When buying a new watch, the choices are nearly endless.
If you're aiming for luxury and have the budget, there's a dizzying array of Swiss brands (and a few German and Japanese ones) at your disposal. If you prefer a more accessible price range, you might consider microbrands or traditional budget labels. You could even opt for a smartwatch if you're keen on the latest wristwatch technology. But if you're looking for genuine, storied watches, then new ones aren't the way to go. You should buy vintage watches. To help you, we've compiled the best affordable vintage watches you can buy right now, but act fast - given how the market has soared, these prices won't stay this low for long.
Best Affordable Vintage Watches
The Current Vintage Watch Market
The vintage watch market is on fire, and although prices have skyrocketed in recent years, there are still plenty of excellent budget vintage watches that will look right at home on your wrist. The best affordable vintage watches - for our purposes, we're talking about watches priced around $1,000 and below - have genuine horological and/or cultural history, timeless aesthetics, and build quality that will last at least another half-century. They are artful conversation pieces, living relics from another era, and will perfectly complement any watch collection, regardless of its current makeup.
Be Cautious When Buying Vintage
We'd love to say that buying vintage watches has no downsides and you can throw caution to the wind when purchasing classic watches, but we can't, because that's not the case. The truth is, buying vintage watches can be somewhat of a minefield if you're unsure of what you're doing. While new watches come with warranties in case something goes wrong, vintage watches generally don't have such protection - especially at the price points we're discussing. In reality, you should expect something to go wrong with vintage watches and be prepared to pay for repairs. It's also worth expecting that water resistance won't match the case's claims, and the timing accuracy might not be what you'd like. Remember, these are delicate mechanisms using technology from a century ago, and you should appreciate them for what they are, not expect them to work like modern precision instruments.
Another tip when buying vintage watches: do your research. When it comes to vintage watches, as with many other collectible items, original examples are worth more money. Be on the lookout if the dial has been repainted or restored, if parts like crowns or hands have been replaced, and especially if it's a dreaded “Franken-watch” - a watch cobbled together from parts of different watches and passed off as a genuine original. The best way to avoid this trap is to do your homework. Once you've decided on the type of vintage watch you want to buy, learn everything you can about it by visiting watch forums and enthusiast sites. Learn what movement, hand style, dial text, etc., are characteristic of the desired model, so you'll know what to look out for and not end up with something you didn't want.
Skin Diver
The genre of “vintage skin divers” thrived throughout the 60s and 70s and still offers undeniably cool style and affordability.
In our first article, you'll notice that we don't recommend a specific brand and model. Instead, we draw your attention to an entire genre of watches. Skin divers are a style that flourished in the 60s and 70s. These are diving watches designed for shallow water swimming and snorkeling, hence they are thinner and rarer than typical professional diving watches, often lacking screw-down crowns and bezels with extra teeth. They're undeniably cool, and there are plenty of affordable divers from brands like Caravelle, Bulova, Wittnauer, Waltham, Elgin, Tradition, Yema, and many others. You can't go wrong with any of them.
- Peak popularity: 1960s and 70s
- Movement type: Varies
Eterna KonTiki
The iconic Swiss sports watch KonTiki from the 50s features inspiring design and a rich horological history.
Even today, the KonTiki remains a signature model of Eterna, and there's about a million different types of KonTiki watches to choose from. Some are priced over $1,000, but many are not, making the KonTiki a great way to acquire an iconic Swiss sports watch model for little money. First debuting in the late 1950s, the watch was named after the famous Kon-Tiki raft expedition that journeyed from Peru to Polynesia in 1947. Allegedly, crew members wore Eterna watches during the expedition, which inspired the creation of this model a decade later. Whether this claim is dubious or not, they're still great watches with a significant history in watchmaking.
- Original release: 1958-1971
- Movement type: Automatic
Citizen Bullhead
One of the best watches from Citizen's mechanical past, the Bullhead chronograph features unique top-sided pushers and an interesting case design.
Today, Citizen makes very few automatic watches, having fully transitioned to Eco-Drive solar-powered technology. But once upon a time, like every other watch company, Citizen specialized in mechanical watches. One of their best models was the “Bullhead” chronograph. A racing chronograph used in motorsports, the Bullhead was equipped with the famous automatic chronograph movement with a flyback function, caliber 8110A. Technically, the watch was called the Challenge Timer, but it was colloquially known as “Bullhead” due to the placement of two pushers on the top of the case rather than the side, giving it a horn-like appearance.
- Debut: 1970
- Movement type: Automatic flyback chronograph
Omega Seamaster
One of the most iconic watches of any era, the Seamaster started as exclusively waterproof dress watches.
