A cheap smartwatch can be a perfectly good choice, as long as you know what you keep and what you lose on a small budget. Picksly rates smartwatches from public spec sheets and matches them with verified offers, each with a dated price. The catalogue shows something surprising: under €200 you mainly lose features and a little screen quality, but you often gain battery life and lightness. Here are the figures, the traps to avoid and the right pick for your profile.
The figures are from the catalogue on 7 November 2026, for France; every price quoted carries the date it was recorded. Prices change: always check the price shown by the shop before buying.
What Picksly rates on a smartwatch
Each watch gets four scores out of 100, calculated between fixed bounds that are the same for all smartwatches:
- Battery: the battery life announced by the manufacturer, corrected by the gap independent tests find for that brand. Manufacturers do not announce with the same scenario: tests find about 1.3 times the claim for Apple, 0.7 times for Garmin or Xiaomi. This score is therefore an estimate, marked "≈".
- Features: how many of seven the watch has — ECG, blood oxygen, temperature, dual-frequency GPS, barometer, contactless payment (NFC), mobile network.
- Screen: the panel type (OLED first) and peak brightness, which tells you whether the screen is readable in full sun.
- Weight: the lighter the watch, the higher the score.
The Budget profile adds the price (35% of its score), the Smart profile adds value for money (20%), and the Premium profile looks only at quality. Compatibility with your phone is not a score but a filter, covered below. The full method is on the smartwatch page.
What the catalogue shows
Picksly tracks 86 smartwatches; 62 have a verified price in France (60 new, 11 refurbished), and the median new price is €268. 19 watches cost €200 or less, the Budget profile ceiling for this category, including 5 at €100 or less. Median scores out of 100, by the price used (the lower of new and refurbished):
| Criterion | €200 or less | €200 to €400 | Over €400 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Number of watches | 19 | 29 | 14 |
| Median price | €140 | €277 | €454 |
| Battery | 78 | 65 | 41 |
| Features | 40 | 80 | 80 |
| Screen | 64 | 88 | 88 |
| Weight | 78 | 73 | 15 |
| Budget score | 71 | 65 | 47 |
| Premium score | 61 | 68 | 66 |
Not every watch has every measurement: screen brightness is published for only 13 of the 19 watches at €200 or less.
What you keep and what you lose under €200
You keep: battery life and lightness
The cheapest watches are also the ones that last longest: a median battery score of 78 at €200 or less, against 41 above €400. The most expensive ones are often heavily equipped models that need charging more often, and they are much heavier: a median weight score of 15 above €400.
You lose: features
This is the real difference. The median features score is 40 under €200, meaning three of the seven features, against 80, meaning five, above it. Example: the Xiaomi Redmi Watch 6 Active, the cheapest one we track (€49.69, Amazon, recorded 20 October), has a battery score of 79 but a features score of 0: it has one at most. If ECG or contactless payment matter to you, read the "Features" line of the model page before the price.
GPS
Picksly counts dual-frequency GPS, which is more accurate when the signal is blocked by buildings or trees, not basic GPS. A low features score therefore does not mean "no GPS": check on the manufacturer's page whether the watch has its own GPS or borrows the phone's, which means running with your phone.
Screen and updates
Under €200, the screen is less bright at the median (64 against 88), so harder to read in full sun. Software updates are not rated: there is no source that is comparable from one brand to another. Look at the release date shown on each model page: at the same price, a recent model is more likely to be supported for longer.
iPhone or Android compatibility: the first filter
- Apple Watch: it works with an iPhone; recent models (Series 11 and 12, SE 3, Ultra 3 and 4) need an iPhone 11 or later (Apple's compatibility page, published 17 September 2026). No Apple Watch costs €200 or less in our catalogue: the cheapest, the Apple Watch SE 3, is €221.16 refurbished (Amazon, recorded 25 October) and €269 new (Amazon, recorded 5 November), with a battery score of 0.
