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Few watches are as captivating as chiming watches. These watches, also called striking watches, chime the time on demand or as the hours pass using gongs (hammers) in the movement. These complicated watch movements contain hundreds of components, and it can take up to 300 hours for a highly trained watchmaker to assemble the movement. Creating loud, clear sound is also a challenge for watchmakers, as the cases naturally muffle the chimes within. Only the best luxury watch brands can make chiming watches, and only their best watchmakers are qualified to assemble them. 

A Guide to Chiming Watches: Minute Repeaters and More

What Are the Different Types of Chiming Watches?

The main types of chiming watches are alarm, minute repeater, grande sonnerie, and petite sonnerie watches. 

Alarm Watches

True to their name, alarm watches have an alarm function. You can set the alarm and it will chime at the designated time. 

Minute Repeaters

A minute repeater chimes the hours, quarter hours, and minutes using two gongs with different tones: one low, one high. First, the minute repeater chimes the hour using low tones, then the quarter hours using a combination of low and high tones, and, finally, the minutes using high tones. For example, 12:49 would chime as 12 low tones, three alternating low and high tones, and nine high tones. You can activate a repeating watch on demand with a slide or a button integrated into the case. Each day has 1,440 minutes, so these watches are programmed to play 720 different sequences on demand, one for each minute in the 12-hour period shown on the watch. 

Grande Sonnerie

Like a bell tower or a grandfather clock, a grande sonnerie strikes the number of hours every full hour, and it also strikes the quarter hour along with the hour automatically. It requires a huge amount of energy to chime that many times a day, so they are impressive and complicated movements. They typically have two mainspring barrels — one for the time, one for the striking — with different levels of power reserve. These watches also have silent modes so that you don’t have chimes interrupting you every 15 minutes. Most brands combine grandes sonneries with minute repeaters so you can also chime the time on demand. 

Petite Sonnerie

A petite sonnerie strikes the hour and quarter hours but does not chime both at the same time like a grande sonnerie. It chimes only the hours on the hour, and only the quarter hour on the quarter hour, except on the hour itself.

A. Lange & Söhne Zeitwerk Minute Repeater ref. 145.050

A. Lange & Söhne is famous for its outsize “digital” numerical display, which is inspired by a unique clock in the Semperoper opera house in Dresden, Germany. Pairing this special display type with a striking mechanism resulted in the Zeitwerk Minute Repeater, the world’s first mechanical timepiece to combine such a readout with a decimal minute repeater, which sounds the time on demand. Available in several metals, it’s particularly fetching in a stunning Honeygold edition of just 30 pieces with a beautiful gray dial. A twin mainspring barrel delivers enough power for both timekeeping and the minute repeater function, which is engaged via a button on the left case flank. Several safety mechanisms ensure the delicate movement cannot be damaged when using the repeater, while a patented, constant-force escapement between the barrel and the balance regulates energy transfer. 

Patek Philippe Ref. 5178G Minute Repeater

Though its stepped case and applied white gold Breguet numerals are perhaps more reminiscent of a classically inspired watch, the incredible, flinqué blue grand feu enamel dial of Patek Philippe’s Ref. 5178G Minute Repeater is decidedly contemporary. Measuring 40mm in white gold, this magnificent chiming watch features a swirling, hand-guillochéd pattern beneath its transparent blue enamel dial, which is built upon an 18K gold dial plate. Powered by the Patek Philippe cal. R 27 PS automatic movement with micro-rotor, it features a minute repeater complication with two cathedral gongs, as well as a small-seconds display above 6 o’clock. An outer chemin de fer minute track in white and a white gold Breguet handset complete the elegant dial, while a matching peacock-blue alligator leather strap with contrast stitching makes for a cohesive package. Elegant and pared back, its dial belies the sophistication within. 

H. Moser & Cie. Streamliner Concept Minute Repeater Tourbillon Blue Enamel

H. Moser & Cie’s Streamliner manages to maintain the “luxury sports watch” integrated-bracelet trope while simultaneously delivering a package that feels playful, contemporary, and highly wearable. The Streamliner Concept Minute Repeater Tourbillon Blue Enamel, however, goes beyond typical luxury sports watch territory by integrating several notable attributes into a single watch.

It features a gorgeous deep blue grand feu enamel dial, a minute repeater with visible gongs between 10 and 11 o’clock, and a tourbillon, visible on the dial above 6 o’clock — making it an impressive grand complication watch. (With the exception of a luminous handset, the dial is otherwise devoid of any extraneous ornamentation, giving its full real estate over to these dual complications.) Activated by a button on the case flank, the manually wound HMC 905 movement does its thing while offering an impressive 90 hours of power reserve. Of course, the watch features the Stremamliner’s handsome, serpentine integrated bracelet, executed here in brushed stainless steel.

Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Minute Repeater Supersonnerie

This Audemars Piguet 42mm black ceramic sports watch may look like your average, run-of-the-mill Royal Oak, but it holds a secret. Namely, a supersonnerie complication, which chimes the hours at the top of every hour, as well as the time upon command. Little of its captivatingly sophisticated inner workings — save for a subtle slide activator on the left-hand flank — is visible on the dial or case of the Royal Oak Minute Repeater Supersonnerie. Other than that, a glare-proof sapphire crystal protects a black Grand Tapisserie dial with applied white gold baton indices, a matching luminous baton handset, and a small-seconds display above 6 o’clock. (Unlike many other watches on this list, the chiming gongs remain hidden.) Outfitted with a black rubber strap with a titanium AP folding clasp and powered by the hand-wound Calibre 2953 with 72 hours of power resistance, it’s a subtle, sporty take on a poetic complication.  

Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Control Memovox

Since its debut in the 1950s, the Jaeger-LeCoultre Memovox has been an icon in alarm watches. With its signature dual-crown design, 3 o’clock date window, and inner rotating alarm-setting disc, this simple-to-operate model has “buzzed” the time for 70-plus years, with vintage models captivating successive generations of watch collectors. The current-generation Memovox, part of JLC’s Master Control line, is housed in a 40mm stainless steel case measuring 12.39mm tall. Its sunray-brushed silver-gray dial — outfitted with rhodium-polished, applied indices and hour markers and a dauphine handset — features a central alarm disc controlled via the 4 o’clock crown. Inside the watch (and visible via a sapphire caseback) is the automatic Calibre 956, a single-barrel design composed of 271 components that provides 44 hours of power reserve. Paired to a light-brown calfskin leather strap, this handsome alarm watch is an ideal alternative to a constantly beeping smartphone.

Chopard L.U.C Full Strike Titanium

No expense has been spared to bring the Chopard L.U.C Full Strike — which won the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de “Genève’s Aiguille d’Or” (best in show) award in 2017 — into the 2020s in spectacular fashion. Crafted from ceramized titanium and measuring just 11.55mm tall, its pocket watch-like shape houses a spectacular gray-green “Verdigris” dial with a beautifully frosted center, an outer chemin de fer minute track, gray applied indices and a matching handset, dual power reserve indicators between 1 and 3 o’clock, a small seconds indicator above 6 o’clock, and visible movement components (including dual gongs) between 8 and 11 o’clock. 

Able to chime the hours, quarter hours, and minutes, it has a hand-wound L.U.C 08.01-L8 movement that comprises no fewer than 533 components and has earned the coveted Poinçon de Genève for its construction and finishing. It has a gray alligator leather strap with a titanium folding clasp, the L.U.C Full Strike titanium in gray-green is a true showstopper. 

Jaquet Droz Bird Repeater

The 18th and 19th centuries saw incredible horological inventions in the form of automata — mechanical contraptions that perform complex movements, often in imitation of the natural world, upon command. One such automaton involves small mechanical birds that emerge from a housing to “chirp” via a movement, the chirping sounding stunningly close to actual birdsong. The Bird Repeater from Jaquet Droz honors the maison’s 18th-century watchmaker founder by incorporating an ornithologically themed automaton with a minute repeater in a wristwatch. 

At 47mm wide in red gold, it’s by no means compact, but considering the incredible mechanical show displayed when one depresses the slide on the case’s left flank, this heft is a small price to pay. Powered by the hand-wound Jaquet Droz RMA88 movement, hand-painted and engraved birds move and “feed” their chicks while a set of gongs chimes the time. Ingenious and beautiful, it harkens back to a time of handcraft, patience, and ingenuity. 

Omega Speedmaster Chrono Chime

One of the most unique takes on the minute repeater is Omega’s spectacular Speedmaster Chrono Chime, launched in 2022. Inspired by the maison’s timekeeping equipment used at the 1932 Olympics in Los Angeles — it’s also available in pocket watch form — this fascinating watch combines the Speedy’s chronograph complication with a minute repeater that chimes the elapsed time. Developing the Co-Axial Master Chronometer Calibre 1932 — the brand’s most complicated movement — took six years and saw Omega partner with Blancpain, another company owned by the Swatch Group. Measuring 45mm in Sedna Gold and topping out at a whopping 17.37mm tall, it features a gorgeous aventurine dial and a set of exposed gongs beneath the 9 o’clock chronograph totalizer. When engaged by a button at 8 o’clock, the 5 Hz movement audibly chimes the elapsed chronograph time. We challenge you to find a cooler use of $525,900!

Bulgari Octo Finissimo Minute Repeater

Similarly to Audemars Piguet with its Royal Oak Minute Repeater Supersonnerie, Bulgari took a sportier approach to its Octo Finissimo Minute Repeater, casing it in an ultra-thin sandblasted 40mm housing with stepped lugs and the collection’s signature octagonal shape. Within this case is an openworked matte-gray dial in sandwich construction — the slit baton and numerical indices show the movement beneath, as does the cutaway forming the small-seconds indicator above 6 o’clock. (This design also serves to amplify the sound coming from the striking mechanism within.) Beneath the dial is the 3.12mm hand-wound BVL 362 movement, whose circular gongs are fashioned by hand and affixed directly to the watch case, while a patterned blue FKM rubber strap finishes the picture. Handsome with a distinct Brutalist influence, the Octo Finissimo Minute Repeater is a brilliant modern twist to the chiming complication. 

Carl F. Bucherer Manero Minute Repeater Symphony

Family-owned watchmaker Carl F. Bucherer crafted its Manero Minute Repeater Symphony based upon peripheral winding technology it patented in 2008. Combining this system with a peripherally suspended floating tourbillon and a peripherally mounted minute repeater mechanism, the brand has created a sophisticated timepiece that shows a level of savoir faire visible only at the highest levels of the haute horlogerie sphere. Examining the 18K white gold electroplated and grain-pattern dial, one can view said mechanism, as well as the watch’s dual gongs above and flanking 6 o’clock, respectively. The floating tourbillon, visible below 6 o’clock, sits above a small dial cutout that shows a musical note when the minute repeater is activated, and a blue dot when the crown is pulled out, preventing damage to the movement. Housed in a 43.8mm rose gold case with a sapphire caseback, the automatic CFB MR3000 movement provides 65 hours of power reserve.