# 7 inch wrist - what size watch?



## jeffbet (Dec 28, 2013)

Newbie here and new to WUS. Watches seem much bigger than they used to be. I know this is subjective, but looking for some guidance here. What is largest size watch I should buy (in your opinion)?

I've seen some people with thin wrists wearing huge watches - in my opinion.

Thanks,

Jeff


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## John MS (Mar 17, 2006)

Because lug to lug distance, lug shape, watch height, watch back design and case shape all contribute to how a watch feels on the wrist my suggestion would be to just try some on. Focus first on the style and features you want in a watch to reduce the number of possible choices. Then go have an enjoyable saturday at the mall trying some on.


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## BGPT23 (Feb 26, 2013)

Like you said, this is very subjective, and the largest watch you can wear is very much dependent on your own taste. My wrist is a little smaller than yours at about 6.75", and my largest watch is 42.5mm, and I have no desire to wear anything larger. If my wrists were 7" like yours, maybe I'd call my maximum watch size preference 45mm or so? 

There's nothing wrong at all with wearing something smaller than the absolute largest size you can pull off, though. I would suspect around 39-42mm would be what most 7" wristers would consider most comfortable.


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## Stellite (Aug 3, 2011)

It all depends on the watch as well. Some models sit better than others on a wrist. I have had smaller watches feel large on my wrist and some larger watches felt perfect. But in general, I would say 43mm is a good max to stay around.


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## sticky (Apr 5, 2013)

It's such a matter of personal choice that rather than just saying "oh I've got a 7" wrist therefore I can't wear a 46mm watch" I urge you to try the watch on before you discount it.


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## ~tc~ (Dec 9, 2011)

It also depends on the shape of your wrist, how round or oval/flat it is.

Mine are 7", and I find myself gravitating to 38-40 mm, but 43/45 is OK (and I like them better than 36mm)


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## GETS (Dec 8, 2011)

42mm should be about the max for a 7 inch wrist (for my tastes).


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## nikey (Oct 3, 2013)

42mm should be the max for any size wrist.

For a 7-inch wrist: 36mm is just about the perfect size for a sport watch. 32mm for a dress watch.

Thanks,
Mike



GETS said:


> 42mm should be about the max for a 7 inch wrist (for my tastes).


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## Dienekes (Dec 22, 2012)

I agree watches wear different all dial vs bezel vs thickness yada, yada, yada... It's hard to try stuff on when your browsing the net looking for stuff you like though. For you 38-44mm is probably the range. 40-42 is probably your best fit for a sports watch. For a dress style you don't want anything bigger then 40mm. And I don't agree 42mm is max for anyone. A 40mm Sub or 42mm PO look tiny on my wrist for dive style watches.


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## Call_me_Tom (Jul 20, 2007)

I have a 7" wrist & my largest watch is 45mm. A 44mm diver looks fine on me. I think a 39mm-40mm for a dress would look fine. I have a 38mm it looks small.


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## Medphred (May 29, 2011)

John MS said:


> Because lug to lug distance, lug shape, watch height, watch back design and case shape all contribute to how a watch feels on the wrist my suggestion would be to just try some on. Focus first on the style and features you want in a watch to reduce the number of possible choices. Then go have an enjoyable saturday at the mall trying some on.


+1 for the L2L distance. Some watches have very long lugs (ie, NOMOS), others very short lugs (many Seikos). So dont discount a 43mm watch ... it may be a better fit than a 40 with long lugs.
Ditto for case and lug shape. Some hug the wrist, others dont.
Sage advise to try some on and spend a bit of time looking at the WRUW threads. If you see something you like in a wrist shot, PM the poster and ask them their wrist size. Most here are very happy to help.


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## Mike_Dowling (May 4, 2013)

nikey said:


> 42mm should be the max for any size wrist.
> 
> For a 7-inch wrist: 36mm is just about the perfect size for a sport watch. 32mm for a dress watch.
> 
> ...


32 mm for a dress watch and 36 for a sport watch? I don't think so...

For a 7 inch wrist its more like 38mm - 40 mm for dress and 40 mm up to 44 mm depending on thickness and lug to lug size for sport.

Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk


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## Iowa_Watchman (Jun 16, 2013)

I would suggest no larger than 42mm with no longer than 50mm lugs (Probably less at that).


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## Jackson Filth (Jan 7, 2012)

try them on and find whatever sings to you. my wrist is 7 3/4 and i find 42mm suits them best. doesn't mean i couldn't wear larger, because i do, it's just my size preference.


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## smb (Jun 5, 2010)

I have come to the preliminary conclusion that you can not go by mm size. If you are wearing a dress watch you will probably be wearing it under a long sleeve shirt and jacket. A watch that is bulky will catch on your sleeve constantly. I find that a low profile watch is best as a dress watch. Yesterday, I was wearing a Seiko divers and a leather jacket. I found that it did not fit under the elastic cuff. It looked a bit awkward sticking out from the jacket. I also find that too large a watch will constantly bang into doorways or get in my way. Just because fashion might dictate a 45mm watch today does not mean it will be popular five years from now. Always consider fads vs. good taste and what you like best. No watch will be appropriate for all occasions or style of clothes or usages.


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## chiefeng (Dec 2, 2010)

My wrist is around 7-71/4" and I prefer a 40m but no larger than 42mm, I will also go as small as 36-38mm.


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## MusicPDX (Feb 27, 2013)

GETS said:


> 42mm should be about the max for a 7 inch wrist (for my tastes).


I have a 7" wrist and agree that size is about my limit. I have a Halios Laguna that's 43mm and it's really my upper end.


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## Nokie (Jul 4, 2011)

38-42mm should work just great for you. 

Avoid the "satellite" dish watches, as they look like you have a frying pan on your wrist.


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## scooby (Jun 3, 2009)

7 inch wrist here as well. 36 is my smallest dress watch and 42 is my biggest sport watch. Neither look out of place. That being said, 38-40mm is indeed the best all around size for me.


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## Shawnny (Mar 12, 2010)

I have 6.5" wrists with big forearms. I can do 48mm without a problem. I have two in 52mm, but they are just two big.


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## hovebomber (Jul 14, 2013)

The Invicta Blue Whale seems like a good choice


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## JeffW2 (Jul 30, 2013)

6.8" wrist. 42mm dress. Others 44-47mm

Jeff


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## jeffbet (Dec 28, 2013)

smb said:


> I have come to the preliminary conclusion that you can not go by mm size. If you are wearing a dress watch you will probably be wearing it under a long sleeve shirt and jacket. A watch that is bulky will catch on your sleeve constantly. I find that a low profile watch is best as a dress watch. Yesterday, I was wearing a Seiko divers and a leather jacket. I found that it did not fit under the elastic cuff. It looked a bit awkward sticking out from the jacket. I also find that too large a watch will constantly bang into doorways or get in my way. Just because fashion might dictate a 45mm watch today does not mean it will be popular five years from now. Always consider fads vs. good taste and what you like best. No watch will be appropriate for all occasions or style of clothes or usages.


Well said. I can't tell you how many watches I have with scratches on the crystal. If there is a doorway, wall, drinking fountain in the vicinity, you can be sure I will find it and scratch my watch. That is why I usually buy beater watches, because I destroy them. The only ones to survive my wrist are the two more expensive watches with sapphire crystals.


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## jeffbet (Dec 28, 2013)

Nokie said:


> 38-42mm should work just great for you.
> 
> Avoid the "satellite" dish watches, as they look like you have a frying pan on your wrist.


Those crack me up. I've seen people wearing those and I don't get it.


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## jeffbet (Dec 28, 2013)

Never thought of asking posters their wrist size. Great idea, thanks.


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## jeffbet (Dec 28, 2013)

Jackson Filth said:


> try them on and find whatever sings to you. my wrist is 7 3/4 and i find 42mm suits them best. doesn't mean i couldn't wear larger, because i do, it's just my size preference.


Too bad they haven't invented a way to virtually try on a watch so I could do all my shopping online.


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## BGPT23 (Feb 26, 2013)

jeffbet said:


> Too bad they haven't invented a way to virtually try on a watch so I could do all my shopping online.


