Tested: The Best Affordable Swiss Watches Under $1,000

When first getting into watches, the prospect of dropping several grand on a single reference right out of the gate can be pretty intimidating. As a result, most contemporary watch collectors — including ourselves — would suggest starting small and first dipping your toes into the space by purchasing a still-high-quality entry-level Swiss watch. This can sometimes be easier said than done, however, as there are just so many options available at the moment. Knowing this firsthand, we’ve taken the time to round up a curated list of the best entry-level Swiss watches under $1,000. 

Selection & Testing

There are hundreds and hundreds of fantastic Swiss-made watches priced at around a grand. So, when we set out to uncover the latest and greatest this segment has to offer, we kicked off our search by first making a list of the various watch types that we wanted to feature. From there, we selected multiple watches from each category, making our picks based on areas such as movement type, value, and material selection. From there, we proceeded to get hands-on with each watch on our shortlist in order to get a more comprehensive sense of how they feel, wear, look, and perform. 

Our testing process was comprised of each watch being worn as our daily-wear timepiece for around two weeks each. This allowed us to get well-acquainted with each reference and get a fairly comprehensive sense of what they’re like to wear and own. What’s more, this testing process saw us closely examine each watch, scrutinizing details such as craftsmanship and build quality. We also performed dark room testing in order to try out the lume on each watch’s dial (and bezel). 

Once armed with the information from our hands-on testing process, we were then able to narrow our initial shortlist of candidates down to a final list of the best entry-level Swiss watches for under or around $1,000 — ultimately crowning our picks for the best Swiss-made entry-level dive watch, field watch, and so on. 

Hamilton Khaki Field Mechanical 38mm

Best Field Watch: As the segment has experienced a major uptick in popularity in recent years, we’ve seen countless new field watches come onto the market. And while there are seemingly endless options to choose from, it really is hard to go wrong with Hamilton’s Khaki Field Mechanical, as this military-inspired Swiss-made timepiece is widely recognized as the field watch. Drawing ample inspiration from Hamilton’s WW2 era military watches, the Khaki Field Mechanical 38mm — which is also offered in a slightly larger 42mm version — is constructed around a 38mm stainless steel case that’s seen every nook, cranny, and surface treated to a super even bead-blasted finish. 

With a 46mm lug-to-lug and a height of just 9.5mm, the watch sits super low on the wrist, keeping it out of the way. Armed with 50 meters of water resistance, the watch also features a sapphire crystal set over a matte black dial with a ring of large 12 hour Arabic numerals encompassing a smaller ring of 24 hour Arabic numerals — both of which come encircled by a minute track made up of small white indices and inverted triangular indices at each hour. The markers and hands also come painted in a coat of Super-LumiNova. 

Powering the watch is Hamilton’s in-house-developed ETA 2801-2-based H-50 movement — a 17-jewel workhorse of a mechanical movement that offers an 80-hour power reserve. We don’t love the push-pull crown as it really compromises the watch’s ability to be used in the water, though this isn’t really a problem for normal daily wearing. 

This particular version of Hamilton’s Khaki Field Mechanical (reference H69439131) ships from the factory with a staggered three-link steel bracelet with a folding clasp that, like the case, sports an entirely bead-blasted finish. I did find the clasp to be annoyingly stiff, though I imagine this problem will lessen as it breaks in a bit. Anyway, back to the bracelet. Not only does this bracelet class the watch up a bit, but it also hugely bolsters its versatility — and overall presentability in my opinion. Hamilton also sells this watch with a slew of other band and strap options that allow it to more easily be dressed down, too. 

Tissot Heritage 1938 Automatic COSC

Best Automatic Watch: Retro-inspired items have become wildly popular in the vast majority of product spaces, from clothing to hiking boots to motorcycle helmets. And while there are plenty of vintage-inspired watches on the market, few are as authentic or period-looking as Tissot’s absolutely stunning Heritage 1938 Automatic COSC — our choice for the best automatic Swiss-made entry-level watch for under a grand. This reimagined take on one of Tissot’s WW2-era timepieces features a minimalistic round case design that’s been brought to life in premium 316L stainless steel. Thanks to the case spanning 39mm across and boasting a lug-to-lug of roughly 46mm, the Heritage ’38 Auto sports nice middle-of-the-road proportions that make it perfect for daily-wearing. 

