Vintage and antique indicate how old an item is based on numbers of years. For an item to be vintage it must be at least 20 years old. The term ‘vintage’ is also often used to describe clothing from earlier eras. An antique item is an item that is 100 years old or more. Collectibles are distinguished from antiques by their age, where the term collectible is used to describe an item that has value but is not quite 100 years old.