5 Methods
July 2024 · 5 min read
How To Spot Real Vs. Fake IWC Watches
10 minute read.
IWC serial number checker, year by year to 1975
Enter the serial from the movement. On a vintage IWC that means opening the caseback.
This checker does not tell you whether your IWC Schaffhausen is genuine. A serial number can be copied onto a fake as easily as it appears on a real one, and only a professional authentication can settle that. Have your IWC Schaffhausen authenticated by an expert
What an IWC Schaffhausen serial number actually tells you
An IWC movement serial number gives a production year for watches made between 1884 and about 1975. The published record is year by year, which is unusually dense for a watch brand, so most serials resolve to one year rather than a window. IWC used a different numbering system from 1875 to 1883 and restarted at 6,501 in 1884. Past about 1975 no public table maps an IWC serial to a date, and IWC's own Extract from the Archives is the only definitive answer. These figures are approximate and are not published by IWC directly.
It places the movement in a year, and only for a watch made before about 1975. It proves nothing about authenticity. The strongest table available is credited to research citing IWC's own website rather than published by IWC, so treat a year here as well-supported rather than certain. Where the number earns its keep is contradiction: a movement serial from the 1930s in a case reference launched in 1990 is a real problem, and that is what an authenticator looks for.
IWC Schaffhausen serial numbers era by era
| Era | What the marking looks like | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 1884 to 1974, year by year | Digits only, up to seven of them | 1222000 → 1950 |
| About 1975 onwards, no published table | Seven digits from 2,275,000 upward, or eight digits | 3500000 |
Compiled from professional authentication reference material and reviewed in-house.
IWC Schaffhausen serial number chart decade by decade
| Serial range | Year |
|---|---|
| 1880s | |
| 6,501 to 15,499 | 1884 |
| 15,500 to 23,499 | 1885 |
| 23,500 to 29,499 | 1886 |
| 29,500 to 37,499 | 1887 |
| 37,500 to 48,999 | 1888 |
| 49,000 to 62,999 | 1889 |
| 1890s | |
| 63,000 to 75,499 | 1890 |
| 75,500 to 87,499 | 1891 |
| 87,500 to 102,999 | 1892 |
| 103,000 to 116,999 | 1893 |
| 117,000 to 132,999 | 1894 |
| 133,000 to 151,499 | 1895 |
| 151,500 to 170,499 | 1896 |
| 170,500 to 193,999 | 1897 |
| 194,000 to 211,999 | 1898 |
| 212,000 to 230,999 | 1899 |
| 1900s | |
| 231,000 to 253,499 | 1900 |
| 253,500 to 276,499 | 1901 |
| 276,500 to 298,499 | 1902 |
| 298,500 to 320,999 | 1903 |
| 321,000 to 349,499 | 1904 |
| 349,500 to 377,499 | 1905 |
| 377,500 to 405,999 | 1906 |
| 406,000 to 434,999 | 1907 |
| 435,000 to 463,499 | 1908 |
| 463,500 to 491,999 | 1909 |
| 1910s | |
| 492,000 to 520,999 | 1910 |
| 521,000 to 556,999 | 1911 |
| 557,000 to 593,999 | 1912 |
| 594,000 to 620,499 | 1913 |
| 620,500 to 634,999 | 1914 |
| 635,000 to 656,999 | 1915 |
| 657,000 to 683,999 | 1916 |
| 684,000 to 713,999 | 1917 |
| 714,000 to 741,999 | 1918 |
| 742,000 to 764,999 | 1919 |
| 1920s | |
| 765,000 to 779,999 | 1920 |
| 780,000 to 783,499 | 1921 |
| 783,500 to 793,499 | 1922 |
| 793,500 to 806,999 | 1923 |
| 807,000 to 827,499 | 1924 |
| 827,500 to 865,999 | 1925 to 1926 |
| 866,000 to 890,499 | 1927 |
| 890,500 to 919,499 | 1928 |
| 919,500 to 928,999 | 1929 |
| 1930s | |
| 929,000 to 937,499 | 1930 |
| 937,500 to 937,999 | 1931 |
| 938,000 to 938,999 | 1932 |
| 939,000 to 939,999 | 1933 |
| 940,000 to 944,999 | 1934 |
| 945,000 to 955,499 | 1935 |
| 955,500 to 978,999 | 1936 |
| 979,000 to 999,999 | 1937 |
| 1,000,000 to 1,012,999 | 1938 |
| 1,013,000 to 1,018,999 | 1939 |
| 1940s | |
| 1,019,000 to 1,038,999 | 1940 |
| 1,039,000 to 1,061,999 | 1941 |
| 1,062,000 to 1,077,999 | 1942 |
| 1,078,000 to 1,091,999 | 1943 |
| 1,092,000 to 1,105,999 | 1944 |
| 1,106,000 to 1,130,999 | 1945 |
| 1,131,000 to 1,152,999 | 1946 |
| 1,153,000 to 1,176,999 | 1947 |
| 1,177,000 to 1,204,999 | 1948 |
| 1,205,000 to 1,221,999 | 1949 |
| 1950s | |
| 1,222,000 to 1,252,999 | 1950 |
| 1,253,000 to 1,290,999 | 1951 |
| 1,291,000 to 1,315,999 | 1952 |
| 1,316,000 to 1,334,999 | 1953 |
| 1,335,000 to 1,360,999 | 1954 |
| 1,361,000 to 1,398,999 | 1955 |
| 1,399,000 to 1,435,999 | 1956 |
| 1,436,000 to 1,459,999 | 1957 |
| 1,460,000 to 1,512,999 | 1958 |
| 1,513,000 to 1,552,999 | 1959 |
| 1960s | |
| 1,553,000 to 1,611,999 | 1960 |
| 1,612,000 to 1,665,999 | 1961 |
| 1,666,000 to 1,732,999 | 1962 |
| 1,733,000 to 1,777,999 | 1963 |
| 1,778,000 to 1,795,999 | 1964 |
| 1,796,000 to 1,819,999 | 1965 |
| 1,820,000 to 1,888,999 | 1966 |
| 1,889,000 to 1,904,999 | 1967 |
| 1,905,000 to 1,969,999 | 1968 |
| 1,970,000 to 2,025,999 | 1969 |
| 1970s | |
| 2,026,000 to 2,112,999 | 1970 |
| 2,113,000 to 2,217,999 | 1971 |
| 2,218,000 to 2,229,999 | 1972 |
| 2,230,000 to 2,264,999 | 1973 |
| 2,265,000 to 2,274,999 | 1974 |
The IWC record is published year by year, so most serials resolve to a single year. Where two published years share a boundary the answer widens to the span they bound, and 1925 to 1926 is deliberately one band because the figure published for 1926 is corrupt.
