I run a watch company, so here is the more fun version of three watches for the rest of my life.
Earlier, I picked the three watches I would choose if money was no object: the Rolex Explorer 36, the Grand Seiko SBGM221, and the Cartier Santos.
Lovely watches. Amazing watches. Also, not exactly the most realistic three-watch collection for most people.
So this is the normal-person-budget version.
The challenge is the same: three watches, for life. But this time, the total budget is around £300.
For me, that means a Casio F-91W, a Timex Expedition Scout, and an Orient Bambino.
A digital watch, a field watch, and a dress watch.
Casio F-91W
First, the Casio F-91W.
It is about £15, it is reliable, it is iconic, and it might just be the greatest cheap watch ever made.
There is something brilliant about a watch that does exactly what it needs to do and nothing more. The F-91W is lightweight, simple, accurate, easy to wear, and almost impossible to take too seriously.
That is part of the charm.
It has a stopwatch, an alarm, a digital display, and a tiny light that is somehow both terrible and perfect. It is not luxurious. It is not trying to be. But it has become one of those watches that feels bigger than its price tag.
You can wear it for work, travel, exercise, holidays, errands, DIY, or just because you do not want to think about what is on your wrist.
Every three-watch collection needs one watch that can take a bit of abuse. The F-91W is that watch.
Timex Expedition Scout
Second, the Timex Expedition Scout.
This is the simple field watch choice.
It is easy to wear, easy to read, and works with pretty much everything. That is exactly what a field watch should do.
The design is straightforward: clear numerals, practical case, comfortable strap, no nonsense. It has that classic outdoorsy style without feeling like you need to be halfway up a mountain to wear it.
For a budget three-watch collection, this is the everyday analogue watch.
It fills the same kind of role that something like a Rolex Explorer might fill in a much more expensive collection. Obviously, it is not the same watch. But the idea is similar: simple, useful, versatile, and wearable with almost anything.
The Timex Expedition Scout is the watch you can throw on without overthinking it.
And sometimes that is exactly what you want.
Orient Bambino
Third, the Orient Bambino.
For around £200, I genuinely think this is one of the best affordable dress watches you can buy.
It looks far more expensive than it actually is.
The Bambino has proper dress watch energy: clean dial, elegant case shape, polished details, and a slightly vintage feel. It is the kind of watch that works beautifully with a shirt, jacket, wedding outfit, dinner, or anything where the Casio and Timex might feel a little too casual.
What makes the Bambino especially good is that it does not feel like a cheap imitation of something else. It has its own place in the affordable watch world.
It is also mechanical, which gives it a bit of extra charm. You are getting a watch with an automatic movement, classic styling, and a genuinely strong reputation, without spending silly money.
In this three-watch collection, the Bambino is the smart one.
Three Watches for Around £300
So there you go.
A Casio F-91W.
A Timex Expedition Scout.
An Orient Bambino.
A digital watch, a field watch, and a dress watch.
Three watches for life, for around £300.
Is it as glamorous as the Rolex, Grand Seiko, and Cartier version? No.
Is it probably more useful for most people? Honestly, maybe.
What is your three-watch collection?
