10 Thinnest Watches in the World

The days when bigger meant better are long gone. Over the past decade, watchmakers have set their sights on the small scale, churning out impressive releases that reject the bulky frames of yesteryear and instead focus on thinness. From Piaget‘s iconic Altiplano Ultimate Concept to Bulgari‘s record-breaking Octo Finissimo Ultra range, the thinnest watches in the world are a testament to the pioneering and progressive nature of modern horology.

For watch fans, the battle of the bulge has led to more noteworthy novelties, with brands eager to offer the bounties of ergonomic design and functionality. Thinner watches generally provide enhanced wearability and comfort, as evidenced by the much-loved slimline Breguet Classique range. The practicality of a thin design allows for greater adoption and versatility, easily slipping under the cuff in any context. Perhaps most importantly, this subset of watches has spawned a new era of competition and rivalry, which hasn’t gone unnoticed.

Records are constantly being broken and limits tested, giving watch fans no shortage of forum fodder to troll through. Indeed, whether it’s the Altiplano Ultimate 910P from Piaget or the Bulgari Octo Finissimo Minute Repeater, watchmakers are finding new ways to pack big things into smaller and smaller packages. Until those are inevitably broken, here are the 10 thinnest watches in the world.

Thinnest Watches in the World

• Thinnest Concept: Konstantin Chaykin ThinKing
• Thinnest Commercial Release: Bulgari Octo Finissimo Ultra COSC
• Thinnest Tourbillon: Bulgari Octo Finissimo Ultra Tourbillon
• Best Value for Money: Tissot T-Classic Tradition 5.5

1. Konstantin Chaykin ThinKing – 1.65mm

• Brand: Konstantin Chaykin
• Model: ThinKing
• Reference: K.23-0
• Diameter: 40mm x 1.85mm
• Movement: K.23-0
• Power Reserve: 32 hours

Over the years, we’ve seen no shortage of brands battling to take the title of the world’s thinnest watch. Piaget, Bulgari and Richard Mille have already, at one time or another, laid claim to the throne, but now a new challenger has entered the fold. Independent Konstantin Chaykin has stepped up to the plate, unveiling the ThinKing, a stunning mechanical watch that is just 1.65mm thick.

Importantly, the ThinKing remains a prototype, so it isn’t officially the record holder, but there’s no doubting watchmaker Konstantin Chaykin is one to keep an eye on. This new release boasts many of the hallmarks we’d expect to see on a premier novelty, including an integrated movement, which has been expertly adorned so as to reduce overall size. This K.23-0 movement can reportedly serve up 32 hours of power reserve and is wound by a key or a special carrying case that can also automatically wind the movement.

When it was first unveiled at the 2024 Geneva Watch Days exhibition, the 40mm working prototype sent shockwaves around the watch community. For years, the battle for the thinnest watch on earth was a three-horse race, and suddenly, a new player entered the mix. Those who knew Konstantin Chaykin well, however, didn’t see it as a surprise.

The Russian independent watchmaker has quietly amassed a significant following in the watch community, namely for his unique brand of playful haute horology. Timepieces such as the Joker, which feature sub-dials and complications arranged to look like a human face, have helped to showcase the independent brand’s focus on fun, and the ThinKing follows that same pattern. Here, the displays for hours and minutes are positioned to appear as ‘Eyes’, while a ‘Smile’ is engraved into the steel case front. It’s brash, bold and, most importantly, remarkably thin, which should be enough to reignite the watch industry’s battle of the bulge.

2. Bulgari Octo Finissimo Ultra COSC – 1.7mm

• Brand: Bulgari
• Model: Octo Finissimo Ultra COSC
• Reference: Ref. 104081
• Diameter: 40mm
• Thickness: 1.7mm
• Case Material: Titanium
• Movement: BVL180 calibre COSC-certified
• Power Reserve: 50 hours
• Water-Resistance: 0 metres
• Price: EUR600,000

The thinnest watch ever made commercially available, the Octo Finissimo Ultra COSC, is Bulgari’s (and A$AP Rocky’s) prized possession. At just 1.70mm thick, the 40mm timepiece is remarkably slim, cutting a profile that is nearly invisible when displayed side-on. Looking at the dial itself reveals the inner workings of the mechanism, which has been intricately crafted to fit seamlessly into the design.

