With the increasing quality and attention to detail of the counterfeit, black market handbag industry, authenticating pre-owned Chanel bags has become an art and science. It used to be as simple as asking, “does the bag come with an authenticity card?” However, really good fakes, or “super fakes”, come with their own fake but very convincing authenticity cards. 

Experts with several years of Chanel authentication experience will look at everything: bag’s quilting, hardware, material choice, stamps and holograms, letter embossing among other things.

If you love Chanel but do not have years of authentication experience, the following is a detailed guide on the science of authenticating Chanel handbags--something you can quickly refer to at home or when you're on the go. 

Because authenticating Chanel is also an art that takes years to develop--like recognizing the smell, texture, weight, flexibility and knowing how vintage bags age--we recommend that you always get your bag professionally authenticated, or purchase from a reputable reseller with an authenticity guarantee.  

The year the bag was made is determined by the amount of digits in the serial number, and the first digit(s) in that serial number. If your bag has 8 digits, it was produced between late 2005-current. 

For 8 digit serial numbers, the year is determined by the first two digits (i.e. 24XXXXXX corresponds to late 2017-early 2018). If your bag has a 7 digit serial number, the year of production is determined by the first digit (i.e. 6XXXXXX corresponds to 2000-2002.) 

If the serial number on a bag does not follow the Chanel formula or has more than 8 digits it is most certainly a fake. In rare cases you can find vintage Chanel bags with a 6-digit serial number. Most bags made in 1986 had a 7-digit number starting with zero, but in very early 1986 bags the leading zero was skipped where a 6-digit number started with a 1 or 2.

Chanel’s 2020 date code on their handbags is 30XXXXXX. If your handbag’s date code starts with 27XXXXXX, 28XXXXXX or 29XXXXXX, then it was made in mid/late 2019.  

Of course, the Chanel formula is readily available information, so advanced counterfeiters could create a serial number that fits the table above. Pay attention to the font, the sparkles and the x cutout in the hologram. You need to examine the serial number sticker more carefully: it will never be a plain, boring sticker that looks out of place. 

Authentic Chanel serial number stickers will contain a combination of CC logo markings, an ‘X’ shape cut into the tape to prevent removal without damage, and little reflective speckles in the tape. 

Also, if you find "Chanel" printed at the top or the bottom of the sticker it is not a real Chanel handbag. It is a common trait among counterfeit stickers. "Chanel" is supposed to be printed on the side of the sticker.

Pictured: examples of authentic Chanel date codes. Note how they combine several unique identification and safety features: iridescent speckles, CC logos and 'X' scores on the plastic. They are usually found either on a small leather tab such as in the bottom left example, inside of an interior pocket or tucked into a corner of the bag's interior.

When you buy Chanel, you’re getting not only the highest grade materials, but also meticulous craftsmanship. The stitching should be flawless, with no loose threads, bumps or otherwise any irregularities. 

Chanel bags also feature high stitch count: in most cases there should be 10 or more stitches per edge of the diamond quilting. This keeps the bag sturdy and also prevents puffiness from the leather. Exact stitch count can vary with the type of Chanel bag, but if you see unusually low stitch count, it is likely a fake.

This is not a golden rule, however. You will come across some authentic Chanel quilted handbags with less than 10 stitches per diamond edge - typically smaller bags or styles different from 2.55.

Chanel’s hardware is in a class of its own, giving the bag an ultra-luxurious aura. This is where a lot of counterfeiters come up short as they cannot replicate Chanel’s quality. 

Even the counterfeiters who are able to use higher quality materials and construction - counterfeit bags known as “super fakes” - they often lack the attention to detail applied to authentic Chanel bags. Here is what to look for. 

Open the flap and inspect the back of the CC lock plate. If you confirmed that the bag is vintage based on the serial number, you shouldn’t be surprised to find flathead screws on the lock plate. 

The more modern Chanel bags feature proprietary six-point star-shaped screws. If you see philips-head screws, (the ‘X’ shaped ones) you’re dealing with a fake. Chanel has never used philips-head screws in its hardware.

Also be sure that the color of the bag’s hardware (i.e. silver, gold) matches the CHANEL stamping inside the bag. 

If you see a “Made in Paris” stamp, the bag is fake. Chanel only uses "France" and "Italy" for its “Made In” stamping. 

