submariner
Sell your Rolex Submariner
You can sell your Rolex Submariner to Reuven Watches in Utrecht. We buy every version, with a date and without, with or without box and papers. A few photos are enough to start.
- Within 24 hoursSaturdays and Sundays included
- Every Submarinerwith date, without date, steel or gold
- Shipped insuredat our expense, from abroad as well
You are not committed to anything. Your details stay confidential.
What is my Rolex Submariner worth?
What a Rolex Submariner is worth depends on the reference, the year, the material of the bezel and the state of the case. A 16610 with an aluminium bezel sits in a different market from a 116610LN in ceramic, and a version without a date in a different one again from the Date. We look at your example rather than at the model, and within 24 hours you know where you stand.
The Submariner is the watch we are offered most often, and precisely because of that, the question of what exactly is on the table is rarely answered in one sentence. The model has run since 1953 and there have been dozens of versions in that time, from a manually wound dive watch without a date window to the current 41 mm with a ceramic bezel.
The three questions we ask first
Does your Submariner have a date window? Is the bezel aluminium or ceramic? And how sharp are the lugs? Those three answers usually put us in the right area. The rest, such as box, papers and spare links, fills in the picture.
Papers or no papers
We buy every Submariner, with or without box and papers, and also when the watch has sat in a drawer for years. There is no minimum value. What you do not know you do not have to work out; we will ask for whatever we need.
Versions
The Submariner versions and their nicknames
Most people search not by reference number but by the name a version is known under. These are the six we see most often, with the number alongside so you can find it on your own watch.
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Rolex Submariner Hulk
The only Submariner where dial and bezel are both green. That is where the nickname comes from and why it is so recognisable.
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Rolex Submariner Kermit
A green aluminium bezel on a black dial, released for the model's fiftieth anniversary.
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Rolex Submariner Starbucks
The same colour scheme as the Kermit but in ceramic and in the 41 mm case. Also called the Cermit.
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Rolex Submariner Rolesor
The version in steel with yellow gold, with a blue or black dial. The 16613 still has an aluminium bezel.
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Rolex Submariner No Date
No date window and no cyclops in the crystal. A flat dial and a clean crystal, which gives the model an audience of its own.
These nicknames are not official Rolex names but they are the terms people search and trade on. If your version is not listed, we buy it just the same.
Reference numbers
Submariner references we buy often
The reference number sits between the lugs on the twelve o'clock side, under the bracelet. You only see it once the bracelet is off. On a Submariner that number tells you straight away whether you have a version with or without a date and whether the bezel is aluminium or ceramic.
| Reference | Version | Period | Feature |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5513 | Submariner No Date | circa 1962 to 1989 | acrylic crystal, aluminium bezel, no cyclops |
| 1680 | Submariner Date, first generation | circa 1969 to 1979 | the first with a date window |
| 16800 and 168000 | Submariner Date | circa 1979 to 1989 | the move to sapphire and 300 metres |
| 16610 | Submariner Date in steel | circa 1989 to 2010 | aluminium bezel, drilled lugs on early runs |
| 16613 | Submariner Date in steel and gold | circa 1989 to 2009 | Rolesor, aluminium bezel, blue or black |
| 14060M | Submariner No Date | circa 1999 to 2012 | the last no-date with an aluminium bezel |
| 114060 | Submariner No Date | circa 2012 to 2020 | the first no-date with a ceramic bezel, 40 mm |
| 116610LN and 116610LV | Submariner Date in steel | circa 2010 to 2020 | ceramic bezel, black or green |
| 126610LN and 126610LV | Submariner Date in steel | 2020 onwards | 41 mm, slimmer lugs, new movement |
Your reference not listed? The Submariner exists in dozens of versions and we buy them all, including the early examples from the fifties and sixties.
Specifications
The Submariner in specifications
The figures below apply to the modern generations in steel. On the vintage references the sizes and water resistance are lower; that is noted per row.
- Torn between aluminium and ceramic? Aluminium is matt and can fade; ceramic is deeply glossy and stays flat.
- The version without a date has no bulge in the crystal above three o'clock. From the side that is the quickest tell.
