Regardless of the type of watch you purchase, having it fit right on your wrist is important for your comfort level; however, for many people, what constitutes a “right” fit can be a little fuzzy and unclear. Most watch bands are either chain links or some type of leather or plastic, but both are designed to fit a variety of wrist sizes. Before you decide which type of band to buy, you should go ahead and measure your wrist. The best way to do this is to put a piece of tape around your wrist, then take the tape off and measure how long it is. Once you do this, you can be sure that the watch you buy will fit you properly.
How Tight Should Your Watch Fit?
Essentially, finding the perfect fit means finding a watch that is tight enough not to slip around on your wrist but is not so tight that it leaves imprints on the skin. When you’re trying to find a good-fitting watch, several factors come into play, and this includes the:
- Case depth. To measure the depth of the case, lay it on a flat surface and measure from the surface up to the top of the case. Don’t measure the face or crystal of the watch; just measure the case itself and not the face on top of that.
- Case diameter. The case is the face of the watch, and before you decide what size watch is good for your wrist, measure its diameter without measuring any pieces sticking out, such as the winder.
- Lug to lug. Measure in an up-and-down motion, starting at the top of the face and going down to just below the bottom of the face. This isn’t a diameter measurement because you’ll be measuring from just above the top of the face to just below the bottom. Pretend that you’re measuring a straight line.
The reason why these numbers are so important is because you may decide to order your watch online. When you do this, the descriptions will include all of the exact measurements of the watch, which means that it’s a little easier to decide which one will best fit your wrist. Taking these three measurements into consideration, here are some numbers to remember to increase the odds of getting a watch that fits just right:
If your wrist is under 6 inches, find a watch with the following measurements:
- Case depth: under 10mm
- Case diameter: 38mm or under
- Lug to lug: under 42mm
If your wrist is between 6 and 6.75 inches, choose the following measurements:
- Case depth: under 12mm
- Case diameter: 36mm to 40mm
- Lug to lug: under 46mm
If your wrist is between 6.75 and 7.5 inches, find a watch with these measurements:
- Case depth: under 14mm
- Case diameter: 40mm to 44mm
- Lug to lug: under 50mm
If your wrist is 7.5 inches or larger, choose the following measurements:
- Case depth: over 10mm
- Case diameter: 42mm or larger
- Lug to lug: over 46mm
All of these things impact the watch tightness of the watch you end up choosing, but you should also keep in mind that other factors can affect how tight or loose the watch is in the end. For instance, you can’t underestimate the personal preferences of watch wearers. In other words, some people simply prefer that their watches be a little tighter or a little looser than they should be. As a general rule, however, it’s good to be wearing a watch that won’t slide more than one inch up or down on your arm while you’re wearing it. If it slides more than an inch in either direction, it is considered too loose.
Why Is it Important to Have a Perfect Fit for Your Watch?
There are two main reasons why the perfect fit is so important for a watch: it simply looks better on your wrist, and it feels a lot better as well. If you wear your watch all day long, you’ll want it to be comfortable and the only way to make that happen is to make sure it fits properly. If you have an extra-large watch and it doesn’t fit properly, it will look ridiculously large and out of place every time you wear it. In addition, the face of the watch, known as the crystal, can become scratched or damaged if you don’t wear the right size. These are but a few of the reasons why wearing the right-sized watch is so important.
Before you purchase a great watch, you’ll need to know what size you need to make the watch fit just right. If you can try on the watch, you should definitely do so, but if you buy a watch online, there is no need to worry. Most product descriptions found online give you exact dimensions of the watch, which makes it much easier to find the one you need in the end.
