Tested: The Best Men’s Watches You Can Buy Under $100

While watches are typically thought of as being high-end luxury items, the reality is that there exists a great many terrific timepieces that can be obtained at exceedingly accessible price points. Considering the relatively low raw material and manufacturing costs of most watches coupled with the widespread availability of reliable, off-the-shelf movements, it’s not hard to see how some contemporary companies have been able to deliver solid horological options at or below the three-figure mark — our favorite of which we’ve hand-selected for this guide to the best men’s watches under $100. 

Shopping for a sub-$100 watch is actually a markedly different process than buying a more expensive reference. Below, we’ll briefly outline five of the most important areas you should be focusing on when shopping for a watch under $100. 

Watch Type: A $100 cap will clearly limit your options, which is why it’s important to focus only on a few horological genres. GADA models and field watches can often be produced for small amounts, making them fantastic types of watches to checkout, unlike dress watches and chronographs that will pretty much always have to be of lower quality in order to be sold for less than a Benjamin. 

Case: As the component that actually comprises the watch itself, the case is obviously of extreme importance when shopping for any watch — and sub-$100 timepieces are no exception. When looking at watch cases, you’ll want to review elements such as a case’s dimensions, construction, and water resistance. 

Bracelet/Band: Though it is easy to swap out a bracelet or band, most people shopping for sub-$100 watches aren’t particularly interested in shelling out additional funds to upgrade or change a watch’s factory strap. Luckily, even watches sold for under $100 are available with an enormous variety of different bracelets, bands, and straps — making this an area that’s important to factor into your purchase. 

Movement: Watches priced at $100 or less are never going to be able to utilize high-end movements, which is why the vast majority of timepieces sold at this price feature quartz movements — which, despite being cheaper, are actually markedly more accurate compared to their automatic and mechanical counterparts. If you know where to look, however, there are a few sub-$100 watches that are kept ticking via automatic movements. 

Details & Finish: When buying a watch for less than $100, nobody is going to expect Omega or Rolex-levels of fit and finish. With that said, sub-$100 references can massively vary in terms of both their finish and overall build quality. While it can sometimes be difficult to tell from photos, one surefire method of avoiding cheap unreliable timepieces is to opt for established and well-trusted brands with a history of delivering quality products. 

As intricate time-keeping devices that can serve as everything from a utilitarian tool to a fashion accessory to a status symbol, there’s an enormous number of factors that can be considered when shopping for a new timepiece. In an effort to uncover the best horological offerings currently available for less than a bill, we began our search by first considering the criteria that we’d be using to guide our search — a list of traits that includes factors such as design, case size and dimensions, case construction and materials, band or strap, dial layout and design, and the movement powering the watch. Using these characteristics, we then proceeded to thoroughly scour the horological space in order to generate a shortlist of what we suspected may stand as one of today’s best timepieces being sold for under $100. 

As informative as a watch’s spec sheet can be, a timepiece’s case size, materials, strap, and movement only tell a part of a larger story. This is because factors such as a watch’s level of comfort and fit and finish play a monumental role in a timepiece’s overall quality, as well as the overall user experience offered. For this reason, we actually ordered each watch from our initial shortlist as this allowed us to gain personal hands-on experience with each and every reference. This hands-on testing phase would reveal each watch’s true level of quality and craftsmanship — plus enabled us to test manufacturer-cited specs such as a movement’s power reserve or level of accuracy. Combining our original criteria with the findings from our hands-on testing ultimately allowed us to narrow down our larger list to a finalized selection of references that we have found to be one of the absolute best men’s watches currently available for under the $100 mark. 

Editors Note: Due to the amount of time that it takes to acquire and then extensively test each individual watch that we considered for this guide, inflation has sadly resulted in some of the pricing of some of the timepieces on this list slightly increasing. As a result, a select number of watches on this list may be priced at above the $100 mark — or eventually be priced at over $100 at some point later down the road as inflation continues. 

Casio World Time

Best Retro Reissue Watch: Affectionately known as the “Casio Royale” due to its resemblance to the Seiko G757 5020 Sports 100 worn in a Bond flick by Roger Moore in 1983, the Casio AE1200WH-1A World Timer is an iconic digital watch that’s as affordable as it is utilitarian. Brimming with amenities and functions, this pseudo-GMT’s laundry list of features includes five daily alarms, a stopwatch, a countdown timer, a full auto calendar, 100 meters of water resistance, a world time display with 31 time zones, and an analog LCD display — all backed by a quartz movement, and a surprisingly intuitive user interface.

Keeping the watch alive is a single store-bought CR2025 battery that affords the thing a full 10 years of life before needing a swap. Considering this watch’s wealth of features and functionality, its wildly accessible sub-$50 price point also gives it some of the best bang for your buck of any watch currently on the market.

