John Mayer's Watch Collection - The Most Extensive List
John Mayer is perhaps the most well-known celebrity watch collector around. Mayer has become so involved in the watch industry that he writes for and contributes to the largest watch publication on the planet. So Mr. Mayer must know a thing or two about watches.
It just makes sense then for a watch blog such as Wrist Enthusiast, that has a heavy focus on watch spotting, to take a look at perhaps the greatest celebrity watch collection of them all: that of 7-time Grammy Award winning singer/songwriter John Mayer. Mayer’s definitely a watch enthusiast. His collection consists mostly, but not exclusively, of the three hottest watch Brands: Rolex, Audemars Piguet, and Patek Philippe. I will take a look at 26 watches from John Mayer’s collection, making it the most comprehensive accounting of his collection in one place on the internet.
John Mayer’s Rolex GMT-Master II 11570LN
John Mayer has a legendary Rolex collection. Indeed, 10 of the 21 watches I feature in this article are Rolexes. Mayer’s Rolex collection ranges from modern pieces in steel and gold to highly sought after vintage collector pieces. It seems if it is a Rolex, there is a good chance Mayer owns it.
Indeed, Mayer has been spotted wearing the now discontinued Rolex GMT-Master II Ref.116710LN with black dial and bezel. This classic steel piece is still relatively affordable when compared to it’s current GMT steel counterparts. You can find one on the secondary market for around $15,000 USD and up.
John Mayer’s Rolex GMT-Master II Pepsi White GOld 116719BLRO
The final Rolex GMT-Master II I am featuring from John Mayer’s collection is another gold piece, this time in white gold. While the watch pictured below looks like modern steel Pepsi, it is not. Mayer is wearing the the white gold Rolex GMT-Master II Ref. 116719BLRO. This white gold “Pepsi” is currently discontinued and is selling on the secondary market for around $42,000 USD.
John Mayer’s Rolex Submariner 116619 White GOld
Mayer seems to favor GMTs over Submariners, but the one Submariner in Mayer’s collection is pretty nice. The Rolex Submariner Ref. 116619 is referred to in the watch collecting community as the “Smurf” because of its light blue bezel and blue dial. With a case made of white gold, the Smurf is currently discontinued. It will cost you around $50,000 USD to pick one up in the grey market.
John Mayer’s Rolex Daytona 116500
The other model of Rolex that Mayer gravitates to is the Rolex Daytona. Rolex first introduced the Daytona in 1963. Mayer’s collection of Daytonas include vintage pieces from the earlier period as well as modern Daytonas.
One of the hardest Rolexes to get these days is the Rolex Daytona Ref. 116500. Mayer has been spotted wearing this piece numerous times. This modern classic retails for $14,550 USD but will set you back $36,000 USD plus on the grey market. The price could increase even further if the rumors are correct and Rolex retires the 116500 (it has been around for 6 years now).
John Mayer’s Rolex Daytona Rainbow 116599RBOW
One of Mayer’s rarer pieces is his white gold Daytona with rainbow gem bezel. Everyone knows the rose gold variation that Rolex currently makes, but Rolex used to produce another version in white gold. This piece, Ref. 116599RBOW, is currently available on the secondary market for around $245,000 USD.
John Mayer’s Custom Bamford Rolex Daytona
One of the pioneers of the customized Rolex industry, which is now booming, would definitely be Bamford Watch Department. This London-based customizer used to be the most well-known player in the watch customization game. Bamford, however, shocked the watch industry in 2017 when they were acquired by LVMH. Since then Bamford has worked exclusively on LVMH brand watches (especially Zenith). Well, Mayer appears to have one of these pre-LVMH Bamford customized Rolexes. The watch he owns is a steel Daytona that has been given a glossy PVD treatment and a baby blue dial. There are not many examples of Bamford watches available for sale on the secondary market, so price can be hard to come by. The one Bamford Daytona currently for sale is asking $40,000 USD.
John Mayer’s Vintage Gold Rolex Daytona 6263 Paul Newman
Mayer has spotted wearing multiple different vintage Rolex Daytonas, including multiple with Paul Newman dials. These pieces are highly sought after and can attain million dollar price tags when brought to auction. One of my favorites from Mayer’s collection is his gold Rolex Daytona Ref. 6263 with Newman style dial. A similar piece with "lemon" grené dial was sold by Phillips at auction in 2017 for $3,722,000 CHF (around $4,000,000 USD). With the current state of the watch market, you have to assume the price would be even higher today.
