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No matter who you are or what you do for a living…

…there will be times in your life when you have to dress up.

A tux for a wedding. A collared shirt for a big meeting. Even just a nice sweater for a first date.

Now:

When you inevitably have to dress up… there’s one thing that you should always do:

Wear a dress watch.

Nothing completes a dress outfit better than a minimal, elegant dress watch. It ties everything together. It quietly shows your attention to detail. It’s a subtle statement of your taste and class.

But here’s the thing:

Buying a nice dress watch can be expensive and a lot of them only look good in dress-up settings.

Ready for a little-know, insider secret?

There’s a unique style of dress watch that’s not only affordable, but looks great when you’re dressed up or down.

And it gets better:

In this article, I tell you the seven characteristics that create this unique style and show you three affordable watches that define it!

This post was made possible by The Fifth Watches, creators of classic, minimal timepieces, available exclusively on the 5th of every month.

3 Highly Versatile Dress Watches for Your Collection

Below are the seven criteria of a versatile dress watch. If you want to jump to my favorite affordable dress watch (the one that I wear daily),

The 7 Characteristics of a Versatile Dress Watch

Click the “read more” tab on any of the seven characteristics for more information.

1. The watch has a simple, clean and minimal design

Read More Minimalism is key with a versatile dress watch. Think about it like this: If had a watch case that was encrusted with rubies and diamonds, would you want to wear it with jeans and a T-shirt? Of course not. A versatile dress watch doesn’t draw attention to itself, but when it’s noticed… …it’s clean, bold and, more importantly, elegant and timeless.

2. It has no (or very few) complications

Read More Complications are any feature of a watch other than the display of the hours and minutes. For example… a calendar, a chronograph (fancy term for a stopwatch), a moon phase, etc. Here’s the thing: Complications add, well… complication. Just like with characteristic #1 above, the more minimal a dress watch is, the more flexible it is.

3. It has a metal case

Read More There are multiple different types of materials for cases: metal, plastic, rubber, and even wood. But unlike materials like plastic, rubber and wood… …metal is classic, timeless, elegant and minimal. It looks great with both casual and professional clothing.

4. That metal case is silver or gold (colored)

Read More There’s a reason you see more silver and gold colored jewelry than you do jewelry colored red and blue. Silver and gold are extremely versatile and go well with just about any color (meaning you can match them both with almost any outfit or style). Now… I want to point something out: I say silver and gold colored for a reason. For a dress watch to be versatile, you don’t need a 14K gold watch… …you just need it to be gold-colored.

5. It is thin (under 9.0 mm) and isn’t too wide (under 42.0 mm)

Read More A thin (under 9.0 mm) and reasonably wide (under 42.0 mm) watch is much more flexible than a big bulky watch. Think about it: Can you wear a thick, bulky watch with a tight fitting long sleeve shirt? What about under the sleeve of a button up flannel or dress shirt? And if you have a lighter, more casual shirt on, don’t you think a massive wristwatch will look disproportionate. In short, a thinner, reasonably wide timepiece gives you a lot more options.

6. It looks good with a leather band (and comes with one)

Read More Leather is classic, timeless and perfect for almost any setting (casual, professional and everywhere in between). It comes in a handful of different colors (brown, black, gray, etc.) and by changing your watch band color, you can quickly give your watch a whole new look (see the importance of this in #7 below). Side note: in my opinion leather is also much more comfortable.

7. It looks good with different colored bands

Read More Technically, the color of your watch band should match the color of your belt and your shoes. But here’s the thing: Fashion technicalities aside, different watch bands look better with different outfits. Now: You can buy a spring bar removal tool and take the time to manually detach the spring bar… …or you could buy a watch that comes equipped with quick-unlock spring bars which detach in under 30 seconds (like this one).

3 Incredibly Versatile Dress Watches for Any Budget

Here are three incredibly versatile dress watches, starting with the most affordable:

Price Range: $

Watch: The Tribeca by The Fifth Watches Cost: $150 @ The Fifth Watches Case: Polished Rose Gold Diameter / Thickness: 41.0 mm / 6.0 mm

About The Tribeca

The Fifth Watches (TFW) is an Australian startup with a focus on crafting minimal, classic and elegant timepieces.

The Tribeca, TFW’s best-selling watch, is a perfect example of this focus:

It defines minimal. Simple and clean with bold and contrasting colors. It uses understated rose gold markers to represent the hours, with a striking “V” as the fifth hour.

Inside, the Tribeca features a high-quality Japanese quartz movement (click here if you’re unfamiliar with a quartz movement) that’s enclosed by a beautiful rose gold case and is capped by a hardened, scratch-resistant crystal lens.