- Case size
- 40 mm, 41 mm since 2020 Measured without the crown, nine to three
- Case material
- Steel, steel with yellow gold, yellow or white gold The steel versions were by far the most made
- Bezel
- Aluminium until circa 2010, ceramic after The gold versions changed over before the steel ones
- Crystal
- Sapphire, with cyclops on the Date Vintage references still have an acrylic crystal
- Water resistance
- 300 metres Early versions 100 to 200 metres
- Bracelet
- Oyster with folding clasp Since 2010 with an adjustable extension in the clasp
- Lug width
- 20 mm, 21 mm since 2020 Why a bracelet from an older Submariner does not simply fit
- Date
- With or without Two separate lines with their own reference and their own market
These figures are here to help you place your own watch. We do not use them as the basis for an offer; for that we assess the individual watch.
Check it yourself
Four things you can check yourself
You do not need to be a valuer to see what condition your Submariner is in. Go through these four points with the watch in your hand and in daylight, and you will know roughly where you stand.
The edge of the lugs
Hold the watch at an angle under a lamp and look from the top of a lug down to its side. On a case that has not been worked too often, a sharp line runs there. If that line has rounded and the top and side flow into one another, material has been polished away. It does not come back.
The bezel and the triangle
Turn the ring all the way round once. It should click in steps and not run back. Then look at the triangle at twelve o'clock: on aluminium there is mother-of-pearl under a layer of lacquer, and that can lift. Fading of the colour itself is not a fault but something collectors want.
The lume on hands and markers
Compare the colour of the lume plots on the dial with the lume on the hands. On a watch where nothing has been swapped, that ageing runs in step. If one of the two is off, something was replaced along the way. That is no disaster, but it belongs in the assessment.
The play in the bracelet
Hold the watch up by the clasp and see how far the links sag apart. An Oyster bracelet stretches at the pins, and that says more about how often a watch was worn than the state of the dial does. Spare links you still have count, so dig them out.
If you cannot work it out, that is no problem. Just send photos of what you can manage; we will ask for whatever else we need.
Have your Submariner assessedValuation
What sets the value of a Submariner?
Within the same reference, two Submariners can be far apart. These are the six points that weigh heaviest, in the order we look at them.
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The reference
The number between the lugs decides which generation you have and whether the bezel is aluminium or ceramic. It is the first question and the heaviest.
Impact on the value: Large
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Case sharpness
The line between the top and the side of the lugs should be sharp. A case that has been polished often loses that transition, and it does not come back.
Impact on the value: Large
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The condition of the bezel
On aluminium we look for dents and whether the triangle is intact; on ceramic, for chipped edges. Fading on aluminium actually counts in your favour.
Impact on the value: Large
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Original dial and hands
If the lume has aged evenly on dial and hands, they belong together. A dial replaced during a service counts differently.
Impact on the value: Average
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Box, papers and links
The warranty card makes the year and version traceable. Spare links count too, and they sit in a drawer more often than people think.
Impact on the value: Average
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Service history
A recent service at Rolex or a good workshop is a plus. If you kept the replaced parts, say so, because on older examples that counts.
Impact on the value: Average
You will not find figures or guide prices here. Every Submariner is assessed individually, because with this model the state of bezel and case is what makes the difference.
Request a valuation
On a Submariner, the line on the lugs tells you in seconds whether the watch has been looked after.
Side by side
Submariner, GMT-Master II or Sea-Dweller?
These three divers from the same house are often compared and sometimes confused. Where they differ, and what that means if you want to sell one.
| Submariner | GMT-Master II | Sea-Dweller | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Made for | Diving | Travelling across time zones | Saturation diving at great depth |
| The bezel | 60 minutes, one colour | 24 hours, often in two colours | 60 minutes, one colour |
| Water resistance | 300 metres | 100 metres | 1,220 metres and more |
| Case size | 40 to 41 mm | 40 mm | 43 mm and larger |
| Extra hand | None | A 24-hour hand | None |
| How often we see it | The most common of the three | Regularly | Noticeably less often |
Not sure which model you have? Look at the bezel: a twenty-four-hour scale in two colours points to a GMT-Master II; a thick case with a helium escape valve at nine o'clock, to a Sea-Dweller.
