Best Watches Under $200 That Strike the Sweet Spot Between Quality and Affordability

Every man's wristwatch should be something he's proud of—one he could eventually pass on—but not everyone can invest in a luxury watch worth thousands like the top celebrity watch collectors can. The good thing is the best watches for men come in all price brackets (see the best watches under $1,000 and best watches under $500). And, for those who'd rather err on the modest side—after all, some of the wealthiest guys in the world, including Bill Gates, rock $10 watches—you can find the best affordable watches under $200.

Whether you're just starting out your collection or looking for something inexpensive to add to your existing rotation, buying some of the best affordable watches means you get to own a rolodex of timepieces that vary from sporty to classic. You get versatility and the flexibility to play with styles that pair well with anything from the best white sneakers and T-shirts to the best dress shoes and men's khaki pants.

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Our top pick for the best affordable watches under $200 as part of our 2024 Watch Guide is Bertucci A-3PS Solar Field. It has bold numerals and broad hands, along with a heavy-duty construction that will last for years. Read on for more affordable watches under $200 from brands like Timex, G-SHOCK, and Seiko.

Best Watches Under $200 at a Glance

• Best Watch Under $200 Overall: Bertucci A-3PS Solar Field

• Best EDC Watch Under $200: Seiko 5 Sports SRPG27

• Best Chronograph Watch Under $200: Fossil Sport Tourer

• Best G-Shock Watch Under $200: G-SHOCK Rugged Combi GA010-2A

• Best Racing Watch Under $200: Q Timex Reissue 1971 Velocity

• Best Watch Under $200 for Surfing: G-SHOCK G-LIDE GBX100-2A

• Best Vintage-Style Watch Under $200: Naval Watch Company British Royal Airforce Type Chronograph

Best Watches Under $200 of 2024

Best Watch Under $200 Overall: Bertucci A-3PS Solar Field

Bertucci makes excellent military-inspired field watches with unique materials that are durable, accurate, and affordable. Its new Solar Field Watch is a standout. At 42mm, it prioritizes visibility on your adventures with bold numerals, broad hands, and a magnified date window. The offset crown at 4 o’clock won’t dig into your wrist and keeps the case svelte, plus the watch is ultra-light so you barely notice it when you’re not looking at it. The NATO strap adds to the beefy good looks and comfort. The solar quartz movement requires zero maintenance—converting both sunlight and artificial light to power, and when fully charged, can run for six months inside a drawer. When it's running out of juice, it shifts to a low-power mode with the second hand skipping in order to consume less power while still keeping perfect time. As far as the best affordable watches under $200 go, this is a winner.

• CASE: Polycarbonate

• MOVEMENT: Solar quartz

• DIAL: Black

• SIZE: 42mm

• STRAP: Nylon NATO

Best EDC Watch Under $200: Seiko 5 Sports SRPG27

The Seiko 5 Field Watch is universally known by watch collectors as the ultimate starter watch, but the truth is, it can be where you begin and where you end with watch collecting. The weight and feel of this watch give it serious presence, the military field watch dial will never go out of style, and while it’s great on a NATO strap, we recommend getting it on the metal strap because a NATO is an easy aftermarket addition. It’s durable enough to be an EDC watch, and water resistant to 100 meters. The versatile 39mm width will work for a broad range of wrists.

• CASE: Stainless steel

• MOVEMENT: Automatic mechanical

• DIAL: Black

• SIZE: 39mm

• STRAP: Stainless-steel bracelet

Best Chronograph Watch Under $200: Fossil Sport Tourer

The Sport Tourer is a new release from Fossil inspired by vintage racing watches in a modern 42mm case size. Refined details include the coin edge tachymeter and the rounded brushed steel case. There are five color variants, but I love the cream dial for its vintage feel and the bright red center-second hand. Set against the clean backdrop are also black subdials for seconds, minutes, and hours, and a date window at 3 o’clock. The perforated leather strap feels like it will last and completes the retro look.

