Citizen Watch Reviews: Are Citizen Watches Good?

Do I need to introduce you to Citizen? I guess not! After all, Citizen is one of the biggest names in the watch industry all over the world. They revolutionized the modern watch industry with numerous innovations and technological leaps forward. 

In fact, Citizen is the company that put an end to the Swiss monopoly in the market. Well, a fair share of credit goes to Seiko too for inventing the quartz movement. But Citizen designed the first completely automated watch manufacturing lines.

As a result, Citizen could offer cheaper yet high-quality watches in the market.

Let’s take a look at this industry giant today with this in-depth Citizen watch review. But first, let me tell you their fascinating story of success.

IMAGE PRODUCT DETAILS  Rating Price
Best Overall Citizen Eco-Drive Movement Men's Watch – AT8020-54L Citizen Eco-Drive Movement Men’s Watch – AT8020-54L
  • Case Diameter: 43mm
  • Water-resistance: 20ATM/200m/660ft.
10
Popular ChoiceCitizen Men's Eco-Drive World Time Atomic Timekeeping – AT9010-52E Citizen Men’s Eco-Drive World Time Atomic Timekeeping – AT9010-52E
  • Case Diameter: 44mm
  • Water-resistance: 20ATM/200m/660ft.
10
Best On BudgetCitizen Men's Eco-Drive ProMaster Nighthawk – BJ7000-52E Citizen Men’s Eco-Drive ProMaster Nighthawk – BJ7000-52E
  • Case Diameter: 42mm
  • Water-resistance: 20ATM/200m/660ft.
10
Citizen PCAT Eco-Drive Men's Watch –AT4004-52E Citizen PCAT Eco-Drive Men’s Watch –AT4004-52E
  • Case Diameter: 42mm
  • Water-resistance: 20ATM/200m/660ft.
10
Citizen Eco-Drive Chandler Field Watch – BM8180-03E Citizen Eco-Drive Chandler Field Watch – BM8180-03E
  • Case Diameter: 37.2mm
  • Water-resistance: 10ATM/100m/330ft.
10
Citizen Eco-Drive ProMaster Diver Citizen Eco Drive ProMaster Diver – BN0150-28E
  • Case Diameter: 44mm
  • Water-resistance: 20ATM/200m/660ft.
9.5
Citizen Watches Drive Perpetual Calendar Chronograph Watch – BL5250-02L Citizen Watches Drive Perpetual Calendar Chronograph Watch – BL5250-02L
  • Case Diameter: 43mm
  • Water-resistance: 20ATM/200m/660ft.
9.5
Citizen Watches Eco-Drive Avion – AW1361-10H Citizen Watches Eco-Drive Avion – AW1361-10H
  • Case Diameter: 45mm
  • Water-resistance: 10ATM/100m/330ft.
9.5
Citizen Watches Eco-Drive Chronograph Canvas Watch – AT0200-05E Citizen Watches Eco-Drive Chronograph Canvas Watch – AT0200-05E
  • Case Diameter: 40mm
  • Water-resistance: 10ATM/100m/330ft.
9.5
Premium Navy WatchCitizen Watches Men's ProMaster Skyhawk A-T – JY8078-01L Citizen Watches Mens ProMaster Skyhawk A-T – JY8078-01L
  • Case Diameter: 45mm
  • Water-resistance: 20ATM/200m/660ft.
9.5
Citizen Men's Eco-Drive NaviHawk Atomic Timekeeping – JY8035-04E Citizen Men’s Eco-Drive NaviHawk Atomic Timekeeping – JY8035-04E
  • Case Diameter: 48mm
  • Water-resistance: 20ATM/200m/660ft.
9.5

The History and Company Overview of Citizen Watches

First things first, the journey to success wasn’t so smooth for Citizen.

Everything started with a visionary named Kamekichi Yamazaki, a Japanese jeweler. Back in the 1920s, Swiss and American watches ruled Japan, just like any other watch market. Despite having supreme build quality and precision, those watches were very expensive.

Kamekichi dreamt of designing a watch with the same superior quality but with an affordable price tag. So, in 1918, he founded the Shokosha Research Institute.  

