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Best Men's Watches Under £100, £200, £500, £1000, £5000 and £100,000
Whether your budget for a men's watch is a £100 quartz watch from China or a £10,000 Swiss masterpiece, there's still a baffling amount of choice. We've picked out some key features to look for in the best men's watches under £100, £200, £500, £1000 and £5000 along with a few of our favourite brands.
If you've got under £100, £200 or £500 to spend on a watch, you are unlikely to be able to afford many high-end luxury watch features but you can still buy a quality watch from names such as Citizen, Seiko, Emporio Armani and Tissot. If you've got £1000, £5000 or even more to spend on a new watch then you've got the pick of the world's best known brands, such as Rolex, Omega, Tag Heuer and Patek Philippe. |
Best men’s watches under £100
With a budget of £100 pounds, you won’t be able to buy a watch with many luxury features but you can still get something which looks decent. It will almost certainly be a quartz watch, rather than an ‘automatic’ watch, which means it uses batteries rather than a clever combination of springs, cogs and thingymajigs to keep it going.
There are a few automatic watches under £100 or those with other high quality features such as a shatter resistant synthetic sapphire crystal (i.e. the transparent bit on the front) but not many. For under £100, I’d look at brands such as Seiko and Invicta if you want high quality features.
Other good options if you’re looking for a watch under £100 is something like an Emporio Armani watch. Hardcore horologists are sometimes a bit snooty about fashion label watches, but personally I like some of the designs and some of them are Swiss made (which is a sign of quality).
Other well-known men’s watch brands you’ll be able to afford on a £100 budget include:
There are a few automatic watches under £100 or those with other high quality features such as a shatter resistant synthetic sapphire crystal (i.e. the transparent bit on the front) but not many. For under £100, I’d look at brands such as Seiko and Invicta if you want high quality features.
Other good options if you’re looking for a watch under £100 is something like an Emporio Armani watch. Hardcore horologists are sometimes a bit snooty about fashion label watches, but personally I like some of the designs and some of them are Swiss made (which is a sign of quality).
Other well-known men’s watch brands you’ll be able to afford on a £100 budget include:
Our pick of watches under £100: Invicta Pro Diver - £99
The Invicta brand isn’t as prestigious as some, but for the price tag you get a watch with several quality watch features.
It’s an automatic watch, so it doesn’t require batteries. Obviously it’s not 'chronometer rated' for this money, but reviews about its accuracy are positive (in case you’re wondering, a chronometer is a watch which has been independently tested for accuracy in a Swiss lab – you’d probably have to spend thousands to get one of those). It’s also got a decent waterproof rating of 200 metres. That doesn’t mean you can take it 200 metres underwater, but it certainly means you can take it for a swim in your local pool. The front of the water is mineral rather than the tougher synthetic sapphire. |
Best men’s watches under £200
If you can stretch your budget to £200, you’ll start to see a few fancier brands and occasional luxury watch features. Some watch fanatics wouldn’t consider a watch under £1000 to be a luxury watch, but you can still buy something decent on a lower budget.
You’ll be able to afford some of the Citizen Eco-Drive range, which is a clever hybrid watch which combines the accuracy of a quartz watch with the convenience of a luxury watch which doesn’t require you to change a battery.
Seiko and Citizen are good choices if you want a classic-style men’s watch with a metal bracelet but if you would prefer something a bit less conventional, then a £200 budget means you can stretch to some of the fancy fashion labels such as:
As I said with a £100 budget though, be aware that some watch collectors are a bit dismissive of fashion houses which produce watches. Some feel they offer style and a fancy name rather than observing the traditional methods of watchmaking. Most are quartz watches made outside of Switzerland, rather than automatic watches. Top brands such as Rolex, Omega and Tag Heuer make automatic watches, but you’ll need to pay a four figure sum to afford one of those.
I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with a £200 watch, just be aware of the taste of whoever you are buying a watch for.
You’ll be able to afford some of the Citizen Eco-Drive range, which is a clever hybrid watch which combines the accuracy of a quartz watch with the convenience of a luxury watch which doesn’t require you to change a battery.
Seiko and Citizen are good choices if you want a classic-style men’s watch with a metal bracelet but if you would prefer something a bit less conventional, then a £200 budget means you can stretch to some of the fancy fashion labels such as:
- Michael Kors (mostly women's watches)
- Hugo Boss
- Tommy Hilfiger
- Vivienne Westwood
As I said with a £100 budget though, be aware that some watch collectors are a bit dismissive of fashion houses which produce watches. Some feel they offer style and a fancy name rather than observing the traditional methods of watchmaking. Most are quartz watches made outside of Switzerland, rather than automatic watches. Top brands such as Rolex, Omega and Tag Heuer make automatic watches, but you’ll need to pay a four figure sum to afford one of those.
I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with a £200 watch, just be aware of the taste of whoever you are buying a watch for.
Our pick of watches under £200: Seiko 5 - £180
We've picked the Seiko 5 because it has some luxury features you’d associate with more expensive watches without costing a great deal.
It's got an automatic movement, so it doesn't need batteries and is powered by the user's day to day movement instead. It is waterproof enough for a swimming pool, though not for all that deep sea diving you do at weekends. The front of the watch is made from mineral rather than the higher quality option of a synthetic sapphire, but it's still good value for money. |
Best men’s watches under £500
A £500 budget for a men’s watch allows you to dip your toe into the world of luxury watch features, though I’m afraid you are still some way from the world of Omega, Rolex or Breitling (unless you look second hand, and even then you’d be priced out of most watches).
