Yacht-Master
17 references catalogued, spanning production starts from 1992–2023.
Launched in 1992 and, unusually for Rolex, introduced in gold before steel. It is a sailing watch rather than a diving one: the bezel turns in both directions because a regatta countdown is not a decompression schedule, and the raised polished numerals on a matte ground are meant to be read in glare off water. There has never been a plain-steel version — the bezel is always precious metal — and it has become the line where Rolex tries materials first: the steel-and-platinum pairing it named Rolesium, the first Oysterflex rubber bracelet, RLX titanium.
Generations.
1992–1999
Yellow gold
16628 at 40mm opens the line in full 18k gold with a white dial. Mid-size 35mm and 29mm cases follow in the mid-1990s.1999–present
Rolesium
16622: steel case and bracelet, platinum bezel and dial. The definitive Yacht-Master, succeeded by the blue-dial 116622 in 2012 and the 126622.2015–present
Everose and Oysterflex
116655 at Baselworld 2015 pairs Everose gold with a matte black Cerachrom bezel and the Oysterflex bracelet — Rolex's first rubber strap, an elastomer skin over a titanium-nickel blade.2019–present
Yacht-Master 42
226659 brings white gold and the line's largest case in 2019; yellow gold 226658 follows, and the 226627 puts the 42mm case in RLX titanium in 2023.Browse the Yacht-Master collection.
Oldest to newest
References without production years are catalogued but do not yet carry a verified production record. Those fields are added as they are confirmed rather than estimated.