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Some of Timex’s Coolest Retro Watches Are Extra Affordable Right Now

25% off? Yes, please!

Close-up of a Timex Q quartz watch with a green dial, silver markers, date display, and black leather strap.Timex
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By Brad Lanphear

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Affordability is Timex’s undisputed advantage over the rest of the entry-level watch market. But when the Waterbury watchmaker has a seasonal sale, prices drop to ridiculous levels.

Right now, during the brand’s 2026 Summer Sale, over 150 watches are available for an additional 25-percent off. All you have to do is use the code Summer25 at checkout.

Welcome to Shop Smarter: A series dedicated to highlighting not just what’s on sale, but why it’s worth owning. Discover more here.

Close-up of a Timex Marlin automatic watch with a blue dial and navy woven strap on a gray surface.
The Marlin Jet Automatic is easily one of the most attractive watches available for less than $300.
Timex

Timex’s other big leg up on the competition is a massive archive of attractive designs from the 1960s through the 1990s that the brand has mined with great success over the past decade.

Even seasoned watch snobs like myself admire many of the brand’s vintage reissues and era-faithful designs. Right now, some of the best watches from the Q Timex, Marlin and Waterbury collections are priced well below $300.

This sale has a lot to choose from, so here is a short list of the ten best watches in Timex’s 2026 Summer Sale.

Get ’em while its hot

Silver Timex wristwatch with green dial, black leather strap, and day-date display at 3 o'clock.Timex

Timex Q Timex 1978 Day/Date

This sleeper star of the Q Timex collection features a 38mm polished stainless steel cushion case capped with a box acrylic crystal. It has period-correct baton hands and a framed day-date window. What really sells it is the emerald green dial with a sunburst finish.
Silver Timex wristwatch with day and date display and a linked metal bracelet.Timex

Timex Legacy Day and Date

This perfect daily-wearing watch doesn’t hide its inspiration, featuring an Oyster-shaped case, a Juilee-style five-link bracelet and a curved day aperture at 12:00. The 41mm case feels smaller on the wrist thanks to slightly curved lugs. It is powered by a quartz movement.
Silver Timex Marlin automatic watch with navy blue dial and woven navy fabric strap.Timex

Timex Marlin Jet Automatic

Timex gave the Marlin Jet Automatic a sporty overhaul, moving the seconds hand to the center and adding blue and green dials with matching nylon NATO straps. It features the same glass box acrylic crystal with a signed inner bezel. The automatic Miyota movement provides a date window at 3:00.
Timex watch with green dial, silver case, moon phase display, and brown leather strap.Timex

Timex Marlin Moon Phase 40mm Leather Strap Watch

The Timex Marlin Moon Phase is a mid-century-inspired quartz watch that punches well above its price point. The 40mm stainless steel case houses a green dial with a moon phase complication — a feature more commonly found at far higher price tags. An acrylic crystal gives it a period-correct warmth, while the quick-release brown leather strap makes swapping easy. At 12mm thick and 52 grams, it wears comfortably without demanding attention.
a timex chronograph watchTimex

Timex Marlin Jet Quartz Chronograph

Timex’s space-age-inspired chronograph combines classic features like a panda dial and beads of rice bracelet with a unique Hesalite crystal that entirely envelops the sloped tachymeter bezel.
Black Timex Expedition watch with green fabric strap and luminous hands showing date "14".Timex

Timex Expedition Capstone Automatic

Not long ago, Timex launched its Expedition Captone, a refined and modernized take of its iconic field watch. Now, that same watch gets a big upgrade to its movement, swapping the quartz for an automatic. While it retains the same great look (and most of its specs), it no longer requires batteries and will self-wind as you wear it. And for those with more refined tastes, there’s an all-steel version with a link band (for an upcharge).
Silver stainless steel Timex wristwatch with black dial, date window, and GMT subdial.Timex

Timex Q Timex Continent GMT

Timex has a serious contender for best ultra-affordable integrated steel sports watch with the Continental GMT. The case is perfectly proportioned with a 39mm width and a scant 9mm height. The dial and hands are clean and simple, leaving plenty of space for the date-style GMT window at six o’clock. It runs on a quartz movement and comes in a blue dial with a steel bracelet and a steel dial with a blue rubber strap.
timex dress watchTimex

Timex Marlin Automatic 40mm

This one is pure 1960s swagger. The applied block numeral indices at the cardinal points, skinny sword hands and shimmering sunburst dial work perfectly in the rounded Marlin case. The icing on the cake is the Miyota automatic movement.
Silver Timex Marlin GMT watch with blue dial, date window, and stainless steel bracelet.Timex

Timex Marlin Quartz GMT

Timex continues to expand the Marlin collection by drawing inspiration from the 1960s. The Marlin Quartz GMT is an affordable travel watch with a dial straight from the jet age. It has applied baton hour markers running along a two-tone 24-hour track marked at odd-numbered intervals. On all three references, the GMT hand is tipped with a red triangle.
Silver stainless steel Timex chronograph watch with a green dial, white numerals, and luminous hands. The watch features two subdials, a date window at 6 o'clock, and a stainless steel link bracelet. The dial is marked with "TIMEX THE WATERBURY," "CHRONOGRAPH 100m/330ft," and "ESTABLISHED IN 1854.Timex

Timex Waterbury Ace Chronograph

Timex puts an aviator-inspired twist on its long-running Waterbury line with the Waterbury Ace. Available in this chronograph and a three-hander version, both models feature 41mm stainless steel cases, 100m of water resistance, quartz movements and classic pilot’s watch styling.
About the Author: Brad Lanphear is an associate editor at Gear Patrol covering watches and style. Before joining the publication, he previously wrote for Heddels and Men’s Health. Now, he’s on a never-ending quest to find the perfect pair of Japanese denim.

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