10 Best Wall Clocks Under $50 That Don't Look Cheap
The best wall clocks under $50, sorted by the size your wall actually needs: big statement clocks for over the sofa, small quiet ones for the kitchen and bedroom.
Some links here are affiliate links. If you buy through them, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you, and I only point to things I'd actually consider for my own home.
At a glance
| # | Pick | Price | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | LEIKE 20 Inch Rustic Wood and Metal Wall Clock | about $43 | Best overall |
| 2 | mooas Flatwood 12 Inch Wall Clock | about $20 | The cheapest one that looks designed |
| 3 | Sorbus 24 Inch Black Metal Wall Clock | about $40 | The biggest clock for the money |
| 4 | Foxtop 12 Inch Black and Gold Wall Clock | about $24 | A little glam for little money |
| 5 | Lucktime 12 Inch Open Frame Wood Wall Clock | about $29 | Light and Scandi |
| 6 | Honiway 16 Inch Wood Sunburst Wall Clock | about $47 | Boho texture in real wood |
| 7 | PresenTime Rustic Woven Wall Clock | about $33 | Woven texture for a small wall |
| 8 | Infinity Instruments Orb Spoke Starburst Clock | about $35 | Mid-century fun |
| 9 | Westclox 20 Inch Traditional Wall Clock | about $40 | The old station clock look |
| 10 | La Crosse 12.8 Inch Atomic Wood Wall Clock | about $43 | Sets itself, even for daylight saving |
LEIKE 20 Inch Rustic Wood and Metal Wall Clock
Twenty inches is the size where a clock stops being a gadget and starts being the thing on the wall. At about $43, nothing else here gives you that much wall.
The face is a light wood finish, the ring around it is solid wood that's been darkened by charring, and the black metal frame carries big Arabic numerals you can read from the couch. Warm wood plus a little black is the combo that fits almost any living room, farmhouse or not. It doesn't tick, so it can hang in an open plan where you also watch TV. One thing to know: the center is MDF with a wood finish, and only the outer ring is solid wood. From across the room, nobody can tell.
mooas Flatwood 12 Inch Wall Clock
About $20, and it's the one I'd hang in my own bedroom tonight.
The mooas is only 0.16 inches thick, so it sits flat against the wall like a print instead of sticking out like a dinner plate. Ivory face, thin numbers, two slim wooden hands. That restraint is exactly what makes it look like it came from a design shop. The sweep movement is silent, which matters most next to a bed. At 12 inches it's a small-wall clock: perfect over a desk or a dresser, too timid alone over a sofa.
Sorbus 24 Inch Black Metal Wall Clock
Have a long empty wall above the sofa or a mantel? This is how you fill it for about $40.
It's 24 inches of powder-coated black metal with an open frame, so the wall shows through and the clock reads as wall art more than as a clock. The open design also keeps it light enough to hang on a single keyhole. It runs on one AA battery. It isn't sold as a silent clock, though, so keep it in the living room and away from the bedroom wall. If you'd rather have warm wood at this size, go to the LEIKE at #1.
Foxtop 12 Inch Black and Gold Wall Clock
A black face with brass gold numbers is the look you see in boutique hotel hallways. Here it's about $24.
Under the brass gold finish it's aluminum, and a real glass cover sits over the dial, which keeps the dust off and makes it look more finished than the open-face clocks at this price. Silent quartz, and Foxtop says one alkaline AA can run it up to 24 months, so you'll forget it takes a battery. It's 12 inches, so it suits a hallway, an office nook or a dining room wall, more than a big living room one.
Lucktime 12 Inch Open Frame Wood Wall Clock
Most clocks are a disc. This one is mostly air: a clear open ring with the numbers floating on it and a small round of wood in the middle where the hands meet.
On a pale wall the frame almost disappears, and what you see is the wood center and the numbers. It's the clock for a Scandi or Japandi room where a big black frame would feel heavy. The frame is acrylic, the hands glide without a tick, and the hanging hardware is in the box. At about $29 it's the airiest clock on the list.
Honiway 16 Inch Wood Sunburst Wall Clock
Two layers of wood petals fan out around a black wooden face, and the petals come in three tones of wood. It is the most textured clock here, and the closest to a piece of boho wall art.
Honiway makes it in solid wood, with white hands and white numerals that stand out against the black. Sixteen inches fits a bedroom wall or a narrow spot between two windows. There's no glass over the face. That keeps the wood visible and the price down, but it does mean a quick dusting now and then. The screw and wall anchor come with it.
PresenTime Rustic Woven Wall Clock
Here's the kitchen clock, or the bathroom one, or the one above the back door.
The thick frame is woven water hyacinth, the same material as a lot of the baskets you probably already have, over a metal frame with a glass lens on the front. It's 10.5 inches across, and since it's woven by hand, that can vary a little. No tick either, and it's rated to stay within one second a day. Small and soft-looking, it works on a wall that's already busy with shelves or a window, where a big clock would crowd things.
Infinity Instruments Orb Spoke 15 Inch Starburst Clock
The ball clock is a mid-century classic, the one with colored balls at the end of thin spokes. The originals cost a lot. This one is about $35.
