For watch enthusiasts, the promise of a monthly subscription plan is tantalizing:
In exchange for a (relatively) low monthly fee, you’ll receive a new watch in the mail every few weeks, offering a potentially perfect way to start or grow your collection.
[image: Watch Gang]
Even if you’re not a full-on watch snob, the idea that you can have high-quality watches show up on your doorstep each month without breaking the bank is pretty mouthwatering…
…and almost seems too good to be true.
After all, Eleven James, one of the earliest entries into the watch club subscription game, pretty much vanished overnight back in 2018, which is enough to make any budding collector take pause.
Fortunately, nowadays there are still a handful of watch subscription box companies that offer the right combination of legit, real watches and fair, affordable prices.
In this post we’ve rounded up the best watch subscription boxes for anyone who wants to dip their toe into the world of watch subscription services.
The (Absolute) Best Monthly Watch Subscriptions
Breaking Down the Only Watch Clubs Worth Your Hard-Earned Cash
Watch Gang
Easily the Best Monthly Watch Subscription
How it Works:
Watch Gang is a mystery subscription service that offers three different subscription tiers.
Rather than choosing your own watches, you sign up and choose which of its three subscription levels you want:
The original tier, which is the cheapest, the platinum tier, which is the most expensive and tends to include the most high-quality watches, or the black tier, which is in the middle.
As long as you’re in the United States, your first watch will arrive within three business days. After that, a new watch arrives every month (or every quarter, depending on your preferences).
How Much it Costs:
That depends on two factors: which subscription package you go with, and how many months you want to commit to.
The entry-level original tier costs about $75 per watch, the platinum tier costs $400 per watch, and the middle-of-the-road black tier costs $150 per watch.
While the quality of the different watches you receive will depend on which of the membership tiers you opt for, Watch Gang guarantees that your subscription fee will be cheaper than paying the full retail price for each watch you receive.
Why It’s the Best:
As I wrote in my full Watch Gang review, for me there are three big factors that make Watch Gang stand out.
First, it’s one of the most exciting ways to get introduced to some of the best watch brands on the market, many of which you probably haven’t heard of and wouldn’t have found otherwise.
Second, the value proposition is undeniable: you get access to high-end watches at prices that you can’t find anywhere else.
The third is a combination of flexibility and peace of mind.
The flexible price means you can change your plan (and your monthly membership fee) at any time, so you’re never locked into one tier.
And the fact that Watch Gang has an impressive record on TrustPilot – which is a lot harder to game than some of the other online review sites – means you can trust that they’re legit, and feel comfortable sharing your payment details with them.
Plus, they also give their members access to a few special offers, which would make signing up pretty enticing even without everything I just mentioned above.
By far the most famous of which is their weekly giveaways.
Each week, Watch Gang members get exclusive access to a draw that gives them a chance to win expensive luxury watches from brands like Rolex and Tag Heuer.
When you add it all up, Watch Gang is easily the best watch subscription box on the market, and one of the best subscription boxes of any kind.
Score a Deal:
If you’re interested in trying Watch Gang, they’re offering Irreverent Gent readers an exclusive deal:
Just use promo code IR15 at checkout to get 15% off your first month when you sign up for a subscription.
Wrist Mafia
One of the Most Affordable Watch Subscription Services
How it Works:
Wrist Mafia works quite similarly to Watch Gang, but without as many options to choose from.
They’ve more or less copied Watch Gang’s “mystery box” method, so each month they’ll send you a different watch from a new brand that you might not have heard of.
But unlike Watch Gang, Wrist Mafia doesn’t offer different tiers or subscription levels, so there’s no option to pay a little bit more to ensure you get high quality watches.
How much does Wristmafia cost?
Wrist Mafia’s subscription costs $40 per month, which is about the same as Watch Gang’s original tier.
The watches they deliver retail for at least $100, so 40 bucks is a pretty reasonable price, but nowadays $100 doesn’t go very far when we’re talking about watches.
So Wrist Mafia is best thought of as a decent low-price option for guys who want to start building out a collection, but don’t quite have the budget for higher-quality brands.
Score a Deal:
Use code DAVE43609 at checkout to get 20% off your subscription.
Monthly Knife Club
Yes, this counts as a watch subscription service.
Here’s why.
How it Works:
As its name suggests, Monthly Knife Club is to knives what Watch Gang is to watches:
A mystery subscription service that sends you a new, high-quality knife in the mail each month.
But unlike the watch subscription boxes mentioned above, MKC has branched out to include not just knives, but watches as well.
They offer a number of plans that allow you to receive both a name-brand knife and a high quality watch, checking off a lot of your everyday carry needs in one fell swoop.
How Much it Costs:
Like Watch Gang, they offer a few different pricing tiers that allow you to select the quality you’re willing to pay for.
Their original subscription costs 100 bucks, the upgraded plan costs 200, the prestige plan costs 300 and the renowned plan costs 400.
Each tier offers you the same combination of one knife and one watch per month, so it’s really just a matter of choosing where your preferences (and budget) fall on the quality spectrum.
Breitling Select
The Only Luxury Watch Subscription
How it Works:
Breitling Select is quite different from the two subscription services mentioned above, for two main reasons.
First, with this one all of the watches come from just one manufacturer—and in this case, that’s actually a huge plus.
Founded in 1884, Breitling is a Swiss watchmaker that’s been one of the world’s leading luxury watch companies for decades. It’s not quite as high-end as luxury brands like Rolex or Patek Philippe, but it’s close.
(Sean Connery’s James Bond famously wore a Breitling in Thunderball, and Jerry Seinfeld wore one in nearly every episode of his show.)
Second, with Breitling Select, you actually receive the watches of your choice, rather than a mystery watch, but the catch is that you’re essentially renting them on a rotating basis.
You choose a watch from Breitling’s Select collection, then wear it for anywhere from one to six months. After that, you choose a different watch for your next rotation, then send back the first.
You can repeat this process with up to three different watches over the course of a year, and along the way Breitling will offer you the chance to purchase
Why It’s Great:
While the Watch Gang model is pretty cool, the one downside is that you don’t get to select a watch that suits your personal style preferences.
The Breitling Select program essentially solves that for you, since you get to choose which watch you want from the Select collection.
How much does Breitling Select cost?
Since Breitling is a luxury brand, its subscription offering is quite a bit pricier than anyone else’s.
If you opt to pay monthly, it’ll cost you $129 per month, plus a one-time subscription fee of $450.
Or you could pay annually, which costs $1,884 (the year Breitilng was founded), and saves you about a hundred bucks overall.
It’s worth reiterating that these prices don’t actually allow you to keep any of the watches you try – this is just for the opportunity to rent/wear them for a few months.
You’ll have the opportunity to buy the ones you select at discounted prices compared to their standard retail price, but that will be on top of what you’re paying to be a member of the Select program.
The Recap ↓
Summary
When you add it all up, Watch Gang is easily the best watch subscription box on the market, and one of the best subscription boxes of any kind.
More Resources ↓
More Men’s Watch Advice and Recos to Take Your Watch Game to the Next Level
- In-Depth Watch Gang Review
- How to Wear a Pocket Watch
- How to Wear a NATO Strap Watch
- Timex Weekender Review
- In-Depth Jowissa Watch Review
- In-Depth Undone Watches Review
- The Most Stylish Watch Boxes for Men
- The Best MVMT Men’s Watches
- The Cheapest Rolexes for Men
- The Best Affordable Watch Brands for Men
- The Best Smart Watches for Men
- In-Depth Vincero Watch Review
