The Best Two-Tone Watches

Ask someone what they think of two-tone watches — timepieces with part-steel and part-gold (or gold-tone) cases — and the results are somewhat predictable: “Used-car salesman” is a term that’s thrown around quite a bit, as are vague remembrances of, or references to, that horrid age of sartorial squalor that was the 1980s. (Don’t @ me.) 

But rewind the clock far enough and you’re faced with some truly spectacular two-tone watches: Rolex chronographs from the 1940s, for example, or gorgeous Patek Philippe dress watches born a healthy half-century before Miami was particularly Vice-ridden. Two-tone can be beautiful, and two-tone can be…not. The difference is in both the execution, and — more importantly — in the eye of the beholder.

While two-tone watches traditionally involve solid (or capped) gold mixed with stainless steel — a case made of the latter with a crown, bezel and bracelet links made of the former, say — things have democratized somewhat. These days, you can find two-tone watches in gold-tone metal, or ones in which the gold is applied in physical vapor deposition form. This means that two-tone as an aesthetic is available at a much wider price range — which is great news for the Thomas Magnum impersonators. (We couldn’t help ourselves.)

So pull up your Ferrari 308 GTS, turn up the hair metal and get ready for a survey of some of the best two-tone watches on the market. 

Someone in search of the two-tone look who doesn’t want to fork over a month’s salary for actual gold would be well served by the Citizen Tsuyosa 60. Coming in at 40mm in stainless steel, it features gold-tone accents on its smooth bezel, a small crown positioned at 4 o’clock and the inner links of its five-link integrated bracelet. Powered by the automatic Citizen cal. 8310 automatic movement, it has a handsome green sunray-pattern dial with applied indices, plenty of lume and a magnified date window at 3 o’clock. Pretty great for well under $700, if you ask us!

It’s tough to argue with the spec-to-price ratio of the Squale Matic S, a slimmed-down take on the beloved Swiss brand’s Matic line of tough, chunky dive watches. The Matic S Two-Tone Bracelet is particularly well suited to fans of peak-‘80s street style: You get a 39.5mm stainless steel case with a gold PVD crown, gold PVD bracelet links and gold-tone accents on the enameled steel bezel insert. Gold-tone dial furniture extends the look to the watch’s black dial, while a tried-and-true Sellita cal. SW 200-1 automatic keeps things ticking along nicely. Water resistant to 600m, this is a watch that you most certainly do not have to baby. 

Tissot managed to deliver one of the coolest two-tone looks to hit the market in years — and at a hair under $2,500, it’s also one of the most affordable. Though it sits well above the cost of the brand’s average PRX — its 1970s-inspired integrated-bracelet sports watch — it’s well worth the price of admission for its combination of sleek, vertically brushed steel; a deep blue dial and an 18K rose gold fluted bezel with matching dial furniture. Subtle and handsome, it’s powered by the Powermatic 80 — an automatic caliber with 80 hours of power reserve — and water resistant down to 100m. 

Rado’s Captain Cook exists in plenty of attractive guises, not least of which is the new Captain Cook x European Cricket Special Edition. Celebrating the brand’s status as Official Timing Partner of European Cricket, it features yellow gold PVD throughout its stainless steel bracelet’s center links; on its large winding crown and on the rehaut beneath its box-shaped sapphire crystal. On its blue-black dial, three golden dots resemble cricket stumps and red accents recall leather cricket balls of the same color. Large at 42mm in diameter, it packs a punch with 300m of water resistance and the Rado cal. R763 automatic movement with 80 hours of power reserve.

Honoring the brand’s first dual-time watch from 1925, the Longines Spirit Zulu Time 1925 offers an elegant solution for frequent travelers in a multitude of guises. The two-tone version seen here is particularly fetching: Mixing a 39mm stainless steel case and matching bracelet with brushed and polished surfaces, it features an 18K rose-gold-capped 24-hour bezel which, when used in conjunction with the matching GMT hand, can be used to track a second time zone. Further gold accents throughout the black dial extend the two-tone look, while the lack of crown guards makes for a silhouette reminiscent of 1950s tool watch classics.