I've seen sunglass websites that use your computer's webcam to virtually show how different pairs of sunglasses would look on your head. I would love to see the same done for watches, that would be so cool!


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## John MS (Mar 17, 2006)

jeffbet said:


> Those crack me up. I've seen people wearing those and I don't get it.


Aka wrist clocks and ankle watches.


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## Munchie (Dec 20, 2013)

quote from Chiefeng "My wrist is around 7-71/4" and I prefer a 40m but no larger than 42mm, I will also go as small as 36-38mm." this is pretty much my criteria size wise ....

I thought that this was an interesting thread on the subject started by Cam66

https://www.watchuseek.com/f2/my-mathematical-watch-sizing-guide-592616.html


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## THS (Oct 5, 2013)

Wrist circumference is not the right metric. 
https://www.watchuseek.com/f2/*correct*-mathematical-watch-sizing-guide-954023.html


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## ilitig8 (Oct 11, 2013)

Forgetting wrist shape and lug length and shape for a moment, the vast majority of 42mm should work fine and some 44mm, above that you are probably getting into the area of overhanging lugs.


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## Shawnny (Mar 12, 2010)

smb said:


> I have come to the preliminary conclusion that you can not go by mm size. If you are wearing a dress watch you will probably be wearing it under a long sleeve shirt and jacket. A watch that is bulky will catch on your sleeve constantly. I find that a low profile watch is best as a dress watch. Yesterday, I was wearing a Seiko divers and a leather jacket. I found that it did not fit under the elastic cuff. It looked a bit awkward sticking out from the jacket. I also find that too large a watch will constantly bang into doorways or get in my way. Just because fashion might dictate a 45mm watch today does not mean it will be popular five years from now. Always consider fads vs. good taste and what you like best. No watch will be appropriate for all occasions or style of clothes or usages.


I have two at 52mm and many at 48mm. I've have never hit one of them on anything. And, big watches have been around for at least 15 years now. Big watches are here to stay, as are watches of all sizes.


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## THS (Oct 5, 2013)

Other things that are here to stay: Men's gold jewelry, track suits, burberry caps.


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## StripeyNATO (Nov 21, 2013)

There really is no rule book! Wear what you want, there's no one there to judge you.


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## THS (Oct 5, 2013)

StripeyNATO said:


> There really is no rule book! Wear what you want, there's no one there to judge you.


Like it or not, you will be judged on your appearance in a lot of situations. You don't have to care about that, of course, but that's another matter entirely.


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## tony20009 (Sep 25, 2013)

jeffbet said:


> Newbie here and new to WUS. Watches seem much bigger than they used to be. I know this is subjective, but looking for some guidance here. What is largest size watch I should buy (in your opinion)?
> 
> I've seen some people with thin wrists wearing huge watches - in my opinion.
> 
> ...


Larger watches are easier to come by these days. No doubt about that. There is, IMO, only one truism about big watches: bigger does not make the watch better. Of course the converse of that is also true.

When one gets down to brass tacks, the size of a watch affects several things:
- the amount of wrist real estate they occupy 
- the overall look on your wrist
- how it feels on your wrist
- whether the watch will fit easily under your shirt cuff
- the amount "stuff" that can be fit inside the case (complications, air, dirt, whatever)
- the size of the hands and numerals on the watch face
- the amount of space you need to store it when you aren't wearing it
- the price of the watch
- lug design
- case design
- after market straps and bracelets that will fit or look good with it

IMO, the first three on the list matter most. The last one matters quite a bit if you like the watch, but not the strap/bracelet its maker offers with it or as alternatives. The lug and case design can make a big watch "wear small" and a small watch "wear big." Those same two factors can also make one big watch look great and another look ridiculous. It works the same with smaller watches too. Also, non-round watches will throw any preconceived notions you have about size right out the window. Lastly, how you wear the watch will affect what you think of the watch, regardless of its size. You may find that watch X looks and feels great worn snugly yet you are just as content with a different watch of exactly the same size only when worn loosely.

