The brown dial or “chocolate” style timepieces have certainly grown in popularity during the last decade or so. The aesthetic merit of the brown dial comes from its relaxing “fall season” charm and its “earthly” appeal. The brown dial provides a unique look compared to the timeless black or silver timepiece design. Watches the incorporate the brown dial aesthetic exudes a slightly warm and welcoming tone, a far cry from the professional appearance of black dials and the luxurious charm of silver and gold-tone dials. Brown dials carved a niche for itself in the market that it can proclaim as entirely its own.
The “chocolate” style dial is quite appealing and gives off an exclusive charm. However, take note that incorporating it ideally into an attire might take a bit of time compared to black dial watches that fit into any outfit. That said, this might be the reason for brown dial watches’ appeal – the fact that it stands on its own and requires a very distinctive approach to enhancing one’s attire.
If the idea of wearing a rustic and rugged brown dial timepiece sounds appealing to you, we have compiled a list of the best-looking ones in the market at the moment. Check out our list of brown dial watches for men down below.
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Brown Dial Watches for Men – Our Favorites
Citizen Eco-Drive Brown Strap Chronograph (AT0550-11X)
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Citizen watches are known for their innovative technology and a stylish yet highly practical design. As the name implies, this Citizen watch comes with their proprietary Eco-Drive technology, which means the timepiece is powered by light (both natural and human-made). The watch features a durable stainless-steel case that measures in at 42mm. The dial window is made from equally hardened mineral crystal, while silver-toned hands and markers accentuate the brown dial. The chronograph sub-dials also use a sunray design to add some pizzazz to the timepiece’s already impressive aesthetics.
Original Grain Wood Watch (OG-C2-006)
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How else can you perfectly and naturally deliver a brown-dialed wristwatch design? By using wood as the primary material for the dial, of course. You heard that right; the Original Grain utilizes exotic Koa Wood for its dial and stonewashed stainless-steel case. Underneath the unique design is a Japanese quartz movement developed by the company, Miyota. The wood dial is well-protected underneath a mineral crystal glass window. If you are an environmentalist, you needn’t worry as Koa wood is highly sustainable and the manufacturer plants one tree for every timepiece that they sell. These watches are also water-resistant with a 5ATM rating.
Hamilton Khaki Field Brown Dial Nylon Strap (H69429901)
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The Hamilton Khaki Field watch series is always known for its focus on delivering practical outdoor watches. The use of brown aesthetic is pretty much a no-brainer in this series as you can’t spell out “outdoor watch” any better than the use of that particular color tone. As for performance, the Khaki Field does get decent scores across the board. The nylon beige strap delivers the essential comfort and flexibility while the compact 38mm stainless steel case retains a lightweight build. Hamilton Khaki Field is a reliable and straightforward timepiece with some premium-grade qualities to it that help elevate it from the pack.
Invicta Speedway Gold Ion-Plated Steel Watch with Leather Band (10712)
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Invicta is well-known for effortlessly blending style and substance with their timepieces, and they managed to hit the mark with the Speedway Gold Ion-Plated watch. The rugged and steadfast charm of the Invicta Speedway is further magnified by the brown dial and brown leather design. It almost has a rough-and-tumble cowboy charm to it, which is its most significant appeal.
To finalize its rugged aesthetic, the Invicta Speedway paid no expense in improving its overall build. It features a durable mineral crystal window and construction that gives the watch the ability to withstand up to 200-meters of water pressure. Invicta did not skimp on providing enhanced functionality as well as it comes with chronograph functionality and a date display window. Within the timepiece is an always reliable Japanese quartz movement to operate its analog dial and sub-dial displays.
Orient Bambino Version IV (FAC08001T0)
The Orient Bambino is a personal favorite of mine due to its sleek style that manages to combine traditional and modern aesthetics seamlessly. This particular model comes from the Version IV series and manages to honor its roots while providing some subtle tweaks in its appearance to let it stand on its own. Some of the classic Bambino features are still present, such as the domed dial window, while other elements are redesigned such as the much thinner hands and diamond-shaped hour markers.
