How to authenticate a Louis Vuitton bag.

Start with the date code — but know its limits

From the early 1980s until March 2021, Louis Vuitton stamped most bags with a date code: a short letter-and-number combination that identifies where and roughly when the bag was made. It is not a serial number — many bags share the same code, and counterfeiters print plausible codes too. A correct-looking date code doesn't prove authenticity, but a wrong one disproves it.

For bags made from 2007 to early 2021, the format is two letters followed by four numbers. The letters indicate the factory location. The first and third numbers give the week of the year, and the second and fourth give the year. For example, SD2159 reads as week 25 of 2019.

For bags made between 1990 and 2006, the same structure applies, but the numbers encode the month instead of the week.

Bags produced after March 2021 no longer have visible date codes at all — Louis Vuitton switched to an embedded microchip. So a brand-new-style bag with a printed date code is a red flag, and a pre-2021 bag with no code where one should be deserves scrutiny (though codes on leather tabs can wear off or be trimmed during repair).

Check that the factory letters match the "made in" stamp. A code that indicates a French workshop on a bag stamped "Made in USA" is inconsistent.

Read the heat stamp

The embossed "LOUIS VUITTON®" stamp is one of the most reliable tells because counterfeiters rarely get the typeface exactly right.

• Font weight. Authentic stamping is thin, crisp, and evenly pressed. Fakes often look thick, blurry, or unevenly deep.

• The O's. Louis Vuitton's O's are very round — almost perfect circles, larger than you'd expect next to the other letters.

• The L. The L has a short horizontal foot. On many fakes it's noticeably long.

• Alignment. Text is level and centered, with consistent letter spacing. Crooked or cramped stamping is a strong red flag.

Inspect the canvas and alignment

On monogram pieces, Louis Vuitton cuts canvas deliberately. On classic styles made from a single continuous piece of canvas (like the Speedy), the monogram on one side appears upside down on the other — that's correct, not a defect. Fakes assembled from two panels often show the logo upright on both sides of styles where it shouldn't be.

Look for symmetry: monogram elements should be placed consistently relative to seams and edges, and Damier checks should line up across seams. Sloppy pattern matching at seams is one of the fastest ways to spot a counterfeit.

Check stitching, hardware, and materials

• Stitching. Even, slightly angled stitches in a mustard-yellow linen thread on vachetta trim, with consistent stitch counts on matching parts (for example, the same number of stitches across the top of each handle tab).

• Hardware. Zippers, locks, and rivets are solid and weighty, with clean, shallow engraving. Lightweight, hollow-feeling hardware or painted-on gold that chips is a giveaway.

• Vachetta leather. The untreated cowhide trim starts pale and develops a warm honey patina with age. "Vachetta" that looks plasticky, stays stark white on an older bag, or is dyed to fake patina deserves suspicion.

• Smell and glue. Authentic bags smell like leather. A chemical or plastic odor, or visible glue at seams and edges, points to a fake.

When to rely on professional authentication

Superfakes get closer every year, and some replicate most of the checkpoints above. For any meaningful purchase, buy from a seller that offers professional, technology-backed authentication and a money-back authenticity guarantee.

Every eligible bag we sell at Gaby's Bags is verified using Entrupy, an AI-powered authentication device that captures microscopic images of materials and construction. Eligible Entrupy certificates are backed by a financial guarantee — so you're not relying on anyone's eyeball, including ours.

Keep reading.

• Louis Vuitton date codes explained →
• Our authentication process (Entrupy) →
• The smart buyer's guide to pre-loved designer bags →