• CASE: Stainless steel

• DIAL: Cream, green, yellow, panda, and blue

• MOVEMENT: Japanese center-second quartz chronograph

• SIZE: 42mm

• STRAP: Leather, rubber, stainless steel bracelet

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Best G-Shock Watch Under $200: G-Shock Rugged Combi GA010-2A

With a 10-year battery, you could live in a cave for a decade with this G-Shock watch and still come out knowing what time it is. The carbon-infused resin is all about ruggedness, and this nearly 52mm-wide beast is made for serious adventures way off the grid. It’s water resistant to 200 meters and while not a smartwatch, the functions beyond date and time include 5 alarms, world time, a bright LED for reading it at night, and a stopwatch with a countdown function. The deep-set dial gives it a layered, 3-D look, with the hands floating over the digital display. Not ideal for small wrists, but the large diameter is perfect for easy legibility on your mud-splattered adventure.

• CASE: Carbon and resin

• MOVEMENT: Digital and analog quartz

• DIAL: Digital and analog

• SIZE: 51.9mm

• STRAP: Bio rubber

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Best Racing Watch Under $200: Q Timex Reissue 1971 Velocity

This new reissue of a 1971 Timex racing watch keeps to its roots with a period-authentic domed acrylic crystal and a sleek 36mm case size. The stainless steel cushion case has a 60-minute black aluminum bezel, and the matte black dial has four quadrants, red and white markers inspired by checkered flags, a trapezoidal date window at 3 o’clock, and a distinctive orange second hand. Also period-appropriate: the quartz movement inside. The black rubber strap has a woven texture, and because it’s not leather, you can enjoy the fact that this piece is water-resistant to 50 meters.

• CASE: Stainless steel

• MOVEMENT: Quartz

• DIAL: Black

• SIZE: 36mm

• STRAP: Rubber

Best Watch Under $200 for Surfing: G-Shock G-LIDE GBX100-2A

A G-Shock specifically for surfing, the GBX100-2A has a live tide chart that you can set to one of 3,300 different surf spots around the world, along with sunrise and sunset, and moon phase. It’s water resistant up to 200 meters and has a guard made of resin and metal to protect the crystal. When not chasing the swells, it still has smartwatch features like steps, distance traveled, cadence, pace, world clock, and you can have alerts for calls and messages pushed from your Apple or Android phone.

• CASE: Resin and stainless steel

• MOVEMENT: Digital solar quartz

• DIAL: Memory-in-Picture LCD

• SIZE: 46mm

• STRAP: Rubber

Best Vintage-Style Watch Under $200: Naval Watch Company British Royal Airforce Type Chronograph

This sub-$200 modern Japanese remake of a 1970’s British Royal Airforce timepiece is the perfect everyday watch. At 42mm wide, this chronograph isn't a small watch, but it feels light on the wrist thanks in part to the light NATO strap. The chronograph pushers are incredibly smooth, and the lumed white hands are highly visible—particularly with the black dial version. The numerals are an antique white, creating a nice contrast with the hour, minute, and seconds stopwatch hands. Two subdials display a 24-hour clock that runs constantly, and a 60-minute timer that runs with the chronograph. The domed acrylic crystal and the arrow at 6 o’clock complete the retro look, and the screw-down crown keeps the Seiko quartz movement dry down to 50 meters.

• CASE: Stainless steel

• MOVEMENT: Seiko V64 chronograph quartz

• DIAL: White, black

• SIZE: 42mm

• STRAP: Black nylon NATO

What to Look for in the Best Affordable Watches Under $200

In this price range, most people are starting a watch collection on a budget, or they’re supplementing their stable with a watch that can be justified as a spontaneous purchase. Great affordable watches at this level might be classic like Citizen Garrison, more playful like TRIWA Ocean Plastic Timer, or somewhere in the middle like Bertucci Solar Field and Fossil Sport Tourer.

Don’t be too picky or puristic about movements when shopping for the best affordable watches. Even though you can get a mechanical watch in this range, quartz and solar quartz movements are solid options that may actually be more practical. The most important point is that this range has never been richer or better in quality, as proven by the wide variety of excellent options here.

Why You Should Trust Me

In addition to writing for Men’s Journal, I've been covering gear and style for outlets including The Wall Street Journal, Wired, Maxim, Playboy, Gear Patrol, and Fatherly for over a decade. I first started writing about watches because I was intimated by them. So I used watch writing as a way to learn about the world of watchmaking and collecting.

Over the years, I've interviewed the best vintage watch dealers in the world, founders of watch magazines steeped in collecting culture, and the designers and entrepreneurs behind many watch brands—from the smallest micro brands to Swiss conglomerates. My biggest takeaway is that anyone can be a watch collector. Because no matter your budget, the most important thing is knowing what you like and what makes you happy.

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