15 Thin Dive Watches That Won’t Weigh You Down

Why are so many dive watches huge? For a long time, it seemed as if all of them were tailor-made for the brawniest wrists, otherwise known as not mine. It’s certainly not because bigger equals stronger. Need I remind you that Floyd Mayweather is just about 5’8” and that Bruce Lee fictionally bested Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in Game of Death?

In all seriousness, thinner dive watches can suit a wider range of wrist sizes, and, for actual divers, are pragmatically less burdensome. The 15 thin dive watches rounded up here boast all of those aforementioned characteristics, while showcasing just as much strength, utility, and style as their larger counterparts.

Let’s be real—Lee trained Abdul-Jabbar, and probably would’ve beaten him in real life too.

Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe 38mm

Big thanks to Blancpain for taking their Bathyscaphe and pouring it into a 38-millimeter body. The Bathyscaphe was originally the experimental arm of the Fifty Fathoms line, and all of the signatures are present in this efficient size. There’s the sailor-worthy horological chops, as well as the aesthetics that brought a new visual language to the dive watch game. 

The famed two-toned indices, for example, aren’t just attractively dimensional, but legible from every angle. They, and the syringe hands, pop behind the lustrous sunray dial. It creates a matte-shine dynamic that lends itself to basically any strap. Even more, its Caliber 1150 has a 100-hour power reserve.

• Thickness: 10.8mm
• Water Resistance: 300m
• Price: $10,100

Yema Navygraf Marine Nationale Quartz

With the Navygraf Marine Nationale, Yema brings to market a military-grade dive watch literally designed by French Navy personnel. If you love a practical, no-nonsense watch, then quartz timepieces rooted in the real-life needs of pros is a good way to go, especially since this one isn’t lacking in style.

The “exclamation mark” indices are easy to read, while adding that Yema characteristic to dial. These indices, as well as the hands, showcase a bullet-like quality, balanced out by the several pieces of text, including that classy cursive Navygraf appellate and the Marine Nationale anchor. Add a crown-guarded body and a beautifully satined H-link bracelet, and you’ve got one sturdy build.

• Thickness: 11mm
• Water Resistance: 200m
• Price: $449

Tudor Black Bay Fifty Eight

One of the best things about the Tudor Black Bay Fifty Eight is how it hat-tips the best of vintage dives, while maintaining its still contemporary look and construction. It’s, as they say, the best of both worlds. The 39-millimeter case is a touch bigger than old-school tool watches, but smaller than most dive watches today. 

The guardless crown is a retro mark on an otherwise smooth, modern silhouette. Meanwhile, the look of the stark black dial (domed, like the sapphire), gold accents, and pale yellow indices are similar to an aged tropical dial, just with more shine and definition. And of course, since this is Tudor, the COSC-certified movement gives this long-lasting watch loads of family heirloom potential.

• Thickness: 12mm
• Water Resistance: 200m
• Price: $3,950

Glycine Combat Sub

The Glycine Combat Sub is what I like to call a modern classic, a fun and lively take on combat watches that’s also still very serious thanks to its topnotch build quality. There’s a lot going on with the dial, a party of features if you will, though nothing gets lost since there’s bearing-providing markers throughout.

Just look at the impeccable alignment of everything to the right and left of each index. Even more, the undeveloped Mercedes hand and half-way-up crown guards are testaments to the balanced design sensibilities.

• Thickness: 10.6mm
• Water Resistance: 200m
• Price: $1,220

Longines Hydroconquest 39

By combining broad and bold elements with dynamic linework, Longines creates a visually brawny and athletic watch that doesn’t take a lot of physical room on your wrist. It’s a wish granted for those of you who love the look of a big watch, but not the feel. The 12, nine, and six are at the front lines of this look, with the bezel numbers right behind them. 

The frenetic second markers, anchored by hour dots, add speed to strength, as does the bow and sharp turn of each lug. Function-wise, you’ve got a sapphire with several levels of AR treatment, and the L888 movement which is as smooth as it is robust.

• Thickness: 11.9mm
• Water Resistance: 300m
• Price: $1,375

Seiko Prospex SNE573

Bringing divers and surfers together, the Seiko Prospex SNE573 is a solar-powered dive watch, needing the sun as much as an automatic needs your wrist movements. No worries though, once this guy is charged, he has a 10-month battery life. An on-brand Seiko, there’s nothing superfluous on this watch, though small details like the windows within the hands and the smooth-yet-industrial lugs level it up from being just standard. 

The functions are on-point, with brilliant lume, a satisfyingly crisp bezel, and even a sapphire crystal which Seiko tends to ignore in favor of their in-house Hardlex. Overall, the SNE573 doesn’t beg for attention, it just kind of gets it.

• Thickness: 10.6mm
• Water Resistance: 200m
• Price: $475

Sinn U50

All of our favorite German sensibilities wrapped up in a legit piece of gear, the Sinn U50 is delightful like chocolate and well-engineered like an electron microscope. The face is easy-to-read, with a stark red-and-white palette that I like to compare to Swiss railway clocks. Beyond that, the German Submarine steel construction is a force field against seawater and magnetism, not to mention water resistant at a whole 500 meters.

Did I mention that the U50 is certified by Norway’s classification society as a real piece of diving equipment? Suffice to say, the pressure resistance on this sturdy, and sturdy-looking, device is truly supreme.

