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Sapphire crystal is a lot more expensive than standard mineral glass – and for good reason. This material is a lot tougher and is mouch more scratch resistant when compared to cheaply made mineral glass.
Being one of the hardest gems there is, Sapphire ranks 9 on the MOHS scale, with only diamond ranking higher at 10. Obviously diamond is far too expensive to make into a crystal for an average, or even fairly luxury watch. Even a 1 carat synthetic diamond can cost upwards of $500, making this far too expensive for affordable watches.
Below, your questions about sapphire glass watches are answered, as well as the cheapest and most affordable watches with sapphire crystal displayed and recommended.
Table of Contents
What Is A Sapphire Crystal Watch?
A sapphire crystal watch is a model which has been produced with a harder and more scratch resistant glass than you will see in an inexpensive fashion piece. Many cheap fashion brands will mostly use mineral glass since many people who aren’t familiar with watches do not know the difference.
There is still a real difference in the quality of watches regardless of what glass they use. However, a sapphire crystal glass is a good start and shows that the watch has at least some level of quality. Other than this though, there are many other factors that decide more thoroughly on just how good a watch truly is.
What Does AR Stand For On A Watch With Sapphire Crystal?
AR means anti reflective. When you see this on the front of a watches glass, this is a good thing.
Sapphire crystal is naturally more reflective than a standard mineral glass. This can be annoying since the sun’s glare will make it harder for you to read the dial of your watch – although this is a trade off for being more scratch resistant.
However, once an AR coating is applied, the crystal now has the benefit of being scratch resistant as well as non-reflective.
One final point to add is that the AR coating scratches more easily than the sapphire glass itself. These scratches are often mistaken for scratches to the glass, but are in fact just small scratches to the coating and will fade over time.
Can You Scratch A Sapphire Crystal Watch?
Sapphire crystal glass can be scratched. Although sapphire crystal is the key feature of a scratch resistant watch, this doesn’t mean it is invincible. It is far harder to scratch than mineral glass, but can be scratched by harder objects, specifically diamond.
How Do You Get Scratches Out Of Sapphire Glass?
It is recommended that you do not do this by yourself since if you are inexperienced you may end up causing more damage to your watch than it originally had.
If you are insistent on trying to remove a scratch from your own watch’s sapphire crystal, you must first protect all of the other parts such as bezel and lugs with tape.
After this, you will need some diamond lapping paste and a small cloth. From this point, you should wipe the paste around the scratch in either clockwise or anticlockwise motion (do not change direction) until the scratch is gone.
Can Sapphire Crystal Break?
Yes. Although sapphire crystal is much stronger than a basic mineral glass it can break. For the most part, you would actually need to go somewhat out of your way to shatter a sapphire crystal glass. However, if you drop your watch at the wrong angle on concrete, it can still break – regardless of what the glass is made from.
How Much Does A Sapphire Crystal Watch Cost?
This various massively depending on the brand of each watch. The cheapest brand which uses sapphire crystal is Invicta (please note some of their models also use mineral glass). You will also find every luxury brand also uses anti-scratch sapphire glass on all of their watches. Brands such as Rolex, Patek Phillipe, Breguet, and Blancpain all use sapphire – so the cost can vary greatly.
You can pick up a sapphire crystal glass on eBay for around $30. Branded crystals for each brand vary, but to get a replacement sapphire crystal on a Rolex is approximately $200-$300 for the glass alone, with labor costing a lot more.
In summary, it really depends from brand to brand. There is no set price for a watch that has a sapphire crystal face.
Which Watch Brands Use Sapphire Crystals?
Every luxury watch brand you can think of uses Sapphire crystal. Everything from Tag Heuer upwards will use sapphire crystals 100% of the time on every model they have. This is because the cost of the glass compared to the cost of the watch is minimal.
Regular watch brands also use sapphire crystal – but you must check each model before making an assumption. Good value sapphire glass watches have been listed below, but if you are unsure about a specific model it is always best to ask.
Watchmakers such as Seiko and Citizen will sometimes use sapphire glass and other times they will not. As a general rule, the more expensive the watch price, the greater the chance is that it uses sapphire crystal.
Are Watches With Sapphire Crystal Worth Anything?
In general no. Once again, this is a brand dependant question. Obviously, a Rolex is going to be worth money regardless of which model it is.
At the same time, there are lots of Invicta watches that also use sapphire crystal. These watches are not really worth too much money, especially once they have been worn several times.
What Is there Difference Between Sapphire & K1 Mineral Crystal?
K1 mineral glass is an upgraded version of mineral glass. It has been treated in such a way that it is much tougher than regular mineral glass so is more scratch resistant and more shatter resistant.
Compared to sapphire crystal, K1 mineral glass is more shatter resistant but less scratch-proof. Given that sapphire crystal is already pretty shatter resistant, it is a much better option than K1.
How Can You Tell If A Sapphire Is Crystal?
There are several home remedy tests on the internet such as placing water on the dial and seeing if it holds tightly together. However, the accuracy of these tests is questionable at best.
The only real way to test if your watch has a genuine sapphire crystal glass is by taking it to a jeweler and having them use a diamond testing light on it. There is no real way to cheat this test with a watch, so it is very accurate.
You can buy a home diamond testing kit here – they cost around $20.
What Is The Cheapest Watch With Sapphire Crystal?
Whilst there are some Chinese brands that claim to have watches with sapphire crystal glass, I know from experience they tend to be quite generous in their product descriptions.
