8 Essential Types Of Men's Watches You Should Own

Watches. It’s not just another accessory for men. It’s far beyond just an accessory.

For men, we do have a personal connection with watches.

That’s why we spend crazy fortunes on watches.

If you see celebrities like Conor, Ronaldo, Steve Harvey, and so many others flexing their Million Dollar Watches on Super Bowl and other events.

Why? As Kobe Says, “Everyone will look at your watch and it represents who you are, your values, and your style.

Watches are the most valuable accessories for men to show their personality.

If you decide to invest in a good timepiece but are overwhelmed by the options available, no worries.

This blog post will guide you through the 8 essential types of men’s watches that every stylish man should consider adding to your wardrobe.

Alright, let’s go with the topic.

Understand How to Choose Watch that Fits

Before going through the watch types, you should know how to choose the watch that fits your wrist.

More than choosing a luxury or perfectly crafted watch, if it doesn’t fit your wrist, it won’t make you look good. Here are the things you should consider before buying the watch:

Measure your wrist to know the size
Watch case diameter
Watch case thickness
The tug-to-tug length
Watch strap width
The shape of the watch
Watch material
Style preference

Read this guide: How to choose the right watch size for your wrist

8 Types of Men’s Watches

A watch is not just a watch, it has a vast range of style variations. Once you know all the styles of men’s watches, you can make it easier to make buying decisions.

Dress Watch

You probably have an idea of what this watch style is when you hear dress watch.

Every man should own a stylish dress watch. It’s completely crafted for the formal occasions.

A dress watch is yours if you have a professional lifestyle like office goers, businessmen, or entrepreneurs, who want to have a watch that matches your dress outfit.

Unlike other watch types, dress watches are so simple and elegant that they add a bit of elegance to your formal outfit.

Here is what to look out for in the dress watch;

The dress watches are simple, neatly designed, and elegant.
Ideal dress watches have a simple clean dial without any other complications.
It has a thin case and minimalist hour markers like Roman numerals.
The watch strap is made of dark leather.
It has no flashy elements, don’t expect one.

Though the dress watch straps vary, aim for a leather strap as it complements your formal outfit. Opt for a dress watch with a slim profile that slides neatly under your dress shirt cuff.

You can wear dress watches for any formal outfit like suits, tuxedos, business casual outfits, smart casual outfits, and related.

When you finish wearing your formal outfit, you can wear the dress watch for a finishing touch to elevate your professional outfit.

It matches your professional lifestyle, making it the must-have watch type.

Digital Watch

Digital Watch – Adding a modern flair and technology advancement.

I’m adding this type of men’s watch not because I like digital watches, but because I’m crazy about one watch which is the Casio Vintage.

My love for this watch makes me list this men’s watch type. Unlike analog watches, digital watch displays the time numerically on an LCD or LED screen.

Some people (like me), sometimes we struggle to find the right time when suddenly look at the watch dial.

Digital watches allow precise, easy-to-read time telling in just one glance.

Here is what to look out for in the digital watch:

The display typically has an LCD or LED.
Choose a readable display in different lighting conditions.
Many digital watches are water resistant up to 50mm or 100mm.
Durable stainless steel is recommended, it looks sleek.
Common features of digital watches include alarms, stopwatch, date, timer, and others.
Digital watches are powered by Lithium-ion batteries that last 6 to 12 months.

These watch types are typically suitable for casual or sporty days. Digital watches make both practical and fashionable accessories for men.

I would recommend the Casio vintage watch which costs you around 25$, making the affordable watch.

Dive Watch

Alright, dive watches for men. In simple, dive watches are specially crafted for divers who dive. It has a unidirectional bezel that rotates counterclockwise.

So, now you have an idea of what a men’s dive watch looks like.

Divers can track the time like dive time and when they’ll run out of oxygen.

This watch perfectly suits men who are involved in water sports and also for man who enjoys spending time in and around water.

Of course, it is water resistant to at least 200m, with 300m or more being ideal.
A Unidirectional rotating bezel allows you to track the elapsed time underwater.
The Durability enables it to withstand underwater shock, saltwater collisions, and high pressure.
It also has features like a helium release valve, screw-down crown, and chronograph functions.

Hold on there! Everything suits the lifestyle of divers and men who spend time on the water, then why should I own it?

It’s not over yet, it is versatility, you can Dive Watches for anything like

Casual wear (Polo, t-shirts, jeans, chinos)
Beach wear (Going to the beach or other water activities)
Business casuals (Blazer, dress shirt, trousers)
Formal wear (Opt for a bracelet and dive watch to complement the formal outfit)

The versatility of the dive watches allows you to wear them with any wardrobe staples, making them the best watch type.

Sporty Watch

Are you actively involved in sports activities like running, football, cricket, basketball, or any other?

For you, have a sports watch in your wardrobe. Sports watches are specially crafted for men who are involved in sports activities.

Especially, when we go to the gym. So, the requirement for sports watches is huge for us. Sporty watches don’t just act as time-telling watches, it is functional.

Here is what to look out for in the Sports watches:

Sports watches need to be highly durable. You are probably involved in withstand activities like running, hiking, swimming, and so on. So, look out for sports watches with durable materials like stainless steel or titanium, just to name a few.
It has to be water-resistant. Look out for ATM ratings 50m or above. 100m ratings allow swimming and snorkeling activities. 200m for diving.
GPS and activity tracking should be included in the sports watches. Many sports watches have built-in GPS to track pace, distance, etc. Activity tracking counts steps, calories, etc.
The In-built HR sensors let you monitor heart rate during workouts.

