20 Non-Swiss Watch Brands You Should Know

The godfather of modern German watchmaking, A. Lange & Sohne has a 173-year history and produces some of the world's finest movements.

Arguably the most prestigious non-Swiss watch brand, A. Lange & Söhne is considered by many to be the unofficial fourth member of the "holy trinity" of luxury watchmaking, alongside the Swiss trio Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet, and Vacheron Constantin. Founded by Ferdinand Adolph Lange in 1845 in the German watchmaking capital of Glashütte, Lange, like most German watchmakers, ceased operations after World War II. It was revived in 1990 by the founder's great-grandson and has since become one of the world's leading high watchmaking manufacturers.

• Founded: 1845
• Location: Glashütte, Germany
• Style: Luxury, Sport, Dress
• Popular Models: 1851, Lange 1, Triple Split
• Price Range: $25,000 to $250,000+
• Model: Lange 1

One of the few German watch companies to produce its own movements, Glashutte Original has a history that predates its founding year.

The history of Glashütte Original is generally complex. As a brand, it technically only exists since 1994, but its roots go far back to the dawn of watchmaking in Glashütte. After the city's destruction during World War II, the remaining watchmakers were brought together to form a single company in Soviet-controlled East Germany. The new company, called Glashütte Uhrenbetriebe, lasted four decades from 1951 until the early 90s, when the Berlin Wall fell, and Germany reunited, leaving Glashütte Original to rise from the ashes. Like Lange, G.O. produces all its own movements and continues Glashütte's classic watchmaking traditions, but its products generally have a slightly lower price point.

• Founded: 1845
• Location: Glashütte, Germany
• Style: Luxury, Dress, Minimalism
• Popular Models: Senator, Pano, Sixties
• Price Range: $6,000 to $100,000+
• Model: SeaQ Panorama Date

Known for its iconic Max Bill watches, the Bauhaus company produces some of the best minimalist watches in the world.

Aside from Glashütte with its old-world watchmaking traditions, another significant German contribution to watchmaking is Bauhaus design. Originating in the German Bauhaus art school that thrived in the first half of the 20th century, this style combines form and function in aesthetically pleasing industrial designs. One of the most famous adherents of this design school is Junghans. The brand has existed since 1861 but arguably made its mark only a century later when the famous Bauhaus designer Max Bill created his first wristwatch for it. The Max Bill series remains Junghans' most famous line and possibly the most renowned Bauhaus-style watch in the world.

• Founded: 1861
• Location: Schramberg, Germany
• Style: Sport, Minimalism
• Popular Models: 1972 Chronoscope, Form A, Max Bill
• Price Range: $800 to $2,500
• Model: Max Bill Automatic

Known for their clean design and unique color schemes, Nomos produces its own movements for its indelible watches.

NOMOS offers a unique blend of Bauhaus design principles and Glashütte watchmaking - both in a modern interpretation. Founded in 1990 in Glashütte, NOMOS competes in the entry-level and mid-level luxury market, offering some of the best value in the industry for what it can offer. Since 2005, the brand has exclusively used its own movements, and its modern and minimalist design language has created a strong brand identity in just a few decades. Most German watchmakers adhere to tradition, but if you prefer something fun and playful, you'll likely find it at NOMOS.

• Founded: 1990
• Location: Glashütte, Germany
• Style: Dress, Minimalism
• Popular Models: Ahoi, Orion, Club
• Price Range: $2,000 to $4,300
• Model: Tangente Neomatik

Creating some of the most impressive divers, Sinn also focuses on making its tool watches accessible.

All the brands we've talked about so far mainly deal in dress watches, but not Sinn. This rugged German brand, located in Frankfurt and founded in 1961 by pilot Helmut Sinn, is known for producing some of the toughest tool watches in the world. Specializing in watches for pilots, divers, and specialized professionals like medics and astronauts, Sinn often receives accolades for its innovations, as its watches boast unique exclusive features like Ar-Dehumidifying technology, TEGIMENT material hardening technology, and HYDRO technology to prevent fogging of watch internals submerged in clear oil.

• Founded: 1961
• Location: Frankfurt, Germany
• Style: Sport
• Popular Models: T50, 103, EZM
• Price Range: $1,500 to $3,000
• Model: 103 ST Chronograph

Casio helped change the game with its quartz watches in the '70s and '80s, introducing the still-dominant G-SHOCK brand.