Clocking in at 11.1mm thick, the watch comes paired with an embossed blue leather strap set on 20mm lugs that has an incredibly soft and supple feel to it. This strap genuinely is nicer than some of the leather straps we’ve seen on five-figure watches that we’ve tested. Fitted with a push-pull crown, the case comes armed with 50 meters of water resistance. Fortified beneath an AR-coated domed sapphire, this watch’s dial design sports a design that’s both simple and elegant. Surrounded by a polished fixed bezel, the dial has a light cream color that comes contrasted via throwback Arabic numerals, thin sword-style hands, and a period-correct antique Tissot logo, all in a matching dark blue finish. 

Keeping the whole thing ticking is an automatic-winding ETA 2824-2 Chronomètre that features an 38-hour power reserve, 25 jewels, and a beat rate of 28,800vph. Best of all, this Swiss-made Chronomètre features COSC certification — something that’s very rarely found on automatic watches at this price point. It’s also a surprisingly versatile watch that legitimately lent itself to pretty much every occasion and outfit I wore in the roughly two weeks I spent testing it. At under $900, I’d also argue this watch affords excellent bang-for-your-buck, as your money gets you a 316L construction, a Swiss-made automatic movement, COSC certification, and an exhibition case back — all features typically reserved for Swiss-made watches costing several grand (or more). 

I don’t love the push-pull crown as it would make me very nervous to wear the thing in water, though I do love the period-correct Tissot “T” logo on the crown. And, while it does further its antique vibes — and makes it technically more period accurate — I don’t love the fact that the dial is completely and totally devoid of any lume whatsoever. Above and beyond the fact that it affords excellent value, my favorite aspect of this watch is how well Tissot has managed to deliver a highly-authentic-looking vintage watch while integrating a host of modern amenities and tech. This recipe ultimately allows for what many consider the best of both worlds with retro looks and contemporary performance. 

Alpina Startimer Pilot Quartz Worldtimer

Best Travel Watch: If your chosen profession calls for frequent globetrotting or routinely working with individuals overseas, a worldtimer watch can be an outstanding option — and an even more outstanding alternative to busting out your iPhone’s World Clock several times a day. And though there are admittedly plenty of options out there, dollar-for-dollar, it’s damn-near-impossible to beat Alpina’s Startimer Pilot Quartz Worldtimer. Offering incredible value, this worldtimer is pieced together around a 41mm 316L stainless steel case with an 11.5mm thickness, a 21mm lug measurement, and an approximately 49mm lug-to-lug. Water resistant down to 100 meters, the case also boasts a push-pull crown and an engraved solid caseback. This quartz GMT watch comes mated to a staggered three-link bracelet with polished center-links set between brushed outer links., and a high-polish safety button-equipped butterfly clasp. 

Complemented via an amalgamation of brushed and polished finishes, the case houses a Swiss-made, Ronda 515-based, AL-255 quartz movement that offers 45 months of life on a single battery. Running both 12 and 24 hour scales, this worldtimer’s dial sits beneath a sapphire crystal and sports white arabic numerals, a thin white railroad minute track, green-glowing lume paint, 3 o’clock date window, and a triangle marker at 12, plus polished silver Index-style minute and hour hands, complemented via a white seconds hand with a red triangle counterbalance, and a white, red arrow-tipped fourth GMT hand. The dial also comes encircled via a fixed coin-edge bezel that boasts a lume’d pip dot at 12 clock. 

The coolest part of this watch is undoubtedly its worldtimer setup. Not unlike a super compressor’s chapter ring, this dial features a rotating 24 city disc that’s controlled using a crown at 4 o’clock. You simply rotate this city disc until your home time zone is at high noon. From there, you can quickly glance at any other city, look at the number beneath it, and instantly know the time difference. For example, when Los Angeles is at 12 o’clock, the cities Denver, Chicago, and New York are  immediately to the right of LA (with the numbers 1, 2, and 3, below them respectively — denoting the 1, 2, and 3-hour time difference between LA, Denver, Chicago, and NYC. For another example, if you wanted to know the time difference from Hong Kong, you can see the number below it is 16, telling you that it’s 16 hours ahead of our home time zone in Los Angeles. What’s more, the dial also comes loaded with day and night indication, with the top half in blue denoting nighttime and the bottom half in white representing daylight hours. 

