Whilst some men may enjoy more simple, time-only timepieces, others – like us – prefer complications. The more the better. And no complication is better, more practical (or more fun) than the chronograph.

First invented by French artist and watchmaker Louis Moinet in 1816, the chronograph is one of the most important complications in all of watchmaking. Chronographs are simply watches that can be used as a stopwatch as well as telling the time.

Unsurprisingly, chronographs found an eager audience among athletes, pilots and motorsports fanatics, who all found watches that were able to quickly and accurately time things on the fly totally essential. These days, chronographs might have mostly been superseded by our mobile phones or digital stopwatches, but their elegance and sporty character continue to captivate watch fans.

Time is of the essence: here are some of the best chronograph watches on the market.

TAG Heuer Carrera Chronograph x Porsche 963

Simply put, the TAG Heuer Carrera is one of the most important and iconic chronographs ever made. Named after the notoriously difficult Mexican road rally, the Carrera Panamericana, and designed for motorsport from the get-go, its clean, functional design continues to win hearts and minds.

First unveiled in June 2022, the TAG Heuer x Porsche 963 is a remarkable feat of automotive engineering and a must for motorsport fans. This hefty 44mm piece features a “Tubular” skeleton dial with NAC finishing, a black flange with a 60-second scale and 3 distinct subdials – a chronograph counter, permanent second indicator and hour chronograph counter – at the 3, 6 and 9 o’clock, respectively.

Under the hood, you’ll find the TAG Heuer in-house Calibre TH20-00, a vertical chronograph movement that mirrors the high-performance engine system found in the Porsche 963 to which this unique piece owes its name.

READ MORE: TAG Heuer And Porsche Have Dropped The Next Carrera Chronograph To Go The Distance

Longines Spirit Flyback

Longines has more credibility when it comes to chronographs than most watchmakers, holding the eternal distinction as the first Swiss brand to invent the flyback chronograph, to which the new Longines Spirit Flyback pays homage.

Extremely precise, and with a power reserve of 68 hours, this COSC-certified chrono looks particularly cool on a NATO strap and is the perfect instrument for time keeping at the highest altitudes.

Grand Seiko Tentagraph

Grand Seiko’s first-ever mechanical chronograph is an absolute show-stopper. It’s called the ‘Tentagraph’ because it boasts a movement with a frequency of ten beats per second, a three-day (72-hour) power reserve, and it is an automatic chronograph.

Get it? A titanium case, ceramic bezel and a deep blue dial with Grand Seiko’s signature “Mt. Iwate” pattern only adds to its appeal, as does its exhibition caseback, which reveals its immaculate movement finished with Côtes de Genève and a unique Tentagraph rotor.

READ MORE: Precision & Craftsmanship Collide In Grand Seiko’s Tentagraph, Their First-Ever Mechanical Chronograph

Rolex Cosmograph Daytona

The Rolex Cosmograph Daytona hardly needs an introduction. Introduced in 1963, the Daytona was created to meet the singular demands of the professional race car driver. Today, it’s one of the world’s most coveted watches. In its current incarnation, the watch features a patented in-house chronograph mechanism and a bezel with a tachymetric scale – perfect for recording your lap times, or how long someone stares at your Rolex.

READ MORE: Watch A Rolex Daytona Get Taken Apart & Put Together In Extreme Detail

IWC Schaffhausen Portofino Chronograph

Do you like Italian sports cars? So does IWC Schaffhausen, who took the inspiration for the sleek push-buttons on the Portofino Chronograph from the cockpit of 1960s Italian motoring icons. In keeping with the sporty aesthetic, the watch features a minimalist dial with appliquéd Roman numerals and a convex sapphire glass. A Milanese mesh bracelet is available in addition to the classic alligator leather strap.

Patek Philippe Nautilus Chronograph Date

The ultimate baller watch, the Patek Philippe Nautilus Chronograph Date in rose gold takes the already highly desirable Nautilus and adds a novel chronograph complication to boot. A 60-minute and 12-hour mono-counter at 6 o’clock maintains dial symmetry, while elegantly integrated chrono pushers maintain the Nautilus’ famous form. If you’re going to buy one Patek Philippe watch, make it this one.

READ MORE: Patek Philippe Set To Unveil New ‘Nautilus Killer’ Watch Collection

WATCH our guide to the most expensive watches of all time below.