Overall, the cheapest well known brand that sells watches with sapphire scratch-resistant crystal is Invicta. At the time of writing, the cheapest watch with sapphire crystal was the Invicta multi-function pictured above. Priced at approximately $75, this is pretty much the entry level in to sapphire crystal watches.
Please note that the quality of crystal does not really get any higher until luxury watches, where each brand may differ slightly in quality. However, even budget watches using synthetic sapphire crystal are scratch resistant.
Best Mens Sapphire Crystal Watches Under $300
Casio Edifice Solar
A great looking watch for a fantastic price. Really in terms of other motorsport watches, compared to a Tag Heuer, the Edifice is a similar style and similar build quality and style, albeit with a Japanese movement.
In all honesty, the main appeal of the Edifice is that it looks like it costs a lot more than it actually does. This is a huge compliment to the Casio design team, who have managed to pull off a budget watch with a sapphire crystal.
Lastly, the watch is solar powered, so you will never need to worry about replacing the battery. Truly one of the best scratch proof watches in terms of value for money.
Seiko Titanium Day-Date
It is not often that you find a men’s titanium watch with sapphire crystal, but Seiko makes a very solid and good value option. As you can see, the design of the watch is very basic and fairly understated. The 38mm dial is slightly smaller than the average men’s watch these days, which usually comes in at around 40mm.
Titanium is both hypoallergenic and lightweight, so 100% ideal for a casual watch as it won’t bother you at all. Although titanium is super durable, it will still scratch just like stainless steel, although the glass is sapphire, so you won’t be getting any unwanted scratches on the dial.
Overall, this is pretty good value for a titanium watch.
Orient Kamasu
One of the few sapphire crystal automatic watches you can buy for $300 is the Orient Kamasu. Given that automatic movements are more expensive than quartz, accompanied by the fact that sapphire also costs more to make than mineral glass.
With that being said, if you were only to have one or two choices, you would definitely want Orient to be one of them. The Orient brand is simply outstanding value for money and builds its watches to a similar standard as its parent company Seiko – albeit for a much cheaper price.
This watch can be used as a legitimate dive watch and is finished to a very high standard for the price.
Invicta Pro Diver GMT
Invicta are one of the few budget brands that actually invest in making sapphire crystal watches, ironically being a brand that is heavily criticized for being lower quality.
It is clear to see that the GMT pro dive takes its inspiration from the Rolex batman GMT, which doesn’t look identical but is at least very similar. The glass on the front of the dial is a domed crystal, which is certainly not used enough in fashion watches.
This model does use a quartz movement, but is good value for money nonetheless. You will struggle to find a divers GMT from a reputable brand for anywhere near the price of this model.
Wenger Seaforce
An all black dive watch made by the Swiss brand Wenger. It is quite difficult to find a Wenger watch that is made with a sapphire crystal since they mostly produce budget watches with mineral glass.
The seaforce is a decent quality dive watch that uses a quartz movement and is water resistant up to 200m. Although this is technically a dive watch, like many modern divers watches, it wouldn’t look out of place as an everyday wear in either a smart or casual setting. Overall it is pretty good value for money, but nothing special.
Best Womens Sapphire Crystal Watches Under $300
Tissot Quickster
A unisex watch with a feminine dial layout and a 40mm case size, the Tissot quickster is one of the best value for money Swiss quartz watches you can buy from a reputable brand. As Tissot go hand in hand with ETA, you can ensure that their movements are top quality, whether this is mechanical or quartz.
As the dial is so large for a woman’s watch, it is nice to know that this is protected by a synthetic sapphire crystal. Obviously, Tissot has saved money by using a Nato strap rather than stainless steel or leather, but these are not to everyone’s taste anyway. The benefit of this type of strap is that it is easily changeable and also extremely lightweight.
Victorinox Maverick
A modern looking ladies’ crystal face watch, Luminox has combined the appearance of a divers watch with a woman’s fashion model. Unlike many other modern women’s fashionable watches, this piece is not oversized with its case measuring 34mm rather than the overly loud 40mm+ pieces we will often see.
Victorinox is a brand that was both founded and makes all of its watches in Switzerland – ensuring that they are good quality. This watch doesn’t only look good, but it is also durable. Made of stainless steel, you will not worry about it breaking, coupled with an anti-reflective sapphire crystal which will stop any scratches on the front dial.
Movado Museum
An extremely classic design, the Movado Museum is a classic timepiece that has a timeless image. The museum model has been around since the early 1950s and has not changed too much since then. It has a 26mm dial size, which makes it a feminine classic, rather than an oversized dial you will see a lot in modern day.
The anti scratch watch dial combines well with the stainless steel case and bracelet. Although the watch is petite, it is very durable and will last a long time. It isn’t the cheapest watch model, but all of Movado’s production is based in Switzerland, so the price is fair considering the build quality.
Citizen Eco-Drive World Time
There are a variety of Citizen watches with sapphire crystal, but you need to be careful since there are also many other watches made by Citizen with a basic mineral glass. This particular model is an eco-drive world time watch with an anti reflective sapphire crystal.
As you can see, aesthetically this is a simple women’s two-tone bi-metal watch with a mother of pearl dial. This classic combination uses an eco-drive movement which means you will never need to change the battery on this watch – it is simply charged by the light. The watch is also convenient due to the fact that it has a perpetual calendar complication, meaning you will not need to ever change the date either.
