Is It Okay to Swim in a Gold Rolex?

When Rolex unveiled its yellow gold Deepsea, reactions were mixed. Price aside, many questioned the logic behind crafting a deep-diving tool watch from solid gold. It’s a fair point. When you picture a serious dive watch, it’s usually in steel or titanium—metals long associated with utility and resilience. Gold, on the other hand, is still largely seen as a symbol of luxury.

But when it comes to swimming and diving, the science—and a few real-world examples—paint a more reassuring picture. Let’s start with the basics.

Can You Swim With a Gold Watch?

Short answer: yes, you can. Gold is one of the least reactive elements on the periodic table. Pure gold doesn’t rust or tarnish, even when exposed to water or air. So if you're swimming in clean water, your gold watch should be fine from a corrosion standpoint.

However, most gold watches aren’t made from pure gold. Rolex, for example, uses 18-carat gold—an alloy containing other metals like silver and copper, which are more susceptible to corrosion. And while seawater is usually less aggressive than a chlorinated swimming pool, both environments can affect these alloys over time.

Chlorine in particular poses more of a threat. Gold is still fairly resistant to it, but repeated exposure to the chemical cocktail found in pools can cause wear over time. So while your 18ct Rolex isn’t about to disintegrate during a few laps, you’ll want to rinse it with fresh water afterwards—especially if it’s been in a pool.

In short: if it’s 18ct and well-sealed, it’ll hold up fine. But rinsing after a swim (especially in chlorinated water) is good practice.

Of course, you don’t have to take our word for it. Two diving legends have put gold Rolexes through far worse.

Bret Gilliam and the Gold Submariner ref. 1680

Bret Gilliam was a pioneer in professional diving, known for advancing SCUBA safety and accessibility from the 1970s onward. Over his career, he authored or co-authored over 70 books and more than 1,500 articles on diving. If you want a deeper dive into his story, read Cole Pennington’s piece The Man With The Golden Sub.

In 1980, Rolex offered Gilliam an 18ct yellow gold Submariner ref. 1680 at a discount to wear in an upcoming documentary on humpback whales. He took the offer—but the gold Sub wasn’t reserved for film appearances. Gilliam wore it relentlessly for decades.

His Submariner survived a shark attack (it bears a bezel chip from the encounter) and accompanied him on two record-setting compressed air dives in 1990 and 1993. The watch became part of his diving uniform. If a gold Sub was good enough for Bret Gilliam, odds are yours can handle your next swim.

Dr Sylvia Earle and Her Gold Rolex Datejust ref. 178248

Dr Sylvia Earle is one of the most respected figures in marine science. A biologist, explorer, and conservationist, she’s spent over seven decades studying and protecting the ocean. She was Time Magazine’s first-ever “Hero for the Planet” in 1998, and founded Mission Blue, a global initiative focused on marine conservation. She’s earned TED prizes, lifetime achievement awards, and a long list of honorary degrees. The woman is a legend.

Earle began diving in 1951 and still dives regularly today. In a ScubaPro interview, she remarked: “I still breathe, so of course I still dive.”

Having seen dive watches evolve over generations, Earle’s current daily dive companion might come as a surprise. It’s not a Submariner or a Sea-Dweller, but an 18ct yellow gold Datejust 31 ref. 178248.

Thanks to Jason Heaton’s 2017 field report from Cabo Pulmo, we’ve got visual proof. During a dive together, Heaton wore a borrowed Sea-Dweller ref. 126600, and Earle wore her Datejust. At one point, Earle glanced at the Sea-Dweller and said, “Ah, you're wearing the real thing... I’ve got a couple of those. I wear mine on expeditions.”

Translation: for everyday diving, the gold Datejust works just fine. The “proper” dive watches are saved for more extreme conditions.

Final Thoughts

If Sylvia Earle is diving in a gold Datejust and Bret Gilliam logged record-breaking depths with a gold Submariner, your yellow gold Deepsea will be just fine at the local pool or on holiday in the Med.

Should you give it a rinse after? Definitely. Should you think twice before jumping into a chlorinated pool every day with it? Maybe. But gold Rolexes were built to be worn—even in the water.

So if you’ve been hesitant to swim with yours, rest easy. It can take it.