Archive · 8 Nov 2025
Wristwatch Trends: The Shift Back to Smaller Case Sizes
Imagine you love collecting toy cars.
For a while, everyone wanted the biggest toy cars, even if they were hard to hold.
But some people started remembering how much fun the smaller toy cars were, saying they looked better and were easier to play with.
They talked about it online a lot, and eventually, the toy car companies listened.
Now, these companies are making more of the smaller, classic-sized toy cars again because people realized they are just nicer to have.
It's the same with watches – big watches were trendy for a while, but now people are preferring smaller, more classic sizes because they feel better and look better on most wrists.
We wear watches now more like jewelry than just to tell time, so how they look and feel matters a lot.
For decades, men's watch case sizes were typically between 32-38mm, with larger sizes reserved for specialized tool watches.
A trend favoring larger watch cases, often 43mm and above, emerged in the late 1990s and persisted for about 20 years.
Watch enthusiasts increasingly voiced a preference for smaller, more comfortable, and historically proportionate watch sizes.
The demand for smaller watches grew significantly, particularly after the pandemic, prompting brands to offer more varied case sizes.
The current trend sees a return to smaller watch sizes, with 38mm considered a sweet spot for men, and a move towards unisex sizing.
- Who
- Watch enthusiasts and the watch industry
- What
- A shift in the preferred size of wristwatches from larger cases back to smaller, more traditionally sized ones.
- When
- Starting in the late 1990s with a trend towards large watches, with a reversal gaining momentum around 2023.
- Where
- The watch industry, influenced by enthusiast tastes.
- Why
- Enthusiasts found that smaller, vintage-inspired sizes were more proportional, attractive, and comfortable, leading market demand to shift.
- Historical Men's Dress Watch Size
- 32-34mm
- Historical Men's Sporty Watch Size
- 36-37mm
- Historical 'Jumbo' Watch Size
- 38mm
- Peak Large Watch Size Era
- Late 1990s to early 2020s
- Current Preferred Men's Watch Size
- Around 38mm