And here’s the best part:

The Tribeca is ridiculously affordable. You can grab this classic, elegant timepiece for just $150.

What Makes It Such a Versatile Dress Watch

The Tribeca nails each of the seven requirements:

Minimal and elegant, no complications, rose gold metal case, 6.0 mm thick, 41.0 mm wide, comes with two genuine leather bands (see both here) and looks great with different colored bands.

But here’s what makes the Tribeca the most versatile dress watch on our list:

It features quick-unlock spring bars for easily interchangeable watch straps. With these, it takes about 30 seconds to change your watch band and give your watch a whole new look.

And check this out:

The Tribeca ships with two diverse leather straps (a rich brown and a black), essentially giving you two different and unique watches.

PS: If you want to grab a Tribeca, the time is now. The Fifth Watches are only available for sale from the 5th – 10th of the month… and once they’re sold out (which often happens within hours)… they’re out… and you have to wait until their next opening. Click here to grab a Tribeca or here to view all of their 10 timepieces.

Price Range: $$

Watch: Intra-Matic by Hamilton Cost: $$$$$ @ Amazon.com Case: Polished Yellow Gold Diameter / Thickness: 38.0 mm / 9.0 mm

About the Intra-Matic

Hamilton was founded in Pennsylvania back in 1892 and quickly became one of the major suppliers of watches to the US Armed Forces.

Their Intra-Matic is minimal, simple, and elegant.

It combines long, narrow markers (to display the hours) with large hands (to point to the time), to create a vintage, retro look.

Inside, the Intra-Matic boasts a precision Swiss automatic movement (click here if you’re unfamiliar with an automatic movement) that’s covered by a polished yellow gold case and capped with a durable crystal lens.

At $581, the Hamilton Intra-Matic is a bit more expensive than the Tribeca… but comes with the addition of an understated date complication just above the 6 o’clock marker.

What Makes It Such a Versatile Dress Watch

While the Intra-Matic does come with a date complication, it’s very simple and clean, and doesn’t detract from the watch’s minimal nature.

With that, and just like the Tribeca…

…the Intra-Matic nails the seven requirements:

Minimal design, one understated complication, light gold metal case, 9.0 mm thick, 38.0 mm wide, comes with a printed black leather band, and looks nice with different color bands.

Now:

The Intra-Matic only comes with one black leather band…. so I highly suggest you also get a quick-detach brown leather band (like this one) to be able to match it with different styles.

Price Range: $$$

Watch: Slimline Automatic by Frédérique Constant Cost: $$$$$ @ Amazon.com Case: Yellow Gold Diameter / Thickness: 40.0 mm / 5.0 mm

About the Slimline Automatic

Frédérique Constant was created by Aletta Bax and Peter Stas in Genève, Switzerland back in 1988.

The Slimline is part of Frédérique Constant’s classics collection…

…which is characterized by watches with clean lines and a classic, elegant look.

This is most clearly seen in the understated date complication (to the left of the 3 o’clock marker) and the handsome gold hour markers (each is a single thin line with 12 o’clock displayed as a prominent double line).

The Slimline is powered by a high-quality Swiss automatic movement and is protected by a scratch resistant sapphire crystal lens. It comes with a genuine alligator leather strap and is water resistant up to 30 meters.

And here’s the best part of the Slimline Automatic:

The back of its case is a skeleton back… meaning you can see the beautiful workings of the watch’s automatic movement.

What Makes It Such a Versatile Dress Watch

Just like the two above, the Slimline nails the seven requirements.

Clean and minimal design, one understated complication, light gold metal case, 5.0 mm thick, 40.0 m wide, comes with a genuine black alligator leather band, and looks great with different color bands.

The Slimline shines in versatility in its elegant design and its high-end alligator leather strap.

Similar to the Intra-Matic, the Slimline only comes with one leather band… so that you can match the Slimline to different styles, I suggest you grab an easy, quick-detach black leather band (like this one).

In Conclusion

Remember:

Nothing finishes a dress outfit better than a minimal dress watch…

…and while every man should own a dress watch for formal occasions, every Mantelligent man should own a versatile dress watch that he can wear anytime.

The Fifth Watches gives you everything you need in a new watch… a timeless design, that’s highly versatile, all at an insanely affordable price. But here’s the thing: The Fifth Watches are available on a limited-time, limited-availability basis. You can only get one for five days of each month (from the 5th to the 10th) and once they’re sold out (which often happens within hours)… they’re out… and you have to wait until their next opening. Grab one of their beautiful timepieces now