Making the Case for Small Watches

In fashion, taste is always evolving, and with watch styles in particular, the pendulum keeps swinging. In the 1970s, the original GOAT and world heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali was frequently photographed wearing a dainty Cartier Tank. Then, in the 1990s, Sylvester Stallone helped popularize the hockey-puck-size Panerais.

Right now, timepieces are trending-toward under-40-millimetre cases. There are plenty of reasons for this shift. With luxury prices skyrocketing, collectors are turning to smaller, more-affordable vintage watches. The vogue for quiet luxury in fashion also favours elegant silhouettes that slide smoothly under the sleeve of a Loro Piana cashmere sweater. On the other end of the style spectrum, A-listers like Timothée Chalamet and Bad Bunny stand out by championing more-bracelet-like designs from Jaeger-LeCoultre and Patek Phillipe.

The upside of this downsizing? When it comes to timepieces, there are no hard and fast rules. Rather, it’s about finding the watch that looks the best on your wrist.

Here are eight of the very best small watch offerings on the market today.

Fun-Sized

Swatch Clearly Gent

Petite watches can have just as much visual impact as their oversized cousins. The 34-millimetre Swatch Clearly Gent is small and see-through, but it still has a lot of wrist presence thanks to the bright primary colours of its hour, minute and second hands and its skeletonized quartz movement.

Small But Tough

Hamilton Khaki Field Murph

Field watches are derived from military-issue timepieces. By design, they must be durable, easy to read and easy to use. The Hamilton Khaki Field Murph is an excellent example of a watch with purpose that’s made even more comfortable thanks to its 38-millimetre diameter.

Big Time

Chopard L.U.C Flying T Twin Perpetual

Even opulent wristwatches are embracing downsizing. At 40.5 millimetres, the 18-karat yellow-gold case of the L.U.C Flying T Twin Perpetual is a titch over the small-dial threshold, but its slim silhouette gives it a more-diminutive look. Considering that it also houses a flying tourbillon and a perpetual calendar as well as haute touches such as a hand-guilloché forest-green dial, we are willing to let it slide.

A Little Nostalgia

Accutron Legacy RR-O

Based on a vintage piece originally executed for the Canadian National Railway in 1970, this 24-hour time teller was brought back by Accutron due to popular demand. And while the watch has been updated with a Swiss-made 26-jewel movement, the brand stayed true to the original 34-millimetre size.

Minor Complications

Longines Flagship Heritage Moonphase

Just because a watch is smaller doesn’t mean it can’t feature some serious technology. The Flagship Heritage comes equipped with a moon-phase complication and an in-house Longines L899.5 automatic movement — all housed in a 38.5-millimetre case.

Mini Minimalism

Cartier Tank Must de Cartier

The spare time-only design of the Cartier Tank has made it a favourite of style icons like Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Princess Diana and Henry Golding. Given its pedigree, you might be surprised to learn that this quartz-powered under-30-millimetre version comes in at less than $5,000.

A Formal Affair

Tissot Le Locle Powermatic

The swing toward smaller faces is best expressed in formal watches. While the case of the Tissot Le Locle Powermatic is only 39.3 millimetres, the dial uses every bit of its textured silver real estate to showcase refined touches like Roman numerals.

Travel Size

Tudor Black Bay 58 GMT

Scaled-down watches don’t have to be formal. This 39-millimetre steel-case travel watch, with its black and burgundy bezel, has a sporty feel but is streamlined enough to wear in a business meeting — or on the plane on the way to one.

This article first appeared in FASHION’s March 2025 issue. Find out more here.