Timex Expedition Scout 40mm

Best Outdoor Watch: Field watches almost certainly make for some of, if not the very best timepieces available for under $100, as the minimalistic and inexpensive nature of these references means you don’t have to spend as much to take home a decent one. Equally conducive to both daily-wear urban use and off-grid adventure thanks to its combination of ample durability and fashion-forward retro-inspired aesthetic, the Timex Expedition Scout 40mm is a military-inspired watch from a legendary American brand.

Pieced together around a matte-finished 40mm brass case, this watch boasts 50 meters of water resistance, a date window at 3 o’clock, a knurled crown, INDIGO-backlighting, a luminous handset with a contrasting yellow seconds hand, and a 20mm nylon strap with a matching Timex-logoed matte steel buckle. As per usual, Timex produces this affordable timepiece in a pretty massive number of different references, all with varying dial colors, case finishes, and regular and accent-colored hand-sets.

Timex Weekender 40mm

Best Vintage-Inspired Watch: Another immensely affordable classically-styled reference from the lauded American watchmaker, the Timex Weekender 40mm sports less of a military-inspired look and instead is modeled after everyday watches from the mid-1900s, with a circular stainless steel-finish, polished brass case housing a cream dial with a black handset and retro-inspired Arabic numerals under a mineral glass lens.

Water resistant down to 30 meters, this watch also features a 20mm lug width that makes it ridiculously easy to find replacement straps and bands — though the nylon slip-through item that ships with the watch admittedly looks great as is. The Weekender is also an incredibly versatile watch that fits into both casual and formal settings with ease.

Casio MDV106-1A

Best Dive Watch: Unofficially known as the “Duro,” the Casio MDV106-1AV is an attractive dive watches that punches well above its weight in terms of pricing, delivering unbeatable bang for your buck with a 44.2mm stainless steel case, a rotating Batman-style bezel, a protected screw-down crown, 200 meters of water resistance, a date window, and surprisingly decent build quality overall. A mineral glass lens, a black resin band, and a lumed handset with a blue seconds hand complete the package. With its rotating dive bezel, rectangular indices at 3, 6, and 9, and circular markers at every other hour (except 12), the MDV106-1AV also sports some light Rolex Submariner vibes — especially when the watch is paired with a steel bracelet or NATO strap. 

Offered in a wide variety of different dial and bezel color variants, this dive watch also makes for an exceptional daily-wear time piece, with solid build quality and a design that allows it to be paired with a huge range of different bands, straps, and bracelets, affording it a massive degree of versatility — and doing so at a great price. It’s low price point also means that, unlike donning a pricier luxury watch, you never have to worry or stress about this watch getting damaged, lost, or stolen.

G-SHOCK DW5600BB

Best Digital Watch: While the Casio-owned outfit is already well-known for its unparalleled mix of utility and functionality, the G-SHOCK DW5600BB takes this trait to new heights while simultaneously delivering exceptional value. Rated to withstand depths of up to 200 meters, the DW5600 maintains the same iconic square case styling and resin construction as G-SHOCK’s more expensive GWM5610-1 watch, however, the GWM’s LCD display is replaced by a more minimalistic yet still sleek digital readout.

Sold in a G-SHOCK tin, this watch also comes armed with a stopwatch, a countdown timer, a multi-function alarm, electro-luminescent backlighting, a full auto calendar, and a quartz movement that’s accurate down to within +/- 15 seconds per month (which is admittedly the standard accuracy of quartz movements). The company also produces this 5600 Series watch in several other colorways, including a more period-correct retro-inspired DW5600E-1V reference with a blacked-out case and band contrasted via off-white, blue, and yellow text. 

Seiko SNXF05 5 Automatic

Best Everyday Watch: The Seiko SNXF05 5 Automatic is something of a unicorn in the horological world, as this roughly $100 timepiece is brimming with elements that we typically only see on substantially more pricey watches. Equipped with a push-pull crown, this watch features a 37mm stainless steel case that’s paired with a three-link stainless steel bracelet. Sitting under a scratch-resistant Hardlex crystal is a white grid dial that boasts luminous hands and hour markers, and a day of the week and date display at 3 o’clock.

Visible through an exhibition case back is this approximately $100 timepiece’s most noteworthy feature, its Seiko Caliber 7S26 movement. Also used in a myriad of the Japanese brand’s dive watches, the Caliber 7S26 is a 21-jewel automatic movement that ticks at 21,600-bph, uses Seiko’s Diashock shock system, and packs a 41-hour power reserve. Because it’s worn on a daily basis and gets so much use, we almost always urge our readers to splurge a bit more when buying a GADA watch, though with the SNXF05 5 Auto, you genuinely don’t have to spend more than $100 — okay, technically $110ish — to get an extraordinary everyday wear watch.