Between its 45 months of battery life, the fact it doesn’t need to have its time reset if let sitting for a few days, and its ability to deliver markedly more accurate time-keeping than an automatic or mechanical movement, I’d also argue this AL-255 movement makes for a true no-fuss, set-it-and-forget-it-style watch I also really like just how much information the dial contains without feeling overly crowded or busy — a very difficult balancing act to pull off (and one achieved by very few other worldtimers). As much as I love this watch, it does have a few areas that I’d change. Its push-pull crown seriously limits its use in water (despite having 100 meters of water resistance) and its lume appears to be applied pretty conservatively. 

Certina DS PH200M

Best Dive Watch: Despite the fact the average wearer doesn’t actually use them for diving, dive watches have nonetheless become one of, if not the single most popular varieties of watches out there at the moment. So, while you have plenty of choices when shopping in this space — even when those options are limited to Swiss-made references sold for around a grand — we’ve gone with the Certina DS PH200M for our choice of best entry-level Swiss dive watch. An evolution of Certina’s PH200M from 1967, the DS PH200M benefits from the use of the Swiss brand’s Double Security system, which uses a threaded ring and thick rubber gaskets to lock the crystal in place, keep the movement suspended, and ultimately bolster overall shock protection and durability — with this being what the “DS” in the name is short for, along with “Pressure Hydrostatique” (French for water pressure) representing the PH, and the 200M denoting its 200 meters of water resistance. 

Sporting a completely brushed finish save for the case back and bezel which have been given the high-polish treatment, the DS PH200M is constructed around a 42.8mm 316L stainless steel case with a 11.9mm thickness, 20mm lugs, and a roughly 52mm lug-to-lug that actually wears a lot more compact on the wrist than I expected it to. The DS PH200M’s dial consists of a cross-hair design that comes complemented via sword-style hands, a date window at 3 o’clock, and hour and minute markers painted in a thick coat of turquoise-glowing Super-LumiNova paint. The dial is also surrounded by an old-school-looking, slightly domed rotating 60-click ceramic dive bezel and sits beneath a “Hesalite” (acrylic) crystal, which is a rarity on modern dive watches — aside from Omega’s iconic Speedmaster Professional. 

The version of the DS PH200M that we’ve opted to test — reference C036.407.11.050.01 — comes paired with a stunning 316L stainless steel Milanese mesh bracelet with a quick-release system and links that are ridiculously easy to add or remove. Under the surface, this watch features the Swatch group’s Powermatic 80 movement, which is also found in a myriad of references from other trusted brands likes of Hamilton and Tissot. Affording an 80-hour power reserve, this ETA 2824-2-based, 23-jewel movement also benefits from the use of a magnetic field-resistant Nivachron balance spring. This COSC-certified movement is also on full display thanks to the watch’s large exhibition case back. It also features some really charming, unmistakable retro vibes that afford this vintage-inspired dive watch a lot of character. 

As far as build quality is concerned, this Certina readily announces itself as being a premium Swiss-made watch, as its craftsmanship and attention to detail are just superb. Sure, I’ve seen build quality comparable to this before, but topically on watches costing five-figures. Though it looks great — and is frankly my favorite aspect of the watch as a whole — this Swiss-made diver’s bezel has some tolerance issues that I wasn’t thrilled with, though this detail is far from a deal-breaker. And, while it does cost over a grand — but less than $1,100 — Certina also sells the DS PH500M which gains more than double the water resistance of the PH200M while also boasting a few other minor upgrades. 

Marathon Officer’s Mechanical 36mm

Best Mechanical Watch: While it is a field watch, Hamilton’s Khaki Field Mechanical still has a decidedly design-conscious, fashion-forward appearance. On the other hand you have purely utilitarian field watches like the Marathon Officer’s Mechanical 36mm — or SSGPM — that designed to withstand the rigors of battle rather than look pretty. That’s not to say the SSGPM is ugly, just different. It’s aesthetic is a result of a purely functional design, plus it’s got some obvious — and ample — military vibes. 

