Scuba diving watches are iconic; they almost single-handedly symbolize adventure and an exciting lifestyle. That is why hundreds of models are available on the market today.
You can spend anything from under $100 to the price of a small car on a scuba diving watch. So which are the best and most exciting watches on the market today?
So read on to find the best ones available today for every need and budget.
Best Entry-Level Option: Citizen Promaster Aqualand
The Citizen Promaster Aqualand builds on over a 30-year legacy since the first in the Promaster series of watches was released in 1989. The Citizen Promaster Aqualand offers simple dive features, including a rotating bezel and depth gauge in a rugged, durable, and stylish case. The watch’s style stands out and resembles some premium dive watches today.
Features of Citizen Promaster Aqualand include:
- Water resistant to 200m/660ft.
- Eco-Drive Movement converts any light natural or otherwise, to energy, so there is no need to change batteries.
- Power level display showing charge at eh 9 o’clock position.
- Luminescent hour and minute hands, as well as the dive depth indicator.
- Luminescent hour markers.
- Uni-directional rotating bezel.
- Dive depth gauge up to 70m/230ft – nonlinear scale emphasizing 0-40m/0-120ft.
- Stainless steel case with a wide range of options for straps. From metal to resin.
Citizen Men's Eco-Drive Promaster Aqualand Blue Red Watch BN2038-01L
Citizen Eco-Drive™ FAQ Watch Sizing Guide Dive with excellence and style wearing the Citizen Watches Aqualand watch. Round stainless steel case. Adjustable ocean blue polyurethane wrist strap. Traditional buckle closure. Four-hand display with Japanese quartz movement. ISO-compliant watch with maximum depth memory, rapid ascent alarm, auto start dive mode, and power reserve. Eco-Drive technology - powered by light, any light. The blue dial face features geometric hour markers and a date display window.
Best Budget Option: Casio MDV106 Dive Watch
If you are looking for a scuba diving watch on a budget, look no further than the Casio MDV106. It is durable and stylish yet won’t break the bank. Simple to use and featuring a rotating bezel, the MDV106 reminds you of some of the legends of the diving watch world. Although it is simple, the watch is no slouch and will withstand the harshest scuba diving conditions.
Features of the Casio MDV106 include:
- Depth rated to 200m/660ft.
- Date window at the 3 o’clock position on the watch face.
- Uni-directional rotating bezel for accurate, safe dive time calculations.
- Luminous hour and minute hands.
- Luminous hour markers on the watch face.
- Rugged and durable with a stainless-steel case and resin band.
Casio MDV-106 Dive Watch
Inspired by the sea, this watch black resin band and stainless steel case give it a classic look.Simple 3-hand analog with date display for an easy-read.The watch’s black resin band and stainless steel case give it a classic appearance while its anti-reverse bezel adds a diver inspired look. Simple 3-hand analog with date display for an easy-read.
Best Digital Watch: Casio Frogman
The Casio Frogman digital diving watch is the pack’s leader in digital scuba diving watches. The watch is jam-packed with almost every feature a diver would need except decompression information. Tide, moons, bottom time, and much more. The Casio Frogman has it all. The Frogman is also ISO-6425 certified, which complies with the most rigorous standards to be classed as a diving watch.
Features of the Casio Frogman include:
- Water resistant to 200m/660ft.
- 45mm diameter making it easy to read.
- Large stainless-steel buttons for easy use even with gloves on.
- Solar powered, so there is no need ever to change your battery.
- Mineral glass with a diamond-like coating for extreme durability.
- Dive time and surface increment measurement functionality.
- Moon data, including moon phase graph and moon age on a specific date.
- Tidal graph including level on a given date.
Casio Frogman GWF-1000-1CR Dive Wristwatch
FROGMAN combines outstanding water resistance with solar capabilities. A new type of receiver antenna and make case make it possible to pick up six time calibration signals around the globe into a configuration that is ISO-level water resistant up to 200 meters.
Best Eco-Conscious Option: SDC Black Tip
The SDC’s OceanRider watch line offers sleek timepieces that can dive with you to the depths of each new personal best you reach and look good. Tech enthusiasts will love the open-style case backing, which allows a peek into the inner workings of the Seiko automatic movement.
The environmentally conscious will appreciate the strap, which gives a second chance at life to neoprene from reclaimed wetsuits. It’s available in four shark-inspired colors–Black Tip, Great White, Oceanic Blue, and Silky Grey–and comes in an eco-friendly, vegan, and 100% recyclable box.
Features of the SDC Black Tip watch include:
- Automatic (self-winding) Seiko NH35 movement
- Water resistant to 300 meters/1000 feet (or 30 bar)
- Scratch-resistant sapphire crystal
- Unidirectional rotating bezel
- Matte finish Swiss Super-LumiNova luminous dial
- Date functionality
- Upcycled strap made from unwanted wetsuits
- Available in Black Tip, Great White, Ocean Blue, and Silky Grey
OceanRider Black Tip Watch - SDC Watches
The OceanRider Collection embraces the heritage of the ocean and innovation of the future.
Featuring a 42mm case crafted from 316L stainless steel and a black ceramic bezel, this watch is proudly named after the Black Tip shark.
Best Luxury Option: Rolex Submariner
Probably to most famous and iconic dive watch the world has ever seen. The Rolex Submariners have inspired a range of dive watches since they graced divers’ wrists in the mid-1950s. The current iteration of the submariner is from 2012, and it is a testament to its iconic design that it still looks stylish ten years later.
Features of the current generation of Rolex Submariner include:
- Depth rated to 300m/1000ft.
- 3235 automatic mechanical movement charging the watch while on your wrist.
- 70-hour power reserve.
- 41 mm diameter case makes it fashionable with formal wear and dive gear.
- Stainless steel case and strap.
- Luminescent minute and hour hands, as well as the tip of the second hand.
- Luminescent hour markers.
- Uni-directional bezel for safe dive time measurement.
Rolex Submariner - The divers’ watch
The Rolex Submariner can easily be described as one of Rolex's most famous designs and is considered one of the most popular diving watches ever created. The first watch was water-resistant to 300m (1000ft) which has helped the timepiece to become one of the most successful dive watches in history. A perfect blend of functionality and style, the Submariner makes for a truly great watch. It wasn’t until 1984, over three decades after the launch of the Submariner that we saw the first two-tone steel and gold version of the Submariner, and it has been part of the Submariner Date collection ever since.