• Thickness: 11.2mm
• Water Resistance: 500m
• Price: $2,495

Squale Sub-39

With the Sub-39, Squale serves up a masterclass in taking minimal elements on the body of a watch, yet still exuding an electric level of energy. And it’s not just because of the elegantly vivid hue on its clean dial. The bezel is all but empty, and the three numerical markers are in a thin yet bold font. The 12, nine, and six indices are a modern, angular take on the always-professional DIN 1451 typeface. 

And that stately gem-like crown, which is super easy to grasp by the way, is the cherry on top of the dial’s perfect relationship with the bracelet. The liquid-smooth lugs highlight the satin outer links, which highlight the polished inner ones. Looks aside, the Sub-39 runs on an Elabore-class movement, a step above the standard class, for reliability and durability.

• Thickness: 12mm
• Water Resistance: 300m
• Price: $1,477

Maen Hudson 38 MK4

The Maen Hudson MK4, in its adaptable 38-millimeter size, is deceptively simple though even the broad strokes of the design are distinct in the tool watch world. Yes, the Superluminova on the face dazzles, and the ceramic bezel will never lose its color. But just pay close attention to this watch at every angle. 

The gravelly dial is a sophisticated detail seen from a bird’s eye close-up. Tilt it to a three-fourths angle, and see applications that hover, with the blur of the boxed sapphire providing visual intrigue. Uniquely, both the lugs and the case sides are brushed, with a quick surface break of polish. With real expertise, this automatic diver hits all of the basics.

• Thickness: 12mm
• Water Resistance: 300m
• Price: $637

Oris Divers Sixty-Five

Using tried-and-true practices from the classics, the Oris Divers Sixty-Five is for you lovers of vintage who don’t want to deal with the stress of buying vintage. From the guardless crowns to the domed sapphire, which extraordinarily provides the coveted hazy edges even from an aerial perspective, this diver is admirably straightforward. And with a thinner-than-average midcase, the 13mm thick Divers Sixty-Five wears much more like a 12mm dive watch on the wrist.

Oris pulls off the blue, black, and tan palette expressively, making the Sixty-Five feel like the watch equivalent of a remastered golden-age movie. Speaking of updates, it runs on a contemporary automatic movement and has a tactile bezel.

• Thickness: 13mm
• Water Resistance: 100m
• Price: $2,350

Vaer D4 Meridian

Lume is a basic and important quality that all dive watches need. The sharp and multi-shaped elements throughout the D4 Meridian, and that high-performing lume, make this watch look undeniably and fascinatingly cool in the dark. Oh, and it makes it easy to read under any lighting too.

That’s what Vaer does though. With its solar-powered quartz movement, ceramic bezel, and solid build, the D4 Meridian is an honest, American-assembled timepiece, perfect as an everyday watch. It’s an everyman watch of sorts. 

• Thickness: 10.6mm
• Water Resistance: 200m
• Price: $449

Baltic Aquascaphe

There are few things more impressive than a diver that can still look sleek and polished on a rugged rubber strap, and the Baltic Aquascaphe does this like no other. It does, however, look exquisite with any strap, including the high-glisten beads-of-rice bracelet. Using the Bathyscaphe submersible from the ‘60s as its design muse, the Aquascaphe is equal parts relevant and a throwback. 

Details like the sandwich dial, which gives it dimension without compromising the charming simplicity, and the close-to-body crown combine comfortable function with presence. The double-domed sapphire does this too, effectively giving a subtle sheen to the watch face and protecting the workhorse Miyota movement.

• Thickness: 12mm
• Water Resistance: 200m
• Price: $633

Mido Ocean Star 200

Mido proves that you don’t have to spend several thousand dollars for a trusty, spec-forward, automatic dive watch. Ever sporty, the six and 12 indices are even built using two blocks, making them extra prominent when they’re lumed up or when you’re deep under water.

The dial has a wood-grain-like texture and the back is embossed with the Ocean Star starfish, both of which add class and personality to the prominently on-template aesthetic. On top of all of that, the automatic movement has an 80 hour power reserve.

• Thickness: 11.8mm
• Water Resistance: 200m
• Price: $970

Zodiac Super Sea Wolf Skin

The design of the Zodiac Super Sea Wolf Skin achieves a remarkable overall look, as if it took the blocky, rugged template of a 1970s gadget-forward field watch, and somehow smoothed it out enough to result in something borderline dressy—certainly classy. 

That Cartier-esque crown, cursive dial appellate, and sculptural cardinals and indices are downright chic. As with any proper dive though, these good looks are inextricably related to the watch’s operations. The dial is easy to read at a glance, and the grippy crown allows you to tinker with that dependable automatic movement.

• Thickness: 12.5mm
• Water Resistance: 200m
• Price: $1,595

Orion Calamity

Likely because the Submariner set the standard for the dive template, the streamlined look of a dive watch with a tonal case and bezel is often overlooked for something with a colored ceramic bezel. Both styles have their merits though, and the way the silver stainless steel bezel of the Orion Calamity matches the entire watch’s body makes it much more versatile than the typical dive watch. 

You can basically wear it like an unadorned field watch, though it has much more going on. The raised indices and popped-up bezel around are just a few instances of interesting topography. Another is the treaded crown, which makes using this automatic more convenient while giving the look a bit of industrialism.

• Thickness: Tapers from 10.5mm to 11.3mm
• Water Resistance: 200m
• Price: $1,650

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