Breitling Serial Numbers

Breitling Chronograph Serial Number Chart (1944 to 1978)

Chronograph series, from Breitling's pre-1979 production records as reproduced in collector references. Each row is the first serial of that year. Navitimer, Chronomat, Top Time, Premier, Datora, Co-Pilot and Cosmonaute all number in this series. Time-only and non-chronograph watches follow the second, lower-numbered series in the table further down; the two overlap, so check which kind of watch you have before reading the chart. Accuracy is generally within a year; serial dating is not authentication.

Where to Find Your Breitling Serial Number

On vintage Breitling (before 1979) the serial and the reference number are engraved on the outside of the caseback, usually near the 6 o'clock edge, sometimes with the reference above and the serial below. Both numbers are often lightly struck and worn, so read them under a loupe and raking light. A few early pieces carry the numbers on the inside of the caseback, which needs a watchmaker to open.

On modern Breitling (1979 onward) the serial and the reference are on the underside of the case, again at 6 o'clock, and on the caseback. The reference is the longer alphanumeric code beginning with a letter (A13356, for example); the serial is the separate number.

From about 2003, with some examples from 2001, Breitling also stamped a four-digit code between the lower lugs, hidden by the strap or bracelet. It is the week and year of manufacture: 3708 is week 37 of 2008. On a modern Breitling this stamp, not the serial, is what dates the watch from the case alone.

How to Read a Breitling Serial Number

The format tells you which era you are in before you reach any chart:

• 1944 to 1978: six or seven digits, all numeric, engraved on the caseback. Two parallel series: chronographs from about 563,000 up to 1,448,000, and non-chronographs from about 298,000 up to 1,004,000. A number in the overlap (roughly 563,000 to 1,004,000) reads as a different year in each series, which is why the lookup gives both.
• Before 1944: shorter numbers in both series. Breitling's surviving records begin in 1944, so earlier watches are dated from the movement, case style and reference rather than the serial.
• 1979 to the present: six to eight characters, sometimes beginning with a letter, issued in the numbering that started when Ernest Schneider took over the company. These serials identify the individual watch for warranty and service but are not sequential across the catalogue and cannot be dated on their own.
• About 2003 to the present: the separate four-digit week-and-year stamp between the lower lugs. Read it as WWYY. It is the only case marking on a modern Breitling that states the production date.

Breitling Reference Numbers, and the Second Serial Series

A modern Breitling reference such as A2332212/B635 is a specification code, not a date code, but it says a great deal about the watch. The first letter is the case material. The next two digits are the calibre number: 10 to 49 are mechanical, 50 and above are quartz. The fourth digit is 3 for a COSC-certified chronometer and 0 when it is not. The remaining digits and the suffix describe the model, finish, dial colour and dial design.

Vintage references are shorter, three or four digits (806 Navitimer, 765 Co-Pilot, 1450 Top Time, 808 Chronomat), and were reused across long production runs, so on a vintage watch the serial carries the dating work and the reference identifies the model.

The non-chronograph series below covers time-only, date, automatic and dress watches from the same years. Annual output in this series fell to a few hundred pieces after 1963, which is why the later rows move so little and why sources disagree by a year in the late 1960s.

Frequently asked questions