The 10 Hottest Rolex Watches of 2027

What “hottest” means here

“Hottest” is a secondary-market word, not a retail one. This list ranks the Rolex references that buyers are chasing hardest right now, which is the same thing as the references that hold or gain value when they change hands. Retail availability has little to do with it.

Three kinds of watches made the cut. Modern icons that have been in demand for years and show no sign of cooling. Older references that are quietly becoming collector pieces as clean examples dry up. And a couple of current-production watches whose secondary prices we don’t think will survive 2027.

For each one we’ve given the reference, why it’s moving, and what we’d do with it: hold it, add it, or sell it.

#1–#3: The watches nobody should be selling

#1 — GMT-Master II Pepsi. Rolex discontinued the Pepsi this year, and prices have jumped accordingly. Anyone holding one is fortunate; we wouldn’t sell it. We don’t expect the Pepsi to come back, which makes it a true collector piece for years to come rather than a watch riding a temporary spike. If it isn’t in your collection yet, it’s the one to prioritize.

#2 — Daytona Panda, 116500 and 126500. The white-dial ceramic Daytona has been one of the most wanted Rolexes since it launched in 2016, and in the past couple of years its secondary price hasn’t moved down at all. That consistency is the point. Whatever year you ask, 2027 or 2028, this watch sits in the top ten.

#3 — GMT-Master II Batman and Batgirl, 126710BLNR. The BL stands for blue, the NR for black. The earlier 116710 came only on an Oyster bracelet, which is the one people call the Batman; the current reference on Jubilee is the Batgirl. Over the past year these have ticked up, and the pattern is broader than one reference: demand is leaning toward the blue-and-black and grey-and-black GMTs rather than the Sprite or the root beer.

#4–#6: The steel sports core

#4 — Submariner No-Date, 124060. The most basic Submariner Rolex makes: no date, no gold, no white-gold alloy in the bezel, just a steel sports watch. That simplicity is why it works as a first serious Rolex, and why it never falls out of the top ten. It’s been an icon for decades and will still be one when the current hype pieces have cycled through.

#5 — Submariner Date, 126610LN. The black-bezel Sub is the classic of classics, with a lineage back to the 1960s and a history on the wrists of divers, military personnel and ordinary Americans. Always a popular pick, always liquid, and, as noted under #8 below, currently gaining ground on its green-bezel sibling.

#6 — GMT-Master II Bruce Wayne, 126710GRNR. GR for grey, NR for black. One of the newer GMT references, and still one of the hottest watches in the entire lineup heading into 2027. If you have one, keep it; if you don’t, it’s a strong addition. Expect a long wait at retail and a meaningful premium on the secondary market.

#7–#8: A sleeper and a coin flip

#7 — GMT-Master II 16710. The 1990s-to-early-2000s GMT, the aluminum-bezel predecessor to today’s ceramic references, and the sleeper on this list. It came with a Pepsi, a Coke or a plain black bezel, so there’s real variety for a collector. The catch is condition: clean, unpolished examples are now hard to find, and that scarcity is pulling prices up. This is a watch crossing over from “used Rolex” to “collector item,” and the price trend reflects it.

#8 — Submariner Date 126610LV, the Kermit (or Starbucks). Identical to the 126610LN except for the green bezel. It belongs in the top ten, but we’re watching the black version gain on it. Historically the green commanded the bigger premium; now the two are balancing out. Between them it’s a preference call, not an investment call, so buy the color you’ll wear.

#9–#10: One to sell, one still climbing

#9 — Land-Dweller 40, 127334. It makes the list because of how much attention it drew as a new release, not because we’d buy one. It was a top-ten watch for 2026 and we don’t think it will be for 2027. The secondary price is trending down, and at around $25,000 it’s a hard number to justify for what is, in practice, a glorified Datejust. If you own one and are on the fence, this is the one on the list we’d sell. If you’re shopping, there are better places to put $25,000.

#10 — Datejust, especially the green ombré dial. This year’s new dial colors gave the Datejust a second life on the secondary market, and the green ombré in particular is carrying a large premium over MSRP. We expect that to hold into 2027. It’s the only watch on the list that’s both easy to love and, in the right configuration, hard to get.

What the list says about the market

Four of the ten are GMT-Master IIs, and that isn’t an accident. Demand within the GMT family has shifted toward the Batman, Batgirl and Bruce Wayne colorways and away from the Sprite and root beer, while the discontinued Pepsi has moved into a category of its own.

The Submariner story is one of convergence. The green bezel used to carry a clear premium over the black; that gap is closing, and the black-bezel 126610LN is the one gaining. When two references trade at parity, pick on preference.

New releases run hot and then cool. The Land-Dweller debuted at prices normally reserved for the Daytona and is now falling back as owners decide what it actually is. The Daytona Panda, by contrast, launched in 2016 and has never had a down year, which is what a durable premium looks like.

And scarcity has two faces. The Pepsi is scarce because Rolex stopped making it; the 16710 is scarce because clean ones have been worn out. Both are becoming collector pieces, and both are the kind of watch to hold rather than flip.

The list at a glance

The takeaway

Nine of these ten are watches we’d hold or add. The exception is instructive: a brand-new reference can be the most talked-about Rolex of the year and still be the one to sell, because attention and lasting demand aren’t the same thing. If you want one rule from this list, it’s to buy the references with a track record and treat the new releases as something to watch, not chase.

Disagree with the order? Drop your #1 for 2027 in the comments on the video.

Secondary-market prices move; figures are a snapshot as of late 2026, not a quote.