Designer Watches All On Sale and For Under $250!

Most of them are in the $150 range!

Editor: Beau Hayhoe
Created/Updated: December 11, 2024

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Did you know your watch says a lot about you, and your style? Besides being used for practical reasons, the right watch adds a little something-something to your wrist, and allows you to make a statement. Similar to your favorite cologne or must-wear pair of sunglasses, sometimes you can never have just one watch. And if you’re looking for the perfect gift for him whether it’s his birthday or Christmas, you can never go wrong with one of these totally on-trend (yet, classic) options. Plus, all of these picks are currently on sale and for under $250, with many in the $150 range.

It’s easy enough to depend upon your phone to tell the time, but adding a truly stylish, affordable watch to your rotation is fun (yes, fun!) and intentional. It adds something extra to your look, it serves a purpose (whether diving or hiking), and there’s always something to be said for an accessory that even James Bond himself wears. But because we can’t all be 007, or dress on his budget, let’s set some parameters. There’s a wide range of watches out there available for under $250, with options for dress watches, dive watches and more. These are the best watches we’ve found on sale for under $250 to amp up your wrist game accordingly.

SEIKO Men's Automatic 5 Sports Stainless Steel Bracelet Watch

Let’s get right into it when it comes to shopping for a men’s watch under $500. It’s a great baseline price if you want to start or bolster your watch collection, particularly when it gives you the opportunity to snag a finely made Seiko watch. But the real benefit to adding a Seiko dive watch – this particular one especially – to your rotation? It just so happens to mimic the look of the much, much more expensive Rolex Submariner, which is never a bad style move. While it features a smaller case size, it packs a punch in terms of water-ready capability, and it’s even refined enough to dress up with business casual looks when back on dry land.

Timex + Todd Snyder Mk-1 Amalfi

Let no one tell you a stylish, sharp men’s dress watch requires you to spend an arm and a leg.

And in a world where vintage leather watches are getting harder (and more expensive) to come by, there’s a quick and effective way to add a crisply designed watch to your wrist. The solution? Shop through Todd Snyder, where the famed American menswear designer has teamed with equally famed American watch brand Timex on a refined, old-school dress watch. With a throwback-sized 36mm case and a cream-colored dial, it should pair easily with your favorite navy blazer or an Oxford shirt (sleeves rolled, of course).

Fossil Neutra Chronograph Watch

Feast your eyes on all the features you can add to your watch rotation for under $500, including triple-chronograph utility from famed watchmaker Fossil. The do-it-all brand specializes in watches suited for dressy occasions as well as casual, everyday style situations, and the handsome Neutra Chronograph is somewhere between the two. The 44mm dial size is bold without overdoing it, while a crisp white dial plays nicely off a brown leather strap. Remember that critical blend of form and function discussed earlier? This chronograph proves you really can have it all, and at a low price.

Bulova Stainless Steel Leather Chronograph

The great thing about getting into the world of stylish men’s watches is that there’s something to fit every taste. That goes for subtle dress watches as well as hard-wearing stainless steel watches, not to mention timepieces that are somewhere in the middle. In this case, a contrast-stitched leather strap plays nicely off a patterned grey dial – it’s a high-low sort of look that pairs well with, say, a rugged henley and blue jeans or else a soft-shouldered navy blazer and a chambray shirt. You see? A watch with a “high-low” design works well with other “high-low” styles. And for under $500, triple-chronograph functionality meets any demand from sunrise to sunset.

Citizen Eco-Drive Garrison Watch

While the notion of shopping for a watch on a budget might call to mind cheaply made timepieces, there’s a plethora of brands that have made it something of a specialty – Citizen very much included. Its distinctive Eco-Drive movement ensures accurate timekeeping on the go (powered by the sun, of course). Plus, the durable design of the Garrison is also a casual style favorite. The green nylon strap contrasts nicely against a dark dial, but it’s really the durability of this nicely sized 42mm watch that should make it a rugged favorite for your wrist game.

Beau Hayhoe

A journalism grad from Michigan State University and current Brooklyn resident, Beau has been covering all things shoppers are into for publishers like Esquire, Men's Journal, Business Insider, Gear Patrol, and more.

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