The Best Dive Watches of 2025

Year after year, the popularity of the dive watch category shows no signs of decreasing. A classic for most brands and a must-have in any serious collection, owning a dive watch is always a great option for summer or weekends, even though most of us won’t even take it deeper than the bottom of a swimming pool. This is also why finding a dive watch that suits you isn’t the easiest, as comfort and daily usability must enter the equation for us, desk-divers that we are. That said, brands continue to innovate, improve their recipes, and offer better, stronger options that combine superior diving credentials with enough versatility for non-diving use. Here are the 5 dive watches that we elected as the best of 2025.

Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Automatic 38mm

Having talked about comfort and wearing a dive watch on a daily basis, without compromising the actual diving credentials, we need to talk about the new compact version of the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms. One of the most emblematic and oldest watches in the category, the Blancpain FF was resurrected in 2007 in a large 45mm format, laying down the foundations (design and specs) for the decades to come. In 2024, as the brand celebrated the model’s 70th anniversary, something great arrived in the collection: the Fifty Fathoms 42mm Collection in titanium, gold, and later in steel. And now, there’s something even cooler, the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Automatic 38mm. Still the same overall design, still the same combination of luxury, beautiful horology and great diving capabilities, just made smaller and more comfortable. And it really fits the bill.

You can find all the details about the 38mm Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Automatic in our hands-on article.

Certina DS Action Diver 40.5mm

When it comes to combining great features with classic design, undeniable robustness and fair price, it is hard to beat Certina’s latest dive watch, the DS Action Diver 40.5mm. Only the 38mm edition could challenge its position. But for the rest, what we’re looking at is all you need in a serious dive watch, and then some. The design is functional, timeless and even comes in a couple of pretty cool combinations (black with cream and gold accents). Equipped to fathom depths of up to 300 metres, the watch has a ceramic bezel and a sapphire crystal for reliability, a metal bracelet with micro-adjustment and quick-release and a movement with a long power reserve and anti-magnetic properties. And if you want to go all-in, go for the blue and titanium version, which retails for under EUR 1,000.

For more details about the Certina DS Action Diver 40.5, please consult our article and video here.

Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean 4th Generation

It’s impossible to talk about dive watches in 2025 without mentioning the new Seamaster Planet Ocean, the 4th generation of a modern dive watchmaking icon. We have extensively reviewed the watch on MONOCHROME, and we know that the reception has been rather mixed. Some love the return to a sleeker concept with more compact dimensions, the removal of the helium valve or the far more angular look. Some, on the other hand, regret the new design language. But, in the end, I think we need to give this 4th-generation Planet Ocean a bit of time. What remains is that Omega is one of the best at making great dive watches. The new PO is ultra-capable, perfectly crafted, high-tech on all sides, and fully equipped. Everything you’d expect from the Biel-based brand, just in a rather different attire.

To get all the details about the 4th-gen Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean, please read this in-depth article.

Seiko Prospex Marinemaster Professional Titanium SLA081

Seiko. Prospex. Diver. Three words that we often see combined. But not all Prospex Diver watches are born equal. With the Marinemaster Professional Titanium SLA081, Seiko brings one of its most advanced professional-grade dive watches. A true professional dive watch made for saturation diving, with huge dimensions, equipped with everything Seiko has up its sleeve, and priced at a point where it could almost become a Grand Seiko (well, it does have a GS-derived movement). This monobloc 600m diver has a complex construction that avoids the need for a HEV, but adds a bit of fanciness to the dial, with a gradient and textured effect. Clearly more adequate worn over a diving suit that paired with loafers…

For more details about the Seiko Prospex Marinemaster Professional Titanium SLA081, visit this page.

Tudor Pelagos Ultra

Talking about ultra-capable professional dive watches, this year Tudor updated its modern, technical Pelagos with a new Ultra version that verges on over-engineering. The clasp alone is a true masterpiece of design, combining a safety catch, a tool-free length-adjustment system, a lumed visual position indicator, a pair of springs that allow the bracelet to expand or retract as you descend or ascend, and a wetsuit extension… The rest is classic Pelagos, just better and more capable. Still made of titanium, now measuring 43mm, the Pelagos can now withstand 1,000m of water pressure. The brand’s range-topping dive watch is, overall, impressive on all technical levels – movement and certifications included.

For more details about the Tudor Pelagos Ultra, please consult our hands-on article here.