He succeeded in 1924 with his Citizen Calibre 16 Pocket Watch. His good friend, Shinpei Goto, the mayor of Tokyo, came up with the name Citizen. The watch represented the vision of a high-quality commodity that every Citizen can afford.

Later, the duo gifted the watch to the Japanese emperor.

Everything was going very well until World War 2 broke out! The great war halted production.

However, Citizen again started production in war-torn Japan. The company even followed more aggressive and expanding business plans.

In the early 1970s, another Japanese brand, Seiko, found a major breakthrough – the invention of quartz movement. Citizen didn’t delay a bit and followed the footsteps of Seiko.

But the problem with the quartz movement was the need for a battery. The battery had to be changed every 2-3 years. Citizen and Seiko again started researching to find a viable solution.

The R&D team of Citizen married two great technologies together – quartz movement and solar power. Finally, in 1976, Citizen found the biggest breakthrough – the Eco-Drive calibre 7878 movement.

This newly developed movement could use any source of light to power the watch, whereas the solar-powered movement could only use solar energy from the sun.

Citizen was already a big name in the industry, but this Eco-Drive movement gave them an unforgettable status.

Today, Citizen Watch Company is the largest watch manufacturer in the world responsible for 22% of total watch production!

In 2018, their revenue stood at $2.93 billion. Also, they have acquired Bulova Watch Company, Frédérique Constant, La Joux-Perret and Arnold & Son to expand their business.

More: What Watches Do Navy SEALs Wear?

Where Are Citizen Watches Made?

Citizen Watch Company is now a gigantuous business organization! Citizen only uses in-house components in all of their watches.

They have 10 different factories all over Japan only to produce the parts and components such as circuits, baseplates, motors, etc. Their movements only come from the Miyota Saku Factory.

Building components such as hands and cases come from Tohuku Kitakami, Tohuku Nishiwaga, and Tohuku Soma factories.

Finally, Citizen assembles all these parts together in their assembly factories in Myoko and Iida Tonooka factories. Then, all the watches go to the Tokorozawa Headquarters for quality and production control.

Are you feeling a bit overwhelmed?

Let me simplify!

In total, Citizen has 18 different factories all over Japan maintain the huge production demand.

But NOT all the watches are manufactured in these Japanese facilities.

Citizen has manufacturing facilities in – China, South Korea, Hong Kong, Brazil, and many other countries.

The corporate family of Citizen Watch Manufacturing Co. Ltd. consists of 234 companies and 57 subsidiaries all over the world.

Yes, Citizen Watch Company is that BIG!

More: Stuhrling Watches Review: Are Stuhrling Watches Any Good?

11 Best Watches from Citizen: Citizen Watch Reviews

Citizen Eco-Drive Movement Men’s Watch – AT8020-54L – Best Overall

Citizen Eco-Drive Movement Men's Watch – AT8020-54L

Citizen Eco-Drive Movement Men’s Watch – AT8020-54L is classic option. It comes with all the standard Citizen watch features.

For example, you are getting the iconic Eco-Drive movement with H800 caliber number. To offer better accuracy, the watch comes with atomic time that syncs with 26 cities around the world. The radio-controlled accuracy in 5 zones only makes the model more accurate.

One thing is sure – Model AT8020-54L doesn’t compromise with time accuracy and precision.

As bonus features, you are getting two chronograph sub-dials – a perpetual calendar and a 1/20 seconds chronograph.  Plus, there’s the date-display sitting at the 3 o’clock position.

The Slide ruling bezel acts as a fuel counter and nautical speed indicator.

The polished stainless-steel body and link bracelet offers a formal look too.

However, I personally felt the display window to be a bit too cluttered! The abundance of features has destroyed the simplicity.