The timepiece is powered by the mechanical manufacture ultra-thin COSC-certified movement, a manual winding BVL180 calibre that provides a regulator display and a surprisingly bulky 50-hour power reserve. As we’ve come to expect from the ultra-thin Bulgari timepieces, this unique model arrives in a sandblasted titanium, adorned with a tungsten carbide main plate, openwork dial, hour and minute regulator display counters in sandblasted titanium with PVD treatment.

You’ll also find black PVD hands, a second wheel with a black index indicator, and winding and time-setting wheels in sandblasted stainless steel. The perfect combination of design, beauty, and functionality, Bulgari’s premier thin timepiece is something to behold.

3. Richard Mille RM UP-01 Ferrari – 1.75mm

• Brand: Richard Mille
• Model: RM UP-01 Ferrari
• Reference: Ref. RMUP-01
• Diameter: 39mm
• Thickness: 1.75mm
• Case Material: Grade 5 Titanium
• Movement: Calibre RMUP-01
• Power Reserve: 45 hours
• Water-Resistance: 100 metres
• Price: USD$1,888,000

While Bulgari and Piaget are the token favourites at the top of the list, Richard Mille has emerged as one of the premier maisons in the world of thin watch production. In 2022, the brand released the Ferrari RM UP-01, a record-breaking timepiece that measures a remarkable 1.75mm thick, slimmer than a 10c coin.

This unique model, while only slightly thinner than Piaget’s Altiplano Ultimate Concept and Bulgari’s Octo Finnissimo Ultra, reinvented the movement design. For the RM UP-01 Ferrari, the watchmaker assembled the entire movement (all 1.18mm of it) into the case, as opposed to making the caseback pull double duty as a baseplate. That move essentially shaved a few extra millimetres off the final result, all without compromising function.

As we noted in our original reporting, the RM UP-01 Ferrari features hours, minutes, seconds, and a function selector. In trademark Richard Mille fashion, the timepiece is skeletonised and crafted from grade 5 titanium. According to Julien Boillat, technical director for cases at Richard Mille, the innovation culminated in 6,000 hours of development, which took place in partnership with some of the world’s most revered watchmakers and movement houses.

“For such a project, it was necessary to set aside all the knowledge we had amassed over years of practice, and every conceivable standard of watchmaking,” Boillat said. “This is precisely what we did throughout our collaboration with the laboratories of Audemars Piguet Le Locle. Shaving off those last millimetres of depth was an extremely demanding and lengthy process.”

Initial reports suggested the Richard Mille RM UP-01 Ferrari would be priced north of USD$1.8 million, but there has been no official confirmation. Nevertheless, you can’t help but admire the timepiece’s incredible proportions and technical prowess.

4. Bulgari Octo Finissimo Ultra Tourbillon – 1.85mm

• Brand: Bulgari
• Model: Octo Finissimo Ultra Tourbillon
• Reference: Ref. 103834
• Diameter: 40mm
• Thickness: 1.85mm
• Case Material: Sandblasted titanium case
• Movement: Calibre: BVF 900
• Power Reserve: 42 hours
• Water-Resistance: 10 metres
• Price: USD$678,000

Similar to its COSC-certified sibling, the Bulgari Octo Finissimo Ultra Tourbillon takes haute horology to remarkable new proportions. Arriving in a 40mm sandblasted titanium case with an integrated bracelet, this watch is the perfect synergy between the Italian luxury house’s contemporary design language and true industrial fashion. As we noted upon its release earlier this year, the Octo Finissimo Ultra Tourbillon lands somewhere between militant and sophisticated, best characterised by the three sub-dial layout and visible gears.

For Bulagri fans, this tourbillon represents a true feat of watchmaking prowess and harks back to yesteryear. The release references past models through an off-centred seconds display on the wheel at 6 o’clock.

“The challenge of this eighth record was the most difficult to overcome, since we had to break the rules not only in terms of movement design, but also of the case, the caseback, the bracelet and the folding clasp,” Fabrizio Buonamassa Stigliani, Bulgari’s product creation executive director, said upon its release. “To achieve this degree of thinness, you not only have to review your way of thinking, but you must also draw upon a wide range of skills, play with multiple materials and adapt to a multitude of new constraints. In this sense, the Octo Finissimo Ultra is unquestionably the ultimate complication in this vast field of possibilities represented by ultra-miniaturisation.”

