10 Ways to Spot a Fake Louis Vuitton Bag
Louis Vuitton Monogram bags are a favorite of counterfeiters
Created in partnership with Lusso & Lux
Buying a pre-loved Louis Vuitton Monogram bag can offer better value for your money and contributes to the circular economy — but it also comes with the risk of buying a fake. It can be overwhelming to evaluate a potential purchase on your own, so we worked with Lusso & Lux to build this definitive guide to identifying authentic (and fake) Louis Vuitton Monogram bags.
Go straight to the interior Louis Vuitton brand stamp.
Nothing screams fake more than a poor quality logo stamp. Authentic Louis Vuitton bags have a crisp and clear heat or inked logo stamp inside and the font has subtle-but-distinct characteristics. The Ls have really short bottom lines; the O is perfectly round; and the Ts almost touch.
A logo that is not clear, is poorly applied, or uses a font that lacks the above traits signals a fake. The “made in” mark can appear with the date code instead of the brand stamp, so if there is not a country listed beneath “Paris,” you should find it there.
Click here for more info. on Louis Vuitton brand stamps.
Locate the date code.
Louis Vuitton bags do not have serial numbers; they have date codes. The date code tells you when and where the bag was manufactured. Date codes can either be printed or heat-stamped and are often found inside the main compartment or along the top edge of the bag; however they can be in other spots as well. In a Louis Vuitton Neverfull, the date code is tucked under a pocket. In a Louis Vuitton Speedy, the date code is on a small Vachetta leather tab.
Read the date code.
The date codes in Louis Vuitton bags manufactured between 2007-February 2021 follow this format: The two front letters note where the bag was made. The first and third numbers tell us the week of the year it was made, and the second and fourth numbers tell us the year it was made. So SA5112 means it was made in Italy or France on the 51st week of 2012. (Prior to 2007 Louis Vuitton used a variety of other formats and starting March 1, 2021 Louis Vuitton had swapped date codes for RFID microchips.)
Click here for more info. on Louis Vuitton date codes.
Check the exterior monogram/ logo print.
Every Louis Vuitton bag has been made using high quality materials and a precise process. Outside logos are straight, crisp, and not yellow. The L and V sit in a perfect lockup with the top line of the L parallel to the second like of the V. Some styles, such as the Speedy and Keepall, are made from a single piece of material, resulting in logos on one side appearing upside-down.
Confirm a symmetrical material orientation.
All Monogram bags are crafted so that if you draw an invisible line down the center of the bag, the canvas print on either side matches the other. If the circular flower is cut off on the left side, the circular flower on the right side is also cut off.
Click here for more info. on Louis Vuitton bag exteriors.
Check the stitching.
Every stitch will be perfect, including back stitches (which fakes often overlook). Stitching on the Vachetta is a subdued, mustard yellow, and stitching on the interior matches the color of the lining. If the Vachetta stitching is bright yellow or the stitching inside isn’t a perfect match to the lining, it’s almost certainly fake.
Click here for more info. on Louis Vuitton stitching.
Examine the Hardware.
Louis Vuitton bags have a variety of custom hardware including zipper pulls, snaps, and locks, all featuring some form of LV or Louis Vuitton. These brand identifiers are perfectly centered with clear edges. Zipper pulls have a thick gold coating. The gold coating will show wear from normal use over time, but it should never be bright yellow, no matter what the condition.
Click here for more info. on Louis Vuitton hardware.
Look at the Vachetta.
Vachetta leather is the lighter leather on the piping, handles, and occasionally the underside of Louis Vuitton Monogram bags. Vachetta starts as a creamy, light tan, but takes on a deeper, warmer patina over time due to oxidation from exposure to environmental elements. The Vachetta on a pre-loved Louis Vuitton Monogram bag will be more caramel than sand. Pristine, light Vachetta handles on a pre-loved Louis Vuitton bag may signal a fake.
Click here for more info. on Louis Vuitton Vachetta leather.
Check out the lining.
The lining of an authentic Louis Vuitton Monogram bag is most often made from a top quality, finely woven canvas in a cool-toned, light brown color. If the color of the lining is anything else, confirm that this is a color that was used by Louis Vuitton during the time period indicated on the date stamp. If the lining is a thick-weave canvas or faux suede the bag is likely fake.
Click here for more info. on Louis Vuitton canvas lining.
The Price
Louis Vuitton is a global brand with a massive presence on the pre-loved luxury market. This makes it fairly easy to check the market rate for any individual pre-loved Louis Vuitton bag. If a deal seems too good to be true, it probably is. (Sorry.)