The market
How does the market for the Submariner behave?
Four things worth knowing before you decide to sell. No predictions, just what we see come through the door.
There is always demand, and therefore always supply
The Submariner is the best-known dive watch in the world, and that cuts both ways. There is constant interest, but anyone advertising it themselves stands beside dozens of comparable examples. What makes the difference is not the photo but the substantiation: reference, year, what comes with it and what has been done to the watch.
The aluminium generation is back in favour
When the ceramic bezel arrived, aluminium was considered dated for a while. That has turned around: an evenly faded insert and drilled lugs are now arguments in your favour. So do not replace such a bezel before you sell, because you take value off rather than add it.
The No Date is its own market
The version without a date window is often seen as the purest form of the design: no cyclops breaking the symmetry. That audience is smaller but decided, and it does not move in step with the market for the Date. So always say which of the two you have.
Completeness counts for more than age
A complete example from 2014 with box, card and links can sit better in the market than a bare one from 2019. So look in the drawer before you send a request; what you find counts, and it only costs you a search.
Want to know where your example sits in this picture? Put it to us. You are not tied to the offer and you decide only once you have seen it.
All about selling a RolexClient experiences
Clients who sold us their Rolex
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Arman Dzulakian 5 out of 5 starsHeel betrouwbare juwelier. Met de eigenaar afgesproken om mijn Rolex Submariner in te kopen. Heeft een goeie/eerlijke prijs voor gegeven.
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Sefer Karacaoglu 5 out of 5 starsMijn eerste Submariner gekocht hier, dank voor het meedenken en de topservice!!
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Kerel Merel 5 out of 5 starsGreat dealer, bought my first Submariner at Beni Reuven. He is a great guy and explains everything. The secondhand watches are also with warranty. Would recommend everyone!
A selection of three of the 50 Google reviews, quoted word for word.
All versions
Which Submariner do you want to sell?
We buy every Rolex Submariner, from an early version with an acrylic crystal to a 126610LN from last year. For each version we look at the reference, the bezel, the state of the case and what comes with it. If you do not know the reference, we will read it from your photos.
Sell your Rolex Submariner Date
The version with a date window is the most made and the most offered. If you want to sell a Rolex Submariner Date, we look first at the reference: a 16610 with an aluminium bezel values differently from a 116610LN in ceramic or a 126610LN at 41 mm. The cyclops over the date is quickest to spot by the bulge in the crystal.
Sell your Rolex Submariner No Date
The No Date has a flat dial and a clean crystal without a bulge. When selling a Submariner No Date we look at the same points as on the Date, but the market is a different one: smaller, and with an audience that wants exactly that pure form. The 14060M and the 124060 are the versions we see most.
Sell your Rolex Submariner 16610 or 16613
These two ran alongside each other for more than twenty years: the 16610 in steel and the 16613 in steel with yellow gold. Both have an aluminium bezel, and the early runs have drilled lugs. If you want to sell a Rolex Submariner 16610, check whether the bezel has faded evenly, because on this generation that is an argument in your favour and not a fault.
Sell your Rolex Submariner 116610LN
The 116610LN was the first steel Submariner with a ceramic bezel and broader lugs. It ran from 2010 to 2020, which makes it one of the most traded modern versions. When you sell a 116610LN we look for chipped edges on the ceramic and at the state of the adjustable clasp.
Sell your Rolex Submariner Hulk or Kermit
The Hulk has a green dial and a green bezel; the Kermit has only a green bezel on black. They are two different watches from two different generations, each with its own market. Whether you want to sell a Rolex Hulk or a Kermit, include the reference, because the nicknames are regularly mixed up.
Sell your Rolex Submariner Starbucks
The Starbucks arrived in 2020 with the move to 41 mm and carries the same colour scheme as the Kermit, but in ceramic. Some call it the Cermit. When you sell a Rolex Starbucks we look at the state of the green bezel and at whether box and card are still with it.
