If you have quite the number of watches or you just want to get the most out of every watch you buy, you would sooner or later ask the question of where to buy watch straps.
A watch strap itself could change the functionality, style, and look of a watch.
For example, you could pair an automatic dive watch with a stainless-steel watch strap to make it a dress watch or slap a nylon strap on it for use as an outdoor watch.
This way, you even save costs on having to buy another watch when you could do everything with a single watch.
That said, where can you get the top-quality watch straps?
In This Article...
Where we Buy Our Watch Straps
Depending on what we are looking for, and our mood at the time (trust us, this is a valid point ha-ha), we have different outlets for buying watch bands.
When you are in the market for one, consider one or more of the following options.
#1 Local Manufacturers – Most Customizable
It is always a fine idea to support the local businesses.
This also gives you goodwill in your community/ environment and allows you access to some options that you would not find from the big brands.
The biggest advantage to buying from local designers and manufacturers is that they have the room to take certain risks that the big brands might not want to take. For example, you could get a specially designed watch strap from a local designer – whereas you would not find that elsewhere.
You can also get a local designer that could customize your watch strap to taste. Note that this option could cost you more than normal. On the upside, you still won’t pay as much on the customization as you would if you went with a larger brand.
#2 Watchmakers – Most Trusted
Some watch brands offer watch bands and straps alongside their catalog of wristwatches.
Buying from these brands is easy because they have a name to protect and reputation in the market. Thus, we know that we are getting value for the money we have spent.
When choosing watchmakers to buy from, make sure their watch straps are compatible with the watches from other manufacturers.
For example, a watch strap sold to you by Nordgreen should not only fit Nordgreen watches. Depending on the size and dimensions, the watch strap should be swappable with any other watch from any other manufacturer too.
That is one good way to get the most value out of your spending.
#3 Online Vendors – Most Convenient
When it comes to online vendors, Amazon is the place for us to go.
The eCommerce giant carries a wide variety of watch straps from different brands and manufacturers. They even carry some items from local designers who have listed their craft for sale on the platform.
The biggest advantage with Amazon is that you know you are shopping with a tested and trusted eCommerce provider.
Likewise, you get the chance to review multiple brands and styles from the same place at once.
The Types of Watch Bands to Buy
Knowing that you need to buy a new watch strap is only half the story. Knowing where to buy watch straps is also good, but what about the kind of watch strap you need itself?
Whether you are getting a replacement watch strap or you need something different for your watch frame, here are the top options we can recommend anytime.
Nylon Watch Straps
Nylon watch straps are tougher than they look.
We love the fact that they provide the balance between leather and rubber/ silicon watch straps.
On the one hand, they bring that very snug fit that you get from rubber/ leather to the table. Unlike both leather and rubber, though, nylon watch straps are highly breathable and do not discomfort the wrists on extended usage – especially when worn tight.
They are easy to clean and rugged to a fault. To cap it all off, they make durability look cool again.
Stainless Steel Watch Bands
This one almost needs no introduction.
Stainless steel watches have been here for a long time now and we all love them.
Depending on your line of work, though, you might have had to buy a watch that comes with another band other than stainless steel. This is true for firefighters, cops, and other law enforcement agents, among others.
With a stainless-steel strap, you can transform the watch into one that you love better when you are not on the job. Fortunately, nearly all kinds of watches will look good with a stainless-steel strap on them – as long as you can get the strap to fit on the watch.
Leather Watch Straps
Is it just us, or does leather make a watch feel even more premium?
With a quality leather strap, you can do so much.
We have heard reports of people not wanting to take their leather straps near water or using this strap on an outdoor watch. While we care for our leather watch straps too, a premium leather strap will handle itself well against abuse.
The best choice leather to choose remains Italian leather. When that is not available, or beyond your current budget, you could look for other leather picks from trusted manufacturers.
Note: For vegans who like the leather watch band but would rather not use it, faux leather is there for you.