Most importantly, this release knocked Piaget off the top spot in the “world’s thinnest tourbillon” mantle, surpassing the 2mm thick Piaget Altiplano Concept Tourbillon (2mm thick). With a case made from sandblasted titanium and a tungsten-carbide mainplate, the Octo Finissimo Ultra Tourbillon is indeed a technical masterpiece. Add to that a flying tourbillon, and what you get is perhaps the pinnacle of contemporary haute horlogerie.

5. Piaget Altiplano Ultimate Concept – 2mm

• Brand: Piaget
• Model: Altiplano Ultimate Concept
• Reference:
• Diameter: 41mm
• Thickness: 2mm
• Case Material: Cobalt-based alloy
• Movement: Calibre 900P-UC
• Power Reserve: 40 hours
• Water-Resistance: 20 metres

For most watchmakers, thin timepieces are a relatively new endeavour, but not Piaget. Since the late 1950s, the Geneva-based watchmaker has been steadily crafting an enviable collection of ultra-thin movements that refuse to compromise precision in search of scalability. The brand’s manual 9P and automatic 12Ps laid the foundations for the remarkable timepieces that we see today, and, as Rémi Jomard, research and development director at Piaget, told us in 2022, that isn’t by accident.

“Ultra-thin is not just another territory of expression at Piaget, it is our history, our identity,” Jomard said. “And it is important for Piaget because it is both a technical and aesthetic achievement. Even though we have broken many records along the way, at Piaget ultra-thin has never been a technical end in itself, but a means to create the most elegant and extravagant pieces; with this idea that the technique shall remain at the service of creativity.”

Jomard was a driving force behind 2020’s highly ambitious Altiplano Ultimate Concept; however, the 2022 edition serves as his true magnum opus. That iteration of the Piaget Altiplano Ultimate Concept measured just 2mm thick despite having a robust 41mm diameter.

The watch is powered by a 900P-UC movement with the watch exterior, with the ultra-thin mechanical hand-wound watch’s rectangular-shaped crown recessed into the caseband. This model also marked Piaget’s first Altiplano Ultimate to be crafted from a cobalt-based alloy, which Jomard confirmed was specifically chosen for its mechanical and resistance properties.

The caseback, bezel and lugs are all satin brushed, giving the 2022 edition a sharp contrast from its polished case band and thin dark blue alligator strap. Arriving with a power reserve of 40 hours, the latest Altiplano Ultimate Concept is a stunning piece of horological design, but above all else, the new release is a love letter to its predecessor.

6. Piaget Altiplano Ultimate Concept Tourbillon – 2mm

• Brand: Piaget
• Model: Altiplano Ultimate Concept Tourbillon
• Reference: Ref. G0A50530
• Diameter: 41.5mm
• Thickness: 2mm
• Case Material: M64BC cobalt alloy
• Movement: Calibre 970P-UC Piaget Manufacture ultra-thin flying tourbillon
• Power Reserve: 35 hours
• Water-Resistance: 20 metres

After shocking the world with its Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie-winning Altiplano Ultimate Concept in 2018, Piaget made another leap in 2024. At Watches & Wonders that year, the Swiss maison unveiled the Altiplano Ultimate Concept Tourbillon, which was (at the time) the “thinnest watch in the world to feature a flying tourbillon movement”.

The culmination of six years’ research, the tourbillon repurposes the case back as the movement’s mainplate. By integrating the crown into the case band, Piaget could ensure that no space was wasted; however, it wasn’t an easy task. The brand revealed that more than 90 per cent of the components of the original Altiplano Ultimate Concept were redesigned to make the process work, with the maison even going so far as to develop new machinery to craft the watch.

As the name suggests, the Piaget Altiplano Ultimate Concept Tourbillon features a tourbillon movement that is held in place by a ceramic ball bearing. By utilising ball bearings instead of pivots, Piaget made it easier for the mobile elements to rotate, decreasing friction and allowing the watchmakers to achieve an even thinner result.

Furthermore, the choice to use a made-to-measure mainspring, reworked based on its most force-bearing factor, was crucial in delivering an ultra-thin complication that boasts an impressive 40-hour power reserve. In recent years, we’ve seen the brand toy with different hues and designs, such as the recently released Ref. G0A50530 (pictured), continuing Piaget’s long legacy of refinement and innovation.