If you know what watches are, you've undoubtedly heard of Casio. This brand is synonymous with affordable digital watches that you can buy at a pharmacy for 20 bucks, and its cheap plastic-cased digital watches - like the famous Calculator Watch - were ubiquitous in the 1980s. But Casio does much more than just cheap watches. The Tokyo conglomerate, founded in 1946, is a major electronics company producing everything from calculators to keyboards. In the watch world, Casio is best known today as the maker of G-SHOCK, insanely durable quartz watches that have come to define the "beater watch" category for many collectors.

• Founded: 1945
• Location: Tokyo, Japan
• Style: Sport, Retro, Field
• Popular Models: ProTrek, G-SHOCK 2100, G-SHOCK 5600
• Price Range: $30 to $5,000
• Model: G-SHOCK GA-2100SB-1A

Citizen has become one of the world's largest watch companies, but it also deserves recognition for its innovative Eco-Drive movements and capable tool watches.

As you'll see, Japan is home to several large (and very well-known) watch brands, but none surpasses Citizen, as the Citizen Group (which also owns brands like Bulova, Frederique Constant, Alpina, and movement manufacturer Miyota) is technically the largest watch company in the world. At the top of the corporate hierarchy is Citizen itself. With headquarters in Tokyo, founded in 1918, Citizen produces a wide range of watches, most of which are in the affordable price range. And though the brand produces typical quartz and (increasingly) mechanical watches, it is best known for its quartz Eco-Drive technology, which is powered by any light and, as the ads claim, "never needs a battery."

• Founded: 1918
• Location: Tokyo, Japan
• Style: Sport, Casual, Dress
• Popular Models: Promaster Dive, Promaster Skyhawk, PCAT
• Price Range: $200 to $5,000
• Model: Promaster Nighthawk Blue Angels

GS, a subsidiary of Seiko, produces some of the industry's finest movements, and its dials keep you coming back for more.

You might be wondering why Grand Seiko has its place on this list when its apparent parent company Seiko is just two spots below. Well, we'll tell you. In 2017, Grand Seiko transitioned from a "sub-brand" to an "independent brand," allowing it to form its own identity distinct from its illustrious founder. And it's definitely working. If the first Grand Seiko watches debuted in 1960 as a way for Seiko to compete with the Swiss, then in the past five years, Grand Seiko has beaten the Swiss as never before. Fully positioned as a true luxury brand on par with Rolex and Omega, GS advances in the market with features like Spring Drive hybrid movements, immaculate dial finishing, and the famous "Zaratsu" finishing technique. Moreover, it is one of only two fully vertically integrated watch companies in the world, the other being Rolex.

• Founded: 1960
• Location: Iwate, Japan
• Style: Dress, Sport
• Popular Models: 44GS, 9S
• Price Range: $5,500 to $80,000
• Model: 44GS SLGH013

Orient offers some of the best-value watches in the entire industry, including its elite Orient Star models.

Orient has been the gateway into the world of automatic watches for countless watch enthusiasts, and it's easy to see why. The brand only produces mechanical watches using its own movements, and they are typically priced around $200. Founded in Tokyo in 1950, Orient was independent until 2009, when it became part of Epson (yes, the printer manufacturer), which itself is under the corporate umbrella of Seiko. So, technically, Seiko owns Orient, but there's no cross-pollination between the brands. Orient produces a variety of watches but is especially known for its affordable automatic dive watches.

• Founded: 1950
• Location: Tokyo, Japan
• Style: Dress, Diving, Sport
• Popular Models: Bambino, Mako, Kamasu
• Price Range: $200 to $3,000
• Model: Kamasu

Simply the godfather of modern Japanese watchmaking, Seiko is a must-have on any list of Japanese watches.

This may be the most obvious choice for this guide, but Seiko is the most famous non-Swiss watch brand in the world and one of the most famous without that caveat. Founded in 1881, Seiko has the richest history among all Japanese watchmakers, as evidenced by its long list of achievements, including inventing quartz wristwatches in 1969 and possibly releasing the first automatic chronograph that same year. Seiko produces all its movements and everything else in-house (the brand even grows its own quartz crystals), and there's practically no sandbox in which Seiko hasn't offered something interesting. From iconic dive watches to flawless dress watches and everything in between, Seiko offers watches priced from under $100 to several thousand dollars across various lines, including Seiko 5, Presage, and Prospex.