In the end, you just have to put the thing on your wrist and see what you think. All seven inch wrists are not created equal; however, as you try on more and more watches, you'll find a size that most often works for you. Despite that, you will occasionally find a watch that is either larger or smaller that also floats your boat.

Over the first 54 years of my life, I have bought over 30 watches, and not until a month or two ago did I measure my wrist. It turns out I have 7" wrists that match my overall ectomorphic/mesomorphic body type, but I also have large hands and long fingers (base of my palm to end of middle finger is nearly 9.5 inches). My watches are 34mm to 50mm in diameter, with most being 38mm to 40mm.

Based on all the varying sizes and shapes of watches I've bought and/or tried on, I can say that I have yet to find any one size that is universally bad for my wrist. I guess that means that 7" wrists can accommodate just about whatever watch one wants to wrap around them. That's great because it means the range of options is quite broad, yet that sucks because it means the range of options is quite broad. <winks>

All the best.

The horse respects and obeys man because its large eyes magnify everything, so man appears much larger than the horse itself.
- Stanislaw Lem, _Highcastle: A Remembrance_


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## BrentYYC (Feb 2, 2012)

Wow... it took three pages of reading before somebody finally gave the correct answer and said wrist circumference isn't the correct metric to use when deciding on watch size. The correct metric is wrist WIDTH. It's all about the size of the platform that frames the watch, and this can vary dramatically among wrists of the same size. Along with that you need to take into account whether the watch has long or short lugs, or whether there are cosmetic features that may make the watch appear larger or smaller to the eye than the width data indicates (a wide, contrasting color, bezel will make a watch appear smaller because the eye focuses on the dial, whereas a watch with a thin, or no, bezel that matches the dial color will appear larger to the eye than the numbers indicate).

Case in point, I have a 7 1/4" wrist circumference at it's smallest point above the wrist bone, and several people on this thread with the same wrist circumference as me have stated a 40mm to 42mm is perfect for them. In my case, a 42mm watch looks smallish because I have a flatter wrist versus a roundish wrist (bigger platform on which to wear a watch). I can easily wear a 49mm diver and have it look perfectly proportioned on my wrist, but on other people with the same wrist circumference as me, the same watch would look like a "satellite dish".

The message is... be more concerned about wrist width when evaluating watch sizes, and always take the lug length into account as well as the design features that affect how the eye perceives watch size.

The following photo illustrates how deceptive 'case width' and 'wrist circumference' numbers can be, in isolation. It's a 49mm Oris Prodiver Date on the narrowest part of my 7 1/4" wrist. It doesn't look out of place at all, due to three factors. 1) I have a flat wrist that gives the watch a larger platform to sit on, 2) the watch has short lugs that fall well within the perimeter of my wrist width, 3) the thick, contrasting bezel makes the watch appear smaller to the eye because the dial is small in relation to the case size.


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## John MS (Mar 17, 2006)

BrentYYC said:


> Wow... it took three pages of reading before somebody finally gave the correct answer and said wrist circumference isn't the correct metric to use when deciding on watch size. The correct metric is wrist WIDTH. It's all about the size of the platform that frames the watch, and this can vary dramatically among wrists of the same size. Along with that you need to take into account whether the watch has long or short lugs, or whether there are cosmetic features that may make the watch appear larger or smaller to the eye than the width data indicates (a wide, contrasting color, bezel will make a watch appear smaller because the eye focuses on the dial, whereas a watch with a thin, or no, bezel that matches the dial color will appear larger to the eye than the numbers indicate).
> 
> Case in point, I have a 7 1/4" wrist circumference at it's smallest point above the wrist bone, and several people on this thread with the same wrist circumference as me have stated a 40mm to 42mm is perfect for them. In my case, a 42mm watch looks smallish because I have a flatter wrist versus a roundish wrist (bigger platform on which to wear a watch). I can easily wear a 49mm diver and have it look perfectly proportioned on my wrist, but on other people with the same wrist circumference as me, the same watch would look like a "satellite dish".
> 
> ...


The correct answer is that all of our wrists are different so the only way to know whether the watch looks good and fits is to try it on. Rules of thumb, formulas and whether someone else likes a watch is mostly guessing with larger watches.