7. Citizen Eco-Drive One – 2.98mm

• Brand: Citizen
• Model: Eco-Drive One
• Reference: Ref. AR5014-04E
• Diameter: 40mm
• Thickness: 2.98mm
• Case Material: Cermet and Binderless Cemented Carbide
• Movement: Calibre 8826 Eco-Drive
• Power Reserve: 12 months in darkness
• Price: USD$6,000

While many of the watches on this list skew towards the top end of town, there are some affordable options on the market. The Eco-Drive One, which was released to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Citizen’s much-revered technology, is a great example of this. Described as the world’s thinnest ‘light-powered watch’ at just 2.98mm, this timepiece is ultra-slim, uncomplicated and priced at USD$6,000.

The Limited Edition model features a 10-month power reserve, a cermet (ceramic + metal) case, a black crocodile skin strap, a black sapphire crystal dial with a binderless cemented carbide bezel, and an anti-reflective sapphire crystal. The movement itself is only 1mm thick, which is seriously impressive, and the cermet bezel is reportedly highly durable, although we haven’t tested this.

8. Piaget Altiplano 900P – 3.65mm

• Brand: Piaget
• Model: Altiplano 900P
• Reference: Ref. G0A39111
• Diameter: 38mm
• Thickness: 3.65mm
• Case Material: Grey Gold
• Movement: In-house hand-wound 900P
• Power Reserve: 48 hours
• Water-Resistance: 20 metres
• Price: CHF 25,500

First released in 2014, the Altiplano 900P marked the return of Piaget’s ultra-thin ethos. The 38mm timepiece was the first in the maison’s collection to fuse the movement and case into one, helping to change the way watch architecture fundamentally operates. At the time, it set a world record for thinness, at only 3.65 mm thick, but this record has since been eclipsed.

As we have seen on all subsequent Altiplano releases, the case back also serves as a main plate, housing both the calibre and the watch structure. As Piaget revealed, the secret was having the bridges fitted on the dial side, while the off-centred hours and minutes display helped to tidy the dial layout and design.

9. Tissot T-Classic Tradition 5.5 – 5.15mm

• Brand: Tissot
• Model: T-Classic Tradition 5.5
• Reference: Ref. T063.409.11.058.00
• Diameter: 39mm
• Thickness: 5.15mm
• Case Material: 316L stainless steel case
• Movement: Calibre 11 1/2”’ Quartz
• Water-Resistance: 30 metres
• Price: AUD$725

It’s no secret that Tissot has staked its claim on affordable, highly reliable timepieces, and that ethos lives on even in the realm of thin watches. The brand’s T-Classic Tradition 5.5, which measures in at just 5.5mm in thickness, is a vintage-inspired favourite that fuses a simple sword handset and thin, elegant Roman numeral hour markers. The guillioché-decorated dial also adds a touch of sophistication that works surprisingly well for this model.

Priced at AUD$725, the 40mm stainless steel tiempiece boasts a reliable, if slightly unremarkable, Swiss-made quartz movement from ETA. It comes fitted with a lack alligator-style grained cowhide strap with a butterfly clasp. Simple, classy and decidedly uncluttered, the T-Classic Tradition 5.5 makes for a perfect daily wearer that still claims ultra-thin proportions.

10. Breguet Classique Extra-Thin 5157 – 5.5mm

• Brand: Breguet
• Model: Classique Extra-Thin 5157
• Reference: Ref. 5157BR/11/9V6
• Diameter: 38mm
• Thickness: 5.5mm
• Case Material: 18K rose gold
• Movement: Calibre 502.3
• Power Reserve: 45 hours
• Water-Resistance: 30 metres
• Price: AUD$37,200

When it comes to fine watchmaking, there is no bigger name than Abraham-Louis Breguet. The influential Swiss-French clockmaker and his namesake maison have helped define the industry’s most emblematic releases, even in the world of thin watches. In 2014, the brand unveiled the Classique Tourbillon Ultra-Plat Automatic 5377, which was briefly the world’s thinnest tourbillon; however, the maison’s Classique Extra-Thin 5157 is perhaps the best example of Breguet’s house style. Reconfigured for an ultra-thin age, the 38mm rose-gold timepiece is just 5.5mm thick and boasts a striking, narrow bezel, lued Breguet hands and a hand-engraved hobnail guilloché pattern.