• Founded: 1881
• Location: Tokyo, Japan
• Style: Dress, Diving, Sport
• Popular Models: Prospex, Prestige, 5 Sports
• Price Range: $200 to $7,000
• Model: Prospex SRPE93

Bremont is relatively new on the scene but has already made its mark with its own movements, paving the way in British watchmaking.

This century has seen a host of new British watch brands that are doing great work. Most significant among them, like Christopher Ward and Farer, operate under the "British design, Swiss production" model. Bremont used to do the same, but lately, this luxury brand specializing in tool watches has set itself apart by moving much of its production to its new gleaming watch factory in England, including releasing the first British-made mechanical movement in five decades. Besides blazing a trail in British watchmaking, it has also carved out a respectable niche as one of the world's leading luxury pilot watch manufacturers, even luring over some IWC and Breitling owners (notable Breitling fan Harrison Ford has been spotted wearing a Bremont or two).

• Founded: 2002
• Location: Henley, England
• Style: Pilot, Racing, Diving, Dress
• Popular Models: Altitude, Longitude, S300, MB
• Price Range: $3,600 to $27,000+
• Model: MB Savanna

One of the most famous American watch companies, Bulova became known for its electronic watches in the '80s and continues to create affordable watches.

Bulova was perhaps the most challenging brand to include in this guide, as it produces a small number of its watches in Switzerland, and in its early history, made most of its watches in the landlocked European state. But the company, founded in Queens, New York, in 1875 by Joseph Bulova, is American at its core. In the mid-20th century, Bulova was arguably the leading American watch brand, thanks in part to the popular Accutron series, one of the first (and first successful) types of electronic watches. Nowadays, Bulova is owned by Japan's Citizen, but its headquarters remain in New York City's Empire State Building, and the vast majority of its watches are produced in Asia at price points similar to its parent company's offerings.

• Founded: 1875
• Location: New York
• Style: Sport, Diving, Dress
• Popular Models: Lunar Pilot, Oceanographer, Marine Star, Classic
• Price Range: $350 to $4,500
• Model: Lunar Pilot

Grönefeld watches are not cheap, but you always get something unique and ridiculously stylish from their original small-batch creations.

If you're looking for high-end non-Swiss watches and A. Lange & Söhne is too mainstream for your tastes, meet Grönefeld. Founded by the "horoscope brothers" Bart and Tim Grönefeld, this brand has a family watchmaking history in the Netherlands dating back to 1912. And after the latest generation of Grönefelds completed nearly a decade of training in Switzerland, they returned home in 1998 with a mission to create the world's best watches right in the Netherlands. The brand released its first watch in 2008, and since then, it has been releasing complex original creations in small batches that always sell out (and at astronomical prices, mind you).

• Founded: 1912
• Location: Oldenzaal, Netherlands
• Style: Luxury, Dress, High Complexity
• Popular Models: 1969 Deltaworks, 1941 Grönograaf, Parallax Tourbillon
• Price Range: $50,000 to $200,000+
• Model: Parallax Tourbillon

Possibly the most iconic American watch brand, Timex consistently makes great watches at very affordable prices.

This guide includes a small handful of brands that almost everyone has likely heard of: Seiko, Casio, and probably Citizen. And then there's Timex. Possibly the most iconic American watch brand of all time, Timex has been making reliable and affordable watches (and has faced various industry challenges) since 1944. But its history goes back even further: before becoming Timex, the company from Waterbury, Connecticut, was known as the Waterbury Clock Company for 90 years, starting in 1854. Thanks to its long history, enduring relevance, and catalog of iconic offerings, Timex is arguably the most significant brand of affordable watches.

• Founded: 1854
• Location: Middlebury, Connecticut
• Style: Casual, Dress, Sport, Digital
• Popular Models: Q Timex, Marlin, Expedition, T80, Giorgio Galli
• Price Range: $50 to $975
• Model: Q Timex GMT

Focusing on heritage and accessibility, Yema produces some of the most attractive watches in the world.

Due to how the company positions its watches in the market, Yema is often classified as a modern microbrand. But in reality, this company is not that at all. Founded in France in 1948, Yema is historically one of the most significant watch brands in its country. Yema achieved its greatest success in the 1960s-80s, when it accomplished feats like having motorsport legend Mario Andretti wear a RallyGraf chronograph on the track and releasing the first French watch to go into space. For several decades, the brand remained relatively quiet, but in recent years Yema has made noise by releasing numerous well-executed reissues and even a couple of new in-house movements.