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## tony20009 (Sep 25, 2013)

This pic should make clear why you just have to try on the watch(s) you think you want to buy/keep. The orange dot is the same size both times it appears.


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## BrentYYC (Feb 2, 2012)

John MS said:


> The correct answer is that all of our wrists are different so the only way to know whether the watch looks good and fits is to try it on. Rules of thumb, formulas and whether someone else likes a watch is mostly guessing with larger watches.


The correct answer, and the only point I was making with regards to the O.P.'s question, is don't evaluate what size is right for you based on wrist size because there are other things to consider as well, due to us, and our watches, all being different. You've made the same point I did, in a different way.


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## akasnowmaaan (Jan 15, 2012)

The only rule I can think of is the lugs, where the straps connect, shouldn't be wider than your wrist. It should wrap smoothly around without hanging in the middle of the air.

It's not really a rule, but a thing that is quite sensible once when you wear a watch that's too long. It's really uncomfortable and just doesn't work in the long run.


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## Vakane (Oct 25, 2011)

41.5 mm


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## hchj (Jul 9, 2011)

~tc~ said:


> It also depends on the shape of your wrist, how round or oval/flat it is.
> 
> Mine are 7", and I find myself gravitating to 38-40 mm, but 43/45 is OK (and I like them better than 36mm)


Well said! I agree...

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## krstgor (Feb 8, 2019)

Here's a guide that I find makes a lot of sense: https://www.realmenrealstyle.com/watch-size/


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## Ron521 (Feb 20, 2014)

My wrist is 7 inches, and measures 60 mm wide, so slightly flat, not round. I can just get away with the Bulova Lunar Pilot, which is 45 mm wide and 52 mm lug to lug. The angle of the camera makes it appear that the lugs are wider than my wrist, when they are actually not. However, I view this as the maximum size I want to wear, and other watches with shorter lug to lug distance look better IMHO.









Here is a 50 mm Skmei 1254, which has a very short lug to lug of only 38 mm. This and the way the strap curves to hug the wrist allow it to work despite it's large diameter. The Bulova above would be even more awesome if it had recessed lugs such as these, but then it would not be such a faithful "replica" of the 1971 watch.


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## laxman214a (10 mo ago)

7.25" wrist - sorry I am not down with the smaller case watches cause they look like a " kids" watch on my wrist. Bought a 44mm Hydroconquest cause the 41mm looked too small to me. I see guys that have larger wrists trying to sport 38-40mm then complain and don't routinely wear them.

42-46mm fit my wrist as long athey are not 50mm lug to lug or smaller than 45mm .. to each his own. Find one that fits YOU, Isn't heavy or taxing in the wrist . The largest I own is a daily beater G Shock that's 48mm case size


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## mjsterre (Oct 1, 2017)

I have a 7.5'' wrist and can go anywhere from 36-44mm in diameter and 44-52mm lug-to-lug.


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## hautewrists (May 12, 2021)

I have 6.5" wrists. I personally stay 42mm and below for most two/three hand watches. I am fine with going bigger for watches with more complications or something that I really like. Lug to lug also plays a factor.


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## jcp123 (Feb 4, 2012)

This will be very subjective - you have to decide what looks good on your own wrist - but for myself on my slightly larger 7.25” wrist, I pretty much max out at 42mm and find that larger stuff tends to look either trashy or cartoonish on me. Ironically, although dress watches are typically sized smaller than sport watches, I find it’s easier to get away with a big size on a dress watch than a sports watch. I’ll bet I could pull off a 44mm dress watch far better than a 44mm chrono or diver.


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## timetexaschris (11 mo ago)

Yeah, it's very individual. I would never go below 40mm when my wrist was 7.5". Mostly wore 42-44mm. Lost some weight and my wrist is 7" now and 38mm to 42mm is the sweet spot now. Crazy how much of a difference it made. I thought a 38mm looked comically small.

My 44mm Speedmaster Racing was perfect before, but a little too large now. 

A fair amount depends on the watch too. Bigger bezel can make a watch look smaller because of the reduced dial size where a small bezel and large clean dial can appear much larger.


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