Watches don't have to cost a fortune, which is why we've searched far and wide to find the best watches under £300, for those on a budget who still want a fabulous timepiece.
Watches are statements of intent, a fashion piece that can make the drabbest of outfits drip with style and swagger. That is, if you can afford a good watch. As much as you’d love to buy a watch advertised by a smirking Formula One driver and tennis player, the price tags mean they aren't always attainable. And, while that's still true of proper mechanical timepieces, you can pick up a respectable, fashionable watch without breaking the bank.
Here are our top picks for the best watches you can pick up for less than £300. If you're looking for slightly more expensive watches, you can read our best watches under £1000 and best watches for men guide. If you're really looking to spend big bucks, you can read our guide to the 5 best watches to invest in right now.
Best watches under £300
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Who said you can't get a Swiss-made watch for under £300? It's no compromises as well, because this affordable Swiss watch is actually attractive as well. Based on the iconic design of the Swiss Railway Station clock, it's easy to read and stylish. The polished stainless steel case is waterproof to three bar, and the crystal glass covering the face is domed for a magnifying effect.
This Casio G-Shock really is the ultimate beater watch. You can strap it on a completely forget about it, whatever you’re doing. It’s sets the standard when it comes to toughness, and we love this understated ‘Black Out’ colourway. It comes with a Cordura nylon fabric band that is stronger than nylon, whist also providing extremely high resistance to stretching, wear, and tearing.
If you're just getting into photography (or you're trying to get someone into photography), this could be the ideal watch. It's a stylish quartz piece from legendary Swiss brand, Tissot. It features a timeless design, with a sleep, clean, classic face. We adore the interesting 'beads of rice' bracelet it comes on.
This Oxford watch from Rotary is ideal if you're looking for a classic, everyday dress watch. The perfectly balanced black dial is complemented by a soft calf leather strap. Want to know how else wears a Rotary watch? You'll see one strapped to the wrist of Benedict Cumberbatch's Sherlock Holmes
Looking for a budget watch with plenty o’ tech? The Citizen EcoDrive Dive watch is for you. It’s powered by Citizen brilliant EcoDrive technology, which harnesses power from any light source (even artificial lighting) to keep ticking all day long (with a 7 year power reserve).
Honestly, you’ll never need to change a watch battery again. This is a functional piece as well, with features including a screw-down crown and screw-back case, luminous markers, one-way rotating slide rule bezel and highly-legible dials, it’s a true Divers watch.
We love Mr Jones Watches, and from its collection of unique, handmade pieces this might just be our favourite. It tells the time by pointing at the hours with the outstretched foot of a man lazing in a swimming pool, while a rubber duck swims in circles to act as the minute hand. It’s brilliantly daft, and with every glance it’ll remind you of that upcoming summer holiday.
Read more: A week on the wrist with the Mr Jones Watches A Perfectly Useless Afternoon
This large Fossil watch features a bold, all-black design, with black case, matt black dial, and, black indices. The large 43mm stainless steel case certainly makes a statement, and is water resistant to 5 ATM. It's finished with a black waxed-leather strap.
You surely know all about the MoonWatch by now. A collaboration between Swatch and Omega saw the former’s price point blended with the latter’s design. It was a match made in heaven (or, more specifically, an office at parent company Swatch Group) that saw every model sold out for months.
The strap could be better, but we think it’s still fantastic value, and there are plenty of third-party brands that elevate the MoonWatch’s aesthetics even further. Pricey for a Swatch and lacking water resistance, but a fun must-have for any collection.
Coming in under half the £300 budget, this watch by Rotary has charming vintage looks, including a compact 38mm case and domed sapphire crystal. It’s also the watch worn by Benedict Cumberbach when he played Sherlock Holmes, so will of course bless any buyer with the problem-solving skills of the world’s most famous detective. Throw in 50 metres of water resistance and a leather strap, and you’ve got yourself a stylish bargain.
If you're looking for something iconic, look no further than this timepiece from Braun. The company's minimalist, clean aesthetic, was introduced by renowned German designer Dieter Rams, was built around the brand ethos - less, but better.
Rams and his colleague Dietrich Lubs launched a range of functional timepieces based on the established visual language that made Braun products iconic. In recent years this range has been re-established and revived, so you can now buy a piece of design history for under £300.
Yes, we know, it’s a smartwatch. However, since Apple’s wearable is one of the most popular on the planet, we thought the cut-price Watch SE is worth including in this buying guide. It lacks some of the flagship Watch 9’s features, but still packs health and fitness tracking, sleep tracking, music streaming, interchangeable straps and a nice range of watch faces to pick from that are both smart and stylish.
This Mens Casio timepiece from the Edifice collection epitomises true Casio inspired aesthetics. It's an outstanding analogue watch for its price, part of the Edifice collection, which is engineered by Casio. This wrist watch features a sporty stainless steel case and bracelet, and it combined with a black carbon fibre effect dial and reliable Quartz movement.
If you’re looking for a budget timepiece, there really is nothing more affordable than the Casio digital watch. Sure, it’s not the last word in sophistication, but the design is iconic and perfect if you're going for a retro/hipster vibe. As well as telling the time, the Casio features an alarm, calendar and stopwatch.
It’s pretty much an Apple Watch. There’s a backlight, for telling time in the dark, and the acrylic window is shatter-resistant, so it’ll probably last longer than you will. All for under £20? That’s a steal, and everyone should have one, quite frankly.
There's no getting away from how much this Citizen looks like a Rolex Datejust. However, if you're okay with that, £299 gets you a fantastic timepiece with a stainless case and strap, plus an automatic movement visible through an exhibition case back. In the pale blue dial of this model and you've even got a Tiffany-style aesthetic on a budget.