Thanks in part to a quarter-century stint as the official timepiece of James Bond, the Omega Seamaster is one of the most iconic watches of all time. And while this model is mostly known for various diving watch iterations, from 1948 to 1957, the Seamaster was an exclusively waterproof dress watch. While you're unlikely to find diving Seamasters for under a grand (well, maybe quartz ones from the 80s), classic dress Seamasters are still readily available in this price range and are perhaps the most popular “budget luxury vintage watch” for most collectors.
- Original release: 1948-1957
- Movement type: Automatic
Seiko Pogue
The Seiko Pogue was the first automatic chronograph to go to space, capturing attention with its memorable design and color scheme.
When you think of watches that have been to space, you probably first think of the Omega Speedmaster, aka the Moonwatch. But it's not the only watch to have crossed the final frontier. In 1973, NASA astronaut William Pogue brought his trusty Seiko 6139 into space without his superiors' knowledge, making the quirky Japanese model the first automatic chronograph in open space. Known as the “Pogue” since then, even without the historical space connection, they would still attract attention thanks to their gold-yellow dial and Pepsi-branded bezel.
- Original release: 1969-1979
- Movement type: Automatic chronograph
Longines Ultra Chron
Named the world's most accurate watch upon its debut in the 60s, the Ultra Chron used a high-frequency movement that surpasses many modern mechanical movements.
When it comes to reissues of modern watches, the return of the Ultra Chron is just a matter of time. One of the oldest Swiss watch companies constantly reissues classic watches from its rich past. And the Ultra Chron is a true classic. It was claimed to be the most accurate watch in the world when it first went on sale in the 1960s. The Ultra Chron used a high-frequency movement that oscillated at 36,000 beats per second. Such a high oscillation rate ensures smoother operation and more accurate timekeeping, and only a few brands produce similar movements even today. The Longines Ultra Chron was elite 50 years ago and remains so today.
- Debut: 1968
- Movement type: Automatic
Bulova Accutron Spaceview
Proof that Bulova could create cutting-edge design, the Accutron Spaceview was futuristic in the 60s and reflected our obsession with what was to come.
While today collectors are crazy about old-school mechanical watches, in the 1960s, all consumers were focused on the future and new achievements. And one such innovation was the Accutron movement from Bulova. The Accutron Spaceview, powered by a battery and regulated by a vibrating tuning fork, was one of the first electronic watches in the world and predated quartz watches by nearly a decade. Initially intended to demonstrate the mechanical sophistication, demand led to the transparent Spaceview being put into production, where the humming, smoothly moving futuristic watch became an icon.
- Debut: 1960
- Movement type: Battery with tuning fork regulation
Universal Genève Polerouter
The stunning dress watch Polerouter is the signature model of the popular defunct watch company Universal Genève, created by the man behind the Royal Oak and Nautilus.
Ask almost any watch enthusiast about their favorite defunct Swiss brand, and you'll almost always get “Universal Genève” as the answer. The legendary watch company was one of the most significant mid-century brands, and the Polerouter is perhaps its signature piece. Designed by Gérald Genta, the man behind the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak and Patek Philippe Nautilus, the Polerouter features iconic design and an interesting story - it was created to commemorate the opening of the polar route by Scandinavian Airlines Systems in the 1950s, marking a new era in international air travel. Various versions of the Polerouter can be purchased for under $1,000 - even some with the highly desirable micro-rotor movement.
- Original release: 1954-1969
- Movement type: Automatic
Vulcain Cricket
The first mechanical wristwatch with an alarm, debuted in 1947, has long been associated with the US president and still looks great today.
It's hard to believe these watches can be acquired for less than a thousand dollars. The “Cricket” not only became the first mechanical wristwatch with an alarm when it debuted in 1947, but it is also known as the “President's Watch” due to its long-standing association with US presidents. President Harry Truman was given a Cricket on his last day in office in 1953, and almost every president since has also received one of these chirping Swiss-made beauties, with Presidents Eisenhower, Johnson, and Nixon known to especially favor these watches and their convenient alarms.
- Debut: 1947
- Movement type: Manual or Automatic
Hamilton W10
One of the most legendary military pilot watches of its era, the Hamilton W10 has been rising in price, but they're worth acquiring for serious heritage.
Today, the former American, now Swiss company Hamilton is known for producing some of the most iconic and authentic military watches among all brands. The creator of the quintessential field watch, the Khaki Field, Hamilton also released killer pilot watches in the mid-1970s for the UK's Ministry of Defence, and they are one of the best buys if you're looking for genuine 20th-century military watches. These days, they're hard to find for under a grand, but given their heritage, they're definitely worth hunting down. The watches proved so legendary that in 2019 Hamilton released a modern reissue of the W10.
- Original release: 1973-1976
- Movement type: Manual