Done for this year. Lets talk about budget.

My wife and I get a monthly "allowance" to spend on whatever we want so I save that money for as long as it takes to buy what I want

I have been putting a small amount each to a savings account, it takes time but it builds up. Also if I sell anything, not just watches but anything, this goes in the fund too.

I buy 1 watch per year with my bonus.

This is year one of this plan. Last year I bought 4 cheaper watches with my bonus. Now that my collection is at (or above) the size I want, I am only adding “statement” pieces.

I struggle somewhat with the dollars that I spend on my watches because they are toys and are massively overpriced. Last summer I hired a gen contractor to some work for me, it was a one man project stretching about 9 days mostly labour not much in the way of materials. His very detailed bill was less than an entry level Tudor or Omega. I was humbled by that event.

Before buying a watch, I typically scout it for like 9-12 months. I refuse to impulse buy, regardless if its a good deal. During this time, it allows me to save money, but also really consider if I want the watch or not. I don’t plan on selling, so I’ll sit patiently to determine if I really want, allowing me to save.

If I decide, I don’t want the watch, well I would have saved money for my next potential purchase.

I also only get one watch a quarter.

I also park my watches on the list for at least 6 months, often a couple of years, before buying. If I'm in the mood to buy then I'll go to the list and figure out which fits my budget at that time.

I still go over budget. Which is difficult since I don't set one!

I’ve massively overspent this year.

Bought a Santos, BBPro and a Datejust within 6 months so that’s the end of my purchasing for a long time.

The plan is just to enjoy these for a year or so and then get a Zenith..

Had the call today for a Tudor fxd after about a year ,but had to decline due to spending my budget on 2 watches in the last 7 months ,not heart broken as one was out of the blue after waiting 18 months

Sad to hear, but i think you made the right choice. Declining something you want because of more important reasons, is a show of strength and character after all.

I'd rather make money than spend it, regardless of how much I love watches. I don't want to sound superficial or cheap, but I can't help the fact that everything over 2000 is, in my opinion, unnecessary spending. I know that many people will not agree with my opinion, but I really don't see the added value in any watch. For example, Omega seamaster, they are great, high quality and very, I would like to point out, very nice watch but I could never pay so much money for them because they are always just a watch, nothing special, they are not even unique because the market is flooded with them. And when some watches are unique, which is not that hard to find, they don't have that value in the 30000+ range. It's sad that I write this, but people have uniqueness and are not appreciated by those rich people as they appreciate materialism. That's why it seems completely illogical to me to follow such trends. It is different to have many watches that are based on a logical price, but nothing over 2000 is. Well, if I don't count the gems in the watch, that's another topic. That's why I tend to dissuade myself from buying it, rather than push myself towards it, so when I really really want some watch I always have a valid reason to buy them.

Ok,that's how I wish it would go on,truth is that I spend everything I can on watches or watch parts,whatever, I like them and nothing gonna change that so my comment could've been much shorter and I should have just write that whenever I have some money left then my chrono24 app is getting my phone so worm that I just hope it will holds itself together and doesn't give up on me 🤣🤣🤣

I'm fortunate in that I'm single and don't have any kids, so I only have to justify my watches to myself. I like to joke that as long as I don't spend the mortgage, it's all good. That said, I do make a point of keeping a certain amount in savings. I also save money toward a watch when I'm thinking about buying one.

My watch money comes from selling stuff on FB marketplace. I've got bins of old gaming stuff that I no longer want and am tired of storing it. Being able to manage my funds via Paypal means my wife doesn't need to have conversations with me about spending money from the family budget. And as a side bonus, the watches I buy take up a whole lot less space than the stuff I've been selling.

I buy what I want when I want it then handle the flak from Wife when it comes. Daft I know, but she always forgives me, for something with sparkle.

Ditto, I've went mental this year 23 watches in 6 months. No high end stuff, mostly ebay bargains (6 Aragons though) Seiko, Bulova, Kadloo etc.

I put away $125 per week for my hobbies. Then I buy what I want. But I also collect board games. If I want a watch in the $5-10k range that’s typically 1-2 years of savings. I’ve gotten really disciplined to not buy every flight of fancy watch I see under $1,000.

I only Buy quartz , anything i want.

I'm paid bi-weekly but budget monthly, so I have two "extra" checks per year. I put those toward watches.

I don’t have a fixed budget per se as most of the watches I like or want cannot be bought at my own leisure, meaning if or when i get a call for the one i’m waiting for, i’m going to pull the trigger. With this in mind, all the cash after bills will go into various investments such as index trackers or real estate, and whatever is left after i’ve done my responsible acts, i’ll leave it as a watch fund. I also generally try not to accumulate a lot of watches and prefer to upgrade my collection rather than just enlarge my collection. This keeps the total amount of money tied up to a minimal but also prevents me from buying watches i don’t love.

I kick started the buying when I sold a previous hobby of mine, a track car and trailer. That paid up front for most of my current line up.

My wife and I also have a monthly "allowance" which I now save up to buy whatever I like. I also make use of 0% finance deals when available, which allows me to buy a piece before I otherwise would have been able to. That's a whole seperate topic though!

No budget but unshakable willpower.

Just generally blow all my disposable income on the habbit a few days after payday.

I'm very irresponsible 🤣🤣

That is similar to my stand on watches. I find it hard to justify spending over 2000chf on a single watch. Sometimes I see the value, but most of the time, I dont. But who knows, this can change someday.