The 5 Best Men's Watches for Under 100 Dollars

The 5 best men's watches for under 100 dollars was supposed to be an easier list to make than the 5 best for under 50.  But that proved not to be the case.

With the 50 dollar watches, I tried to pick watches from different categories, for the under 100 dollar watches, I simply tried to find the best bang for your buck.  I was able to find that, but the pickings, in my eyes, were slim.

My goal in the best men's watches for under 100 was to try to find watches produced by tried an true companies,  in most cases, those watches would be entry level products, but you should still get the name, and quality expected from the name. 

I stayed away from the fashion watches from companies like Fossil or Kenneth Cole, and countless other brands.  Not because they are particularly bad watches, but because I felt that if you want a fashion watch, it is because you want a look, and this list is not for the best looking men's watches for under 100. This limited my playing field to a very few brands I would be able to consider.  I hope the choices are to your liking though.

The 5 Best Men's Watches for under 100 Dollars

Seiko
Series 5
Model:SNK809K2
Case: 37mm, stainless steel
Band: 18mm, black canvas
Movement: Seiko Automatic 7S26A

Functions: HH, MM, SS, Date, Day
Battery: N/A
Water resistance: 30M/100ft

I would have loved to find a Seiko for the under 50 list, but it just didn't happen.  Seiko is a quality watch maker that has been producing timepieces since 1892, and watches since 1924.  They are the official timekeepers for many major sporting events.  They are a strong watch making company.

The Sportsmatic 5 was first released in 1963, marketed as an affordable timepiece, and has continued to be for more than 50 years.

The Seiko 5 Series, it's what I would call a typical field watch.  It comes with a 37 mm stainless steel case and screw on, see through back.  The black face and hands are offset by the white numbering.  The crown is at the 4 o'clock position, instead of the more common, 3 o'clock position.  The 18 mm black canvas strap has a buckle clasp.

The watch has luminous hands, and numbering, and a Hardlex crystal lens.  The Seiko 5 also has not only a date window, but a day window as well.

The Seiko 5 is not full of fun features, but is a high quality watch for a great price.  And it is not a quarts movement timepiece.  In fact it is a Seiko 7S26A, automatic movement.  It has 21 Jewels and runs at 21,600 vph, keeping the hands moving smoothly.

Overall, I love this watch.  It is a watch I would recommend to anyone looking for a niche daily wear watch for a great price.  I have found it on Amazon for around 72 dollars, making if fall well below the under 100 dollar price point.

Bulova

Classic
Model: 96B217
Case: 38 mm, Stainless steel
Band: 20 mm
Movement: Japanese Quartz (Miyota)
Functions: HH, MM, SS, Date
Battery: Nonstandard
Water resistance: 30 M/99 ft.

I have a soft spot for Bulova, due to the long ago gift of my grandfather's Bulova 23 watch.  But the company also has a long and prestigious history.

Bulova was founded by Joseph Bulova, in 1875, in Queens, New York.  In 1912, Joseph open his first plant dedicated solely to watch production, in Switzerland.

In 2008 Citizen purchased Bulova, making them the largest watchmaker in the world.

All that said, I love the looks of this watch.  The lines are so clean, it has a feel of mid-century modern style, with sharp lines on the 38mm stainless steel case, and the clean silver face, with the roman numeral 12.  It has a screw on back and a 20mm leather band with a buckle clasp.

The Bulova classic is just that, it is a clean, classic, no frills watch.  It  is going to give you your hours and minutes and seconds, and a date window on the dial.

The Bulova Classic has a Japanese quartz.  As far as I can tell, it has a Miyota quartz.  I did not get that information directly from Bulova though.  It makes sense though, Miyota and Bulova are both owned by Citizen.

With the quality inherent with the Bulova name, I am very sure this is a watch you would be happy for.  On top of that, I have seen this watch for as low as 85 dollars.  Well under the 100 dollar limit.

 I have to admit though.  If you are willing to go just over 100 dollars, around 120, the Classic 96B104 is a better looking watch to me, but only slightly.

It may very well be in my beat watches under 200 list.  Do not be surprised.

Citizen
Eco-drive

Model: AU1040-08E
Case: 40 mm, Stainless steel
Band: 20mm, Black leather
Movement: Japanese Quartz (Eco-Drive J165)
Functions: HH, MM, SS, Day
Battery:
Water resistance: 10 M/33 ft.