Chopard Mille Miglia

Named after one of the world’s most famous races, the Chopard Mille Miglia is a chronograph for real revheads. Classically styled and highly legible, it’s filled with cool little motifs, such as a subtle red Mille Miglia direction arrow below the Chopard logo at 12 o’clock and a steering wheel design on the crown. Its strap features a tread pattern based on that of a 1960s Dunlop racing tyre. It’s the perfect watch for the vintage car enthusiast.

A. Lange & Söhne Odysseus Chronograph

A. Lange & Söhne is a highly prestigious firm that has a long history of producing some of the most refined, complicated and stylish timepieces in horological history. The Odysseus Chronograph is the brand’s first-ever automatic chronograph, and its new L156.1 Datomatic calibre also has quite a novel way of recording elapsed time: like a double chronograph (a type of watch Lange is famous for), it’s got two chronograph hands: a red one to track seconds and a lozenge-tipped silver one to track minutes.

READ MORE: The Best Watches You Might Have Missed From Watches & Wonders 2023

Baume & Mercier Riviera Chronograph

The Baume & Mercier Riviera Chronograph offers all of the thrills of expensive chronograph variants of popular integrated bracelet luxury sports watches without an eye-watering price tag… Yet it’s a properly luxe beast in of itself. Mounted on a grey rubber strap, this model features a sandblasted titanium bezel with a subtle PVD gold ring, plus a Valjoux chronograph movement with a day-date function – a rarity at this price point.

READ MORE: The Baume & Mercier Riviera Just Got Two Exciting New Upgrades

Bulgari Octo Finissimo Ultra COSC

First introduced in 2014, the Bulgari Octo Finissimo has quickly become one of the most exciting and in-demand watches on the planet, and the focus of many record-breaking feats of horology.

Although Bulgari, didn’t officially pitch up at Watches & Wonders this year, it certainly didn’t stop the Italian luxury jewellers from making a record-breaking announcement in Geneva, debuting the Octo Finissimo Ultra COSC, which has the world’s thinnest mechanical chronograph movement at just 1.5mm.

Elegant and avant-garde, this is a chronograph like no other, but at a cool $1 million AUD, this may not be in everyone’s price point. Alternatively, the Italian brand also has a more affordable option for the everyday enthusiast, the Octo Finissimo Chrono.

READ MORE: Bulgari’s Octo Finissimo Is A Must-Have, World Record-Breaking Watch

Breguet Type 20

The world’s oldest watch brand, Breguet also has a long history of producing chronographs – especially pilot’s chronographs, such as the Type 20. This 2023 version of the esteemed pilot’s watch is inspired by the ref. 1100 delivered to the French Air Force between 1955 and 1959. Its thin fluted bezel and unusual diamond-shaped crown make it really stand out. Don’t sleep on Breguet.

READ MORE: A History Of Heritage: What Makes Breguet Watches So Special & Timeless

Breitling Navitimer B01 Chronograph 43

Speaking of pilot’s chronographs, the Breitling Navitimer isn’t just one of the world’s most well-known chronographs, it’s probably the world’s most famous pilot’s watch, too. Boasting a circular slide rule that allows pilots to perform on-the-fly flight calculations, the latest incarnation of Breitling’s iconic watch also features a subtly domed sapphire crystal and cool new dial colours in shades of blue, green and copper, such as the one above.

READ MORE: The Luxury Watch Brand Guaranteed To Get You Laid

OMEGA Speedmaster Moonwatch Professional

Finally, we end on a classic. No serious discussions about chronographs can be had without mentioning the OMEGA Speedmaster Moonwatch, which was the first watch on the moon and was an essential part of all six moon landings (and the inspiration for the most hyped watch in recent memory, the MoonSwatch).

Like those original Moonwatches, the OMEGA Speedmaster Moonwatch Professional maintains its deep roots in space exploration, featuring an all-white lacquered dial to reflect the white suits of NASA’s spacesuits when embarking on their daring spacewalks.

Under the hood, OMEGA features the in-house Co-Axial Master Chronometer 3861 movement: a contemporary update of the legendary Calibre 321 that was deployed by the first men on the moon almost 50 years ago.

READ MORE: OMEGA Dropped An ‘Australian’ Speedmaster… And It’s A Bloody Ripper, Too