It is normal to see "CHANEL" and "PARIS" etched into the hardware, however, and counterfeiters will frequently mistake this for the "Made in" stamp.  Likewise, if you do not see any “Made in” stamp, beware that the bag is likely a counterfeit! 

Always be sure to examine the CC lock, designed by Karl Lagerfeld in the early 1980s. Check that the C's overlap properly, that they have equal width, and flat edges. 

Confirm that the right ‘C’ overlaps the left ‘C’ at the top, and the left ‘C’ overlaps the right one at the bottom (pictured above). Next, be sure that the CC lock is centered both vertically and horizontally on its leather flap: if the placement looks off, it is a fake. 

Another easy giveaway is that the edges of the ‘C’s are flat on real Chanel bags--if you see rounded edges, it’s a fake. If you see a stamp on the CC lock, it was made in France; if there is no stamp, then the bag was made in Italy. Be sure that the stamp is clear and pristine--fakes will rarely have legible stamps. 

The most obvious, at-first-glance giveaway of the majority of fake bags you will come across is the quilting pattern. Real Chanel bags are flawless in terms of the quilted diamonds’ shape, symmetry and how they line up. 

On Chanel 2.55 Flap bags, check the rear pocket of the bag: with authentic 2.55’s, the quilting pattern on the back pocket will line up perfectly with the pattern of the bag itself. 

It is very common for counterfeit Chanel bags to mess up the alignment of the diamond quilting between the flap and the rest of the bag. If you see a blatant misalignment, you can fully disregard the bag as a fake. 

In April of 2021 Chanel replaced serial number holograms with microchips embedded within a metal plate. This metal plate now replaces the hologram sticker and the authentication card. Yes, no more hologram date codes and authentication cards. 

The microchip uses near-field communication (NFC) technology, which is a type of radio frequency identification technology (RFID) that can also be found in iPhones and used for Apple Pay payments. 

The chip identifies the bag within Chanel's proprietary database. Anybody with an NFC scanner can scan the microchip, but only Chanel staff have access to the Chanel database and can retrieve information about the bag.

Some fear that the microchip makes it impossible to authenticate a bag outside of a Chanel boutigue. This cannot be further from the truth. With the introduction of the microchip Chanel gave us numerous additional ways to authenticate their bags. 

The serial number hologram was a good element, which was hard for counterfeiters to replicate. However, it was also a very frail sticker, which often came off through the daily use. If you look closely, the new metal tag with a microchip is so intricate and carefully designed that you can glean a lot into confirming your bag's authenticity.

To authenticate a Chanel bag with metal microchip plate follow these six steps.

1. Look and placement

Look for a metal rectangular plate attached to the lining on the bag’s interior and in WOCs it is inside the zippered pocket. Reference the picture below to help you locate the metal tag.

2. Measurement

The metal plate with the microchip measures 0.78" wide by 0.52" high by 0.08" thick (19.9mm x 12.9mm x 2mm). For a precise measurement we recommend a digital caliper tool.

3. Color

The plate’s color must match exactly the color of the bag's hardware. For example if the lock and chain are gold color the plate must be in gold color also and of the exact same hue. 

4. Shape and design

The rectangular plate must be perfectly even. The corners have to be slightly rounded. Pointy corners or uneven size are a sure sign of a fake.

5. CC Logo and alphanumeric code

An interlocking CC logo and an 8-character alphanumeric serial code must appear on the front of the plate. The CC logo has to be above the code. The CC logo and the font are laser-inscribed into the metal plate and must be perfectly even with no imperfections in the shape of the CC or the shape of the letters and digits. The alphanumeric code will no longer tell us the production year at a glance. However, we can check the production year in a different way. 

6. Inscription

Feel the metal tag with your finger. An authentic laser-inscription into the metal plate is so light and shallow that you should not feel it with your finger. Your finger should slide freely. However, you will feel it if you slide a finger nail over it. The inscribed parts of the plate should feel like an extremely fine finger nail file. If you can feel the inscription with your finger it means it is too deep and is likely a counterfeit.

Chanel staff will not scan your bag if you bring it inside a store, unless you have a receipt and are trying to return or repair your purchase. After scanning the chip inside the metal plate, Chanel personnel will be able to access their database with the dates of manufacture, distribution, purchase and even repairs of your specific bag.    

To check if your new Chanel bag is real, in addition to inspecting the microchip tag, be sure to look closely at stitching, hardware, CC logo, quilting pattern and zippers as we describe in detail above.