If you are familiar with the Orient Bambino series, then you will immediately notice a significant difference with Version 4 compared to previous iterations – its size. The Bambino IV incorporates a slightly larger case with the V4 measuring in at 42mm in diameter compared to the 40mm of previous Bambino versions. Of course, the Bambino V4 is known for not just looking classy, but also in being a class act with its performance thanks to its Japanese automatic movement.
Kenneth Cole New York Transparency Dress Watch (10022289)
The Kenneth Cole New York Transparency watch takes a more fashion-centric and modern approach with its brown dial design. The contemporary tiled-dial design is undoubtedly eye-catching and keeps with the spirit of being named after one of the busiest and most modernized cities in the world, New York. The watch build also gives it an adequate 30-meter water resistance which means it will be able to withstand the occasional splash of water, but complete submersion must be avoided entirely.
The polished stainless-steel case comes in at 40mm and contains a high-precision Japanese quartz movement with analog dial display. Let us go back to the brown dial though as this is most definitely its most prominent feature. The tiled dial also utilizes polished silver-toned hands and hour markers. There is also a silver-toned circle located near the center of the dial that further enhances its modern aesthetics. Kenneth Cole, which is known for its incredibly fashionable timepieces, definitely did not disappoint with their entry into the brown dial watch market.
Michael Kors Lexington Chronograph Stainless Steel (MK8344)
The Michael Kors Lexington Chrono Series (model #MK8344) comes in a wide variety of models. Still, one of the most eye-catching in the series is this two-toned silver and gold with chocolate dial timepiece variation. The watch projects a sophisticated appeal with its gold and silver case, which measures in at a comfy 44mm.
This timepiece is also designed to be quite robust with its mineral crystal window and case build that provides up to 100-meters of water resistance. As for the watch’s timekeeping capability, it utilizes the standard quartz movement.
Victorinox Swiss Army Men’s Alliance Sub-Seconds Watch (241766)
When you think of Victorinox watches, you think of timepieces that deliver outstanding reliability, build, and functionality. The Victorinox Alliance Sub-Seconds is all of that and applies unique brown dial aesthetic into the mix. What we have is a Victorinox watch that gathers all of the brand’s signature characteristics and fuses it into a design that is complements what Victorinox is capable of delivering. This is also further demonstrated by its 100-meter water resistance rating.
The Alliance Sub-Seconds not only looks stylish, but it is also designed for optimum functionality. Case in point, the highly pronounced silver-toned hour markers and hands. Both of which incorporate a luminous finish. The second’s hand is placed within its sub-dial, which utilizes a visible red finish. The dial window is made from sapphire crystal which is known for its high resistance to scratches. At the same time, the heart of the Alliance Sub-Seconds is a Swiss quartz movement that provides top-notch accuracy for its analog dial display.
Bulova BVA Series Dual Aperture Watch (96A120)
Are you looking for a brown dial watch incorporates one of the most visually stunning horological design in the industry? Well, Bulova has you covered there with their BVA Dual Aperture watch which showcases a skeletal dial design for those who want an attention-grabbing wristwatch to top off their formal attire. Featuring a stainless-steel case measuring in at 42mm, the Dual Aperture provides more than adequate legroom for the dial to showcases its visually stunning design. The watch also features a slightly domed dial window for an added level of elegance.
The dial features a balanced combination of gold-toned hands and markers with silver accents. The dial features a matte brown finish which accentuates the rose-gold detail. Of course, a skeletal dial will be much appreciated when partnered with an excellent watch calibre – which is met with the use of a Japanese automatic mechanical movement that you can get a glimpse of within the skeletal sub-dials.
Tissot Chrono XL Sports Watch (T1166171629700)
To those unfamiliar with Tissot, they are a Swiss watch brand that excels in delivering stylish and modern-looking luxury sports watches. This particular Chrono XL Sports watch model certainly seems like the red-headed stepchild of the bunch with its brown dial and strap design, but it comes with what you expect a Tissot watch to deliver.