Braun Gents BN0024 Classic Watch

Best Dress Watch: One would easily be forgiven for thinking that the Braun Gents BN0024 Classic Watch costs five to ten times what it actually does, as this Bauhaus-inspired reference not only boasts an incredibly elegant and upscale-looking design, but it also sports a fit and finish that’s typically reserved for watches with four-figure MSRPs. Paired with a pin and buckle-equipped black leather strap, the watch is crafted around a 38mm stainless steel case with a matte finish and a tiny crown at 3 o’clock.

Powered by a quartz movement, this watch is made in Germany and features a minimalistic white dial with a sub-second dial at 6 o’clock — another element that’s usually only found on markedly more expensive watches. At the end of the day, between its attractive, minimalist Bauhaus-style design, great build craftsmanship, and the fact it can pass for a watch costing five-to-ten-times as much, the Gents BN0024 reference is a fantastic choice for anyone looking for a watch to wear on more formal occasions, or to serve as a dressier everyday timepiece to pair with a suit.

Bertucci A-1S

Best Field Watch: Since first coming onto the scene in 2003, Bertucci has strived to deliver exceptional field watches that are assembled in America and sold at a fair price. Case in point; the Illinois-based horological outfit’s A-1S model. Sporting a clear military-inspired aesthetic, the Bertucci A-1S Field Watch features a patented 36mm stainless steel case that’s been treated to a brushed finish before being paired with a two-ply nylon strap that’s manufactured using box-stitch construction and all-metal hardware and grommets.

The use of a screw-down case back and an ergonomically-off-set screw-down crown at 4 o’clock together enable the A-1S to achieve 100 meters of water resistance. On top of a surprisingly decent fit and finish, this watch boasts a level of build quality that, when combined with its super trusty quartz movement, can easily provide of lifetime of dependable use — before potentially being passed down to future generations.

Casio A158WEA-9CF

A modern reissue of a popular digital watch from the 1980s, the Casio A158WEA-9CF may be on the smaller side, but it nonetheless manages to deliver some pretty exceptional value with a Japanese quartz movement, and a 33mm octagon-shaped silver-tone metal case with a mineral window and a matching stainless steel bracelet — and all for less than $25. 

MWC Classic 1960s/70s Pattern Matt Black Vietnam Watch

The MWC Classic 1960s/70s Pattern Matt Black Vietnam Watch is a carbon copy of the timepiece worn by American soldiers during the Vietnam War. And, while they look identical, the original watches were made from plastic, MWC has spent the last decade and a half producing a version of the watch with an all-metal case construction. Powered by a trusty quartz movement, these watches also come mated to a U.S. military pattern strap.

Swatch 1983 Masa Bio-Reloaded SO28B100

First established in 1983 with a focus on producing quartz-powered watches, SWATCH is a now household name, known the world over for it’d playful designs, affordable pricing, and ample use of plastic constructions. For the Swatch 1983 Masa Bio-Reloaded SO28B100, the company has dug deep into its archives to its inaugural year to produce a modern reissue that sees its original plastic case and strap jettisoned in favor of items composed of eco-friendly bio-sourced material that’s largely derived from the seeds of castor plants. Made in Switzerland, the 1983 Masa Bio-Reloaded also features a quartz movement and a black case, bezel, band, and dial juxtaposed via white numerals, red hour markers, and dark green-dipped seconds hand, and lime green SWATCH branding. 

G-SHOCK GA2100 G-Carbon Blackout

The DW5600BB is a full-sized, full-feature G-SHOCK that boasts a surprisingly high-end list of features considering its ultra-accessible price. The watch is constructed around an octagonal 42.8mm case that benefits from the use of G-SHOCK’s carbon core guard structure. Other noteworthy elements on tis quartz-powered model include a rugged resin band, 31 time zones, double LED backlighting, a stopwatch, a countdown timer, a hand shift feature, a full auto calendar, and an analog dial that’s been supplemented via a day-of-the-week sub-dial, a small digital display, and luxury watch-inspired indices. 

Tissot Gent XL

The Tissot Gent XL is another extreme rarity in the horological world, as the thing is a full-sized timepiece from a bonafide Swiss luxury brand that’s made from premium materials and sold for a remarkably affordable price at approximately $100. Water-resistant down to 100 meters, this watch is pieced together around a 42mm PVD-coated 316L stainless steel case that features a sapphire crystal, an ultra-rugged green textile strap, a ridged crown, and a minimalistic yet upscale-looking matte black dial with a date window at 3 o’clock and Super-LumiNova-painted hands and hour markers. This Swiss-made Tissot watch also comes backed by a multi-year warranty.  

The Best Men’s Watches You Can Buy Under $500

Spending just a few hundred dollars more will open your option up to a host of markedly more premium timepieces — some of our favorite of which we’ve curated for our guide to the best watches under $500.