John Mayer’s Vintage Steel Rolex Daytona 6263 Paul Newman
Mayer clearly appreciates the history of the Newman Rolex Daytona. In addition to his gold 6263 he has a steel 6263 and even has it on a bund strap similar to the one Newman wore his famous Daytona on. Similar pieces to this have sold at auction for around $400,000 USD in the past.
John Mayer’s Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Jumbo Ultra-Thin Rose Gold 15202
In addition to collecting Rolex, John Mayer has quite the collection of Audemars Piguets. All of his pieces seem to be variations of the Royal Oak, but who’s to blame him (my Royal Oak might be my favorite piece from my collection). So let’s get into the APs that Mr. Mayer has been spotted wearing.
With the recent news that AP was discontinuing the Royal Oak “Jumbo” Ultra-Thin Ref. 15202 (and introducing the new Ref. 16202), one has to wonder when Mayer will be purchasing his 16202. Until that time, I’m sure he’ll be content wearing his trusty old 15202 in rose gold with blue dial. The 15202 (and the new 16202) are the perfect size at 39mm and are the closest Royal Oak to the original released back in 1972. Market prices on this piece are currently sky-high thanks to a combination of the watch being a Royal Oak, in gold and with blue dial. You can find them for sale for $190,000 USD and up.
John Mayer’s Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Diver 15710ST
Mayer’s Royal Oak collection includes a Royal Oak Offshore Diver introduced in 2018. The watch, Ref. 15710ST, comes in one of AP’s more unique colorways, or “Tropical Turquoise” as AP calls it. This watch has recently become a hot seller. You can pick one up for over $50,000 USD on the secondary market.
John Mayer’s Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Ultra Thin Tourbillon
The Rainbow Daytona is not the watch John Mayer owns with a diamond bezel. Mayer has also been spotting rocking the the Royal Oak Ultra Thin Tourbillon in platinum with factory diamond bezel (Ref. 26516PT). This beautiful piece is currently available on the secondary market for over $350,000 USD.
John Mayer’s Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Minute Repeater Supersonnerie Titanium
My favorite Royal Oak from John Mayer’s collection is definitely the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Minute Repeater Supersonnerie in titanium. Released in 2019, Audemars Piguet recently released an upgraded variation in September 2021. The variation Mayer owns with the blue dial is currently selling on the secondary market for close to $400,000 USD.
John Mayer’s Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Concept Tourbillon Chronograph 26587TI
The final Royal Oak I am going to feature is definitely the funkiest. Mayer was spotted performing while wearing the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Concept Tourbillon Chronograph Ref. 26587TI. The watch being labeled as a concept has allowed AP to test the boundaries of the Royal Oak line, as you can see from the unique case shape, the skeleton dial and the brand identification sideways at the 3 o’clock position. The watch, however, retains the Royal Oaks signature octagonal bezel and screws. This piece is currently fetching around $300,000 USD on the secondary market.
John Mayer’s Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Flying Tourbillon Titanium
Clearly John Mayer likes to display his superior wrist-wear while performing. Recently, Mayer was spotted wearing a 41mm Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Selfwinding Flying Tourbillon in titanium (Ref. 26530TI). This watch, released in 2020, is AP’s first ever selfwinding tourbillon. The dial is unique for Royal Oaks with a sandblasted grey pattern. The retail price on this piece at launch was 133,000 CHF (or about $144,00 USD). However, these pieces are going for a large premium on the secondary market. If you want to pick one up at market price, you will have to pay between $240,000 and $290,000 USD.
John Mayer’s Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar White Ceramic
I was watching “Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen” the night of April 4, 2022 (don’t ask me why, it wasn’t my decision) and John Mayer happened to be the “bartender” for the guests that evening (apparently he has a long-standing friendship with Cohen). I became instantly curious to determine what Mayer was wearing on his wrist. He didn’t disappoint. Mayer was wearing a white ceramic Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar Ref 26579CB. This piece retails for $135,000 USD but sells on the secondary market for $520,000 USD.
John Mayer’s Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Music Edition 15601BC
Mayer is at it again, showcasing some of the most sought after Royal Oaks. On July 9, 2022, Mayer posted on Instagram a photo from his recent performance in Bristow, Virginia. In the photo Mayer is wearing the 43mm Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Music Edition released just few days ago. This white gold piece, Ref. 15601BC, features a time only blue aventurine dial set with gemstones that showcases VU meter lights (similar to those found on the equalizers of audio mixers and recording consoles). Only an extremely limited number of these pieces were made, and they come at a retail price of $222,000 USD. It makes sense that a musician watch collector would be one of the first people to be allocated this watch. Who’s next to get this watch, Ed Sheeran?