Product Specification

  • Display Type: Analog
  • Movement: Eco-Drive Quartz (H800 Caliber Number)
  • Case Diameter: 43mm
  • Case Thickness: 12.5mm
  • Band Width: 23mm
  • Case Material: Two-Tone Stainless Steel
  • Bezel Material: Stainless Steel
  • Band Material: Stainless Steel
  • Weight: 179g (4 oz)
  • Water-Resistance: 20ATM
  • Model Year: 2013

Notable Features

  • Eco-Drive Quartz (H800 Caliber Number)
  • Two chronograph sub-dials
  • Power reserve indicator
  • Atomic timekeeping synced to 26 major cities
  • Radio-controlled accuracy
  • Perpetual calendar
  • Anti-reflective sapphire crystal protects the dial window
  • Blue ion-plated dial

Pros

  • Superior accuracy
  • Elegant looks
  • High water-resistance performance
  • Sturdy build

Cons

  • Too many functions clutter the dial-window, makes it hard to read things

Citizen Men’s Eco-Drive World Time Atomic Timekeeping – AT9010-52E – The Popular Choice

Citizen Men's Eco-Drive World Time Atomic Timekeeping – AT9010-52E

Citizen Men’s Eco-Drive World Time Atomic Timekeeping – AT9010-52E is a model variant of the previous one. This Model: AT9010-52E came in the same year in 2013 from the same Atomic Timekeeping collection.

Citizen has made some noticeable design-wise changes in this model.

For example, the dial window is much simpler here, reading time is quite easy now. They replaced the blue-ion case plate with an engraved black background. The soothing orange color on the second hand and some of the markers offers a beautiful contrast.

The SS link bracelet is slightly slimmer too.

Citizen used H820 caliber Eco-Drive movement, which is a slight upgrade too. Another noticeable choice was the removal of the chronograph dial. Instead, you are getting 24h dial.

Overall, this model offers more simplicity. That’s why people love this model more than the last one.

Product Specification

  • Display Type: Analog
  • Movement: Eco-Drive Quartz (H820 Caliber Number)
  • Case Diameter: 44mm
  • Case Thickness: 13mm
  • Band Width: 20mm
  • Case Material: Silver-Tone, Stainless Steel
  • Bezel Material: Stainless Steel
  • Band Material: Stainless Steel
  • Weight: 170g (6 oz)
  • Water-Resistance: 20ATM
  • Model Year: 2013

Notable Features

  • Eco-Drive Quartz (H820 Caliber Number)
  • Atomic timekeeping synced to 26 major cities
  • Radio-controlled accuracy
  • Power reserve indicator
  • Dual-time
  • 12/24h time dial
  • Perpetual calendar
  • Anti-reflective sapphire crystal protects the dial window

Pros

  • Superior accuracy
  • Elegant looks with black-orange contrast
  • High water-resistance performance
  • Sturdy build

Cons

  • Doesn’t have chronograph

Citizen Men’s Eco-Drive ProMaster Nighthawk – BJ7000-52E – Budget Aviator Style Watch

Citizen Men's Eco-Drive ProMaster Nighthawk – BJ7000-52E

If you are into the aviator style watches, you are in luck! Citizen Men’s Eco-Drive ProMaster Nighthawk – BJ7000-52E is one of the popular options of aviator-style watches.

The model released in 2001 but Citizen has stopped the production. So, there are only a limited number of watches in the retail market.

The main selling point of this model is in the looks. It celebrates all the elements of a classic aviator watch.

The second hand and dual time indicator hand resembles a plane.

You can control the pilot’s rotating slide with a crown located at 8 o’clock. The regular time-controlling crown stands at the typical 3 o’clock position.

This two-crown design is quite unique, which make the watch stand out.

Product Specification

  • Display Type: Analog
  • Movement: Eco-Drive Quartz (B877 Caliber Number)
  • Case Diameter: 42mm
  • Case Thickness: 13mm
  • Band Width: 22mm
  • Case Material: Two-Tone Stainless Steel
  • Bezel Material: Stainless Steel
  • Band Material: Stainless Steel
  • Water-Resistance: 20ATM
  • Model Year: 2001

Notable Features

  • Eco-Drive Quartz (B877 Caliber Number)
  • Dual-time
  • Date-display
  • Pilot’s rotating slide available, controlled with a separate crown at the 8 o’clock marker
  • Luminous hands
  • Anti-reflective mineral crystal protects the dial window

Pros

  • High accuracy
  • Aviator-style design
  • High water-resistance performance
  • Sturdy build
  • Budget-friendly

Cons

  • Lacks premium features like atomic timekeeping and radio control
  • Lacks chronograph
  • Uses mineral crystal instead of sapphire crystal

Citizen PCAT Eco-Drive Men’s Watch –AT4004-52E – The Masculine Design

Citizen PCAT Eco-Drive Men's Watch –AT4004-52E

Citizen PCAT Eco-Drive Men’s Watch –AT4004-52E is one of the newer models from the brand and offers better accuracy and advanced timekeeping features.