• Founded: 1948
• Location: Besançon, France
• Style: Diving, Sport, Racing
• Popular Models: Superman, RallyGraf, Navygraf
• Price Range: $350 to $2,000
• Model: Superman 500 Dato

Autodromo produces some of the world's best racing-inspired watches, along with accessories like gloves.

Located in New York and founded by product designer and motorsport enthusiast Bradley Price in 2011, Autodromo is one of the most specialized microbrands on the market. Unsurprisingly, it makes automotive-themed watches, but it does so differently than other brands. Instead of releasing typical racing-style chronographs like all other automotive microbrands, Autodromo does the unexpected, drawing inspiration from such diverse muses as 1980s Group B racers and mid-century Italian Berlinettas to create unique watches that don't wear their inspiration on their sleeve. The automotive theme is understated and stylish, and most importantly, every Autodromo watch is meticulously thought out.

• Founded: 2011
• Location: New York
• Style: Sport, Racing-Inspired, Chronograph
• Popular Models: Group C, Vallelunga Automatic
• Price Range: $475 to $775
• Model: Vallelunga Automatic

Baltic produces some of the most expressive vintage-style divers.

Founded just five years ago by Etienne Malec in memory of his late watch collector father, the Parisian company Baltic quickly became one of the most sought-after microbrands in the field. The brand deals in vintage aesthetics, creating dive watches, GMT, chronographs, and dress watches that look like they were made between 1930 and 1960. Admittedly, there are plenty of microbrands doing similar things, but what sets Baltic apart - aside from the high quality of its watches - is its willingness to take risks, like using a rare micro-rotor movement in some of its watches.

• Founded: 2017
• Location: Paris, France
• Style: Vintage-Style, GMT, Diver
• Popular Models: Aquascaphe, Bicompax, HMS
• Price Range: $360 to $1,600
• Model: Aquascaphe Bronze

One of the oldest microbrands, Halios can compete with much more expensive brands and sells out quickly with each release.

Canadian company Halios is sometimes called the "Rolex of microbrands," reminding enthusiasts of The Crown not only because of its absurdly high level of quality control (for which we can thank brand founder/perfectionist Jason Lim) but also because of how difficult it is to acquire one of its watches, as they sell out very quickly. Founded in 2009 and producing exclusively sports watches (for now, at least), most of Halios' assembly takes place in Vancouver, where Lim personally inspects the watches before shipping. New models undergo a multi-year development process to meet the owner's high standards, and anyone lucky enough to acquire a Halios watch is always eager to praise the brand.

• Founded: 2009
• Location: Vancouver, Canada
• Style: Diver, Casual, Sport
• Popular Models: Fairwind, Seaforth IV, Universa
• Price Range: $735 to $775
• Model: Seaforth

MING is one of the most coveted watch brands thanks to its unique design and award-winning watchmaking.

MING is somewhat like Halios in that its watches sell out immediately upon release (often leaving a bunch of frustrated would-be buyers in their wake), but this brand plays at a much higher price level. While Halios watches cost no more than $1,000, MING doesn't sell watches for less than a few thousand, and most are much more. The Malaysian "watch collective," founded by photographer and designer Ming Thein in 2017, has a very distinctive design language with features like a luminous ring around the dial and flared lugs. The brand excels in both design and construction, and its innovations have already won multiple awards at the Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genève, which is no small feat for such a young brand.

• Founded: 2017
• Location: Malaysia
• Style: Dress, Luxury
• Popular Models: 17.09, 37.05
• Price Range: $2,600 to $33,000
• Model: 17.09 BLUE

Honing its unique minimalist aesthetic, Unimatic has climbed the ladder to become perhaps the most famous microbrand in the world.

Unimatic is an Italian microbrand that came to life in 2015 with an extreme minimalist design - it's not every day you see a bezel with zero markings - that caught the attention of not only the watch world but the fashion world at large: it seems every week there's a new hot Unimatic collaboration. Founded by designers and friends Giovanni Moro and Simone Nunziato, Unimatic produces its watches in Italy and is rapidly becoming not only one of the most visible microbrands but also one of the hottest watchmakers. And given the company's rapid growth, we wouldn't be surprised if Unimatic sheds the microbrand label sooner or later.

• Founded: 2015
• Location: Milan, Italy
• Style: Sport, Diving, Field, Minimalist
• Popular Models: UC1, UC2, UC4
• Price Range: $400 to $600
• Model: UC1 Classic