- Samsung Galaxy Watch: Samsung states that the Galaxy Watch7 and Galaxy Watch Ultra are not compatible with iOS, because they rely on Google services (Samsung help page, updated 30 April 2025).
- Google Pixel Watch: Google states that iPhones are not supported (Google help page, checked 17 October 2026).
- Other brands work through their own app: check on the manufacturer's page that it exists for your phone and which features remain available.
The traps of a cheap smartwatch
- Yesterday's high end at a low price: the Samsung Galaxy Watch7 is €141.43 refurbished (eBay, recorded 6 November), with the top features score, but a battery score of 20. It is Android-only.
- Refurbished barely cheaper: the Samsung Galaxy Watch8 is €240.89 new (Amazon, recorded 25 October) and €212.15 refurbished (eBay, recorded 4 November), only 12% less. Our guide to buying refurbished or new explains the warranty in each case.
- A sensor is not a medical test: Picksly counts whether a feature is present (ECG, blood oxygen), not how accurate it is. A watch does not replace a doctor's advice.
- The fitness band: smaller and often cheaper, it is filed separately at Picksly and is not part of these scores. If sleep tracking is your main goal, a smart ring is another option.
The right pick for your profile
Budget: €200 or less, new or refurbished
The Budget profile keeps watches at €200 or less, at the lower of the new and refurbished prices, and picks the best Budget score:
- OnePlus Watch Lite: Budget score 86, €139.99 (Amazon, recorded 26 October); battery 77, features 80, screen 88.
- Huawei Watch GT 5: Budget score 83, €139.99 (Amazon, recorded 25 October); battery 85, features 80, released September 2024.
- Huawei Watch Fit 4: Budget score 79, €149.99 (eBay, recorded 24 October); the top weight score.
- Honor Watch 6: Budget score 77, €169 (Amazon, recorded 26 October); battery 92.
- Honor Watch X5i: Budget score 77, €69.90 (Amazon, recorded 25 October); battery 100, but one feature at most and an unmeasured screen.
All watches at €200 or less, with their dated price, are on our ratings page.
Smart: the best value for money, new
The Smart profile keeps new watches with a Smart score of at least 50. The OnePlus Watch Lite also leads here (83). Just behind: the Huawei Watch Fit 4 Pro and the Garmin Venu 3S (80 each), then the Huawei Watch GT 6 (79, €218.49, Amazon, recorded 20 October). The Smart ranking lists them all.
Premium: the best quality, regardless of price
The Premium profile keeps new watches released within the last 24 months, with a Premium score of at least 60. In the lead is the Garmin Venu 4 (85, €447.99, Amazon, recorded 25 October), with at least six features, which gives the top score, followed by the Huawei Watch Fit 4 Pro (82, €273.04, eBay, recorded 6 November). The OnePlus Watch Lite scores 81 here: a well-rated watch is not necessarily an expensive one. See the Premium ranking.
To compare the main families of watches beyond budget, read our guide to the best smartwatch.
The right price at the right time
To see at a glance whether the price shown on Amazon is a good one, install the Picksly extension: it compares the page you are looking at with the offers we track, according to your profile. And for the best-rated models, see our Top 10 smartwatches.
FAQ
What is the best cheap smartwatch?
In our catalogue on 7 November 2026, the OnePlus Watch Lite has the best Budget score among watches at €200 or less (86 out of 100, €139.99 at Amazon, recorded 26 October). It is only the right one if it works with your phone: check that first.
Is a watch under €100 enough?
Five watches in the catalogue cost €100 or less. They often have very good battery life, but few of the seven features we count: the Honor Watch X5i (€69.90) has the top battery score and one feature at most.
Does a cheap smartwatch work with an iPhone?
Not all of them: recent Galaxy Watch models and Pixel Watches are Android-only, according to Samsung and Google. Other brands work through their app; check on the manufacturer's page that it exists for iPhone.
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