With its 45mm stainless steel case, the Chrono XL certainly lives up to its name. The watch incorporates Swiss quartz movement for its analog dial and sub-dials. Besides the sub-dials, the Chrono XL also features a date display and a water resistance of up to 100-meters.
Hamilton Open Heart Marron Dial Watch (H32565595)
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Hamilton comes roaring back into the list with a vastly different type of brown dial watch. This time around, rather than going with a simple and practical design, Hamilton opted to go all-in with an Open Heart or skeletal dial aesthetic. The Swiss automatic ETA calibre 2824-2 delivers a visual feast thanks to the skeletal design implemented on the dial. This watch movement also carries an impressive 40-hours of power reserve. I would also like to point out that the Open-Heart Marron also features a transparent back case if you wish a full-view of the intricacies of its watch calibre movement.
Seiko Astron Watch (SSE096J1)
The Seiko Astron is undoubtedly an imposing timepiece with its tank-like appearance and 44.8mm case. However, this is balanced out the lightweight titanium material that is used in the construction of the case. The combination of rose-gold with luminous white accent on the foreground of smooth chocolate-colored dial rounds off a unique grand yet tranquil charm to this Seiko Astron watch. This is the exceptional quality that brown dials bring to the table when it comes to timepiece aesthetics.
Breitling Navitimer 1 B03 Chronograph (AB031021-Q615-453A)
Breitling is a Swiss watch brand that is known for its highly functional premium-grade timepieces. The brown, or to be more precise, bronze dial Breitling Navitimer combined with polished stainless steel is undoubtedly an attractive look. Since this is Breitling we are talking about, expect an outstanding chronograph watch. This timepiece is also highly functional with the addition of a date display, slide rule, and a 100-meter water resistance build. You should also take note that Breitling is known for outstanding chronometer movements which all come with COSC certification that guarantees it an impeccable level of accuracy.
Panerai Radiomir 1940 (PAM00662)
Panerai’s Radiomir is known for its simplicity and practicality. The Radiomir series has also remained virtually the same, design-wise, with upgrades exclusively given to its internal build. The cushion-shaped stainless-steel case and traditional dial design certainly fit quite well with a chocolate shade and enhances the traditionalist charm of the Panerai Radiomir 1940. Take note that the Radiomir 1940 watch is rather large with a 47mm diameter case.
Omega Speedmaster Automatic (304.23.44.52.13.001)
Omega is known for its incredibly stylish watches, so it is no surprise we see an entry from the famous brand in this list. This brown dial Speedmaster combined with silver and rose gold-toned case seamlessly complement each other. A pretty straightforward Omega chronograph watch managed to deliver a rather unique and inviting charm. Thanks to the delectable brown dial. Flip the Speedmaster, and you’ll see a transparent back case to give you a clear view of the high-precision automatic movement that powers this impressive timepiece. Stylish and functional, just what you would expect from a brand such as Omega.
Maurice Lacroix Masterpiece Roue Carree Seconde
This is one of the most luxurious entries in this list and is designed to stop the room once it arrives. The Maurice Lacroix Masterpiece lives up to its name with its premium-grade material and construction. The aesthetic exudes an air of grandeur while the inner workings are all designed utilizing the finest horological components and craftsmanship. The ML-156 manual-wind movement with 34-jewels managed to clock an impressive 18,000BPH. The watch movement calibre also provides a 45-hour power reserve.
Rolex Datejust 41 – 18K Rose Gold Chocolate Diamond Watch
Of course, we can’t end this list without an appearance from Rolex. Thus saving, what we believe to be, the best for last. The Rolex Datejust 41 combines a sleek silver and gold-tone case and bracelet with a lush chocolate dial. Rolex didn’t stop with using 18K rose gold into the mix though as this timepiece also incorporates ten stunning diamonds into the hour markers. As the name implies, the Datejust also comes with a date display and utilizes high-end automatic mechanical movement.
