Our 10 Favorite 38mm Chronograph Watches

Chronographs are popular for two reasons. First, they’re undeniably cool looking, combining sportiness with gadgetry, and casting a wide net when it comes to personal styles. Second, they’re a horological feat. An even bigger feat? Making a chrono that doesn’t take up your entire wrist. Fortunately, our 10 favorite 38mm chronographs here suit most wrist sizes. Plus, they don’t look like shrunken, crowded versions of a “true” robust chrono.

It takes good design to ensure the subdials fit on a smaller dial face, while still being legible and efficient. It also takes a pretty deft hand to construct a smaller chronograph movement. Between vertical clutches and column wheels, it’s kind of like using tweezers to build a complex ship model inside a bottle.

Zenith Chronomaster Original

With its signature overlapping subdials, the Zenith Chronomaster Original arguably should’ve stayed 38mm even into the modern day. This throwback is infused with an almost dressy slickness, showcased especially through the regal combination of silver and blue tones. The counters and indices offer just as much sheen and lightplay as the sunray dial, while also making it more legible. Meanwhile, clean lines from the dial face carry on into the lugs, bracelet, and pushers. 

This timepiece runs on a legendary movement, the El Primero, which powered a lot of older Rolex chronos. Not only is it high-frequency and has 60 hours of power, but you can admire the star-clad caliber through the exhibition caseback.

• Price: $9,500
• Case Diameter: 38mm
• Movement: El Primero 3600 Automatic Chronograph

Omega Speedmaster 38

Unlike the 1988 Speedy Reduced, otherwise known as the Baby Moon, the Omega Speedmaster 38 has a less abbreviated design, with fully-lined sub dials, dimensional indices, and a generally more sophisticated topography. Even more impressive is, despite this, it’s a whole millimeter smaller than the Reduced. This iconic watch is closer in size to its moon-faring ancestor, but features all of the modern creature comforts. The Omega Co-Axial Calibre 3330 is reliable and likely won’t need servicing for decades to come, while the sapphire crystal is AR-coated on both sides.

• Price: $5,100
• Case Diameter: 38mm
• Movement: OMEGA Co-Axial Calibre 3330 Self Winding

Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Selfwinding Chronograph 38

The watch that made industrial design look chic gets the chronograph treatment with this selfwinding 38mm Audemars Piguet Royal Oak. Thanks to the immaculate net-like embossing on the face (AP’s trademark “Grand Tapisserie” design), the subdials really pop, instead of getting lost in the shuffle. Of course, it’s made in the AP slate blue that’s both distinct, and neutral enough to be worn with any shade. 

All of the hard lines that the Royal Oak is known for are there, including on the brushed bezel, accented by decorative screws and the polished secondary surface that surrounds it. Given all of the surfaces on and off the dial, and that unique robot-snake bracelet, this AP is even more visually striking from every angle than its non-chrono cousins.

• Price: $32,600
• Case Diameter: 38mm
• Movement: Audemars Piguet Caliber 2385 Self Winding

Baltic Bicompax 002

The Baltic Bicompax 002 is a veritable feast of textures, allowing for an almost mesmerizing range of lightplay throughout its dial and body. Its main dial face is matte and subtly craggy, an almost organic aesthetic that complements the shiny brushed index wheel and concentric-circled sub dials. All of these surfaces are brought together using an illustrative design with an Art Deco vibe that straddles a modern and retro-cool look. The stunningly-polished case itself is inspired by vintage 1940s watches. Functionally, its ST19 column wheel movement is dependable and easy to service, making this watch both a piece of art and a practical piece of gear.

• Price: $560 (approximate)
• Case Diameter: 38mm
• Movement: Seagull ST1901 Mechanical

Boldr Field Medic II Chronograph

While Boldr’s Field Medic II Chronograph leans hard into function and practicality, you can’t sleep on its charming borderline-minimalist design. There’s a stark contrast between the main dial against the sub dials and outer dial, all accented with pops of red—you don’t have to be a medical professional to appreciate the style. Still, the titanium case is strong, light, and has a gunmetal-like matteness, and the mecaquartz chronograph movement is as accurate as a quartz but offers the smooth second-hand sweep of a mechanical. And for you true-blue medical professionals, this watch is made to measure respiratory counts and pulse rates.