Citizen Watch Holdings is another long standing watch maker.  The company was founded in 1918, as a watch research institute, in Japan.  Citizen was formally name as a watch company in 1924 (or there about) and have been a dominant force in the watchmaking industry ever since.  They are also the parent company for Miyota, a highly recognized movement maker.  Giving them immediate access to quality movements for their watches (along with Bulova).

The Citizen Eco-Drive is a classic looking watch.  It has a large, 40mm Stainless steel case with a screw down stainless steel back, and a black dial face with tick marks at the hours and minutes, along with polished hour, minute and second arms.  Its crown is located in the standard 3 o'clock position and it has a 20mm black leather band with a buckle style clasp.

The Eco-drive is a solar powered movement that utilizes a solar panel under the watch face in order to power the units.  They do have a battery to hold residual charge, but the Eco-Drive system is nearly battery replacement free, being it relies on solar energy to power the unit.

The AU1040-03A falls just under 100 dollars.  I have been able to find it for around 98 dollars to be exact.  It gives you an entry level Citizen watch at a reasonable price.

The watch looks good and offers some nice features.  The Eco-Drive, Stainless steel construction, and leather band.  Along with a Crystal lens, and illuminated arms.  The watch has a nice, but simple look, and would be a watch I would consider adding to my collection.

Orient

Capitol Quartz

Model: FUG1R003W/UG1R003W
Case: 40.5 mm, Stainless steel
Band: 22mm, Leather
Movement: HS911 Quartz
Functions: HH, MM, SS, Day, Date
Battery:
Water resistance: 30M

Orient is another long lived Japanese watchmaker.  Founded, in Japan in 1950.  They have been producing time pieces ever since.  In 2001, it has been a subsidiary of Seiko since 2001, and became a wholly owned subsidiary of Seiko since 2009.  Their main product is mechanical hand wind or self wound watches.

This watch, unfortunatly does not fall into the mechanical movement catigory, but for under 100 dollars, it is a little tricky to find a mechanical watch worth talking about.

This watch is nice though, the 40.0mm stainless steel case has clean, sharp lines, giving it a bit of a vintage feel to it, the crown is located at the traditional 3 o'clock position and the white face is also simple and clean, with thin, stainless steel dash lines at the hour markers, and polished stainless steel hour, minute and second hands.  The face also has a Day and date window which is also located at the 3 o'clock position.

Orient makes quality watches, they have been making watches for some time.  And with them being owned by Seiko, I am very confident you will not be disappointed with your purchase of an Orient watch.



Momentum by St. Moritz Watch Corp.
Steelix Field Watch
Model: 1M-SP74B7G
Case: 44 mm, Stainless steel
Band: 22 mm, Canvas
Movement: Japanese Quartz
Functions: HH, MM, SS, Date
Battery: Silver Oxide cell (3-5 years)
Water resistance: 200 M/600 ft

Momentum is a Canadian watch company.  They are not necessarily Canadian made watches.  They are built in Canada.  I think that is very important to understand about companies like Momentum.  That while they generally use quality products and make an overall quality product, the do not really have any manufacturing processes of their own.

But i like the products.  They have been in business for about 30 years and i have talked to quite a few people that have watches that are nearly that old and still working with no issues.

Its because of this that I gave momentum a place on the under 100 list.  Because, even though they are not one of the giants on this list, they are doing things right and they sell at a good price.

The Steelix is the Momentum entry level watch.  I know i had a torpedo on the under 50 list, but it was a previous model year version.  This Steelix is a watch you can buy directly from Momentum for 99 dollars.

I like this watch.  It has a military look to it. I love that the crown is at the 4 o'clock position instead of the 3.

This watch, in my mind is a good buy, and is why it is on my under 100 list.

Wrap up

I hope you have enjoyed The 5 best men's watches under 100 dollars.  I enjoyed searching through watches for hours, to put it together.  And I hope you all come back for my future posts.  I will be covering higher price ranges, and very specific types of watches in the weeks to come.  My goal for The Best Men's Watches Under blog is to present you with the best men's watches I can find within any given price range, and show you options you may not be aware of.