Speaking of travel watches — few offer the good looks, robust construction and historical callbacks of Tudor’s Black Bay GMT series. The steel-and-gold model on its matching black fabric strap with beige accents is particularly cool: Measuring 41mm in diameter, it features a steel crown covered with a yellow-gold cap; a steel bezel with a graduated matte brown and black anodized aluminum 24-hour scale with a yellow-gold cap and a gold-tone dial furniture with a matching “gilt” minute track. Lighter on its feet than a bracelet-equipped watch, it’s the ideal companion for an active, outdoorsy type who frequently crosses time zones.

For the full Gordon Gekko effect, nothing beats a Santos de Cartier. You can tone down the flair somewhat by choosing a two-tone version rather than a solid-gold option — this small-size 27mm iteration, for example, still packs quite a punch despite its size. Housed in a stainless steel case with 18K yellow gold accents throughout its bezel and riveted bracelet, it features a classic Cartier sunray dial with black Roman numerals, an inner railroad minute track and blued steel sword hands. Compact and quartz-powered, it’s just 7.08mm tall — perfectly for slipping under the cuff of a great suit.

Want to capture a bit of James Bond’s swagger but prefer to do it with a bit more flash? Try this two-tone version of the famed Seamaster Diver 300M on for size. Sedna Gold accents throughout the watch’s matching steel bracelet; on its dual crowns; within the Ceragold diving scale on its black ceramic bezel and on its dial furniture help dress it up, while a cool black “wave” dial with date window at 6 o’clock ties everything back to mid-‘90s, Brosnan-era 007. Meanwhile, a Master Chronometer-signed movement and 300m of water resistance ensure that it can take a licking and keep on ticking.

Given the Breitling Chronomat’s 1980s roots, this two-tone version could scarcely be more appropriate to the period in which it was designed. Funky and idiosyncratic, the design features a 42mm stainless steel case with 18K red gold pushers, crown, bezel with classic “rider tabs” and striping throughout its Rouleaux bracelet links. Its light brown sunray dial — complemented with black chronograph totalizers, gold-tone dial furniture and an outer tachymeter scale — is unusual and luxurious, while the Breitling Manufacture cal. B01 automatic movement provides COSC-certified, in-house power.

A two-tone Rolex may be the ultimate ‘80s watch — but that doesn’t mean that this particular look is stuck in the past. Check out this rad Rolex Datejust 36 ref. 126201-0053, for example: measuring 36mm — the “DJ’s” classic size — it features mixed Oystersteel and Everose gold construction throughout smooth bezel, screw-down crow and matching Jubilee bracelet, plus a gorgeous chocolate-brown sunray dial with diamond-set indices in 18K gold settings. Inside is the Rolex cal. 3235, an automatic movement with 70 hours of power reserve, hacking and an instantaneous date feature with quickset.

Inspired by the St. Moritz watch collection from 1980, Chopard’s Alpine Eagle is a luxury sports watch for the modern age. This gorgeous two-tone version — which measures just 33mm in diameter and 7.95mm thick — is appropriate and comfortable for virtually any wrist size. Crafted from the brand’s Lucent Steel and 18K rose gold, it boasts a handsome integrated-bracelet design with brushed steel links and gold center links, plus a matching gold bezel and crown. The silver dial’s signature pattern is modeled after an eagle’s iris, while the Chronometer-certified Chopard cal. 09.01-C automatic movement provides plenty of power.

Launched in late 2024, the Cubitus was Patek Philippe’s first new watch collection in 25 years. Since then, new evolutions have continued to capture horological mindshare, appearing on the wrists of celebrities and dedicated collectors alike. The two-tone ref. 5821-1ar-001 is no slouch: Coming in at 45mm, it boasts plenty of real estate with which to show off its potent mix of rose gold and stainless steel. The real star of the show, however, is the deep blue dial in a horizontally embossed texture. And at just 8.3mm despite an automatic movement, it’s elegant enough to blend right in with whatever you’re wearing.

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