Longines Serial Number Checker
Longines has numbered its movements in one run since 1867, and — uniquely — the company's own heritage department published the sequence year by year up to serial 15,000,000 in 1969. That makes Longines the tightest-dating serial in watchmaking: most numbers resolve to a single year. Later serials fall beyond the published record and date by paperwork instead.
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Dubai, UAE
How to read it
Enter the movement number as engraved. The checker reads it against the published record and returns the tightest window the record supports — beyond the record's end it says so instead of extrapolating.
| Marking | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Movement number (digits) | reads against the chart below |
| Beyond the published record | later production — dates by paperwork and reference |
Where to find it on the item
On the movement — the caseback usually has to come off, a watchmaker's job. Some pieces repeat the number on the caseback or between the lugs; a case number is not always the movement number, and the movement's is the one the chart reads.
Movement number → years
| Serial range | Years |
|---|---|
| 1 – 19,999 | 1867–1869 |
| 20,000 – 99,999 | 1870–1874 |
| 100,000 – 249,999 | 1875–1881 |
| 250,000 – 499,999 | 1882–1887 |
| 500,000 – 749,999 | 1888–1892 |
| 750,000 – 999,999 | 1893–1898 |
| 1,000,000 – 1,249,999 | 1899–1900 |
| 1,250,000 – 1,499,999 | 1901–1903 |
| 1,500,000 – 1,749,999 | 1904 |
| 1,750,000 – 1,999,999 | 1905–1906 |
| 2,000,000 – 2,249,999 | 1907–1908 |
| 2,250,000 – 2,499,999 | 1909–1910 |
| 2,500,000 – 2,749,999 | 1911 |
| 2,750,000 – 2,999,999 | 1912 |
| 3,000,000 – 3,249,999 | 1913–1914 |
| 3,250,000 – 3,499,999 | 1915–1916 |
| 3,500,000 – 3,749,999 | 1917–1918 |
| 3,750,000 – 3,814,999 | 1919 |
| 3,815,000 – 3,879,999 | 1920 |
| 3,880,000 – 3,944,999 | 1921 |
| 3,945,000 – 4,046,999 | 1922 |
| 4,047,000 – 4,147,999 | 1923 |
| 4,148,000 – 4,249,999 | 1924 |
| 4,250,000 – 4,499,999 | 1925 |
| 4,500,000 – 4,624,999 | 1926 |
| 4,625,000 – 4,749,999 | 1927 |
| 4,750,000 – 4,885,999 | 1928 |
| 4,886,000 – 4,958,999 | 1929 |
| 4,959,000 – 5,030,999 | 1930 |
| 5,031,000 – 5,104,499 | 1931 |
| 5,104,500 – 5,176,999 | 1932 |
| 5,177,000 – 5,249,999 | 1933 |
| 5,250,000 – 5,332,999 | 1934 |
| 5,333,000 – 5,415,999 | 1935 |
| 5,416,000 – 5,499,999 | 1936 |
| 5,500,000 – 5,749,999 | 1937 |
| 5,750,000 – 5,849,999 | 1938 |
| 5,850,000 – 5,949,999 | 1939 |
| 5,950,000 – 6,139,999 | 1940 |
| 6,140,000 – 6,331,999 | 1941 |
| 6,332,000 – 6,522,999 | 1942 |
| 6,523,000 – 6,713,999 | 1943 |
| 6,714,000 – 6,904,999 | 1944 |
| 6,905,000 – 7,106,999 | 1945 |
| 7,107,000 – 7,308,999 | 1946 |
| 7,309,000 – 7,510,999 | 1947 |
| 7,511,000 – 7,712,999 | 1948 |
| 7,713,000 – 7,914,999 | 1949 |
| 7,915,000 – 8,224,999 | 1950 |
| 8,225,000 – 8,534,999 | 1951 |
| 8,535,000 – 8,844,999 | 1952 |
| 8,845,000 – 9,182,999 | 1953 |
| 9,183,000 – 9,520,999 | 1954 |
| 9,521,000 – 9,858,999 | 1955 |
| 9,859,000 – 10,200,999 | 1956 |
| 10,201,000 – 10,543,999 | 1957 |
| 10,544,000 – 10,885,999 | 1958 |
| 10,886,000 – 11,211,999 | 1959 |
| 11,212,000 – 11,537,999 | 1960 |
| 11,538,000 – 11,863,999 | 1961 |
| 11,864,000 – 12,115,999 | 1962 |
| 12,116,000 – 12,368,961 | 1963 |
| 12,368,962 – 12,620,999 | 1964 |
| 12,621,000 – 12,873,999 | 1965 |
| 12,874,000 – 13,838,999 | 1966 |
| 13,839,000 – 14,833,999 | 1967 |
| 14,834,000 – 14,999,999 | 1968 |
| 15,000,000 – 15,000,000 | 1969 |
Worked examples
Reading 9521000
The record places 9,521,000 in 1955 — single-year precision, thanks to Longines' published sequence.
Reading 5000000
5,000,000 reads 1930 off the chart.
Reading 50123456
Beyond serial 15,000,000 the published record ends (1969) — this is later production, dated by papers and reference.
Longines serial number questions
Why is the answer a window, not an exact year?
Movements were produced in batches and cased later, and the records themselves resolve to blocks. The window is the honest precision of the data.
Where do I find the movement number?
Engraved on the movement itself. Opening a caseback is a watchmaker's job — service papers often quote the number, which spares the opening.
Why does Longines date so much tighter than other brands?
Because the manufacturer itself published its serial sequence year by year to 1969 — no other house on this hub offers that resolution. Longines' heritage service will even issue an extract from the archives for a specific watch.
Does a valid serial prove the watch is genuine?
No — movement finishing, dial work and case quality decide. The serial must merely be consistent with the calibre and the model's run years.
The number is beyond your chart — what does that mean?
Later production, past the published record. Those pieces date by warranty papers, reference and model history — the checker says so rather than guessing.
Does age move the value?
Through the model: the right vintage references carry premiums, generic ones don't. The live pieces below show current UAE asking prices.