Luxury belts

What decides it

Width: 3 to 3.5 cm suits tailoring; 3.5 to 4 cm suits jeans and casual wear. Leather: full-grain leather lasts decades; bonded or split leather cracks. Buckle: a quiet buckle is more versatile than a large logo, which tends to date.

The pieces we would buy

Start with the Hermès H Belt Reversible 32 mm: reversible leather strap with H buckle. The Anderson’s Woven Belt is the better buy if you want versatile. Usual prices run from $180 to $3,500. See the full buy-or-skip list or the head-to-head Hermès H Belt Reversible 32 mm vs Anderson’s Woven Belt.

Buying in the US and Europe

Order one size up from your trouser waist (or as the brand advises): belt sizes are measured to the middle hole. Buying in Europe: European prices include VAT, and many Italian and French makers of sunglasses, gloves and leather goods sell for less at home than in the US. Check the warranty and repair service before buying across borders.

Quick answers

Are logo belts in style? They come and go. A plain buckle or a reversible belt with a small logo works for longer. What size belt should I buy? Usually one size up from your trouser size, so it closes on the middle hole.

Luxury prices move in a different rhythm from everyday shopping. The great houses (Chanel, Hermès, Louis Vuitton, Dior, Rolex) raise prices once or twice a year, often in January and in spring, and almost never discount their icons. Seasonal pieces, colors and many shoes, coats and knitwear drop 30–50% in the end-of-season sales in January and from late June. Watches from brands such as Omega, TAG Heuer, Longines and Breitling, and most fragrance, see the best prices around Prime Day and Black Friday. Judge any deal against the usual price we show.

Buy from the fashion house, an authorized retailer or a reseller that authenticates and guarantees every piece, and keep the receipt, the dust bag, the box and any warranty card: they matter for repairs and for resale. Swiss watches carry a 2- to 5-year international warranty when bought from an authorized dealer, and buyers in the EU and UK also have a legal guarantee of at least two years on new goods.

How we make the call: we read the house’s own product details and care guides, compare materials and construction, follow owners’ long-term experience and track the usual retail and resale prices. A piece gets “Buy” only if we would tell a friend to spend that money on it. No fashion house can pay for a verdict.