Our pick for the best mechanical watch the Swiss-made SSGPM is actually an updated take on the company’s ‘80s era GG-W-113 — a watch that produced for the U.S. military after Marathon won a contract to churn out stand issue watches. Measuring 36mm across, 11mm thick, and sporting a lug-to-lug of 44mm, the watch features a case made from rugged 316L stainless steel with a parkerized finish, a pressure-sealed screw-down crown, and 50 meters of water resistance. Also making for a terrific tactical timepiece, the watch houses a Swiss-made Sellita SW210-1 hand-wound movement with 18 jewels, a 45-hour power reserve, and super robust shock protection. 

The case comes capped off with a sapphire crystal set above a dial with 12 and 24-hour scales, MaraGlo lume, and tritium micro-gas tubes. This dual-lume combo provides the best of both worlds, allowing the MaraGlo to catch a charge while the tritium is self-powered and glows in ultra-low-light conditions where the MaraGlo will fade. Despite being a military watch, the build quality on display here is actually really impressive, which actually makes a lot of sense, as poorly crafted items obviously can’t stand up to extreme use or conditions as well as something that’s been carefully pieced together and constructed. 

The Parkerized-finished 316L construction helps here too. Though my only real gripe with this watch is purely subjective, I’m nonetheless bothered by just how small the case is — and I happen to have fairly skinny wrists so smaller case sizes don’t normally bother me. Unlike some compact watches that wear a little bigger than they actually are, the SSGPM looks, feels, and wears like a 36mm. And, while rugged, this watch is a lot less versatile than the above pick from Hamilton. 

Hamilton PSR Digital Quartz

Best Digital Watch: Back in the 1970s, Hamilton shook up the horological world — and simultaneously introduced a now large segment in the larger watch space — with the debut of the first-ever digital timepiece; the Hamilton Pulsar Time Computer. In more recent years, the company has paid homage to the Pulsar with a largely faithful, modern-day reissue known as the Hamilton PSR Digital Quartz  — with the “PSR” obviously being short for Pulsar. Centering around a 41mm x 35mm stainless steel case with a black PVD coating, the watch is part of Hamilton’s American Classic Collection and, aside from the “Pulsar” text to the bottom right of the original watch’s display being replaced with a Hamilton logo, the PSR is a near-carbon-copy of its ’70s era predecessor. 

Sitting low on the wrist with a thickness of 13.3mm, the watch boasts faux end links that are actually part of the main case — a setup paired with a matching black PVD-coated 20mm three-link bracelet with rounded links that ever-so-slightly tapers as it nears it butterfly clasp. Though its lug-to-lug technically comes in at 34.7mm, the digital watch’s use of integrated lugs means that it wears a lot more like a 45mm. Rounding out the case is a single pusher-style button. It’s also got 100 meters of water resistance. 

The main update to this watch has been made to the display. Fortified beneath a scratch-resistant AR-coated box sapphire, the PSR’s display see’s the ‘70s era Pulsar’s red digit-dot LED display jettisoned in favor of a hybrid LCD and OLED display. Not unlike Apple’s most last few generations of the iPhone Pro and Pro Max models, the PSR features an Always-On-style LCD display that shows the time with a medium brightness. A tap of the watch’s lone pusher then activates its much brighter, more modern OLED display. This setup ultimately enables this digital watch to run this always-on-like function and project the brighter OLED backlighting while still delivering half-a-decade of battery life. Additionally, this also allows for updated performance without altering the look of the original watch’s display or messing with its core DNA. 

While a digital watch may seem like an unorthodox pick on a guide to luxury Swiss watches, but the PSR really isn’t like your average G-SHOCK or Casio. Weighing 5oz, the PSR has a decided heft to it that gives it the unmistakable feel of a luxury watch. The build quality and craftsmanship also scream luxury watch. It’s also a really interesting and unique alternative to other high-end Swiss watch options. Alongside the reference I tested —  H52404130 — Hamilton also produces gold and bare-metal versions of this watch, as well as a PSR Matrix edition with a green-on-black display (instead of red-on-black) and a blue-on-black display model. Most recently the company has also released a more compact 30.9mm x 25.6m version that gains a second pusher. 