Apart from their special Eco-Drive movement (E650), this watch comes with atomic timekeeping. This atomic timekeeping is adjustment is available in 5 different time-zones.

To offer more functionality, it comes with 1-sec chronograph and a tachymeter on the bezel.

Plus, you can enjoy the premium-grade security of the sapphire crystals on the window.

More: Swiss Precimax Reviews: Is It Worth the Price?

Product Specification

  • Display Type: Analog
  • Movement: Eco-Drive Quartz (E650 Caliber Number)
  • Case Diameter: 42mm
  • Case Thickness: 13mm
  • Band Width: 24mm
  • Case Material: Two-Tone, Stainless Steel
  • Bezel Material: Stainless Steel
  • Band Material: Stainless Steel
  • Weight: 177g (6.24 oz)
  • Water-Resistance: 20ATM
  • Model Year: 2013

Notable Features

  • Eco-Drive Quartz (E650 Caliber Number)
  • 1-sec chronograph that can measure up to 60 minutes
  • Atomic timekeeping
  • Radio-controlled accuracy synced to 5 time-zones
  • Tachymeter bezel
  • Perpetual calendar
  • Anti-reflective sapphire crystal protects the dial window
  • Power reserve indicator
  • Luminous accent on hands and markers

Pros

  • Superior accuracy (one of the best from Citizen)
  • Masculine design philosophy
  • High water-resistance performance
  • Loaded with features
  • Sturdy build

Cons

  • None!

Citizen Eco-Drive Chandler Field Watch – BM8180-03E – Best Budget Military Watch

Citizen Eco-Drive Chandler Field Watch – BM8180-03E

Citizen is more famous for their dress-watches but they have a few sports collections too. The chandler collection is their dedicated series of military watches.

These watches are rugged and simplistic.

Among all others, Citizen Eco-Drive Chandler Field Watch – BM8180-03E is the most popular military watch from Citizen.

The “affordable” price plays a great role here too. This is cheapest model in the Chandler collection.

Every feature of this watch screams out simplicity!

On the dial window, you’ll find the Arabic numerals to mark both the hours and minutes. A day-date display stands at the 3 o’clock marker.

That’s it!

Everything else totally clean – nothing fancy here!

More: Naviforce Watch Review: The Best Entry-Level Watch Series?

Product Specification

  • Display Type: Analog
  • Movement: Eco-Drive Quartz (E101 Caliber Number)
  • Case Diameter: 37.2mm
  • Case Thickness: 9.5mm
  • Band Width: 18mm
  • Case Material: Silver-Tone, Stainless Steel
  • Bezel Material: Stainless Steel
  • Band Material: Nylon
  • Water-Resistance: 10ATM
  • Model Year: 2005

Notable Features

  • Eco-Drive Quartz (E101 Caliber Number)
  • Day-date indicator at 3 o’clock marker
  • Luminous hands and markers
  • Screw down crown

Pros

  • Great accuracy
  • Military-style
  • Nylon strap
  • Minimalistic design
  • Budget-friendly

Cons

  • Lacks a lot of essential features that a military watch should have like stopwatch, countdown timer, or tracking sensors
  • Poor water resistance, not suitable for diving

Citizen Eco-Drive ProMaster Diver – BN0150-28E – Best Diver Watch

Citizen Eco-Drive ProMaster Diver

Almost all the major watch brands in the world now have separate diver series. Citizen meets the challenge with their ProMaster Diver collection.

Rather than following the footsteps of the premium brands, Citizen chose the simplistic path here!

Citizen Eco-Drive ProMaster Diver – BN0150-28E is designed according to the ISO-compliance but at a low-price range.

They used the simple E168 caliber movement to drive the watch. The unidirectional rotating bezel helps to track elapsed time and luminous hands to check time underwater.

Of course, it has great water-resistance performance and there’s a ProMaster crown to ensure better safety.

