Two of the world's most known watch brands go head-to-head in a battle of the brands.

Cartier VS Breitling: Which is Better?

Which is a better watch brand, Breitling or Cartier? This question can be answered in certain ways depending on the context. So let's answer all of them. These two luxury brands are both very popular and are often considered when looking for an extravagant watch from a well-known Swiss watchmaker. You may be considering a purchase and want to find out which is a better watch, Breitling or Cartier.

Both brands produce some really great watches. That being said,  let's find out if it's Cartier or Breitling that is the best brand for you.

We created two buttons in advance that link to each brand would you wish to visually compare their products while reading this comparison. You can click on either one of the buttons to open a new tab so you can see them side by side.

Which Brand is Better, Cartier, or Breitling?

There are 16 watch brands that are ranked in the top 50 Swiss brands. This will give you an idea of just how important watchmaking is in Switzerland as well as how popular these brands really are. This is how Cartier VS Breitling compares in terms of recognition.

Cartier Versus Breitling Comparison

Cartier is the 59th most famous brand worldwide with a brand value of around 10.6 billion U.S. dollars. Even though that all doesn't come from their magnificent watches. They were first and foremost known for very elegant jewelry design. 

Breitling is in position number 41 of the same top 50 Swiss brands making Breitling the 15th most famous Swiss watch brand in the world. Are they a big brand? Yes! Very big, and for years. People just choose the Cartier brand more.

A typical Cartier watch is easy to spot and often can be recognized with its signature Roman numerals on a guilloche dial and often with blue cabochon winding crowns. Is Breitling a good watch? Yes. It’s a great wristwatch that's built tougher than many others. In fact, anyone who recognizes anything at all about watches would know that a Breitling is also an excellent watch. Still, you will hear more compliments about Cartier often since a bigger percentage of people (many of which are not "watch lovers") will remember the Cartier name compared to Breitling.

Breitling VS Cartier Prices

Cartier Prices start at only a little more than the economical Breitling. For now, the cheapest new Cartier would be the Cartier Tank Solo Quartz women's watch for the ladies and the Cartier Tank Solo automatic watches which cost about $500 more. They use an automatic caliber and are purely mechanical movements.

Breitling Prices start at less than Cartier watch prices. With more economical watches for men such as the Men's 44mm Colt Quartz model for around $900 or the 45mm Colt Skyracer model or more than the women's Colt watches. These Breitling watches are in several categories and use cost-effective battery-powered quartz actions that add higher precision at a lower production cost. Is Breitling considered to be a modern watch brand? Yes, but they are also outranked by several other more superior market brands.

Breitling or Cartier: Which Holds Value Best?

Do Breitling watches hold their value? There is a direct equivalence between the value of a brand, the popularity of a brand, and the resale value. While there are some watches that have a bigger sale price for other reasons such as the oddity or iconic status of a watch; as a general rule, the better the brand the more you'll get back when trying to resell it. This is true with nearly all products, not just watches. 

In terms of the street price of Cartier watches, you really can't paint an answer with a broad brush. Still, in terms of the percentage of what you paid in first place for a Cartier or Breitling versus what you can resell it for, you will often get more when selling your Cartier watches compared to selling your Breitling watch. It is dare I say a more famous brand with a richer history and was historically used by royalty and the social elite.

Now, as to why you'd want to resell a Cartier or Breitling watch? Beats me. Anyway, let's take a look at the most typical reasons why some people would (or wouldn't) buy a Cartier or a Breitling watch.

Pros & Cons of buying Breitling watches

PROS

• They have prestige for being very professional watches like the Breitling Navitimer 01 which is designed for pilots, aeronauts such as astronauts, search and rescue operations, military personnel, and more
• Breitling even has some smartwatches such as the Exospace B55 watches which are smartwatches designed with special smart features for pilots and aerospace professionals
• Breitling has a watch with a distress beacon and locator which is great if emergencies appear
• They are slightly more affordable than Cartiers
• There are literally thousands of models from which you can choose from
• They're rare in the sense that you can choose the exact strap you want on every single watch
• They have quite a few limited edition watches and special edition watches
• Breitling has some different rubber strap options available and you can have a rubber strap on any watch of theirs. Although for now, Cartier only has a few rubber strap options and as of the day this is written they are found in the Caliber de Cartier Diver series.
• Breitling also has quartz models that offer more accuracy and needs less maintenance than mechanical watches.
• Breitling offers a 5-year assurance on their watches unlike Cartier which only offers a 2-year assurance

CONS

• They are a very famous watch brand but not as much of a prestigious watch brand as Cartier since, in addition to watches, Cartier also accomplishment very high-end jewelry
• They often don't hold the same resale price as Cartier watches
• They don't generate as many super high-priced blingy models as Cartier (if that's what you're looking for)
• Some believe that Breitling only produces tool watches. While Breitling does position their brand to create watches for professionals, they also happen to be excellent watchmakers and generate many watches that are certified Chronometers, the highest designation given to a Swiss watch. Even their quartz watches are a cut above the rest with their COSC certified Quartz Chronometers; something unusual in the industry.

As you can see from the above pros and cons that through its rare product line, Breitling has positioned its brand in the luxury watch market as a manufacturer that produces watches for professionals. Some even have unique features tailored to specific situations. They have many high-quality tool watches that are customizable with several types of bands. They are competitively priced.

Pros & Cons of buying Cartier watches

PROS

• They are one of the world's top 100 most famous brands albeit mainly for their luxury jewelry 
• They have, in general, a slightly better average resale price than many other luxury watch brands
• This should not come as a surprise but, Cartier, being a high-end jeweler has many blingy models with diamond bezels, pavé dials (paved with diamonds), precious metals of all sorts such as gold and platinum...if you would like that
• A lot high-complication models such as the "Poinçon de Genève" certified Rotonde de Cartier Grande Complication Skeleton
• They generate many unique and imaginative pieces such as the Cartier Atromystérieux
• Cartier also introduced many horological innovations as an alternative to the tourbillon complication such as the Astro Regulateur movement.

CONS

• They are often less affordable than Breitlings
• You can't choose the exact strap as you can with Breitling
• They don't have as many limited edition watches and special edition watches
• Breitling has certain different rubber strap options more than Cartier
• Cartier doesn't offer any smartwatches nor have they hinted at the idea that they ever will yet
• They don't offer a 5-year assurance like Breitling watches and instead offer only a 2-year warranty