• Price: $299
• Case Diameter: 38mm
• Movement: Japanese SII VK64 Mecaquartz Chronograph

Nivada Grenchen Chronomaster Watch

You don’t need a 45mm case in order to build a robust tool watch. The Bruce Lee of watches, the Nivada Grenchen Chronomaster is as tough-looking, brawny, and functional as any monstrously-sized professional timepiece on the market. Subjected to several durability tests, this aviator-dive combo features 100 meters of water resistance, a scratch-resistant sapphire, and a satisfying bezel with just enough resistance. A few elements that contribute to this watch’s strong look include the thickness of the bezel, its broad arrow hands, and that attractively domed crystal—not to mention its monumental almost-15mm height.

• Price: $1,948+
• Case Diameter: 38mm
• Movement: Sellita SW510 BH B Self-Winding Chronograph

Girard-Perregaux Laureato Chronograph 38mm

The super-polished Laureato Chronograph from Girard-Perregaux is all about the fine details, both in its design and raw materials. The circular bezel has a stepped octagon, brushed to match the bracelet and complement the different compositions on its elegant watch face. The silver and black elements on the dial, decorated with royal blue accents throughout, make it easy to read, despite the meager use of actual numbers. With its gradual transition from the case to the bracelet, the Laureato’s thick silhouette serves up an eye-catching cuff-like wear.

The reason this watch shines so brightly is because it’s made of 904L stainless steel, which is extra brilliant and corrosion-resistant. Inside, the self-winding chrono movement is outstandingly accurate, and flaunts an exquisite “Côtes de Genève” finishing, systematically machined scratches that add dimension.

• Price: $16,600
• Case Diameter: 38mm
• Movement: Caliber GP03300 Self-Winding Chronograph

Seagull 1963 Chronograph

A darling in watch forums all over the internet, the Seagull 1963 Chronograph is a simple yet distinguished model based on the chrono used by the Chinese Air Force. The Seagull runs on a workhorse automatic that’s definitely worth looking at. Through the exhibition case back, you’ll see the movement’s several layers, varying textures, gold and silver toned gears, and brightly-colored screws. It has a sort of classed-up steampunk aesthetic. Outside, the gold, blue, and red pops on the cream dial, and the combination of long pushers and short crown make this watch fun-looking without taking away from this sophistication.

• Price: $278+
• Case Diameter: 38mm
• Movement: Seagull ST1901

Maen Skymaster 38 MKII Chronograph

For you panda dial lovers out there, the Maen Skymaster 38 MKII is a truly balanced chronograph, only 10.9mm high, with a line-forward design that hat-tips to the original racer watches of the late ‘50s and ‘60s. It even has a box dome hesalite crystal, adding a touch of complexity to its profile, as does its mirror-like ceramic bezel. Regardless of its thin and comfortable wear, this MKII runs on a 37-jewel top-grade Swiss chronograph movement, beautifully regulated by a Swiss lever escapement.

• Price: $990+
• Case Diameter: 38mm
• Movement: ETA 2894-2 Automatic Chronograph

Dan Henry 1964 Gran Turismo Chronograph

The limited edition 1964 Gran Turismo Chronograph from those vintage lovers over at Dan Henry is a mix of clean design and classy elements. The silhouette is traditional, with straight lugs that give a hard and punchy case-to-bracelet transition. Offering several places for light to hit, the beads-of-rice bracelet glistens luxuriously, while also providing flex and comfort. On the front of this meca-quartz watch, the double domed mineral glass is, cleverly, sapphire coated, while the back sports an engraving of the Aston Martin DB5.

• Price: $280
• Case Diameter: 38mm
• Movement: Seiko Caliber VK63 Meca-Quartz

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