Christopher Ward C65 Cranwell Series 2

Best Pilot Watch: Field watches and pilots watches often make for fantastic daily-wear watches. So, when you combine both styles of watch into a single timepiece, you unsurprisingly get one of the best GADA watches out there — and not just for under $1,000, but one of the best period. And that brings us to Christopher Ward’s C65 Cranwell Series 2. Designed in the UK and meticulously manufactured in Switzerland, this watch — which was developed with help from the UK’s Royal Air Force, and is licensed by the UK’s Ministry of Defense and approved by the royal Air Force — takes its name from the RAF college of the same name. 

Benefitting from an overall level of build quality seldom seen on watches that don’t carry five-figure price tags, the C65 Cranwell Series 2 is essentially a modern interpretation of the ‘40s era IWC 6B-346. This WW2 era-inspired watch features a 38mm stainless steel “Lightcatcher” case that clocks in at 11.9mm thick and has a 43.7mm lug-to-lug. Finished in an amalgamation of polished and brushed surfaces, the case comes loaded with a stamped screw-down case back and downward-curving lugs that come mated to a 20mm steel Bader bracelet with a folding safety clasp with five micro-ratcheting adjustment points. 

The matte black sports a classic Flieger-style Type A layout and takes ample inspiration from vintage military timepieces. The matte black dial comes contrasted by a white hand-set with a red-tipped seconds hand, and Arabic numerals that all come adorned in a liberally-applied coat of Super-LumiNova Grade X1 BL C1. This already-generous amount of lume comes supplemented via Old Radium Super-LumiNova on the quarter-hour indexes and the inverted triangle at 12 o’clock. At the heart of the C65 Cranwell Series 2 is a chronometer-certified version of Sellita’s SW200-1 movement. This COSC-certified self-winding movement is accurate to within -4/+6 sec per day and features 26 jewels, a 38 hour power reserve, a robust anti shock system, and Christopher Ward’s signature ‘Colimaçoné’ finish on the rotor. 

On top of its next-level build quality, this watch is also one of the most versatile timepieces I’ve ever tested, as it really does lend itself to just about any outfit or occasion. In fact, it’s genuinely hard to think of anywhere that it would look even remotely out of place. Add in its tough-as-nails construction, and you should be starting to get a sense of why I think this Christopher Ward reference is one of the best go-anywhere do-anything watches out there at the moment. Because it can be worn so much, it’s a lot easier to justify purchasing this watch than other styles of timepiece, plus all-things-considered it offers pretty solid value too. I should point out that at roughly $1,300, this watch does come in at a bit above the $1,000 mark, though if you’re considering dropping a grand on a watch, the prospect of putting down an additional $300 probably isn’t all that outrageous — plus it’s just a truly extraordinary watch. 

Tissot Seastar 1000 Chronograph

Best Chronograph: Founded in 1853 by father and son Charles-Félicien Tissot and Charles-Émile Tissot in Le Locle, Tissot is unequivocally one of the most respected Swiss watch brands on the planet. Sure, it doesn’t have quite the same level of prestige as your Rolexes, Omegas, and Tudors, but it’s still a revered brand, and one that’s famous for delivering luxury-grade Swiss watches are price points that are actually accessible to your average Joe. Case in point; the Tissot Seastar 1000 Chronograph. 

The latest evolution in a line of Tissot Seastar collection timepieces that date back to the 1950s, the Seastar 1000 Chronograph features a round 45.5mm 316L stainless steel case with a thickness of 12.82mm and a s 51mm lug-to-lug. Despite sounding quite large, the watch actually wears a lot more compact on-wrist than I’d expected it to when I first laid eyes on its dimensions on paper (or on-screen rather). The case manages to deliver a generous 300 meters of water resistance thanks to coming armed with a screw-down case-back decorated in Tissot’s Seastar seahorse logo, a T-logoed screw-down crown, and twin screw-down pushers. 

The case ships with a 22mm blue rubber strap with a black textile overlay and standard buckle. This strap was easily my least favorite aspect of this watch, and while it looked a lot better in person than it did in photos, I still see it as its one and only real Achilles heel. Fortunately, swapping out the strap of any modern watch is typically pretty easy — even more so on this Tissot reference thanks to its quick-release setup. 

