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Our Favorite Affordable Watches From October 2026
October brought fewer affordable releases than September, and a lot stranger ones. September kept pulling hardware down from pricier watches. The best cheap watches this month mostly bet on personality instead: a chronograph built to look like a panda, Breguet numerals on a Timex dress watch, and a titanium digital running a module its maker spent a year developing. Even the month’s most sensible release, a Casio Duro on fabric, came with a price increase attached. Fewer watches cleared our bar this time. Several of October’s best-looking releases went over $600 or launched without a US price, and I’ve rounded those up near the end. All four picks here cost less than $600 and have confirmed US pricing. Here are our favorite affordable watches from October 2026.
Casio Gives Its Affordable Dive Watch an Upgrade With a Catch
There are few watches that inspire the kind of enthusiasm we’ve seen for the Casio Duro. We’ve reviewed it here at TBWS, recommended it countless times, and I’ve spent more time than I’d care to admit browsing r/DuroGang (easily one of my favorite little corners of the watch internet). For a relatively inexpensive quartz diver, the Duro has developed a pretty entertaining community around it. Now, Casio is introducing the MDV-106C, complete with fabric straps and a dial design that gives this familiar watch a slightly different look.
Microbrand No More? Monta Celebrates 10 Years With Two New Watches
Ten years is a pretty respectable milestone for an independent watch brand, and Monta is marking the occasion with two limited editions of its Triumph and Skyquest models. The new Neuchรขtel X collection introduces silvery opaline dials, vintage-inspired hands, and a few interesting details that should be familiar to anyone who’s spent time looking at mid-century sports watches. Both are limited to 100 individually numbered pieces, and I think there’s plenty here to appreciate beyond the anniversary connection.
Tissot’s Datejust-Style Automatic Watch Gets an Ice Blue Dial
Tissot’s latest addition to the Ballade COSC collection comes with an ice blue dial, a color previously available on the quartz version of the watch. It’s a small update to the 39mm automatic model, which already comes in several fairly traditional colors. I think the lighter dial works well here, and it gives us another reason to revisit a watch that’s changed quite a bit since its recent relaunch.
Seiko Made One of Its Best Dive Watches Even More Tempting
Seiko has introduced a new green-dial version of its recently updated Marinemaster, and I think this might be one of the better-looking executions we’ve seen from the collection. The new Prospex Marinemaster Save the Ocean Limited Edition HBF003 takes the familiar 1968-inspired design and adds a green sunray dial with a pink gold-colored seconds hand. It’s limited to 900 pieces worldwide and will be available through Seiko boutiques.