Product Specification

  • Display Type: Analog
  • Movement: Eco-Drive Quartz (E168 Caliber Number)
  • Case Diameter: 44mm
  • Case Thickness: 12mm
  • Band Width: 20mm
  • Case Material: Silver-Tone, Stainless Steel
  • Bezel Material: Aluminum
  • Band Material: Polyurethane
  • Water-Resistance: 20ATM
  • Model Year: 2017

Notable Features

  • Eco-Drive Quartz (E168 Caliber Number)
  • Date-indicator
  • Unidirectional rotating bezel to track elapsed time
  • Luminous hands and markers
  • Anti-reflective mineral crystal protects the dial window

Pros

  • Great accuracy
  • Minimalistic looks
  • Superior water-resistance performance
  • Sturdy build
  • Waterproof polyurethane strap

Cons

  • Lacks advanced accuracy and timekeeping features

Citizen Watches Drive Perpetual Calendar Chronograph Watch – BL5250-02L – Best Leather Strap Watch

Citizen Watches Drive Perpetual Calendar Chronograph Watch – BL5250-02L

If you are a fan of the leather strap watches like me, you are going to love this one. Citizen Watches Drive Perpetual Calendar Chronograph Watch – BL5250-02L is a watch that speaks boldness, elegance, and style.

The watch is stacked with all the premium timekeeping features that Citizen has under its sleeve – chronograph, tachymeter, rotating bezel, Eco-Drive, and what not!

However, this watch comes with something unique – titanium case and bezel. Titanium is the top-shelf material choice for watches for unique color, lightweight, and strength.

There is a bad news though. Citizen has officially discontinued the production of this watch. So, you might have to search a little harder to find this gem!

Product Specification

  • Display Type: Analog
  • Movement: Eco-Drive Quartz (E812 Caliber Number)
  • Case Diameter: 43mm
  • Case Thickness: 13mm
  • Band Width: 20.3mm
  • Case Material: Silver-Tone, Titanium
  • Bezel Material: Titanium
  • Band Material: Leather with Contrast Stitch
  • Weight: 74g (2.6 oz)
  • Water-Resistance: 20ATM
  • Model Year: 2006

Notable Features

  • Eco-Drive Quartz (E812 Caliber Number)
  • 1/20 sec chronograph sub-dial that can measure up to 60 minutes
  • 12/24-hour time
  • Dual-time
  • Tachymeter
  • Perpetual calendar
  • Anti-reflective mineral crystal protects the dial window
  • Luminous hands

Pros

  • Superior accuracy
  • Bold and elegant looks
  • High water-resistance performance
  • Sturdy build

Cons

  • Rare, hard to find

Citizen Watches Eco-Drive Avion – AW1361-10H – Best Vintage Watch

Citizen Watches Eco-Drive Avion – AW1361-10H

If you are a fan of minimalism, I have another watch for you – Citizen Watches Eco-Drive Avion – AW1361-10H.

The leather strap, the fonts on the markers – everything compliments the vintage style. The ivory-black-orange color combination is quite soothing too.

However, if you are looking for features, you’d be disappointed. The watch doesn’t have any lucrative feature to impress other than the classic look and design.

More: Check Our Detailed Review of Vincero Watches Here

Product Specification

  • Display Type: Analog
  • Movement: Eco-Drive Quartz (J810 Caliber Number)
  • Case Diameter: 45mm
  • Case Thickness: 13mm
  • Band Width: 20.3mm
  • Case Material: Stainless Steel
  • Bezel Material: Stainless Steel
  • Band Material: Leather
  • Weight: 85g (3 oz)
  • Water-Resistance: 10ATM
  • Model Year: 2014

Notable Features

  • Eco-Drive Quartz (J810 Caliber Number)
  • 12/24-hour time
  • Date indicator
  • Luminous hands

Pros

  • Good accuracy
  • Vintage design
  • Decent build quality
  • Lightweight
  • Budget-friendly

Cons

  • Lacks features

Citizen Watches Eco-Drive Chronograph Canvas Watch – AT0200-05E – Best Military Watch

Citizen Watches Eco-Drive Chronograph Canvas Watch – AT0200-05E

This is another model from the chandler collection – Citizen Watches Eco-Drive Chronograph Canvas Watch – AT0200-05E. You might’ve noticed that the previous version was perhaps too simplistic.

A decent military watch should include critical features like stopwatch, countdown timer and 24h time display.