Sell your gold or Rolesor Submariner
Besides steel, the Submariner has appeared in steel with yellow gold and in solid gold, with blue and black dials. When selling a gold Rolex Submariner, the material and the state of the gold on the bezel ring weigh heavily. The 16613 and the 116613LB are the Rolesor versions we see most.
Sell your vintage Rolex Submariner
We also buy the references from the sixties, seventies and eighties, with or without papers. On vintage we look especially at the dial, at the acrylic crystal and at whether all the parts belong together. If you do not know the reference, send photos of the dial, the bezel and the case back.
Also searched for
- Sell your Rolex Submariner
- Sell your Rolex Submariner Date
- Sell your Submariner No Date
- Sell your Rolex Submariner 16610
- Sell your Rolex Submariner 16613
- Sell your Rolex Submariner 116610LN
- Sell your Rolex Submariner 126610LN
- Sell your Rolex Hulk
- Sell your Rolex Kermit
- Sell your Rolex Starbucks
- Sell your gold Rolex Submariner
- Sell your vintage Rolex Submariner
- Rolex Submariner valuation
- What is my Rolex Submariner worth
Frequently asked questions
Questions about selling a Submariner
What is my Rolex Submariner worth?
That depends on the reference, the year, the material of the bezel and the state of the case. A 16610 with an aluminium bezel sits in a different market from a 116610LN in ceramic.
We do not give guide prices on this page, because on this model they would almost always be wide of the mark. Send the reference and a few photos and you will hear what we offer within 24 hours.
My Submariner has a faded bezel. Is that a problem?
On the contrary. An aluminium bezel that has faded evenly to a lighter tone is exactly what collectors look for.
So leave it be and do not polish it up. Replacing it with a new insert takes value off rather than adding it.
Do you also buy a Submariner No Date?
Yes. The versions without a date, such as the 5513, the 14060M and the 124060, we buy just the same.
Do mention it in your request, because with and without a date are two separate lines with their own market.
What is the difference between a 16610 and a 116610LN?
The 16610 has an aluminium bezel and, on the early runs, drilled lugs. The 116610LN has a ceramic bezel, broader lugs and a clasp you extend without tools.
The changeover came around 2010. They are two different watches and we assess them separately.
Where is the reference on my Submariner?
Between the lugs on the twelve o'clock side, under the bracelet. You only see it once the bracelet is off.
If that is not possible, send photos of the dial and the bezel. From that combination we can usually work out the generation.
My Submariner has been polished. Will you still buy it?
Yes, we will buy it. We will tell you what we see, though.
On this model a sharp line runs between the top and the side of the lugs, and it disappears with too much polishing. That is irreversible, so it counts in the offer.
I no longer have the box and papers. Can I still sell it?
Yes. We buy every brand, with or without box and papers, and there is no minimum value.
Papers do make the year and version traceable, so if you still have them they are worth digging out. Spare links count too.
How soon do I get an offer on my Submariner?
Usually the same day, and within 24 hours in any case. Saturdays and Sundays included.
After that the choice is yours. If you do not accept, your Submariner simply goes back in the drawer.
Assessed by
Beni Reuben
Owner and valuer at Reuven Watches
Of all the watches that come in here, Beni Reuben sees the Submariner most often. His assessment starts with the reference between the lugs and with the line on the lugs themselves, because that tells you in seconds how a watch has been treated.
Ten years in the watch trade
More about Reuven WatchesPublished
Last updated
Other models
Other Rolex models we buy
Another Rolex in the drawer? These models have their own page with the references and the value factors.
GMT-Master II
The traveller with the two-colour bezel
Pepsi, Batman, Sprite and Root Beer
Sell your GMT-Master II
Further reading
Another watch in the drawer?
- All Rolex
Sell your Rolex
The whole process, the value factors and every model in one place. - All brands
Sell a watch
Every brand, any condition, no minimum value. - Questions
Frequently asked questions
Shipping, payment and what happens after your request. - About us
Who Reuven Watches are
Showroom in Utrecht, 4.8 out of 5 across 50 Google reviews.
No obligation
Curious what we would offer for your Submariner?
Send the reference and photos of the dial, the bezel and the case, and you will hear what we offer within 24 hours. Weekends included.
You are not committed to anything. Your details stay confidential.