Blog / Technology
By the Fine Watch Guide team · · 5 min read
Watch ceramic is usually zirconium dioxide, pressed or molded from powder, colored with pigment and fired until it's extremely hard. That's why a ceramic bezel resists scratches and sun fading far better than aluminum. The trade-off is brittleness: ceramic rarely scratches, but a hard knock can chip or crack it, and a damaged part generally has to be replaced rather than refinished.
The ceramic in most luxury watches is zirconium dioxide, also called zirconia. According to the American Ceramic Society, the typical process is to press ceramic powder into shape, add pigments, sinter it at high temperature, mill it to its final form and then polish it. SJX's launch report on the Omega Seamaster Diver 300M Black Black describes its ceramic parts as sintered, sculpted and sanded, and lists the material as ZrO2.
Some brands use related materials. Rado's Ceramos is described as roughly 90 percent ceramic and 10 percent metal alloy, and Omega has used a cermet that combines alumina and tungsten carbide. The takeaway for owners is that 'ceramic' covers a family of materials, and each brand's version behaves a little differently.
Color comes from mineral pigments mixed into the powder before firing, so it runs through the material instead of sitting on top as a coating. That's the reason a ceramic insert doesn't peel or fade the way a painted or anodized aluminum one can. One retailer guide to Rolex bezels describes the firing as roughly 1,600 degrees Celsius, with the part shrinking by around a quarter as it hardens, after which each insert is machined to final size. Rado's process is similar: injection molded, then sintered at 1,450 degrees Celsius with about 23 percent shrinkage.
The engraved numerals and graduations are then filled. Bob's Watches describes the graduations on Rolex inserts as filled with PVD-deposited platinum or gold. Rolex also makes two-color inserts as one piece instead of joining two parts, because a joint would be a weak point.
Rolex introduced its Cerachrom ceramic in 2005 on the yellow gold GMT-Master II, reference 116718LN, made for the model's 50th anniversary. The stainless steel GMT-Master II 116710LN followed in 2007. The first two-color monobloc inserts, blue and black, arrived in 2013, and the red and blue version in 2014. Some outlets give slightly different debut years, so treat the exact dates as approximate.
Today ceramic bezels are found on the Submariner (including references 126610LN, 126610LV and 124060), the GMT-Master II, the Cosmograph Daytona 116500LN and the Yacht-Master, among others. The old aluminum inserts did scratch, dent and fade, with black turning grey or brown and red fading to pink. That fading is exactly what collectors now pay for: a vintage Submariner 5512 with an original aluminum insert showed a $17,495 median sold price in the Bob's Watches guide, above the $15,995 it listed for the current 126610.
A ceramic bezel on a steel case is the common setup. Breitling's Superocean 44 Special, for example, was reported by aBlogtoWatch with a black ceramic bezel described as a solid mono-block piece of ceramic, on a case priced at $4,980 with a COSC-certified Caliber 17. Retailer listings show steel Panerai Submersible references such as the PAM00683 with a black ceramic bezel, and Panerai has also offered the Submersible Luminor 1950 3 Days Ceramica (PAM00508), a 47 mm watch with a case made from zirconium oxide ceramic.
Omega goes further. The Seamaster Diver 300M Black Black (210.92.44.20.01.003) has a black ceramic dial, bezel, case middle and case back. It measures 43.5 mm across, is 14.47 mm tall, and launched at US$8,650 with the Caliber 8806 Master Chronometer, which carries a silicon hairspring and resists more than 15,000 gauss. Tudor's Black Bay Ceramic has a 41 mm matte black ceramic case, a ceramic bezel disc in a black PVD steel ring, 200 m water resistance and the METAS-certified MT5602-U. The second-generation version shown at Watches and Wonders 2026 adds a full ceramic bracelet and was reported at USD 7,725.
Hublot takes a different route. Its Magic Gold, according to the American Ceramic Society, injects molten 24K gold into the pores of a ceramic body, so the result is a scratch-resistant gold material instead of a traditional ceramic watch.
Close to it, in everyday wear. Sintered Rado parts, for example, reach about 1,250 Vickers according to the American Ceramic Society, well above what steel manages, so desk edges and door frames that would mark a steel bezel leave ceramic alone. Only something harder, such as a diamond, will mark it, which is why Rolex describes Cerachrom as virtually scratchproof.
Color stays put too. Because the pigment is part of the material, UV light doesn't bleach it. An aluminum insert, by contrast, gradually shifts in sunlight. If you want a bezel that looks the same in ten years, ceramic delivers. If you want a watch that tells the story of its wear, it won't.
This is the trade-off. Hardness and toughness aren't the same thing, and ceramic is hard but brittle. The American Ceramic Society notes that a drop onto a hard surface can crack or chip a ceramic watch, and the damaged part typically has to be completely replaced. You can't polish a chip out the way a watchmaker can blend a scratch out of steel, so repair means a new insert, or for a ceramic case a new case component.
Ceramic bracelets raise the same concern. Watch Collecting Lifestyle called the dual-folding ceramic clasp on the Tudor Black Bay Ceramic technically challenging because of the material's brittleness.
Replacement pricing is typically quoted per watch after inspection, so ask for a written estimate before agreeing to anything.
Look at the bezel edge under a bright light and a loupe, especially at the 12 o'clock marker and along the coin-edge grip where knocks land. Hairline cracks and tiny chips show up as bright flecks or lines that don't move with the reflection. Run a fingernail lightly over the edge too.
Check that the bezel's color matches across the whole ring and that the numerals are crisp. A replaced insert on a pre-owned piece is not a flaw if it's disclosed, but it should be priced in. On an all-ceramic case, inspect the lug tips, the crown guards and the case back, because those corners take the knocks. A watchmaker or authentication service can confirm whether parts are original.
Scratches are rare, and a chip or crack can't be polished away. The usual fix is replacing the insert, with the cost quoted after inspection.
No. The pigment is mixed into the material before firing, so sunlight doesn't bleach it the way it can an aluminum insert.
Not by itself. Magnetic resistance comes mostly from the movement, such as the silicon hairspring and non-ferrous parts in Omega's Caliber 8806.
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