Well, this model offers exactly that!

It’s everything that the previous model was with the chronograph and 24h time display.

Product Specification

  • Display Type: Analog
  • Movement: Eco-Drive Quartz (H500 Caliber Number)
  • Case Diameter: 39mm
  • Case Thickness: 11mm
  • Band Width: 21mm
  • Case Material: Silver-Tone, Stainless Steel
  • Bezel Material: Stainless Steel
  • Band Material: Nylon
  • Weight: 57g (2 oz)
  • Water-Resistance: 10ATM
  • Model Year: 2011

Notable Features

  • Eco-Drive Quartz (H500 Caliber Number)
  • Two chronograph sub-dials
  • 12/24-hour time
  • Luminous hands

Pros

  • Good accuracy
  • Military design
  • Decent build quality
  • Lightweight due to nylon strap
  • Comes with additional features

Cons

  • Not as durable as other military watches
  • Needs more features like tracking sensors

Citizen Watches Men’s ProMaster Skyhawk A-T – JY8078-01L – The Premium Navy Watch

Citizen Watches Men's ProMaster Skyhawk A-T – JY8078-01L

Yes, this is a premium watch coming from Citizen – ProMaster Skyhawk A-T – JY8078-01L.

Citizen has stacked all the engineering effort in this timepiece. The analog-digital combination is quite efficient tracing data while flying.

Functionally, this watch is near perfect. I couldn’t find a single issue or room for improvisation.

But the watch is a bit hefty and the display looks cluttered with all these indicators.

Product Specification

  • Display Type: Analog-Digital
  • Movement: Eco-Drive Quartz (U680 Caliber Number)
  • Case Diameter: 46mm
  • Case Thickness: 15mm
  • Band Width: 22mm
  • Case Material: Two-Tone, Stainless Steel
  • Bezel Material: Stainless Steel
  • Band Material: Stainless Steel
  • Weight: 114g (4 oz)
  • Water-Resistance: 20ATM
  • Model Year: 2018

Notable Features

  • Eco-Drive Quartz (U680 Caliber Number)
  • 1/100 second chronograph measures up to 24 hours
  • Perpetual calendar
  • Dual time
  • Power reserve indicator
  • Atomic timekeeping synced to 43 major cities
  • Radio-controlled accuracy
  • Digital backlight with UTC display
  • Anti-reflective sapphire crystal protects the dial window
  • Pilot’s rotating slide rule bezel

Pros

  • Superior accuracy
  • Bold looks to match the reputation of Navy’s elite flight demonstration squadron
  • High water-resistance performance
  • Sturdy build
  • Most feature-rich collection from Citizen

Cons

  • Too many functions clutter the dial-window, makes it hard to read things

Citizen Men’s Eco-Drive NaviHawk Atomic Timekeeping – JY8035-04E – Most Advanced Navy Watch

Citizen Men's Eco-Drive NaviHawk Atomic Timekeeping – JY8035-04E

Citizen Men’s Eco-Drive NaviHawk Atomic Timekeeping – JY8035-04E is very similar to the last model but with a few changes in features!

It ditches the metal link bracelet with a polyethylene strap to offer more ruggedness. Plus, there is a button at 8 o’clock marker for time control. The radio-control time synchronization is missing too.

Plus, it uses a mineral crystal instead of the sapphire crystal for protection.

Product Specification

  • Display Type: Analog-Digital
  • Movement: Eco-Drive Quartz (U680 Caliber Number)
  • Case Diameter: 48mm
  • Case Thickness: 13mm
  • Band Width: 23mm
  • Case Material: Stainless Steel with Black Ion Plating
  • Bezel Material: Stainless Steel with Black Ion Plating
  • Band Material: Polyurethane
  • Weight: 114g (4 oz)
  • Water-Resistance: 20ATM
  • Model Year: 2013

Notable Features

  • Eco-Drive Quartz (U680 Caliber Number)
  • 1/100 second chronograph measures up to 24 hours
  • Perpetual calendar
  • Dual time
  • Power reserve indicator
  • Atomic timekeeping synced to 43 major cities
  • Digital backlight with UTC display
  • Anti-reflective mineral crystal protects the dial window
  • Pilot’s rotating slide rule bezel
  • 99-minute countdown timer

Pros

  • Superior accuracy
  • Bold looks to match the reputation of Navy’s elite flight demonstration squadron
  • High water-resistance performance
  • Sturdy build
  • Most feature-rich collection from Citizen

Cons

  • Too many functions clutter the dial-window, makes it hard to read things

Is Citizen A Good Watch Brand?

