Best cheap smartwatches under £100 and £200

Smartwatches are becoming increasingly popular, even among less techy types. Fortunately, we're now seeing a greater number of affordable watches appearing, so you no longer necessarily have to justify a large expense to get involved.

Another great reason to consider a cheap smartwatch is that there are attractive discounts on slightly older models – you could find yourself saving more than 50% on the original retail price if you buy at the right time.

It's still important to tread carefully, though – poor smartwatches can be uncomfortable, awkward to use and inaccurate. We'll help you pick the right model at a great price.

You can also check our guide to the most accurate smartwatches to see how each model fares on steps, distance and heart-rate, or browse all the best smartwatches from our tests.

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In general you're unlikely to find a Best Buy smartwatch for less than £100, other than in a sale. But that's not to say there aren't good models around – just be prepared to sacrifice a little in terms of features, flexibility and performance.

Browse our reviews of all smartwatches under £100.

If you're willing to up your budget, you'll find a far bigger range of smartwatches for less than £200, including some Best Buys. You'll often get a better build and a sleek design for the extra money, along with more advanced features such as dedicated exercise modes. Built-in GPS, a heart-rate monitor and more advanced sleep-tracking is also more common.

Tables last checked April 2022

Browse our reviews of all smartwatches under £200.

Cheap Apple Watches

For many people, Apple and the Apple Watch are synonymous with smartwatches. They're also synonymous with high quality and a high price. It's unlikely you'll find an Apple Watch at a price that most people would consider 'cheap', although the Apple Watch SE (starting price £269), launched this year, is designed to be a cheaper Apple Watch. Read our full review of the Apple Watch SE to find out what we thought of it. 

It's also possible to find older models discounted just enough to make them squeeze into our 'under £200' bracket.

At the time of writing, the Apple Watch Series 3 is available at £199 if you go for the cheapest, most basic option of an aluminium case and sport band. 

Check our Apple Watch reviews to see how the Apple Watches compare and read about the key differences between each one.

Which other brands make the best cheap smartwatches?

Cheap Amazfit smartwatches

Amazfit is lesser-known brand than the likes of Apple, Fitbit, Garmin and Samsung, but is making a name for itself at the cheaper end of the market. 

Some of its smartwatches, such as the Amazfit GTS and Amazfit GTS 2e, adopt a square-faced design reminiscent of the Apple Watch, while others have a round face: the Amazfit GTR could even be mistaken for a traditional watch. 

Entry-level devices in the Amazfit line include the Amazfit Bip Lite. It's unlikely to turn any heads, and its features are basic, but it does have a simplistic charm that should satisfy most people looking for a cheap smartwatch. 

The Bip and Bip Lite are a few years old now, and more recent Amazfit smartwatches, such as the GTS, GTS2e and GTR have a more polished design and greater range of features. 

Cheap Huawei smartwatches

Huawei may be better known for its mobile phones than its wearables, but it also does a good line in popular smartwatches, many of which are packed with features. 

Huawei smartwatches also tend to get attractive discounts – older models in particular, once superceded, see price drops of up to or even more than 50%. 

You can often get your hands on Huawei watches, such as the Huawei Watch GT for less than £100.

Many of its watches have an impressive-sounding set of features, including heart rate monitoring, different sports modes and blood oxygen monitoring. 

Cheap Garmin smartwatches

Garmin is one of the most popular smartwatch brands and has a wide range of models at different price points. These include pricey, more specialist smartwatches, costing upwards of £400, but you can find some cheaper options.

Its Forerunner range, which as the name suggests is aimed more at runners and offers features such as preset training plans, can be quite expensive. A cheaper option in this range is the Forerunner 45, which you'll find for around £150.

The Vivoactive range is more of an all-rounder – if less specialist for those serious about their sports. The Vivoactive 3 Music comes in at a similar price – £150, and has a built-in speaker to play music from the watch itself.

We've tested a whole range of models from Garmin: head to our Garmin smartwatch reviews to browse more.

Cheap Fitbit smartwatches

Fitbit is well known for its fitness trackers but it also makes smartwatches, often costing less than £200.

The cheapest is the Fitbit Versa Lite, which has a square, Apple Watch-esque design. It has a range of workout modes, heart rate monitoring and sleep tracking, but it doesn't have GPS, which will deter hardcore runners. 

Spend more and you could be looking at the Fitbit Versa 2 or Fitbit Versa 3 which are a bit more polished and have a built-in voice assistant.

Head to our Fitbit smartwatch reviews to see the rest.

Cheap Xiaomi smartwatches

Like Amazfit, Xiaomi wearables have become more upmarket over the past few years, although they're still cheap compared to many other brands. 

The Xiaomi Mi Watch doesn't offer any hi-tech smart features, but it has a lot to offer fitness fans and it certainly doesn't look cheap in terms of screen or general build quality. The Xiaomi Mi Watch Lite is a pared-down version at half the price, and has a square design (the Mi Watch is round). 

Cheap Smartwatches from Amazon and other marketplaces: Apachie, Aquarius and more

If you've shopped around for a cheap smartwatch on an online marketplace, such as Amazon or eBay, or seen them on deal websites such as Groupon, you may be wondering why you should pay more than £20.

There are a wide range of brands doing the rounds at tantalisingly cheap prices. Many of these have lots of positive customer reviews and some may even be labelled with an endorsement such as Amazon's Choice. 

Our advice when shopping in this market is to be very wary. We've had some experience with these cheaper models – our first look review of the Apachie GT08 offers a taster, and we haven't been impressed. Many of these devices seem to be packed with features, but rarely look or feel as high quality as they might appear on a product photo. They can also be frustratingly awkward to use and inaccurate.

It's worth spending more on a device as personal as a watch that you'll want to wear, use and enjoy, day in and day out. 

What to look for in a cheap smartwatch

Smartwatches are inherently versatile and usually quite feature-packed devices, and the final decision around which one to choose, just like a real watch, can be more about the fit than the features. Ideally, you'll try on a smartwatch before you buy, if you can find one on display in a high street store. Otherwise, consider the following when you're shopping around.

Shape and style

A basic but important first question to ask is what sort of watch are you looking for? Designs are usually square or circular, some come with thick bezels and others adopt a more slimline approach. Settle on your preferred style to narrow down your initial options.

Size and weight

This is equally important, as it's often difficult to tell how big a watch is from a photo. Pay careful attention to the watch face size and dimensions – including weight. Compare this to your own watch for a point of reference. Some smartwatches can quite large and chunky, which is fine if that's the style you like, but may be uncomfortable on smaller wrists.

Removable strap

This is important for a few reasons. First of all it makes the watch more versatile – a strap that you can swap out helps you coordinate better for different occasions, or tailor better for different uses. It's also useful if the strap wears or breaks over time, since you can easily purchase a new one.

Key features (eg: heart-rate monitor, GPS)

Finally, check to make sure the features you really want are present and correct on the watch. Every watch should have the basics, such as a step counter and notifications, but specifics such as built-in GPS or a heart-rate monitor, if you're keen on having them, are worth checking for.

For more on picking the perfect smartwatch, read our guide on the best smartwatches.