The sole function of the dress watch is to compliment a business suit or formal wear. Dress watches aren’t even that concerned with accurate timekeeping, as many don’t even have second hands. So what are the important features to look for then? Put simply, simplicity.

Practically speaking, a dress watch should be properly proportioned to the wearer’s wrist. Otherwise, it will draw attention to itself; the one thing a dress watch should never do.

Since it is worn with a suit, a dress watch must be thin enough to slip in and out of a dress shirt cuff easily. The standard rules of matching metals and leathers with shoes and belts apply as well.