Timex date code lookup
On a mechanical Timex the last two digits of the dial code are the year: 2495210592 is 1992. From 1985 a two-character case-back code gives the month too.
The 9–11 digits at the bottom of a mechanical dial, the 2 characters on a 1985+ case back, or the single digit stamped inside an early case back.
Try
Sources checked · How we source numbers
How it works
The dial code, 1963–1993
Mechanical Timex watches carry a reference number at the bottom of the dial, sometimes hidden under the bezel[1]. Its last two digits are the year, the two or three before them the movement, the rest the catalogue number. Our sources don’t say when the movement group has three digits; every dated example uses three[2], so we read three and give the two-digit split as the alternative. The year is the same either way.
The case-back code, from 1985
Two characters give the year and the month. In 1985–1992 they count months 01–96; from 1993 a year letter (A B C D E F G H J K L M N P R S T U V W Y; never I, O, Q, X, Z) is followed by the month: 1–9, 0 for October, the year letter again for November and the next letter for December[1]. The numbers came back in 2014–2021 and the letters in 2022, so most codes have two dates about 29 years apart. That repeat and the November and December letters are read from the table rows, not stated in words; the result marks them “read from a table”.
The ink stamp, 1959–1967
Some early Timex pieces have a purple or black stamp inside the case back[3]; its digit is the year: 8 = 1959, 7 = 1960, 6 = 1961, 5 = 1962, 4 = 1963, 3 = 1964, 2 = 1965, 1 = 1966, 9 = 1967[1].
What we couldn’t verify
- When the dial code’s movement group has two digits rather than three.
- A written rule for the November and December letters: we read them from the table rows.
- Any way to tell the 1985–1992 reading of a case-back code from the 2014–2021 one, other than the watch itself.
Worked examples from the sources
Every example in our sources, run through the decoder (the tests check the same list).
2495210592
from the source
The source says
catalogue 24952, movement 105, year 1992[1]
Our decoder says
1992 open it
26051 10478
from the source
The source says
1978 (year 78; movement 104)[2]
Our decoder says
1978 open it
16550 02574
from the source
The source says
1974 (year 74; movement 025 with leading zero)[2]
Our decoder says
1974 open it
20652 11692
from the source
The source says
1992 (year 92; movement 116)[2]
Our decoder says
1992 open it
3
from the source
The source says
1964[1]
Our decoder says
1964 open it
85
from the source
The source says
January 1992 or January 2021 (same number repeats in the 2014-2021 block, where 85 is in the 2021 row)[1]
Our decoder says
January 1992 or 2021 open it
05
from the source
The source says
May 1985 or May 2014[1]
Our decoder says
May 1985 or 2014 open it
A1
from the source
The source says
January 1993 or January 2022[1]
Our decoder says
January 1993 or 2022 open it
B5
from the source
The source says
May 1994[1]
Our decoder says
May 1994 or 2023 open it
The source quotes the 1994 row; the 2022–2026 rows reuse the letter B, so we show May 2023 as well.
Questions
How do I read a Timex date code?
It depends on where it is. On a mechanical Timex (1963–1993) the number at the bottom of the dial ends in the year's last two digits. From 1985 a two-character code on the case back gives the year and month. Some early pieces have a single digit ink-stamped inside the case back (1959–1967).
What does the number at the bottom of a Timex dial mean?
It is the catalogue number, then the movement number, then the year. 2495210592 reads catalogue 24952, movement 105, year 1992. Movements under 100 are written with a leading zero from 1974, as in 02574.
What year is a Timex with 85 on the case back?
January 1992 or 2021. Timex counted 01–96 through 1985–1992, then used the same numbers again for 2014–2021, so every numeric code has two dates about 29 years apart; the style of the watch decides.
Why does my Timex date code give two years?
Because Timex reused its codes: the numbers 01–96 in 1985–1992 and 2014–2021, the year letters of 1993–2013 again from 2022. B5, for example, is May 1994 or 2023. The code alone can't separate them.
More tools
- Seiko serial number lookupYear digit and month from the serial; the decade from the calibre.
- Bulova date codesA letter for the decade and a digit for the year, from 1950.
- Casio serial number lookupNo date in the serial: the module and model number instead.
- Watch serial number lookupWhat the serial of each brand can and can’t tell you.
Sources
Documents checked · Report a wrong number
- 1Wikibooks (Budget Watch Collecting) — Budget Watch Collecting/Timex date codes · html · read
- 2Vintage Timex Watches — Vintage Timex Watches: Collector's Guide to Models & Dating · html · read
- 3Vintage Timex Watches — Vintage Timex Case-Back Stamped Codes · html · read