What’s Driving Dive Watch Design in 2025: Trends That Are Making Waves

Dive watches have always been more than tools — they’re style statements, engineering showcases, and often symbols of adventure. In 2025, several intersecting trends are reshaping how dive watches are designed. Whether you’re a serious diver or a horology enthusiast, these currents are worth watching.

1. Sustainability & Eco Materials

More consumers are demanding environmental responsibility, and dive-watch brands are responding. Key developments:

• Recycled metals: Brands are increasingly using recycled stainless steel, titanium, or even repurposed metals for watch cases and bracelets. 

• Bio-based and ocean plastics: Straps made from recycled ocean plastic are becoming more common. Some dial or case components are sourced or designed with more sustainable practices in mind. 

• Eco-friendly manufacturing and packaging: Less waste, more ethical sourcing, and sometimes “green” finishings. 

Sustainability isn’t just a marketing badge — it changes material performance, weight, finish, cost, and sometimes tolerances in corrosion and durability.

2. Materials Innovation: Titanium, Ceramics, & Beyond

Traditional stainless steel remains popular, but alternative and advanced materials are becoming more mainstream, not just luxury:

• Titanium: Favoured for its strength-to-weight ratio, corrosion resistance, and comfort. Good for larger cases where weight matters. 

• Ceramic (bezels, inserts, full components): Offers scratch resistance, retains colour, resists fading from UV/salt exposure. Often seen in bezel inserts or bezel rings. 

• Advanced high-tech materials: Silicon parts in movements for anti-magnetism, novel composites, or coatings that improve durability or resistance to marine environments. 
  

3. Vintage / Retro Revival

There is a strong nostalgic undercurrent in contemporary dive-watch design:

• Designers are drawing on mid-20th-century diver heritage: “tropical” dials, gilt or “old radium” lume tones, domed crystals, snowflake hands, and simpler, more utilitarian bezels. 

• Proportions are often tweaked: modern wearability (thinner cases, less wrist overhang) with vintage cues so it looks like it could’ve been from the ‘60s or ‘70s but with modern robustness. 

4. Colour & Dial / Bezel Style Trends

Colour is coming to the forefront in ways more adventurous than just “black or blue”:

• Rich accent colours: Bordeaux reds, deep garnets, bright oranges in second hands or bezel inserts. Tudor’s Black Bay 58 in red is a good example. 

• Colour-matched bezels and dials: Coordinated colours to build a cohesive look, especially with sunburst dials or gradient effects. 

• Textured or unusual dials: Stone dials, coral or natural materials (or that appearance), and unusual finishes (matte, semi-gloss, sunburst, etc.) are more common. 

5. Readability & Functionality

Dive watches are tools: design changes are being driven by both aesthetics and performance under water:

• Bigger, high-contrast indices and hands, with improved lume (longer glow, more uniform). 

• Bezels that are easier to grip, more legible minute markings, more clicks, more precise. 

• Slimmer profiles where possible so watches can transition from dive suits to dress-casual settings. ■ less bulk but preserving water resistance. 
  

6. Customisation & Microbrands Gaining Ground

Consumers want individuality. Brands are responding:

• Interchangeable straps, bezels: Easily swap out straps or bezel inserts to change look. Quick-release systems, divers bracelets that work out of the box. 

• Limited editions and special runs: Nostalgic designs, colour variants, or small batch releases are popular because they feel more special. 

• Microbrands: Smaller makers offering high value, originality, and leveraging online and niche communities. They often experiment with design elements more freely. 
  

7. Smart + Hybrid Functionality

While purists may prefer mechanical only, there’s increasing interest in merging smart tech and traditional dive-watch design:

• Dive-log tracking, connectivity, GPS, depth sensors are appearing in watches that still look like classic divers. 

• Robust smartwatch/dive-computer hybrids which can survive salt water, maintain water resistance while offering modern functionality. 

What This Means for Designers, Collectors & Buyers

• For Designers / Brands: Balancing heritage with innovation is crucial. Materials, finishing, cost, and sustainability will become differentiators more than just having water resistance to 100m/200m/300m.

• For Collectors & Buyers: When shopping in 2025, consider not just specs (depth, movement) but also material sourcing, environmental impact, lume quality, and versatility (wear with wetsuit and shirt).

• For D!VE Dive Watches: Whilst we don't hit all of the current trends (some we choose not to - #7 for example) Across the HADAL Collection we hit multiple trends: sustainable material considerations, utilitarian design approach, retro style with modern finishing, customisation, strong lume, & limited-edition specials. 
  
  We're also looking into how we can incorporate a Titanium case set, along with slimmer profile pieces into our future collection.