It’s easy to assume the most interesting watches lie in the realm of four, five and six figures, where exotic materials, complex hand-made movements and limited editions abound. But there’s something to be said about a cheap watch with character and a solid build. And the price point is lower than most think — you don’t need to spend thousands or even many hundreds for a quality affordable timepiece. Some dirt-cheap watches that sell for $200 or less have all the basic facets of a great timepiece.
-
Casio G-Shock DW6900 Read More -
-
Timex Marlin Mechanical Read More
-
Orient TriStar Read More
-
Citizen NH8350-83L Read More
What to Look for in a Watch Under $200
Admittedly, purchasing a timepiece in this price range can be tricky — it’s littered with chintzy, fast-fashion watches poorly built with crappy parts. But on the flip side, there do exist many watches around $200 that have garnered their own cult followings and are snatched up by everymen and horology nerds alike.
What exactly can a watch deliver at this price range? Well, you should expect it to be well built and to work well, or even survive taking a beating, depending on its style and toughness; it should tell the time reliably and look good doing it, whether it has a mechanical or a quartz movement. It might not have the same cachet as a prestigious brand, but it should be able to do the same essential job, and if you buy the right one, you might even come to love and treasure it just as much as a watch that cost 10 times as much.
More Watch Guides
- The Best Watches Under $100
- Best Watches Under $500
- The Best Watches Under $1,000
- The Best Men’s Watches Under $2,000
- Best Watches Under $5,000
- The 10 Best Vintage Watches Under $1,000
Who makes these wonderful, affordable watches? Some are from our favorite affordable Japanese watch brands (you know who we’re talking about), others young innovators — but they all go to show that the affordable watch need not be marked by a plastic case or hands that fall off after a month’s use.
Bottom line: these 10 watches represent the pinnacle of the bargain-barrel timepiece.
Casio G-Shock DW6900
- Movement: Quartz-powered digital
- Size: 48.5mm
- Water resistance: 200m
The quintessential G-Shock deserves a place on the Best Watches of All Time, let alone the best under $200. Always reliably available for well under $100, the basic DW9500-series watch features everything you need (though it can be worth paying a little more for Tough Solar charging) and nothing you don’t: 200m of water resistance; multiple stopwatches and alarms; a backlit LED screen; and a virtually indestructible design.
Braun BN0021BKG
- Movement: Quartz
- Size: 38mm
- Water Resistance: 50m
Braun’s minimalist aesthetic is perfect for someone looking for a wardrobe accouterment rather than a showpiece. What’s more, graphic elements like the yellow seconds hand and austere font are sure to call to mind the brand’s legacy of Bauhaus-inspired product design.
Timex Marlin Hand Wound
- Movement: Mechanical handwound
- Size: 34mm
- Water Resistance: 30m
Based on a classic from Timex’s back catalog, the Marlin is available in several different variants in a slim, 34mm case that looks perfect with a suit or with a t-shirt and jeans. With its svelte proportions, thin handset and leather strap, the Marlin is a design that will never go out of style.
Orient TriStar
- Movement: Orient 469 automatic
- Size: 37mm
- Water resistance: 30m
Using a movement based on an old caliber originally from Seiko, the Orient 3 Star is a simple, utilitarian automatic akin to the Seiko 5. While it won't blow you away in terms of fit and finish, it does have a well-proportioned 37mm case, a stainless steel bracelet and a colorful dial. It’s as simple an automatic watch as you can get, but therein lies its charm. Three stars, indeed.
Citizen NH8350-83L
- Movement: Miyota 8200 automatic
- Size: 40mm
- Water Resistance: 50m
You’d be forgiven for thinking Citizen’s entire lineup is made up of its quartz Eco-Drive watches, but the brand does, in fact, make some mechanicals. The NH8350, for instance, packs a Miyota 8200 automatic movement into a clean-cut stainless steel case and comes adorned with a shimmering, sunray blue dial. This is clean, my friends. You’d be hard-pressed to find a better mechanical dress watch for less.
Orient Bambino
- Movement: Orient F6724 automatic
- Size: 40.5mm
- Water Resistance: 30m
Available in numerous dial, case color and strap options and having gone through several updates over the years, the Bambino remains one of the most affordable automatic dress watches on the market. With a clean dial and an unobtrusive date window and a leather strap, the Bambino is a perfect entry-level dress watch, and prices on Amazon are almost always well below $200.
Bertucci A-2T Field Watch
- Movement: Quartz
- Size: 40mm
- Water Resistance: 100m
Cases made from solid titanium — loved for their lightweight, durable and hypoallergenic properties — are not such a common site on sub-$150 watches, which is what makes the young U.S. watch brand Bertucci an enticing option. Similarly enticing is the classic field watch design, the Japanese quartz movement inside and a 100-meter depth rating.
Orient Mako
- Movement: Orient F6922 automatic
- Size: 41.5mm
- Water Resistance: 200m
It's bonkers that you can still get a solid, Japanese automatic dive watch with 200m of water resistance for well under $200. (And, oh yes, an in-house movement.) The Seikos, Citizens and such that used to offer that are no longer in production and/or have shot up in price with hype and inflation. Snag one of these before they go the way of the SKX.
Q Timex Chronograph
- Movement: Quartz
- Size: 40mm
- Water resistance: 50m
Though any number of great Timexes could’ve made this list, the whole Timex Q line has been a particular triumph — a retro-styled cult classic. What’s better is that they offer so much character and looks for the price. That includes the Q Chronograph, which is a reverse-panda beauty inspired by racing watches from the 1970s.
Swatch Sistem 51
- Movement: Swatch Sistem51 automatic
- Size: 42mm
- Water Resistance: 30m
When Swatch launched the Sistem51 — an autonomously assembled automatic movement boasting a 90-hour power reserve — it was a revelation, but its plastic case limited its appeal. Now you can get the same movement cased up in stainless steel, making it a more reserved option for everyday wear. Though often priced over $200, you can find them sometimes dipping below.
Vaer S3 Calendar Field
- Movement: Quartz
- Size: 36mm (S3); 40mm (S5)
- Water Resistance: 100m
A classic style for not a lot of money is what Vaer offers in its field watch collection. They come in a couple of sizes (36mm and 40mm), quartz and automatic versions and a couple of traditional dial colors of black and white — or searingly bright orange. The 36mm variants' size is right on the money for our tastes, if you want a proper field watch experience.
Casio G-Shock GM2100-1A
- Movement: Casio 5611 quartz
- Size: 49.3x44.4mm
- Water Resistance: 200m
The “CasiOak,” which blends Japanese tough watch styling with the octagonal stainless steel utility fashion of an Audemars Piguet Royal Oak, has been on collectors’ radar for the past few years. This year Casio doubled down, providing a whole new line of CasiOak-style watches in a range of colors. Look for a good deal, and you can score one for less than $200. Now, that's a major score.
Seiko 5 Sports
- Movement: Seiko 4R36 automatic
- Size: 42.5mmmm
- Water Resistance: 100m
Hear us out. The modern Seiko 5 Sports family (yeah, we're talking about the whole, glorious collection) are not sub-$200 watches (they retail for $295+). However, if you check back often on Macy’s or Amazon, discounted prices will sometimes dip to around that mark and maybe even below. Not bad for a watch with a robust automatic movement, thick steel case and 100m of water resistance.
