The Best Value Leather Watch Straps
 

The Best Value Leather Watch Straps

6 min read
Alice Anderson

Categories

Guides

Alice Anderson

Categories

Guides

If you’re looking for a great leather watch strap at a great price, check out our recommendations for everyday wear, smart wear and casual wear.

For watch enthusiasts, leather straps are a perennial favourite. It’s a comfortable material which just feels great against the skin. It’s also smart looking, and surprisingly versatile. But how can you be sure you’re getting bang for your buck? Well, we’ve got a few ideas for great value leather straps that are guaranteed to last, and not cost the earth. With this in mind, we’ll look at different straps for different situations in turn.

Best value leather straps for everyday use

For something that adorns your wrist day in, day out, personal taste will go a long way in dictating the choice here. But since it’s going to get a lot of use, we’d recommend high-quality leather, and also padding for comfort. All of the following straps cost between around £30 and £50, and they’re all great examples of stellar-quality luxury leather watch straps, yet at a very reasonable cost.

Besford Premium Quality Genuine Leather Watch Strap

The Besford Premium Quality Genuine Leather Watch Strap - Image Credit: WatchGecko Online Magazine

 
One of our top recommendations is the Besford Genuine Leather Watch Strap, which is a premium-quality vintage-style strap for dress watches.

They suit both vintage watches, and more contemporary high-street watches. The straps are handmade, supple, elegant and available in six colours. There’s, of course, a classic black leather watch strap, and a selection of more autumnal and pastel colours.

Demonte Handmade Remborde Genuine Leather Watch Strap

The Demonte which is sourced from a well-known Italian fashion brand is another fantastic choice. The refined Italian style is an absolute classic look. These also have an anti-allergic buckle, which may prove invaluable if you’re intending to get a lot of use out of it.

Genuine Vintage Kudu Leather Watch Strap by Geckota

If you’re looking for a brown leather watch strap, the Vintage Kudu Leather Strap from Geckota is another winner. Kudu leather is soft yet durable, and tanned in England. The soft chocolate brown suede lining makes them a real treat to wear.

Vintage Highley Genuine Leather Watch Strap

Also from Geckota, the Vintage Highley range of genuine leather straps are packed with character, and age fantastically. The Gump leather used has a thin waxy exterior, which gives it a worn, dusty vintage look.

Simple Handmade Italian Leather Watch Strap

If you’re after more exquisite calfskin leather, we’d recommend these Simple Handmade Genuine Leather Watch Straps. These will particularly suit a Rolex or similar vintage watch, are available in seven colours, and have that beautiful calf leather aroma.

For a range of more vibrant colours, it’s definitely worth considering The Dawlish Italian Calf Leather. These vegetable-tanned calf leather straps are exceptionally durable, yet incredibly comfortable due to the soft leather Geckota lining.

So, what about the best straps for when you want to smarten up?

Best value leather straps for smart occasions

Whether it’s to look stylish in the office, or living it up at a black-tie event, a good watch always adds a splash of class. For smart occasions, our money is on sticking with simple, neat straps. You simply can’t go wrong with neat, continuous stitching down the whole length of the strap is a classic look.

Hinxhill Premium Quality Horween Leather Watch Strap

Among our favourites are Horween watch straps made of Chromexcel, which are high-end leather watch straps that go perfectly with our Hinxhill Horween Strap dress range. The leather itself is premium quality, silky smooth, and comes in a range of colours which are at once subtle yet striking.

Geckota Contoured Handmade Italian Leather Watch Strap

The Geckota Contoured Italian leather Watch Strap also fits the smart look to a tee. These handmade Italian beauties are stylish, aromatic, and yet comfortable to wear. Much like The Dawlish mentioned above, these are comfortable enough to tick both the stylish and everyday boxes. They’re also available in a range of colours that extend into vibrant territory, if you like to veer away from the conventional.

Painswick Watch Strap with Quick Release Spring Bars

Painswick Watch Strap with Quick Release Spring Bars - Image Credit: WatchGecko Online Magazine

If you’re looking for something a bit slimmer for your dress watch, a Painswick Leather Strap is hard to beat. They’re smooth and refined, and - since they don’t have padding - they fit very comfortably in a slim watch case. They’re also available in six colours and two different types of leather, both smooth calf leather and a distressed style.

Edwyn Genuine Leather Deployment Buckle Watch Strap

Both genuine animal and animal print are also on-trend. Embossed prints such as ostrich or crocodile will certainly provide a talking point. An Edwyn Genuine Leather Deployment Strap is the ideal contender here, which has a dozen colour and pattern combinations. This is no gimmicky watch strap though. It’s made of high-quality leather using the “remborde” technique, which makes the strap really comfortable to the touch, but also makes it hard-wearing. But above everything else, it’s a beautiful and stylish watch strap.

Liverpool Crocodile Grain Leather Watch Strap

For an even more affordable option, take a look at the Liverpool Crocodile Grain Leather Strap. These are striking, available in a range of popping colours, and yet are comfortable enough to wear every day. They’re also currently on sale.

And now from smart to casual...

Best value casual leather watch straps

If you’re looking for something casual, but not necessarily that you’re going to wear every day, then comfort is key. That’s not to say they won’t last, but a strap that’s going to feel snug around the wrist is what we’re looking at here.

The Winstone MKII Leather Strap - Image Credit: WatchGecko Online Magazine

 
Among our favourites are the Simple Handmade Genuine Leather Watch Straps mentioned above, and also similarly the Geckota Winstone (MKII) Vintage Watch Strap and the Vintage Cuoio. These are all simple, comfortable and practical, while also being handmade to a very high standard.

What about if you wear your watch while playing sport?

Best value watch straps for sports

We’re going to come right out and say it… Leather isn’t the ideal material for watch straps used while you’re undertaking strenuous activity. As such, we wouldn’t recommend it for sports - we’d instead opt for a rubber or nylon military watch strap.

ZULUDIVER has the market more-or-less cornered here, especially if you’re looking for a strap you can wear underwater. For example, the ZULUDIVER 328 Italian Rubber strap is practical and comfortable, and available in a wide range of colours and patterns. But it can also withstand a good amount of punishment, including taking it swimming or even diving.

Likewise, the ZULUDIVER 284 Italian Rubber Diver’s Watch Strap is a colourful yet resilient range. Or, if you’d rather wear something a little more muted, the ZULUDIVER Quick-Release Sailcloth Watch Strap comes only in patterned black. They come with either perforated or rally holes, which allow airflow to the skin. This keeps things comfortable in warmer conditions.

If you are a stickler for leather though, the closest thing we can recommend is the Flyboard Leather/Rubber Water-Resistant Watch Strap. The strap has a leather top, but the lining is rubber, and there’s an anti-allergic buckle.

Our watch straps

Obviously, everyone’s different, and what constitutes the perfect leather watch strap will to a large degree boil down to personal taste. But if you’re wondering where to buy leather watch straps, we’re confident that the recommendations here will cater for all tastes, and tick the right boxes depending on your needs. And every last one is eminently affordable. So why not treat yourself today and have a browse through our full collection of high-quality watch straps? We’re sure you won’t be disappointed.

Explore our full leather strap range here.

Latest News

Alice Anderson

About the Author: Alice Anderson

I'm the Photographer here at WatchGecko. My love of watch photography has become a bit of an obsession, where every day I can expand my creativity whilst working with some really interesting watches that keep my passion alive.

More Articles from Alice Anderson