Inside, the Classique Extra-Thin 5157 is powered by the manufacture Calibre 502.3 an off-centred solid-gold rotor, Côtes de Genéve on the bridges and mainplate, and a magnetic-resistant silicon balance spring. In essence, this release is very much the Breguet style, offering sublime sophistication and a clear, uncluttered layout that feels innately premium. Make no mistake, however, you will still be paying Breguet prices, with the Classique 5157 setting you back around AUD$37,200.

Honorable Mentions

• Rado True Thinline Automatic – 5mm: While Bulgari and Piaget’s ultra-thin tourbillon watches are certainly a sight to behold, it’s mostly a “look, but don’t touch” situation given their exorbitant price tags. At the more consumer-friendly end of the spectrum is the Rado True Thinline Automatic. Awash with high-tech ceramic and powered by self-winding mechanical movement, the piece offers a case that’s 40 mm in diameter and 5mm thick. That makes it a slim and sturdy stunner you can actually afford. Not only is this one of the slimmest timepieces around, but it’s also a great minimalist watch.
• Jaeger-LeCoultre Hybris Mechanica 11 – 7.9mm: Claiming the title of the world’s thinnest minute repeater until 2016, the Jaeger-LeCoultre Hybris Mechanica 11 is a slim, sexy and sophisticated beast. Introduced in 2014, this thin watch packs a flying tourbillon and automatic winding (via peripheral motor) movement into a 7.9mm case. It’s no wonder that Jaeger-LeCoultre obtained eight patents when making the thing, while limiting production to a mere 75 units. Meanwhile, the watch’s full name, Jaeger-LeCoultre Hybris Mechanica 11 Thin Minute Repeater Flying Tourbillon, is almost ironically oversized.
• Vacheron Constantin Patrimony Contemporaine Ultra-Thin Calibre 1731 – 8.09mm: Introduced the same year as the Jaeger-LeCoultre Hybris Mechanica 11, the Vacheron Constantin Patrimony Contemporaine Ultra-Thin Calibre 1731 broke the record for the world’s thinnest manual-winding minute repeater, which measures in at 3.9mm thick. The slim watch’s manual-winding movement comes with a 65-hour power reserve, and utilises a flying strike governor to control the speed and sound of the repeater’s chimes and whirring noises. Also featured is an 8.09mm thick case of rose gold and a minimalist dial aesthetic.
• Arnold & Son UTTE – 8.34mm: Short for “Ultra Thin Tourbillon Escapement”, the UTTE from Arnold & Son definitely takes its name to heart. Specifically, the brilliant luxury watch broke the record for the world’s thinnest tourbillon when it debuted at Baselworld in 2013. While that record would be broken just a year later, Arnold & Sons wasn’t sweating it, whereas, according to head of movement development Sebastian Chaulmontet, the brand wasn’t necessarily trying to break any records in the first place. As for that flying tourbillon, it measures in at just 2.97 mm thick (discounting the height of the cage), and comes equipped with a 90-hour power reserve between two barrels. It’s all housed in an 8.34 mm thick case of either rose gold or palladium.

The Art of Thin Watches

Our obsession with thin watches stems from a deep respect for the engineering prowess required to make the intricacies come to life. While some models, such as Tissot T-Classic Tradition 5.5, are powered by relatively easy-to-trim quartz movements, others demand far more attention. Piaget, Richard Mille and Bulgari’s efforts, for example, completely redesigned the traditional architecture of watchmaking.

On the Altiplano Ultimate Tourbillon Concept, Piaget integrated the movement into the case back, essentially using the mechanism as the base plate. This remarkable design decision shaved a few precious millimetres off the final result, allowing Piaget to best the competition, if only for a brief moment. While the pursuit of the thinnest watch in the world title may seem superficial, in reality, it is these extremes that help to propel the industry forward, pioneering new levels of ingenuity and design.

High Watchmaking Competition

For watch fans, the battle of the bulge has been one of the more interesting developments over the past few years. Back in 2020, Piaget unveiled the Altiplano Ultimate Concept, a 2mm-thick timepiece that shocked the world and claimed the prestigious Aiguille d’Or prize from the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève in the process.

In 2022, famed jeweller Bulgari fired back, releasing the Octo Finnissimo Ultra, which at just 1.8mm, usurped Piaget for the ultra-thin throne, before Richard Mille stepped up to the plate. The back-and-forth nature of the industry quietened down for some time, however, with the unveiling of the Konstantin Chaykin ThinKing concept, the Russian maison may well have reignited the race for less space.

Thinnest Watches in the World FAQs