Every gold watch from a major brand is 18k, meaning 75 percent pure gold. What differs is the other 25 percent. Brands use that quarter of the alloy to control color, hardness, and how the metal ages, and some have trademarked their recipes. In this article, we'll go over the different alloys and how they differ from one another

Why the alloy matters

Pure gold is too soft for a watch case. The added metals, usually copper, silver, palladium, or platinum, give it strength. Copper is what makes gold pink or red. The problem is copper reacts with chlorine, sweat, and sea water, and over years a rose gold watch can lose its warmth and drift toward pale yellow. The proprietary alloys below exist mainly to stop that.

Everose (Rolex)

Introduced in 2005, cast in Rolex's own foundry. An 18k pink gold with a small amount of platinum added to the mix. The platinum locks the copper in place so the color doesn't fade. Rolex uses it across the Day-Date, Daytona, Sky-Dweller, and Yacht-Master lines, and it's the only pink gold Rolex sells.

View this Rolex as an example

Sedna (Omega)

Omega's rose gold, launched in 2013. Gold, copper, and palladium. The palladium does the same job platinum does in Everose, holding the red tone over time. Named after a reddish dwarf planet. Found on the Seamaster, Speedmaster, and Constellation.

View this Omega as an example

Moonshine (Omega)

Omega's yellow gold, introduced in 2019. Paler than standard 3N yellow gold, closer to the color of moonlight than sunlight, which is where the name comes from. Formulated to resist fading and to take a brighter polish. It's the alloy on the gold Moonwatch and the Speedmaster Moonshine editions.

View this Omega as an example 

Canopus (Omega)

Worth knowing since it's often confused. Canopus is Omega's white gold: gold, palladium, rhodium, and platinum. Whiter than standard white gold and doesn't need rhodium plating to stay that way.

5N (industry standard, not a brand)

5N is not proprietary. It's a color grade on a scale used across Swiss watchmaking. 1N is pale yellow, 2N and 3N are standard yellow, 4N is pink, and 5N is the deepest red rose gold. Vacheron Constantin, Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet, and Chopard all use 5N rose gold and say so in their specifications. When a listing says 5N, it's telling you the color, not the recipe.

View this Vacheron Constantine as an example

Others worth knowing

• Honey Gold (A. Lange and Söhne): a harder 18k gold with a warm tone between yellow and rose. Used only on limited references.
• King Gold (Hublot): 5N red gold with 5 percent platinum, which is essentially the same idea as Everose.
• Fairmined gold (Chopard): ethically sourced, not a different alloy. Chopard uses it in standard 5N and yellow formulations.

 

What this means for you as the buyer

All of these are 18k and carry the same gold content. Melt value is identical. The differences show up over years of wear. A 2008 Everose Daytona will look the same color as a 2024 one. A 1990s rose gold watch from a brand using a plain copper alloy may have gone noticeably paler. Rolex and Omega guarantee color stability. Brands using standard 5N do not, though modern 5N alloys hold up far better than older ones.

Hardness is the other factor. Everose and Honey Gold scratch slightly less than standard 18k. None of them resist scratches the way steel does, and polishing a gold case removes metal that doesn't come back.

To learn more about the differences, get in touch with us and our team will be able to help you source the right watch