Watches for Every Hand: A Guide for Different Wrist Sizes and Shapes

There are lots of aspects that go into buying a wristwatch. It is not an easy job to find the perfect watch that is absolutely perfect with your wrist size. Very few things are as esoteric as understanding the actual size of the wristwatch with respect to your wrist. 

There are several factors that come together in order to select the perfect watch – The price of the watch, The metal of the watch strap, Complications of the watch, and most importantly the size of the wrist and the shape of the watch case. Just by looking at a watch, it is not sufficient to know whether it is perfect or not because it might appear to you that the watch is of perfect size however, when you wear it on your wrist it looks quite different. 

Since so many factors come together to select a watch and the size of the wrist and watch case, it is essential to know the procedure to measure the size of the watch. I will guide you with an easy breakdown that will help you to find the perfect-sized watch for yourself. 

Why is it important to measure the size and shape of the watch?

There are different shapes and sizes of wristwatches that are available in plenty these days in the market. But have you ever given a thought to why it is essential to know about the size dimensions of the wristwatch? It is because the proper look of the watch on your wrist depends completely on when it is in sync with your wrist. That means the size and shape of the watch case matter completely with respect to your wrist size. 

A wristwatch size guide helps you to understand the wristwatch that will fit perfectly with respect to your wrist size. For example, if you do not have a broad wrist, then rectangular watches will not look good on your wrist. A rectangular watch case looks best when you have a broad wrist so that the watch sits properly on your wrist and does not cover your entire wrist. If you do not have a broad wrist, then a small dial round watch or a small-sized square watch would look best on you. 

Similarly, if you have a broad wrist, then if you wear a small dial round watch or a small-sized square watch, it would look extremely tiny on your wrist. For broader wrists, a large round dial watch or rectangular watch will be the best option. Even the heavy-looking sports watches also look great on those who have broader wrists. 

Procedure to Measure Watch Case and its Size

To measure the size of the watch case, a measuring device named a calliper is used and is always measured in millimeters (mm). The most commonly used watch shape is the round size watches. In order to measure the round case watches, the diameter of the watch is considered. There are different size charts for round dial watches that usually start from 24 mm and go to 56mm with a difference of 4 mm. That means the range starts from 24mm, then 28mm, and with an interval of 4mm, goes to 56mm. 

You need to keep in mind that in reality, the exact size of the watch differs slightly as it depends on the exact size of the watch screen. Usually, watch screens have different resolutions that impact the appearance of the watch. If you prefer to buy watch online, it is always advisable to check the dimensional details of the watch and then buy accordingly. 

Shape of the Watch

There are different shapes of watches that are available in the market these days. The most common watch shapes are round, square, rectangular, and small dial/thick bezel. Octagonal watch shapes are also quite in demand these days. The geometry of the watch is directly proportional to the look of the watch such as the thickness of the bezel and the size of the dial makes the watch look smaller or larger on the wrist. 

If you compare round case watches with square case watches, the square faced watch has more ‘square footage’ on the dial because of the geometry of the square shape. In certain situations, a thick bezel with a small dial watch will have the same case size as a round watch with a similar diameter but because of the thick bezel, its appearance would be much smaller than the same diameter round case watch. It is more like these smaller watches have an illusionary effect. 

Every design element of the watch case such as the lugs, the hour markers, even the size and thickness of the hands, the size of the crown, and the pushers, can affect the appearance of the case size. 

Watch Case Thickness

The thickness of the watch case is measured from the centre top of the watch face up to the middle of the back of the watch case. And this thickness is measured with the help of the calliper. It is usually found that the thickness of watch cases ranges between 6 mm(ultra-thin) to 10 mm(bulky). One thing to keep in mind is that if the wristwatch has more complications, then the watch case is thicker in order to accommodate all the mechanisms. 

There should also be a justified proportion between the thickness of the watch case and the size of the dial, that is the diameter of the watch case. If the diameter of the watch case is bigger, the case thickness is greater to create a proper balance between both elements. For example, to strike a proper balance between the diameter and the thickness of the watch, a 38mm to 42mm watch diameter should have a case thickness of 7mm. 

Wrist Size

It is usually normal these days that we research a lot about wristwatches before purchasing them. Now we have already discussed the details about the watch case size and the different dimensions available. Now how do we know which dimension is best for us if we do not know the size of our wrist? 

You are always one step ahead if you know the size of the wrist before purchasing the wristwatch. Measuring the size of the wrist is not very difficult and is done with the help of a measuring tape. The measuring tape should be wrapped around the arm where you usually wear your wristwatch, that is just below the wrist bone which is the standard place to place a wristwatch. All you need is to make a note of where the ends meet and accordingly look for wristwatches. 

It is usually seen that the average wrist size of men is 7.5 inches and that of women is 6.5 inches. 

Tips to Choose a Wristwatch

If you have a thin wrist, then bulky watches would be too overwhelming. You should go for small strap watches. Bulky watches would look awkward on your wrist. 

When you have a broader wrist, then small dial watches would look completely lost on your wrist. For them, bulky watches and sports watches are the best option. It is always better to avoid minimal looking watches as the dial would look sparse and empty on your wrist.