Finding the serial number on your IWC Schaffhausen
1884-1974
On the movement plate for vintage pieces, which needs the caseback opened. On modern wristwatches it is engraved on the outside of the caseback, and on watches with a display back it is visible on the movement bridge. The published record for IWC is year by year from 1884, not every five or ten years, so most answers here are a single year. IWC ran a different numbering system from 1875 to 1883 and restarted at 6,501 in 1884, so a serial below that belongs to the old run and is not covered here. One year, 1926, is merged with 1925: the figure published for it is lower than the years either side, so it is a corruption in the source rather than a real boundary, and we will not invent a replacement.
1975
On the movement plate for vintage pieces, which needs the caseback opened. On modern wristwatches it is engraved on the outside of the caseback, and on watches with a display back it is visible on the movement bridge. A real IWC serial, newer than the published record. The year-by-year tables stop at 1975 and nothing public maps a later serial to a year. IWC has kept records since 1868 and sells an Extract from the Archives, which is the only definitive answer for a modern watch.
If your serial gives you no year
Most likely the watch is newer than the published record, which stops at 1975. Past that nothing public maps a serial to a year, so any tool that gives you one for a modern IWC is extrapolating rather than reading. A serial below 6,501 belongs to the 1875 to 1883 system, which used different numbering and is not covered here. The route that does work is IWC's own Extract from the Archives, drawing on records kept since 1868.
COMMON QUESTIONS
IWC Schaffhausen serial number questions
The things people actually ask us about IWC Schaffhausen serial numbers, answered by the team that reads them for a living.
Where is the serial number on an IWC?
It depends on the age. On vintage pieces it is on the movement, so the caseback has to come off. On modern wristwatches it is engraved on the outside of the caseback, and if the watch has a display back you can often read it on the movement bridge. On pre-1975 watches it is sometimes stamped inside the caseback as well.
Why does this checker stop at 1975?
Because that is where the published record stops. The year-by-year tables run from 1884 to 1975 and nothing public continues them, which is consistent across every source we checked. A chart that carried on past that point would be extrapolating.
Do I get a single year or a range?
Usually a single year, which is unusual for a watch brand. The IWC record is published year by year rather than every five or ten, so most serials land inside one year's band. Two years, 1925 and 1926, are returned together, because the figure published for 1926 is lower than the years on either side of it and is therefore a corruption we will not guess at.
My serial is below 6,501. What does that mean?
It belongs to the old system, which IWC ran from 1875 to 1883 before restarting the count at 6,501 in 1884. That early run used different numbering and is not covered by this table. A watch that old needs the archive, not a chart.
Can IWC tell me the exact year?
Yes. IWC has kept production records continuously since 1868 and sells an Extract from the Archives. For a watch made after about 1975 it is the only definitive answer, and for a vintage watch it will confirm or correct whatever a chart told you.
How accurate are these dates?
Approximate, and the sources say so themselves. IWC does not publish a serial chart directly; the strongest table available is credited to research citing IWC's own website. It is far better sourced than most watch charts, and it is still a reconstruction.
The serial appears in several places on my watch. Is that normal?
Yes, and it is useful. On some IWCs the number appears on the movement, inside the caseback, on the outside of the case and on the warranty card. They should all agree, and a mismatch between them is worth taking seriously.
Does a valid serial mean my IWC is genuine?
No. Counterfeits carry serial numbers, and one that lands in a plausible year is easy to engrave. The movement calibre, the dial printing and the case finishing decide it, and those cannot be read from a number.
Free IWC Schaffhausen authentication guides
A code narrows things down. These guides cover what it cannot: the movement, the dial printing and the case finishing on a real IWC Schaffhausen. Anton K., our guide author since 2019, draws every method from what our authenticators have documented across 2 million+ real items. Read his IWC Schaffhausen guides, or browse the full library of free guides covering 100+ luxury brands.