It looks like true leather, feels like true leather but does not have anything organic in it. Try one out today to see how well it fits around your fine wrists.
Rubber Watch Straps
Arguably one of the most inexpensive watch straps, rubber is preferred for more reasons than one.
We agree that extended use of rubber watch bands, especially when clasped tight, can cause trapping of sweat between the skin and the base of the strap. That, however, is taken care of in the ease of cleaning that rubber straps bring on board.
It is, thus, little wonder that rubber/ silicone materials are used on watches for medical professionals and the preferred straps on paramedics'/ EMT's watches.
All that, and rubber does not set you back too much in terms of its cost.
Looking elsewhere, rubber watches are also highly preferred for rugged watches, outdoor watches, and durable timepieces.
There is a reason why Casio loves this material – and they haven’t failed to keep churning out one tough watch after another with rubber material on board.
Gunmetal Watch Strap
If you are choosing the gunmetal strap, make sure it is from a reputable vendor.
We say this because some vendors might sell you gunmetal-plated stainless steel as the real thing. Of course, stainless steel is a fine material too – but that is not what you were shopping for.
Gunmetal is one of the most durable metals that you can have on your watch. It is even more preferable to have the entire watch – from frame to strap – decked out in gunmetal.
Gunmetal, as the name implies, was the choice material of manufacture for guns. If that tells you anything, it is that they can withstand a lot of pressure (from shooting, recoil, and handling of guns in tough situations).
Likewise, gunmetal was used to build a lot of old ships. Ship wreckages from hundreds to thousands of years show that gunmetal is almost impervious to water. After all, the parts of the sunk ships that had gunmetal in use were still intact to the day that they were recovered.
How to Choose the Perfect Watch Strap
Of all the different types of watch straps above, which one should you choose?
There is no law saying that you cannot buy one or more of each anyways.
If you are not planning on splashing on one of every kind, though, the guide below details how to choose the best watch strap for the money.
Identify the Purpose
The reason for buying that watch strap should weigh a lot on the one you choose.
If you are buying a replacement watch strap, for example, you could as well choose the same material as originally came with the watch. That keeps the look uniform to what you are used to and you can keep using your watch like nothing is missing.
In the same vein, you could opt to change the look of the watch with the replacement watch strap.
Furthermore, the kind of activity that you use the watch for will weigh on what kind of strap you need.
For context, we recommend:
Know your Preferred Colour
The purpose of your watch (discussed above) could also be a crucial factor in determining the watch strap color.
For example, we don't recommend flashy colors on dress watches, and you should always keep things drab on tactical watches.
That said, you might not know this but there are a lot of color options to choose from out there. Besides gunmetal, which is a color on its own as much as it is a material too, the other watch bands can have numerous picks.
For example:
Have a Budget
With watches, you can get affordable units that sell from $100 and go as high as $20,000.
There are even luxury watches that sell for several hundreds of thousands. If you don’t believe us, check out the Graff Diamonds collection – where you can get a watch for as much as $55 million!
We digress. Sorry about that.
So, with quality watch straps too, you should have a decent budget to get the best ones.
This does not mean that you have to break the bank to get a watch strap. At the same time, you should not be trying to pay peanuts.
Generally, anywhere between $20 - $50 is a good range to pay for a watch strap.
Note that some specialty items could cost more than that. If you are interested in such, you can surely go for them.
The Watch Strap Sizing Guide
Watch straps have to be proportional to the watch they are used for.
The first consideration to make when pairing a watch is to know the dimension of the watch itself. By dimension, we mean the case diameter.
Once you have that, you can use the table below as a general sizing guide to choose the best watch strap anytime.
| Watch Diameter (mm) | Strap Size (mm) |
|---|---|
| 32 | 16 |
| 36 | 18 |
| 40 - 42 | 20 |
Strap Up in Style
So, now that you know where to buy watch straps for your timepieces, where would you like to shop?
That aside, we hope we have covered all of your questions on buying a quality watch strap anywhere and anytime.
Adios, for now.