So, sports watches are necessary for men who are involved in sports activities.

But though it’s one of the essential types of men’s watch, you should consider one thing. Sports watches are not a fashionable item compared to other watch types.

You need to consider your lifestyle before opting for sports watches.

If you have a sports lifestyle and are actively involved in sports activities, you can buy a sports watch.

Casual Watch

Casual watches, are a must-have watch type, which is not optional for you.

You probably not going to wear a formal outfit all day, you might go to casual friend outings, shopping, GF outings, and wearing casual outfits in style.

So, having stylish casual watches that enhance your casual outfit is important.

Forget about everything, you are going to wear casual watches as an everyday wear watch. So, you need to aim for watch comfort that won’t bother you and functionality as well.

Casual watches should have clean dials and simple strap designs.
This type of watch is meant for everyday wear, so, choose the durable one.
However, you are going to wear casual watches every day. So, choose the versatile color option that matches most of your casual outfits.
Make sure the watch has a large, readable dial and hands. The point of the casual watch is to tell time after all easily.
Consider your lifestyle, For instance, if you are actively involved in sports, choose a sporty casual watch that matches your casual outfit too.

Other than any type of watch, you should consider owning a clean casual watch that resonates with your everyday lifestyle.

You can wear casual watches for any outfit like jeans, casual shirts, t-shirts, and so on.

Field Watch

Next the field watches, also called the Military watch.

Field watches for men have been a long-term wardrobe staple for men. It is specially designed for rugged outdoor environments and is named the “Field Watch”.

This style watch is helpful for every situation like the battlefield as well.

You can see the digits in the field watches are bold which makes it easier to read time as quickly as possible. Classic field watches have a simple and bold appearance.

A Good field watch for men needs to stand up straight to the elements. Look for a field watch that is scratch-resistant, and water-resistant, and study stainless steel or titanium construction for maximum durability.
The Field watch face should be highly legible in all conditions. Look for large luminous hands and markers, high-contrast dials, and anti-reflective coating.
This watch style is generally a quartz movement for affordability or an automatic/mechanical movement for the appeal of old-school watchmaking.
The Size of the field watch must be versatile. Choose the one with a 35mm to 40mm case diameter ideal, avoid oversized.
Useful features like slide rule bezels, GMT dials, and compass headings for outdoor activities. The strap of the watch is mostly made of leather.

What to wear with a field watch? Field watches for men perfectly suit casual wear.

It can also be worn for physical activities. Moreover, if your office space won’t mind if you wear laid-back watches, you can choose a field watch.

Chronograph Watch

The Chronograph Watch is a type of watch with muti-functionality. Moreover, you may get confused a bit when you see the watch to read the time.

It has two to three small dials which are a 24-hour sub-dial, running seconds sub-dial, and a 60-minute chronograph sub-dial.

This watch style was sporty before the smartwatch evolved.

It also has lap-time tracking which allows you to track the lap time.

You can barely notice the 3 small dials which makes it hard to read the real-time at first glance.
The three dials are functional to measure hours, minutes, and seconds.
Chronograph watch has an in-built stopwatch capabilities, allowing you to time events in a fraction of a second.
The chronograph functionality is controlled by the pushers on the side of the watch case.
Some chronograph allows you to measure the split times by stopping and restarting the chronograph hand without resetting it.
Usually, the chronograph watch strap is made of leather or metal bands.

Chronograph watches tend to have a sporty look. You can wear the Chronograph watch with rugged outfits like cargo pants, jackets, denim, flannel shirts, and so on.

Don’t consider wearing chronograph watches for formal wear.

Aviator Watch

We have seen the diver watch which is made for divers.

Let’s see the special type of watch that is specially crafted for pilots – The Aviator Watch aka The Pilot Watch.

This style of watch is designed to help the pilots at the dawn of flight – 1906.

Characterized by the Large watch face, easily readable dials, and aviator styling, these watches offer both form and function.

You can barely see the pilot theme in the aviator watch.

Usually, the pilots used to calculate the traveled distance and how fast they were going.

Stylish elements like oversized crowns and knurled edges remind you of the old-fashioned knobs and controls of the airplane cockpit.
Many aviator watches have 24-hour hands, which is useful for keeping track of the second time zone.
The Extra-large watch case makes it easier to read the dials and read the time.
A larger crown allows the pilot to adjust the watch without the need to remove the gloves.
Leather strap with contrast stitching or stainless steel bracelets complements the masculine vibe.

For men who aspire to the skies and aviation history, an aviation watch can be your go-to watch style, as it provides a rugged style for modern gentlemen.

You can pair the aviation watch with casual suits. This watch style might not be a better option for business suits or formal outfits.

Choose these 3 Must-Have Men’s Watches If you are Confused

I know you are probably confused right now, which watch should I go for? You don’t have to get confused. If you are unsure about:

What watches should I invest in?
What watches resonate with your lifestyle?
How can I invest in 8 watches?

Make sure you have these three watches in your wardrobe.

I’m going to list 3 must-have watch types that resonate with almost every man’s lifestyle.

Casual Watch: For casual outings with friends.
Dress Watch: For professional office space or business meetings.
Fashionable Watch: To flex your watch on people. Wear this for GF dating or any specific occasion you want to leave a lasting good impression, probably a luxury watch.
Digital Sports Watch (Optional): If you are involved in sports or gym, consider having a digital sports watch in your wardrobe.

By considering having these 3 must-have watch types everyone should own. You can effortlessly wear them everywhere, no matter the place or setting.