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The 5 Best Surf Watches Money Can Buy

Originally posted on SURFER | By August Howell | Last updated Feb 25, 2025 4:01 PM ET

If you’ve got money burning a hole in your pocket and need a timepiece for your sessions, you’ve come to the right place. These days, the surf watch market is similar to cell phones. You can get the simple, cheap one that can get the basics done. But you can also find one with the latest GPS tracking tech and real-time biometrics. There are a lot of options.

In this list, we’ll share five of the best-selling and biggest budget watches that will be great for everyday sessions and more. All of these are labeled as water resistant up to 100 meters, which is more than enough for surfing. Whether you’re looking for a sleek, understated design or ice with all the bells and whistles, there’s a watch out there for you. But don’t forget your wallet.

Nixon High Tide

Cost: $220

Nuts and bolts: Nixon has been in the watch game since 1998, and when it comes to making surf timepieces this brand knows what it’s doing. The High Tide is just a clean, easy-to-use watch, perhaps Nixon’s finest work to date. It’s got 550 pre-programmed locations with tide and sun data. The large, can’t-miss high-resolution display shows the daily tide times in two formats. One of them makes the time smaller on top while enlarging the tide graph at the bottom. So simple yet so good. And it’s all held together by a virtually indestructible rubber strap. Built to surf and to last a long time.

Vaer C5 Tactical Field Solar

Cost: $349

Nuts and bolts: Like other products on this list, the Vaer Watches look just as good on a wetsuit as they do on a wedding suit. Its founders would know—Reagan Cook and Ryan Torres are avid surfers. Interestingly, C5 Tactical is low profile and doesn't have the typical surf features like the tide and sunset times, but it makes up for that with sheer quality and durability. The sapphire crystal makes this thing tough, and it comes with two interchangeable straps for formal and active attire. And toss out the batteries while you’re at it. A mere six hours of sunlight will charge the watch for six months. The face also glows in the dark, too, which just looks cool. Water resistant up to 330 feet (in case you find yourself scuba diving).

Casio G-Shock GBZ100-2A

Cost: $160

Nuts and bolts: Sturdy as a rock but considerably more comfortable, you could toss this thing in the Nazare shorebreak, and it would survive just fine. As far as features, it's got them in a condensed package. Though the text is small on the display, it can show time, sunup and sundown and a tide graph all in one place. Choose from one of 3,300 lineups The watch does connect to a smartphone through the G Shock Move app and can get notifications, but it’s only a preview, not the fully functional interface like an Apple Watch. But if you’re looking for something reliable that will keep on ticking during nuclear fallout, slap on the G-Shock.

Apple Watch x Dawn Patrol

Cost: A new Series 7 will run you about $170, while the Ultra 2 is nearly $800

Nuts and bolts: Tired of checking the surf on your phone or computer? Try it on your wrist. Through the Dawn Patrol mobile app, your Apple Watch can display real-time updates on swell size, wind direction and tide swings. The watch can also track your sessions to get wave count, distance covered and top speed. You can also choose from several displays if you want to learn into a fully digital aesthetic or make it appear analog. If you’re surfing in front of a Surfline camera, you can sync with the Surfline Sessions app to track and compile videos of your rides.

Suunto Race

Cost: $449

Nuts and bolts: Suunto watches are designed in Finland, and this model is designed exclusively for sports training. The Suunto Race can track a range of activities, and it’ll map your waves and calculate speed and distance traveled. The full-screen global maps and slick touchscreen are a real selling point. There’s hefty battery life in the small package, including 40 hours in tracking mode, which can be extended up to 120 hours in tour mode. Or track your heart for up to 10 days straight. One of the downsides is there’s no tide information, but if you’re exercising outdoors, the Suunto will keep you (mostly) covered.

Honorable Mention: Garmin Enduro 2

Cost: $669

Nuts and bolts: Yes, we’re aware this is the extreme end of surf watches. Probably over the top, actually. But if you want one watch that can do everything from a casual beach day and a mountainous ultramarathon, this is it. Surfing is just one of the preloaded apps that can track trail running, swimming, biking, skiing and climbing. It also connects to Surfline Sessions to get video from the cams. The battery life is impressive, considering all the features packed in this thing. It’ll go for 150 hours in GPS mode (with solar charging) and 34 days in smartwatch mode. Go crazy with the race predictor, heart rate monitor, sleep tracker and even a built-in flashlight.

This article first appeared on SURFER and was syndicated with permission.

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