Leica sells cameras, lenses, and, since 2022, mechanical watches priced next to Grand Seiko and Omega. Readers who land on the ZM line ask the same two questions. Who builds these watches, and why does a camera company charge $7,000 to $16,800 for one? Both answers start in Wetzlar, Germany.
Ernst Leitz Werkstätten GmbH runs the watch program. A Leica Camera AG subsidiary based at the Leitz Park campus in Wetzlar, it works with two movement partners.
Lehmann Präzision, in the Black Forest, builds the hand-wound movements for the ZM 1 and ZM 2, and Chronode, in Switzerland, builds the automatics for the ZM 11 and ZM 12. Leica presented the program in 2018 as the L1 and L2, designed by Prof. Achim Heine.
Sales began in February 2022 under the name ZM, short for Zeitmesser, the German word for timepiece. Ernst Leitz I trained with a Swiss watchmaker in 1863, six years before founding his Wetzlar workshop in 1869.
Each watch carries a five year warranty, plus 12 months for registered Leica Account owners. Four movements cover the line, two from each partner.
| Calibre | Maker | Winding | Power reserve | Models |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LH-10 | Lehmann Präzision | Hand-wound | 60 hours | ZM 1, ZM 1 Monochrom, ZM 1 Urban Green |
| LH-20 | Lehmann Präzision | Hand-wound | 60 hours | ZM 2, ZM 2 Monochrom, ZM 2 Urban Green |
| LA-3001 | Chronode | Automatic | 60 hours | ZM 11 Steel Midnight Blue, ZM 11 Titanium Launch Edition, ZM 11 Titanium Coffee Black |
| LA-3002 | Chronode | Automatic | 60 hours | ZM 12 Steel Olive Black, ZM 12 Steel Silver Grey, ZM 12 Steel Blue Orange, ZM 12 Titanium Chocolate Black |
Where to buy: Leica
ZM 1: $10,800. Watch head only, strap sold separately, in stock online
ZM 1 Monochrom: $12,400. Watch head only, strap sold separately, Leica Stores exclusive
ZM 1 Urban Green: $10,850. Watch head only, strap sold separately, Leica Stores exclusive
ZM 2: $15,200. Watch head only, strap sold separately, out of stock online
ZM 2 Monochrom: $16,800. Watch head only, strap sold separately, Leica Stores exclusive
ZM 2 Urban Green: $14,950. Watch head only, strap sold separately, Leica Stores exclusive
ZM 11 Steel Midnight Blue: $7,000. Watch head only, strap sold separately, out of stock online
ZM 11 Titanium Launch Edition: $7,600. Watch head only, strap sold separately, in stock online
ZM 11 Titanium Coffee Black: $7,600. Watch head only, strap sold separately, out of stock online
ZM 12 Steel Olive Black: $7,000. Watch head only, strap sold separately, in stock online
ZM 12 Steel Silver Grey: $7,000. Watch head only, strap sold separately, out of stock online
ZM 12 Steel Blue Orange: $7,000. Watch head only, strap sold separately, out of stock online
ZM 12 Titanium Chocolate Black: $7,700. Watch head only, strap sold separately, in stock online
ZM 1 and ZM 2, the hand-wound pair
ZM 1 and ZM 2 share a 41 mm steel case, 14.5 mm thick, with water resistance to 50 m. A hand-wound Lehmann movement sits inside, with 26 jewels, a 28,800 bph beat rate, and a 60 hour reserve.
Lehmann builds the movement, most components, the case, the dial, and the hands in one workshop, and assembles each watch there.
A patented push-crown sets the pair apart. One press stops the movement and resets the seconds hand to zero, so setting the time starts from a clean mark. Leica styled the control after a camera shutter release, and a power reserve indicator reads through two synchronized blades, styled as a shutter. A separate pusher quick-sets the date.
ZM 1 is the base watch at $10,800, in stock at the US online store.
ZM 1 Monochrom runs $12,400 in black and gray tones, sold through Leica Stores. ZM 1 Urban Green runs $10,850 with a green fumé noir dial, also sold through Leica Stores. Both variants keep the LH-10 and the 41 mm case.
ZM 2 adds a second time zone at $15,200. A 12 hour internal bezel reads off the single hour hand, turned by a GMT crown at 4 o’clock that clicks into each hour. A day and night indicator keeps the second zone straight. ZM 2 Monochrom tops the hand-wound line at $16,800.
ZM 2 Urban Green pairs the GMT layout with the green fumé noir dial at $14,950.
ZM 11, the 41 mm automatic
ZM 11 keeps the 41 mm case and changes almost everything else. Chronode builds the automatic LA-3001, rated at -4/+6 seconds per day and tested in five positions, with a 60 hour reserve.
Water resistance rises to 100 m.
A dual layer dial stacks two 0.4 mm plates, so light and shadow shift as a wrist turns. Straps swap without tools on the Easy Change system.
ZM 11 Steel Midnight Blue starts the automatic line at $7,000.
ZM 11 Titanium Launch Edition runs $7,600 and caps production at 250 pieces, with a black dial that fades to red. ZM 11 Titanium Coffee Black also runs $7,600, with a warm black dial and a lighter titanium case. Of the three, the Launch Edition is in stock online, and the other two are out of stock online.
ZM 12, the 39 mm automatic
ZM 12 refines the ZM 11 formula in a 39 mm case, 46.8 mm from lug to lug.
Chronode builds the LA-3002 automatic to the same accuracy, -4/+6 seconds per day, with a 60 hour reserve. A small seconds dial sits at 6, the dual layer dial carries over, and Easy Change straps release at a red dot button. Water resistance holds at 100 m.
Steel versions run $7,000 each, as ZM 12 Steel Olive Black, ZM 12 Steel Silver Grey, and ZM 12 Steel Blue Orange.
ZM 12 Titanium Chocolate Black runs $7,700. Olive Black and Chocolate Black are in stock online, and Silver Grey and Blue Orange are out of stock online. Every ZM 12 shares the LA-3002 and the 39 mm case.
What do the straps cost, since the watches sell as heads only
Leica’s US online store sells watch heads only, and straps and bracelets are separate line items. Leica Stores sell complete configurations in person.
Budget for both halves before setting a ZM price against a rival that ships on a bracelet. ZM 11 rubber and textile straps run $650 with a steel buckle and $700 with a titanium buckle, and a steel ZM 11 bracelet runs $1,285 against $1,500 in titanium.
ZM 12 straps run $650 to $900, with a steel bracelet at $1,300 and a titanium bracelet at $1,500. A ZM 11 Titanium Coffee Black at $7,600, on its titanium bracelet, totals $9,100, and that combined figure is the one to set against rival pricing. Buying in a Leica Store folds the strap choice into the same visit.
ZM pricing against Grand Seiko and Omega
At $7,000, ZM 11 and ZM 12 sit against Grand Seiko and Omega money. Both rivals run deeper dealer networks, stronger resale demand, and longer model histories in the US.
Leica counters on design and movement sourcing.
Camera buyers read the dial codes at once, from the shutter style power reserve blades on ZM 1 and ZM 2 to the dual layer dials on the automatic ZM 11 and ZM 12.
Buy a ZM for the push-crown, the small batch movement work from Lehmann and Chronode, and a design language no rival copies.
Skip the line if resale value or a dealer in your city decides the purchase. In stock heads ship from the US online store, and Monochrom and Urban Green variants route through Leica Stores, where staff can fit the strap half of the order in the same visit.