Infinity Instruments sizes it at 15 inches, with multicolored orbs around a white center. It's playful, so it needs a room that's in on the joke: a mid-century living room, a kid's room, a bright kitchen. In a room of beige linen and oak, it'll look like a toy. Want the warm-wood starburst instead? The Honiway at #6 is the calmer cousin.
Westclox 20 Inch Traditional Wall Clock, Rustwood
Some rooms want a clock that looks like it hung in a train station for 50 years. This is that clock at 20 inches.
The face is distressed cream with bold black numbers, the frame is black with gold-highlighted edges in what Westclox calls a Rustwood finish, and a glass lens covers it all. Plastic is where the price comes from: the frame isn't wood, but up on a wall the Rustwood finish does the work. It fits a farmhouse kitchen or a traditional living room with darker wood furniture.
La Crosse Technology 12.8 Inch Atomic Wood Wall Clock
Twice a year someone in my house has to stand on a chair to change a wall clock. Not with this one.
It's an atomic clock: it picks up the time signal broadcast from Fort Collins, Colorado, and sets itself, daylight saving changes included. You only pick your time zone, one of the four US ones. Walnut-stained pine frame, 12.8 inches, glass lens over a plain white face. Since it runs on a radio signal, hang it on an outside wall or near a window the first night so it syncs fast. It's the pick for a kitchen or a home office, where the right time actually matters.
What to look for in the best wall clocks under $50
The best cheap wall clocks and the bad ones often share the same movement inside. What you see from across the room is what separates them.
- Size for the wall, not for the box. Over a sofa, a bed or a mantel, go 20 to 24 inches. On a kitchen wall, over a desk or above a doorway, 10 to 12 is right.
- A silent sweep movement for bedrooms. The second hand glides instead of jumping, so there's no tick. Several picks here have it; the big metal Sorbus doesn't promise it.
- Real materials where your eye lands. Wood, metal, a glass lens. A shiny plastic frame is the fastest giveaway on a cheap clock.
- Numbers you can read. Thin numerals look elegant up close and vanish from the couch. If the clock is there to be read, pick bold numbers.
How big should a wall clock be?
Measure the furniture under it. A clock about a third as wide as the sofa or the mantel below looks intentional, so a 72-inch sofa wants a clock of about 24 inches. Alone on a big empty wall, go bigger. In a gallery wall or next to shelves, a 12-inch clock holds its own. If the clock goes on the window wall, floor-length panels frame it; my drapes under $50 come in 84 to 108 inches.
Hang a clock that sits alone with its center around eye level, about 57 to 60 inches from the floor. Above furniture, leave 8 to 10 inches between the top of the sofa or the mantel and the bottom of the clock.
How much should you spend on a wall clock?
About $20 to $25 buys a small clock that looks good, like the mooas or the Foxtop. From $30 to $35 you get texture: woven fiber, a mid-century starburst. Between $40 and $50 you're paying for size or a feature, a 20 to 24-inch statement clock or one that sets itself. Past $50 you're mostly paying for a brand name. For the rest of the wall and the room, here's how to decorate a living room for less.
How I picked
A wall clock comes down to a few things: diameter, what the frame is made of, whether the movement ticks, and how readable the face is. I lined those up across a few dozen clocks, and kept the ones that look like they cost more than they do.
Then I sorted them by wall. The ten cover a sofa wall, a mantel, a bedroom, a kitchen, a hallway and a home office, so whatever wall you're staring at, one of them was picked for it.
FAQ
What is the best wall clock under $50?
The LEIKE 20 Inch at about $43. It's big enough for a living room wall, it's silent, and the wood and black metal fit most rooms.
Where can I find a cheap wall clock under $25?
Two on this list: the mooas Flatwood at about $20 and the Foxtop black and gold at about $24. Both are 12 inches and silent. Every other pick here is between $29 and $47.
What size wall clock looks best in a living room?
For a clock on its own over a sofa or a mantel, 20 to 24 inches. The Sorbus at 24 inches is the biggest here for about $40. Smaller clocks work in a gallery wall or a corner.
Are silent wall clocks really silent?
A silent clock uses a sweep movement: the second hand glides around the dial instead of stepping, so there's no tick. That's what you want in a bedroom. A ticking clock is fine in a living room or a kitchen, where other sounds cover it.
Do large wall clocks look cheap?
Not when the frame is metal or wood and the face is simple. Open metal frames like the Sorbus look like wall art. The big clocks that look cheap usually have glossy plastic frames and busy faces.
Which wall clock sets itself?
An atomic clock, like the La Crosse in walnut-stained wood. It syncs with a radio time signal and handles daylight saving on its own.
The verdict
For the living room, get the LEIKE 20 Inch at about $43: big enough for the wall, warm, and silent. For a bedroom or a desk, the mooas Flatwood at about $20 is the one I'd buy first. A huge empty wall? The Sorbus 24 Inch fills it for about $40. And if you're done climbing on chairs twice a year, the La Crosse Atomic sets itself. Affordable, never cheap-looking.
Clock up. Now the rest of the room.
A good clock is one dark, well-made thing on the wall. Here's how to build the rest of a warm neutral living room around it, mostly with pieces under $50.
See the full gallery: Warm Neutral Living Room Ideas
