Sell your Patek Philippe Nautilus · South Florida · by appointment
Sell your Nautilus to a dealer who reads the reference before the number.
A steel 5711/1A, a 5712 moonphase, a 5980 chronograph, a 7118, or a white gold 5811/1G: each has its own buyer. Send the reference, the dial, and the certificate. I reply within 1 business day with the reasoning and confirm the figure in hand.
- Reference and dial colour read from your photos
- Sealed sets and worn examples judged on separate terms
- Every Nautilus confirmed in hand before the offer is final
Who this page is for
You own a Nautilus. The reference decides everything.
This page is for the owner of a Nautilus who wants to know what I will pay, and why I will not put a number in the first email. Some bought a 5711/1A at retail and never broke the seal. Some wear a 5712 daily. Some inherited a 3700.
The Nautilus is around a dozen references in three sizes and four metals. Dial colour, the year a reference ended, and the state of the bracelet set offers that differ by multiples between watches that look alike across a room.
Below: the references, what to photograph, and what moves the number. The certificate, the Extract, Patek service, and sealed versus worn in general live on the Patek Philippe page and are not repeated here.
Selling a Nautilus to me
What a Nautilus seller gets that a form does not.
Reference read before the offer
I tell you whether yours is a 3700, 5711, 5712, 5726, 5980, 7118, or 5811, and which pool of sales it is judged against.
Dial colour quoted on its own
Blue, white, olive green, and the Tiffany-stamped dial on a 5711/1A are four offers to me, not one reference.
Sealed sets stay sealed
If your Nautilus still wears its film, I never ask you to size it or try it on. It is inspected with the stickers on.
Paid within 24 hours of inspection
Wire or check, once the watch matches the photos and the certificate. The method is settled before it leaves your hands.
What I check on a Nautilus
Five Nautilus-specific things that decide the offer.
Reference family and size
The 42 mm 3700, the mid-size 3800, the 40 mm 5711 and 5712, the 40.5 mm 5726, 5980, and 5990, the 35.2 mm 7118, the 41 mm 5811.
Dial colour and stamp
Blue 5711/1A-010, white 5711/1A-011, olive green 5711/1A-014, and the Tiffany & Co. stamped 5711/1A-018. Each has its own buyer.
Metal and what it sits on
Steel on the steel bracelet, rose gold with a brown dial on the 5711/1R, white gold with a blue dial on the 5811/1G. Gold on a strap is a separate reference.
Bracelet, clasp, and spare links
Stretch, polished flanks, and how many links came out at sizing all count. Patek sizes with half links, so send every one.
Complication and its movement
5712 moonphase, 5726 annual calendar, 5980 flyback chronograph, 5990 Travel Time chronograph, 5740 perpetual. Each checked in hand.
How it works
Four steps for a Nautilus.
01
Get an offer
Submit the form with daylight photos: dial straight on so the colour reads true, bezel at a low angle, the hinge at nine o'clock, the caseback, the open clasp, the bracelet on its side, and the certificate with numbers visible. If sealed, photograph the film and leave it on. I reply within 1 business day.
02
Ship or meet
Modern references travel on my prepaid, insured FedEx label, USA only. A 3700, a 3800, or any Nautilus you would rather hand over in person is by appointment in Miami-Dade, Broward, or Palm Beach.
03
Inspect and confirm
I open the parcel on camera and check the numbers against the certificate, the dial, the bezel finishing, the bracelet, and the clasp. If it matches the photos, the figure at inspection is the offer.
04
Get paid
Wire or check within 24 hours of inspection. If we do not agree, the Nautilus goes back to you, insured, at my cost.
The references
Nautilus references, and what each is judged on.
| Criteria | Reference and era | What decides the offer |
|---|---|---|
| 3700 and 3800 (from 1976) | The 42 mm 3700 with the two-part case, then the mid-size 3800 from the early 1980s | Dial and bracelet originality. Service dials are common. In person only |
| 5711/1A (2006 to 2021) | 40 mm steel, calibre 324 S C then 26-330 S C. Blue, white, olive green, and Tiffany-stamped dials | Dial colour, certificate date, sealed or worn, bracelet condition. Quoted in hand |
| 5711/1R and 5811/1G (gold) | Rose gold, brown gradient dial, from 2006; 41 mm white gold, blue dial, from 2022 | Gold bracelet condition and dial on the 5711/1R; certificate date and unworn state on the 5811/1G |
| 5712 and 5726 (moonphase, annual calendar) | 5712: small seconds, date, power reserve, moonphase. 5726: annual calendar with moonphase | Movement checked in hand, calendar advanced across a month, bracelet against strap |
| 5980 and 5990 (chronographs) | Flyback chronograph with one counter at six, in steel, rose gold, or two-tone. The 5990 adds Travel Time | Chronograph run and reset in hand, pushers, counter condition |
| 7118 and earlier ladies references | 35.2 mm automatic in steel or rose gold, plain or diamond bezel. The 7018 and quartz 7010 came before | Metal, bezel, dial colour, bracelet. Diamond bezels checked stone by stone |
Directions, not figures. I show the reasoning in the reply and the figure at inspection.