John Mayer’s Patek Philippe Aquanaut Travel Time
I have discussed John Mayer’s Rolex and Audemars Piguets. It makes sense then to discuss the Patek Philippes in Mayer’s collection, and he has quite a few. Mayer has been spotted wearing the Patek Philippe Aquanaut Travel Time Ref. 5164A. The watch is named the Travel Time because it has a Dual time zone mechanism indicating both the local and home time (note the two different hour markers on the dial). The Aquanaut Travel Time currently retails for $39,030 USD but is currently selling on the secondary market for over $150,000 USD.
John Mayer’s Patek Philippe Nautilus 5711/1A-014
It appears that no celebrity’s watch collection is complete without a Patek Philippe Nautilus, and John Mayer has one of the rarest. Shortly after Patek Philippe released the green dial Nautilus Ref. 5711/1A-014, Mayer posted a selfie of himself wearing the highly lusted after timepiece. While this piece retailed for $34,893 USD (I believe all available pieces have been allocated to lucky customers), the watch is selling on the secondary market for around $600,000 USD.
John Mayer’s Patek Philippe Perpetual Calendar 5270G
Beyond Mayer’s sportier Patek Philippes, he also has been spotted wearing a highly complicated Patek Philippe Perpetual Calendar Ref. 5270G in white gold (his is on a gold bracelet). The Perpetual Calendar will correctly adjust for short and long months as well as the 28/29 days of February once every 4 years. Now that’s impressive. You can find a Patek Philippe Perpetual Calendar 5270G on the secondary market for around $170,000 USD.
John Mayer’s Patek Philippe Perpetual Calendar 3970EJ
The final Patek Philippe I will feature from Mayer’s collection is more of a vintage model. The yellow gold Patek Philippe Perpetual Calendar Ref. 3970EJ was first introduced in 1986 and would remain in production for around 20 years. Fairly “affordable” for a perpetual calendar from Patek Philippe, these discontinued pieces sell for upwards of $120,000 USD.
John Mayer’s IWC Big Pilot 5002
One watch brand that Mayer has stated he is a big fan of is IWC. In particular Mayer loves the Big Pilot Ref. 5002. Apparently, the Big Pilot was one of the first luxury watches purchased by Mayer and he has worn it while touring since at least 2002. While we have already gone through most of Mayer’s extensive current collection, the IWC Big Pilot might be the watch that started his obsession. And we are big fans of the Big Pilot ourselves. The Big Pilot from IWC is probably the world’s most famous pilot watch. So if you like the style you should check out the wide range of offerings from IWC. The IWC Big Pilot 5002 has been discontinued, but the current iteration, the IWC Big Pilot Ref. IW501001, retails for $13,200 USD.
John Mayer’s Panerai Luminor 1950 PAM00127
While most of John Mayer’s collection consists of Rolex, Patek Philippe and Audemars Piguet, he has occasionally been spotted wearing other brands. One of these brands is Panerai. Mayer has been spotted wearing the massive (47mm) Panerai Luminor 1950 Ref. PAM00127. Though a modern watch, this piece has a vintage feel with its beautiful domed crystal. The Panerai Luminor 1950 is currently selling on the secondary market for around $16,000 USD.
What About John Mayer’s Yellow Gold ROlex Daytona With Green Dial?
There you have John Mayer’s next-level watch collection. One watch I did not talk about is perhaps the watch that Mayer is best known for. That is the yellow gold Rolex Daytona with green dial Ref. 116508GRSO. This Daytona is sometimes called the John Mayer Daytona because he said years back in an interview with Hodinkee that it was a steal among Rolex watches (this was way before the current price surge). After the interview, the watch began to sore in price, and the price has yet to come down. I haven’t, however, actually found a photo of Mayer wearing the “Mayer” Daytona, so who knows if he actually even owns one. If you really want a Mayer Daytona and you can’t get it at its $37,550 USD retail price, it will cost you $150,000 USD, way above all the other gold Daytonas currently for sale on the secondary market.
If you liked this content, make sure you check the most comprehensive guide of the Best Men’s Watches out there.