Watch authentication services compared.

The five options

• WatchRadar — iPhone five-angle scan, dossier, shareable Analysis Report. Free download, first full analysis free, WatchRadar Pro subscription for up to 40 analyses a week. An AI identifier and risk-triage tool, not an authentication service.
• Entrupy — subscription device plus AI verdict, built for resellers and best known for luxury handbags and sneakers. Check which watch brands it currently covers.
• Chrono24 — the large watch marketplace, with Buyer Protection on purchases made through it and a certified-watch programme on some listings.
• Brand service — the brand’s own service centre and, for some brands, an archive extract. Authorized dealers generally do not authenticate second-hand watches.
• Independent watchmakers — qualified individual watchmakers offering pre-purchase inspections by appointment.

WatchRadar — speed and breadth

Use case: a quick identification and risk check from a phone, with the watch in your hand, before you commit, a private collection box for your watches and papers, and a shareable Analysis Report for your records or a buyer. From guided photos taken with the iPhone camera it suggests the likely brand, model and reference with a confidence level, reads visible dial and caseback text, flags signals that contradict that identity, and gives a hedged verdict with reasons and a next step, with an estimated value range next to the asking price you enter. Strengths: no hardware, quick to run, and a public verification page for each report. Limits: photos only, so it cannot see inside the case; the analysis runs on WatchRadar’s servers, so the photos are uploaded and a connection is needed; iPhone only, iOS 26 or later; the Analysis Report records the analysis and is not a legal certificate of authenticity. For a high-value purchase, have the movement and case opened by a qualified watchmaker or the brand’s service centre.

Entrupy — hardware-mediated consistency

Use case: reseller authentication where consistent capture across staff matters. Strengths: dedicated hardware controls magnification and lighting, so results depend less on who takes the photos, and the service is designed around dealer workflows. Limits: a paid subscription and a device to set up. Its best-known categories are handbags and sneakers, so confirm which watch brands and models it covers today, and what its result includes, before you rely on it for a watch.

Chrono24 — protection built into the purchase

Use case: buying on the marketplace itself. Strengths: Buyer Protection holds your payment in escrow while the watch is delivered, which gives you time to have it checked before the seller is paid, and some listings go through the platform’s own certification checks before shipping. Limits: it only covers watches bought through Chrono24, and the terms, time windows and which listings are certified vary, so read the current conditions on the listing before you pay. Best used alongside your own checks, not instead of them.

Brand service — limited but authoritative

Use case: confirming the watch with the brand directly. Reality: authorized dealers generally will not authenticate second-hand watches. The brand’s own service centre is a different matter: during a service it examines the case and movement and can flag parts that are not original. Some brands also issue archive extracts that confirm when and where a watch was sold; on vintage Patek Philippe, the Extract from the Archives is the gold-standard paper evidence. Availability, cost and waiting time vary by brand and country, and you usually have to hand the watch over.

Independent watchmaker — the gold standard for movements

Use case: confirming the calibre, opening the case-back, inspecting movement engravings and finishing. Strengths: alongside brand service, the only option that goes inside the case. Eyes-on-movement diagnosis catches frankenwatches and swapped calibres that no photo-based tool can detect. Limits: requires the watch in the watchmaker’s hands, scheduling, and a fee per inspection that varies by watchmaker and watch. It pairs well with a WatchRadar dossier: the watchmaker examines what is inside, and the dossier records what the photos showed outside.

How to choose