The detail
What moves a Nautilus offer, and why.
The 3700 and 3800: the first generation
The 3700/1A of 1976 is the Nautilus as Gérald Genta drew it: 42 mm, a two-part case with hinges at three and nine, a slim movement behind a solid back. The mid-size 3800 followed in the early 1980s. Both ran for decades, so dials, bracelets, and clasps were replaced at service, and a service dial or replacement bracelet lowers the collector value. I see these in person. An Extract helps most here, because it states the original dial and bracelet.
The 5711/1A: dial colours, 2021, and the certificate date
The 5711/1A arrived in 2006 at 40 mm, blue dial first and white later. In 2021 Patek Philippe ended the steel 5711, closed the run with an olive green dial, then released a short series stamped for Tiffany & Co. Each of those four dials trades as its own market, the green and the Tiffany dial most of all, because they were made briefly and many have never been worn.
Beyond the dial, the certificate date and the bracelet decide the offer. I will not quote a 5711/1A from photos. Its market has moved fast enough that a figure given on Monday can be wrong by Friday. I explain by message what drives the number and give the figure with the watch in hand. The rose gold 5711/1R is bought on its gold bracelet and the gradient of its brown dial; the white gold 5811/1G of 2022 on its certificate date and whether it has been worn.
The complicated Nautilus: 5712, 5726, 5980, 5990, 5740
The 5712 carries the calibre 240 micro-rotor movement with small seconds, date, power reserve, and moonphase off centre. The 5726 adds an annual calendar with moonphase. The 5980 is the flyback chronograph with one counter at six for elapsed hours and minutes; the 5990 adds a second time zone. The 5740 in white gold is the perpetual calendar. I buy all of these and check them in hand: a chronograph is run and reset, a calendar advanced across a month change, a moonphase read against the date. One that needs a Patek Philippe service is priced with that in mind.
The bracelet: stretch, links, and the clasp
The Nautilus bracelet gives away how a watch has lived. Lay it on its side and look for droop between the links. Look at the flanks of the outer links: they leave the boutique brushed with a crisp edge, and a rounded, polished edge means metal has been removed. Count the links, including half links, because a buyer with a larger wrist needs them back. Stretch or heavy polishing never stops the sale, but on a steel 5711 it moves the number a long way, because the next buyer compares it to unworn examples.
Sealed, opened, and the question of holding
A sealed Nautilus still has the film on the case, bezel, caseback, and clasp. It sells into a separate market, and I inspect it with the film on. Do not size it, do not try it on, do not peel the back. Should you hold a discontinued reference? The steel 5711 has risen and fallen in waves since 2021, and I will not predict the next move. I give you the figure today, the reasons, and what would change it. If you need the money this quarter, that figure is real. If not, only you can say how long to hold.
When selling to me is not the right call
If you own a Tiffany-stamped 5711/1A or an early 3700 with its original dial and can wait months for an auction, a dealer offer will sit below a strong result. If you want the top private-sale figure for a 5712 and can wait for the buyer, I am the faster path, not the highest. If the watch was a gift you are unsure about, keep it. If you want a documented, insured sale with one person accountable for the number, that is what I do.
How to prepare your Nautilus submission
- The reference as written on the certificate, with the suffix, such as 5711/1A-010.
- The dial straight on in daylight, so blue reads as blue and green as green.
- The bezel at a low angle, the hinge at nine o'clock, and the caseback with the certificate beside it.
- The bracelet on its side, the open clasp, and every spare or half link you have.
- If sealed: a photo of the film on the case and clasp. Leave it on.
- Service history: Patek Philippe, independent, or unknown, with any returned parts.
- For a 3700, a 3800, or a complication: say so and name your county. I will set an appointment instead of a label.
Questions, answered
Before you send a Nautilus
Why won't you quote my 5711 from photos?
The steel 5711 has moved fast enough that a figure given from photos can be stale within days. I explain by message what drives the number for your dial and set, then give the firm figure in hand.
Is a sealed Nautilus worth more?
A sealed, never-worn Nautilus with every document sells into a separate market from a worn one, and on a late 5711/1A the gap is large. Do not remove the film or size the bracelet before we speak.
Does the green dial trade differently from the blue?
Yes. The olive green 5711/1A-014 was made briefly at the end of the steel run and trades on its own. The Tiffany-stamped 5711/1A-018 sits apart again. I quote each dial separately.
My bracelet has stretch. Does that lower the offer much?
It lowers it, and on a steel 5711 it can lower it meaningfully, because the next buyer compares it against unworn examples. It never stops the sale. Photograph the bracelet on its side and I will tell you where it lands.
Sell your Nautilus
A considered figure on your Nautilus, with the reasons.
Send the reference, the dial, the bracelet, and the certificate. I identify the reference and explain the number within 1 business day, confirm it in hand, and pay within 24 hours of inspection. Shipping is insured and on me.