Undoubtedly, YES!

As I said, Citizen Watch Company is the biggest one in the world in terms of sales and production. You can’t call a company of this caliber and rich history to be a poor brand.

A few people doubt them in Citizen watch reviews because of the cheap pricing. But you need to understand that better quality at a cheaper price is the main motto behind the foundation of the brand.

Citizen introduced light-powered Eco-Drive movement and found a great solution to the battery issue of the quartz movement.

Atomic clock synchronization and radio-control features are also quite fascinating.  

You can also count on their timepiece to be durable and sturdy. Most of their collection comes with stainless steel case and bezel.

I will not say that Citizen is the toughest watch brand out there. Of course, Casio G-Shock reigns supreme in that category. But it’s strong enough.

Another strong suit of the Citizen watches is the case window. Citizen only uses sapphire crystals to offer strength and clarity. Some other brands use synthetic sapphire instead of the actual mineral.

Citizen watches don’t cheap out in this case. Also, the 5-year international warranty sounds really appealing.

So, what does that mean? Is Citizen the best watch brand in terms of quality?

NO!

The biggest flaw in these watches is the issue of accuracy. Their Eco-Drive movement gains ± 10 seconds every month as it’s a specialized quartz movement. You won’t find such issues in the superior Swiss brands.

Plus, a lot of users have complaints against durability and build quality. A lot of people have even suffered because of their poor post-purchase services.

Then again, you need to look at the pricing. Most of their top-end watches stand somewhere around the $500 price range, while some luxury models sit around $1000 range.

I would call Citizen to be “great value” brand.

Again, are Citizen watches good?

Yes, at sub-thousand dollars price range, no other watch brand can offer such impeccable quality.

What did We like About the Citizen Watch Brand?

There is a lot to like about Citizen watches.

The obvious one is the Eco-Drive quartz movement. Quartz movement has always been the go-to option for cutting down the manufacturing cost of the watches.

But the biggest problem with the quartz movement is that it needs a battery to keep the quartz vibrating. Seiko started using solar batteries, but it’s not a great solution for wristwatches.

Citizen’s Eco-Drive, on the other hand, can use any source of light to quartz movement running. So, these watches will keep running perpetually (if nothing else happens).

Despite being a popular choice, quartz movement gains time. Citizen tackles the issue with the atomic timekeeping technology that syncs with multiple time-zones to offer better accuracy.

Finally, you need to give credit to their design team. Citizen watches have always been good looking. Their multi-tone or silver-tone finish and stainless-steel case choice gives the watch more elegance.

Some models even come with titanium casing and bezel for superior strength and look.

But the most lucrative prospect of the Citizen watches is the pricing policy. It’s really praiseworthy that even after more than hundred years of operation, Citizen hasn’t compromised with the core value.

Still, they thrive on making high-quality watches at an affordable range so that every Citizen can own a Citizen!

Is Citizen a good watch brand? To me, yes.

More: Check our detailed review of Invicta Watches Here

What We DON’T Like About the Citizen Watch Brand?

Citizen Watch Company has grown so big that they can’t (or maybe don’t) pay heed to all the voices from all the individual customers.

The biggest complaint against the brand is that their customer service team is NOT FRIENDLY ENOUGH!

Plus, a significant portion of the customers are complaining about the build quality of the Citizen watches recently.  

Maybe that’s why people are asking – is Citizen watch good?

The 5-year international warranty should help you out in these cases. Still, a brand like Citizen should not allow such manufacturing defects.

Conclusion

So, what is the best Citizen watch of all?

I would place Citizen Eco-Drive Movement Men’s Watch – AT8020-54L at top. Then, Citizen Men’s Eco-Drive World Time Atomic Timekeeping – AT9010-52E comes next.

And, finally, Citizen Men’s Eco-Drive ProMaster Nighthawk – BJ7000-52E sits at the third place.

What do you think?

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