Citizen Tsuyosa Review

The Citizen Tsuyosa debuted back in 2022 as an integrated bracelet watch with a mechanical movement that was truly affordable with a price under $500. While the Tsuyosa collection was initially a little difficult to get in the US, Citizen started to ship these watches to the States a few months after the initial release. Since then it’s been a popular enough watch although I do think it has eluded the runaway cult classic success of something like the Tissot PRX for reasons that could have to do with marketing as well as a more subdued design that is more dress watch than a retro-inspired sports watch. There have been a couple of iterations of the Tsuyosa since it was released including a slightly more premium central seconds model and a smaller 37mm iteration released earlier in 2025. I will address both of these at the end of the article with a breakdown of what’s different, better, and worse from the standard 40mm reviewed here.

The Citizen Tsuyosa finds some inspiration from the old NH299 series which was popular in the late ‘90s and early 2000s. The one design touch that separates the Tsuyosa from a lot of its competitors was also borrowed from the NH299: the small off-center crown seen at 4 o’clock. As a brief aside, I know some people cannot stand a crown at 4 o’clock due to symmetry but I would argue a large protruding crown at 3 o’clock creates far more asymmetry than one sitting so flushly at 4 o’clock. So, let’s get into the Citizen Tsuyosa and why it’s one of the more underrated value props out there today.

Citizen Tsuyosa Case And Bracelet

The Citizen Tsuyosa comes in a stainless steel case measuring 40mm wide and 11.8mm thick with a lug-to-lug measurement of 45mm (with 50 m of water resistance). Note that the lug-to-lug measurement is, on paper, quite modest for a 40mm watch. In fact, it’s the almost identical to that of the 40mm Tissot PRX which comes in at a 44.6mm L2L measurement or something like the 38mm Omega Railmaster which has a 44.9mm L2L.

That said, I would take the Tsuyosa’s L2L with a grain of salt for two reasons. The first is the fixed center link which does not factor into the L2L measurement but certainly adds to the size. Second, while the bracelet does taper down to 18mm from the 22mm lug width, it only does so at the point where the links are pretty close to the clasp. For visual and wearing purposes on the wrist, all the visible links on the wrist are 22mm wide. Fortunately, the aforementioned crown does help keep things under control when it comes to case size wearability. While appreciate that the grooved notch below the crown is intended to help get a grip on it, it’s still not super easy to operate. That said, I still give an edge to the aesthetics over the slight reduction in tactile ease here.

The case itself is well-finished with alternating brushed and polished surfaces and some crisp sharp angles with chamfering that create a clean look. The three-link bracelet is nicely done with brushed outer links and polished center links. That said, the clasp does leave something to be desired with its stamped finish (milled would have been really nice) though the three micro-adjustment holes are certainly appreciated. The tolerance for the steel links on this bracelet aren’t anything to write home about and it does feel like the decent sized gaps give a more “jangly” look (though in the metal, it’s less so). Of course, all these criticisms come back to the price point of the watch.

Citizen Tsuyosa Dial

The Citizen Tsuyosa dial is all about simplicity and legibility. Some people find that the dial looks a little too much like the Rolex Datejust with those baton hands and cyclops magnification lens over the date window at 3 o’clock and I really can’t argue with anyone who feels this way. Personally, I think it’s such a staid and traditional dial design that it’s a bit of a stretch to compare it to a watch that costs 20x the price. I think the raised hour indices do add a nice touch of dimensionality to the dial and the lume is decent.

I was happy to see Citizen offer a variety of dial colors and continue to add to the options which began with black, blue, turquoise, green, and a vibrant yellow initially and later had orange, white, and gradient blue and red options. All the dials have a nice brushed sunray finish which is subtle but appreciated.

Citizen Tsuyosa Movement

The Citizen Group owns Miyota so it should be no surprise to see the Miyota 8215 here in the form of the Citizen Caliber 8210. Yes, this does technically make it an “in-house movement” if one were to be very literal about the designation. This movement is a well-known automatic caliber that epitomizes the “workhorse” trope which is, quite frankly, well earned. The 8210 operates at 3 Hz and has a 40-hour power reserve. While the initial supply of the Tsuyosa was outfitted with the classic Miyota movement, recent production models seem to have an updated version of the movement that features hacking seconds. Finally, it is rated to an accuracy of -20/+40 seconds/day but it does handily exceed this when tested to +7/+11 seconds/day. Of course, your mileage may vary here so this is more just anecdotal.

As for finishing, things are pretty spartan here. I do have to admit that I like the industrial look that comes from the gold-tone finish on the movement which almost looks like a rustic brass. Still, it’s really not much to look at but the color does at least help it stand out from the crowd a bit.

Iterations

Image by Citizen

Citizen did introduce another version of the Tsuyosa earlier this year which addresses the concerns about the size of the watch. This new 37mm iteration is largely unchanged from its bigger sibling (including the same movement) with the exception of the smaller case size and the fact that the crown does jut out a bit more which is a shame. As for case specs, it is 37mm wide and 11.5mm thick (so .3mm thinner) with a more manageable and unisex L2L measurement of 43mm. The 37mm dial colors are different from the 40 with options coming in ice blue, pastel pink, dark green, purple, and dark blue.

There was also the Tsuyosa Small Seconds that has some more refinement on the dial finishing, movement, and bracelet. The case shares the same specs as the center seconds 40mm model although the crown sticks out a little bit more which some may see as a benefit when actually operating it. Anyone who found the simple dial of the Tsuyosa to be too, well, simple, should be happy with the small seconds version. These have a lovely stamped guilloché pattern dial with a nicely contrasting seconds sub-dial at 6 o’clock which kind of reminds me of the whimsical Bauhaus design language we see from Nomos. These come in a blue dial variant with blue seconds hand, a light khaki green with orange seconds hand, and grey with a black seconds hand.

The bracelet is much improved largely due to the quick change system which allows you to change it out for something different. And while Citizen is offering a leather strap option, I would still stick to the bracelet here as the strap actually pulls out the center link and adds 1mm to the case height. Also, the biggest weakness of the standard 40mm Tsuyosa bracelet is gone with a new butterfly clasp with a dual button lock system. It does lose the micro-adjust capability but the ability to add half links should make up for it.

Finally, the Tsuyosa Small Seconds has a different movement with the Caliber 8322 which has hacking seconds, operates at 3 Hz, and has a heftier 60-hour power reserve. Finishing is still industrial but has more flair with touches like a skeletonized rotor, striping, and blued screws. Yes, these are significantly more expensive at $625 (and tend to sell out quickly) but you do get a lot more watch for the money.

Final Thoughts

The Citizen Tsuyosa is a solid entry level integrated bracelet mechanical watch if you’re looking for classic versatile design. It is a particularly competitive segment, though, especially with the aforementioned Tissot PRX (which we reviewed here). Still, the 40mm PRX with the Powermatic 80 movement comes in at $775 which is significantly more expensive than the $450 retail price of the Citizen Tsuyosa (and even more so when considering the Tsuyosa can readily be had for less than $400) and $150 more than the Tsuyosa Central Seconds.

I think if Citizen were to put it’s considerable resources into moderate improvements on the bracelet clasp and boost water resistance to 100m, the Tsuyosa would be a bonafide hit. The dial and its color options are excellent and even the case proportions and movement are good enough for the Tsuyosa to be one of the better value propositions at the entry level.