Inside the case is a dial with a Tri-Compax layout that’s devoid of numerals. Painted in a generous coat of turquoise-glowing Super-LumiNova are an inverted triangle at 12 o’clock, a square marker at 6, batons at 3 and 9, and circular markers at every other hour. You also get a date window between 4 and 5, and a sword-style hand set complemented via a seconds hand with Tissot’s signature T counterbalance. Encompassed via a mono-directional-rotating one-hour aluminum dive bezel with a lume’d pip dot at 12 o’clock, the dial sits beneath a scratch-resistant sapphire crystal with double-sided antireflective coatings. Powering this dive-ready chronograph is a Swiss-made Quartz movement with a Renata 394 battery with a battery depletion function. And, this dive watch doesn’t merely look the part, as the thing is fully capable of actual dive use. 

Defining The Segment

In this article, we’ll be looking at our picks for the best entry-level Swiss watches available for around a grand. The timepieces featured in this writeup were primarily selected due to the fact that they represent some of the very best entry-level options into the luxury Swiss horoogy world — standing as the ultimate proverbial gateway drugs into the Swiss-made watch segment. 

While we primarily limited our picks to watches priced at or below the $1,000 mark, we also opted to include a couple references that have MSRPs of slightly over a grand — after all, if you’re considering buying a $1,000 watch, the prospect of purchasing a $1,200 reference isn’t at all unreasonable. What’s more, we’re defining “Swiss watches” as timepiece that are manufactured in Switzerland — the entire watch too, not just the movement. As such, we do feature watches on this guide from non-Swiss brands, albeit ones that have their watches made in Switzerland (such as Christopher Ward, which is UK-based but uses Swiss manufacturing for its watches). 

What To Consider When Shopping

While there are dozens and dozens of factors one can consider when purchasing a high-end watch, the reality is that there’s really only a handful of key areas that you need to focus on when shopping — the most crucial of which we’ll be breaking down directly below. 

Watch Type: One of the very first things you should consider when purchasing any watch is figuring out which style of watch you want. Entry-level Swiss watches run the entire gambit, from dress watches to divers to field watches to pilot watches to GMTs. We recommend using this as your jumping off point and first deciding what type of watch you want before going any further. 

Brand: The brand behind any watch is of extreme importance. Different watch brands carry different levels of prestige which plays a massive role in their overall popularity and appeal — with Rolex being an obvious example of this. Consequently, we recommend spending some time researching the history of different watch brands before deciding which company you want to buy from. When purchasing a watch from this segment, we urge you to buy from proven, reputable brands with well-established histories and track-records. 

Model & Reference: For the very same reason that we recommend purchasing a watch from a well-established elite brand, we also recommend going with an equally well-established model or reference with a proven record of holding its value — if not steadily appreciating. This isn’t always possible when working with a $1,000 budget, but it’s still an area you should take into account when shopping either way. 

Materials: Just like with any type of product, the materials used to craft a watch play an enormous role in its overall quality. As a result, you’ll always want to pay close attention to the constructions used for a watch’s case, bezel, case-back, and crown, as well as the strap, band, or bracelet. 

Movement: When buying a Swiss watch, you’ll also want to focus on the type of movement it has — whether that be a mechanical, quartz, or automatic movement — as well as the specific caliber or movement being used. At this price point, there are even quite a few watches that utilize in-house-developed movements. 

Dimensions: Watches come in a huge range of different sizes, all varying in case width and thickness. We recommend also paying close attention to this area, as the size of a watch will play a pivotal role in how it looks, wears, and feels on-wrist. 

Resale Value: One great thing about buying high-end watches — even of the entry-level variety — is that they can often be viewed as investments due to the fact that a great many of them do a phenomenal job of holding their value — if not steadily increasing. As a result, we urge you to look into what a watch is selling for on the used market in order to get a sense of its resale value, should you eventually opt to sell it — whether that be if cash is tight and money is needed, or if you simply want to upgrade to a nicer Swiss watch. 

Tested: The Best Entry-Level Luxury Watches for the New Collector

Want to check out an additional list of great watches to start your collection that aren’t limited to around the $1,000 mark? Then be sure to head over to our guide to the best entry-level luxury watches for our hands-on review of the best timepieces this segment has to offer.