In our top 10 watches guide, we chose a watch from the Tissot Le Locle range, for about £400 and a Citizen Eco-Drive watch for about £300. At this price you will be able to afford a watch with an automatic movement which has been made in Switzerland but it’s not likely to be from a brand which is widely known outside of the world of watch fanatics. Look for brands like
If you are less bothered about an automatic movement then the choice is wider, with brands such as Victorinox also available.
In our top 10 watches guide, we chose a watch from the Tissot Le Locle range, for about £400 and a Citizen Eco-Drive watch for about £300. At this price you will be able to afford a watch with an automatic movement which has been made in Switzerland but it’s not likely to be from a brand which is widely known outside of the world of watch fanatics. Look for brands like
If you are less bothered about an automatic movement then the choice is wider, with brands such as Victorinox also available.
Our pick of watches under £500: Citizen Eco Drive - £300
Japanese watches are not quite up there with prestigious Swiss watches, but many offer a decent build quality and clever gadgetry for the price tag.
Citizen's Eco Drive range are quartz watches (so not as posh as automatic watches) but they carry the major advantage of not needing a battery. In terms of accuracy you'll struggle to find anything better. This particular model is also waterproof to 200m, which is certainly enough for swimming and probably OK for diving (in case you didn't realise, the waterproof rating on a watch doesn't relate to how deep underwater you can take the watch - confusing eh?). |
Best men’s watches under £1000
With a budget of £1000 you can start considering some of the luxury watch brands which most people will have heard of, such as:
You’re not quite in the territory of the best known brands such as Rolex and Omega, although you could certainly pick up a preowned Omega for less than £1000. |
I’d say at this price, you are usually facing a trade off between a watch with a fancy brand name, or a watch with a lot of luxury features. The cheaper Tag Heuer watches, for example, will mostly be quartz watches.
For £1000 many people would prefer a watch with an automatic movement (which means that the bit that makes the watch tick doesn’t need batteries) but I’m sure there are exceptions and people who will legitimately disagree.
I’d also like something with a synthetic sapphire crystal, which means that the transparent glass on the front of the watch hopefully won’t shatter the first time you wash the watch.
Search on Amazon for watches under £1000 or on Jura Watches for watches under £1000
For £1000 many people would prefer a watch with an automatic movement (which means that the bit that makes the watch tick doesn’t need batteries) but I’m sure there are exceptions and people who will legitimately disagree.
I’d also like something with a synthetic sapphire crystal, which means that the transparent glass on the front of the watch hopefully won’t shatter the first time you wash the watch.
Search on Amazon for watches under £1000 or on Jura Watches for watches under £1000
Our pick of watches under £1000: Gucci Timeless - £650
My pick of men's watches under £1000 is a controversial one, as many watch fans don't like designer labels which also make timepieces. It's certainly true that you're generally paying a fair bit for the name with a brand such as Gucci.
Personally I like the designs of the Gucci Timeless range and whilst it doesn't have an automatic movement (i.e. it's a quartz watch) it does have a tough sapphire front and it's relatively waterproof. It's also made in Switzerland, which is major plus point for a luxury watch. OK, so it's not a fancy chronometer or a diving watch which could endure a trip to the moon but for the price I think it's a good mix of style and quality. |
Best men’s watches under £5000
OK, now we’re talking. If you can afford to spend as much on a watch as most people spend on a used car, then you have the choice of most of the big name luxury watchmakers.
You’ll be able to afford from the pick of Swiss brands, such as: Rolex watches start at about £5000, so you could just about afford a Submariner. |
Our pick of watches under £5000: Omega Speedmaster - £3200
Personally I’d consider something like an Omega Speedmaster or a Seamaster as they tick most of the boxes of what makes a luxury watch and they come from a brand with heritage and prestige (and a large marketing budget presumably, since James Bond and NASA astronauts wear Omega watches).
Obviously it's made in Switzerland (don't pay thousands of pounds for a watch made in China...) and it's got an automatic movement, so it won't require batteries. With servicing this should last for decades. Does that justify spending thousands of pounds on watch? I'll leave that up to you to decide... |
Best men's watches from £5000 to £100,000
If you’re looking for a watch in this price range, I’d first of all like to ask if I can borrow a tenner. Secondly, I’ll state the obvious and say you can afford to be very choosy.
I’d certainly be looking for a watch which was Swiss made (e.g. Maurice Lacroix, Czapek, Bell & Ross, Chronoswiss, Louis Moinet) or possibly German (A. Lange & Söhne watches are amongst the very fancy German brands) or perhaps even British (Bremont, for example). As well as the usual luxury features such as an automatic movement, synthetic sapphire crystal and the like, I’d also be looking for something extra. It might be a reputation for luxury, such as Rolex watches which typically cost five figures or more. |
If it was a watch being marketed as a diving or aviation watch, I’d want a water resistance rating of 200 metres or 500 metres (Breitling often have ratings of 500 metres).
Alternatively, I’d be looking for a watch with many complications (i.e. date, alarm, moon phases etc) which watchmakers such as Patek Philippe or Vacheron Constantin are famous for.
Other watches in this price bracket are blinged up with diamonds and gold to show off their value - such as Corum.
Alternatively, I’d be looking for a watch with many complications (i.e. date, alarm, moon phases etc) which watchmakers such as Patek Philippe or Vacheron Constantin are famous for.
Other watches in this price bracket are blinged up with diamonds and gold to show off their value - such as Corum.
Our pick of watches over £5000: Breitling Navitimer - £5600
Breitling watches are exceedingly high quality and can cope with as many diving trips or air races you fancy taking it on.
The Navitimer ticks pretty much all the boxes I'd look for in a luxury watch. For example, it's a chronometer which means it is sent off to some Swiss testing centre to see how accurately it keeps time. It also looks very cool, in my opinion. |