A Guide to Omega Watch References

As you descend deeper in the rabbit hole that is the world of horology, one of the most difficult things to start to get to grips with is when in conversation people start referring to watches by their reference numbers.

In some instances, this can be very helpful (if you know them, you know exactly what someone is talking about) however if you don’t, it rapidly becomes very confusing. Some brands use quite simple reference numbers – for instance most Patek Philippe timepieces can be referred to using a 4-digit number; if you talk to someone about the 5711, the odds are they will know exactly what you mean.

One of the most daunting brands I personally find for references is Omega, who use a much longer number. For instance, 215.90.46.51.99.001 or 311.92.44.30.01.001… any ideas? No? Then read on, as in this article we look at how to decode the Omega watch references, Product Information Codes, or PICs.

Omega Watch References Guide

Before we dive into the Omega watch references, let’s take a step back and quickly look at what exactly a watch reference number is. Each manufacturer, especially those with larger annual production volumes, will (generally speaking) have a catalogue of watches available at a given time, which can be split amongst a variety of collections.

Over time, these collections will evolve, with new pieces being added to collections, older pieces being discontinued from them, and even entire collections being established and discontinued. Given the pressure for brands to release new pieces each year, it is easy to imagine how quickly the numbers of individual models grows – over time, this will of course become incredibly difficult to manage.

The common solution to this is to allocate each and every single watch model its own unique reference identifier. Given the number of references/identifiers will be a one to one match with the number of unique models, it makes perfect sense that these reference numbers are produced using a consistent method, such that if a number is presented it can be used to decipher exactly which watch somebody is talking about. Brand will, of course, achieve this on their own unique ways which work for them.

So, perhaps all of a sudden, the aforementioned 215.90.46.51.99.001 or 311.92.44.30.01.001 Omega watch reference numbers are starting to look less daunting….

The ‘proper’ name for an Omega watch reference is the ‘Product Information Code’ or PIC. You might have already noticed that each of these codes adhere to a specific format, with the use of a dot (.) to create 6 distinct sections in a format of AAA.BB.CC.DD.EE.FFF. Each of these 6 sections of course has its own meaning to help define the watch they describe, and once you know these (or even just a couple of them) everything starts to fall into place.

Below you will find what each of these sections refers to, and the difference options available for them, and at the end of the article we will demonstrate this with a couple of worked examples.

OMEGA PRODUCT INFORMATION CODE / REFERENCE KEY
SECTION (AAA.BB.CC.DD.EE.FFF)	MEANING
AAA = COLLECTION	130 = Globemaster 131 = Constellation 210/212 = Seamaster Diver 300M 215 = Seamaster Planet Ocean 600M 220 = Seamaster Aqua Terra/Railmaster 225 = Seamaster Bullhead 227 Seamaster PloProf 233/234 = Seamaster 300 304/311 = Speedmaster Moonwatch 318 = Speedmaster X-33 324 = Speedmaster 38 327 = Speedmaster MkII 329 = Speedmaster Racing 331 = Speedmaster ‘57 424 = De Ville Prestige 425 = De Ville Ladymatic 428/435 = De Ville Trésor 433 = De Ville Hour Vision 511 = Seamaster 1948 editions 528/529 = De Ville Tourbillon
BB = CASE & BRACELET/STRAP MATERIAL	10 = Steel case and bracelet 11 = Steel + Other metal 12 = Steel + Non-metal 13 = Steel + Non-metal (CITES) 15 = Steel Paved case and bracelet 16 = Steel Paved + Other metal 17 = Steel Paved + Non-metal 18 = Steel Paved + Non-metal (CITES) 20 = Steel/Gold case and bracelet 21 = Steel/Gold + Other metal 22 = Steel/Gold + Non-metal 23 = Steel/Gold + Non-metal (CITES) 25 = Steel/Gold Paved case and bracelet 26 = Steel/Gold Paved + Other metal 27 = Steel/Gold Paved + Non-metal 28 = Steel/Gold Paved + Non-metal (CITES) 30 = Steel/Other case and bracelet 31 = Steel/Other + Other metal 32 = Steel/Other + Non-metal 33 = Steel/Other + Non-metal (CITES) 35 = Steel/Other Paved case and bracelet 36 = Steel/Other Paved + Other metal 37 = Steel/Other Paved + Non-metal 38 = Steel/Other Paved + Non-metal (CITES) 50 = Gold case and bracelet 51 = Gold + Other metal 52 = Gold + Non-metal 53 = Gold + Non-metal (CITES) 55 = Gold Paved case and bracelet 56 = Gold Paved + Other metal 57 = Gold Paved + Non-metal 58 = Gold Paved + Non-metal (CITIES) 60 = Gold/Other case and bracelet 61 = Gold/Other + Other metal 62 = Gold/Other + Non-metal 63 = Gold/Other + Non-metal (CITES) 65 = Gold/Other Paved case and bracelet 66 = Gold/Other Paved + Other metal 67 = Gold/Other Paved + Non-metal 68 = Gold/Other Paved + Non-metal (CITES) 90 = Other Material case and bracelet 91 = Other Material + Other metal 92 = Other Material + Non-metal 93 = Other Material + Non-metal (CITES) 95 = Other Material Paved case and bracelet 96 = Other Material Paved + Other metal 97 = Other Material Paved + Non-metal 98 = Other Material Paved + Non-metal (CITES)
CC = CASE DIAMETER (ROUNDED UP TO 2 DIGITS)	EXAMPLES: 39.5mm case = 40 43mm case = 43
DD = MOVEMENT & COMPLICATIONS	MOVEMENT: D – 0 = Mechanical 1 =Mechanical chronometer 2 = Mechanical (Co-Axial) 3 = Mechanical chronograph 4 = Mechanical chronograph chronometer 5 = Mechanical chronograph (Co-Axial) 6 = Quartz 7 = Quartz chronograph	COMPLICATIONS: – D 0 = 0 complications 1 = 1 complication 2 = 2 complications … up to … 9 = 9 complications (Complications beyond hour/minute/second/date. Does not include a chronograph, which is denoted by the first digit)
EE = DIAL DESCRIPTION	01 = Black 02 = Silver 03 = Blue 04 = White 05 = White mother-of-pearl 06 = Gray 07 = Coloured mother-of-pearl 08 = Champagne 09 = Ivory 10 = Other colour 11 = Red 12 = Yellow 13 = Brown 51 = Black + precious stones 52 = Silver + precious stones 53 = Blue + precious stones 54 = White + precious stones 55 = White mother-of-pearl + precious stones 56 = Gray + precious stones 57 = Coloured mother-of-pearl + precious stones 58 = Champagne + precious stones 59 = Ivory + precious stones 60 = Other colour + precious stones 61 = Red + precious stones 62 = Yellow + precious stones 63 = Brown + precious stones 64 = Sapphires 99 = Fully Paved/special materials
FFF = SEQUENCE NUMBER	EXAMPLES: 001, 002, 003

Using this, lets now break down the references we looked at earlier:

215.90.46.51.99.001 = Seamaster Planet Ocean 600M (215) . Other material + other metal (90) . 46mm (46) . Mechanical chronograph (Co-Axial) with 1 additional complication (51) . Fully paved or special materials dial (99) . Sequence number 1 (001)

This PIC describes a 45.5mm Planet Ocean with titanium case, bracelet and dial, that has a co-axial chronograph and additional small seconds complication