The Top 8 Most Expensive Hermès Kelly Bags (2024)

The history of the Hermès Kelly bag dates back to the 1852 but didn't gain in popularity until Grace Kelly used it to hide her pregnancy from paparazzi. The Princess of Monaco was introduced to the Kelly bag while filming To Catch A Thief in 1955 and refused to part with it. Hermès renamed the bag the “Kelly” in 1977 as a nod to the actress-turned-princess. The Kelly bag’s original trapezoidal design included two triangular gussets, a cutout flap, a handle, and two side straps. The Hermès bag now features an optional shoulder strap, increasing its functionality. It is constructed out of thirty-six pieces of leather and six hundred and eighty stitches by a single artisan over the course of 18 to 24 hours. The Kelly has taken on many new forms since its original release. The Kelly bag has also inspired a range of Hermès accessories including the Kelly wallet, the Kelly belt, the Kelly watch, and an array of clutches and smaller leather goods. The Kelly bag is one the most popular and iconic bags from Hermès.

While Birkins generally top the list of the most expensive Hermès bags, Kelly bags are a close second when it comes to rare, desirable and most expensive. Read on to learn all about the eight rarest and most expensive Hermès Kelly bags.

Topping the most expensive Hermès Kelly bags every year is almost always a variation on the Himalaya Kelly bag. This year is no different with a Kelly 25 Himalaya Diamond selling for $330,000 in April 2024. This matte crocodile Hermès Kelly has 18K white gold hardware and is set with 298 diamonds totaling 3.50 carats. Both the clasp and the padlock have diamonds. While prices for Hermès Himalaya bags have declined from the highs of 2023 and 2022, they remain at the top of the most expensive Kelly bags. Prices in 2023 reached as high as $425,000 for a Hermès Kelly 28 Himalaya Diamond and $373,000 for a Kelly 25 Himalaya in 2022.

A limited edition Hermès Kelly 32 Feather So Black sold for 2,032,000 HKD or $264,000 in 2023. The Hermès So Black collection was designed by Jean-Paul Gaultier when he was the creative director. Introduced in 2010, the So Black Collection was shown as part of Gaultier's final runway show with Hermès. The So Black Collection featured all black elements including the packaging and black PVD hadware. The So Black Kelly 32 Sellier from 2010 is crafted from black Box leather and saturated-black natural feathers along with distinct black PVD hardware. Hermès partnered with Maison Lemarié, the Haute Couture feather métier founded in 1880. Hermès artisans handpicked the finest feathers, and attached them onto the Kelly one at a time. The beautiful feathered panel makes this So Black Kelly truly rare and collectible.

The most expensive Hermès Mini Kelly is the perfect combination of crocodile and diamonds. A Black Shiny Porosus Mini Kelly 20 with 18K white gold hardware and diamonds sold for 1,651,000 HKD or $214,630 in Sotheby's October 2023 Hong Kong Auction. The rare Kelly bag from 2023 is the perfect statement making evening bag. Diamonds on an Hermès bags is the ultimate upgrade to the most sought after Mini Kelly bag.

The Limited Edition Hermès Kelly 25 Midas Sold for about $157,000 in 2024. The Midas in the name refers to the Greek mythological figure King Midas, who can turn everything into gold by touching it. Drawing inspiration from the myth, the Kelly 25 Midas design features a unique hardware pairing leather with solid 18K yellow gold weighing 183.18g. It is as if Midas himself had touched the Kelly handle and turned it into gold. The remarkable fusion of leather and gold requires a meticulous assembly ensuring the metal follows the leather to precision. Over the years, Hermès has developed many ways to treat leather for its designs but there are certain types of leather that have a special place in the heritage of the brand and black box calfskin is one of them. Every artisan starting out at Hermès begins their training by constructing a Kelly Sellier in black box calfskin and it is said that if an artisan can put together a flawless version of that bag, then that artisan is skilled enough to tackle every other design in the Hermès family.

The Limited Edition Hermès Kellywood Perspective Cavaliere Kelly 22 sold for 1,143,000 HKD or about $149,000. First released in 2020, the Kellywood introduced a new size for the iconic Hermès Kelly bag: 22. Originally produced in Bog Oak with an innovative Larmé inlay technique, the latest version features a body of solid beechwood. The front panel has a Bauhaus-inspired “Perspective Cavalier” pattern designed by the art collective Anamorphée. This Kelly bag requires joining six different types of leather, spanning eleven different colors, totaling 60 pieces. The front flap is made out of Fauve Barenia leather with white contrasting stitching further demonstrating the highly precise mastery of Hermès artisans. Produced only in an extremely limited quantity, the Kellywood Perspective Cavaliere is one of the rarest collectible bags

A Limited Edition Bronze Metallic Kelly 25 sold for 1,016,000 HKD or about $132,000 in 2023 and is the most expensive leather Kelly bag. The Limited Edition Metallic Hermès bags were inspired by the displays designed by Leila Menchari for Hermès flagship store at 24 rue du Faubourg Saint-Honorè. In order to produce the metallic pigmentation, Hermès artisans must add so much dye to the leather that the leather’s texture changes. These bags are highly sought after by collectors since Hermès only made metallic bags in 2004 and 2005 in celebration of the Athens Olympics.

A Sterling Silver Kellymorphose Sac Bijou sold for 889,000 HKD or $115,570 in 2023. The Kellymorphose was designed by Pierre Hardy, the Hermès jewelry creative director. The sterling silver Kelly bag that is part jewelry and part bag and can be worn many ways including cross body, shoulder bag and worn around the waste. It can also be carried is a top handle bag or worn as a necklace.

The most expensive Hermès Kelly Doll sold for 825,500 HKD or $107,000 in 2023. The Malachite Matte Alligator Kelly Doll with Gold Hardware and Black Swift Arms from 2019is rare and highly collectible. While the Kelly Doll was first introduced in 2000, alligator versions rarely appear in the secondary market due to the very few that are produced by Hermès.