The very best Garmin watches for 2025

Few manufacturers are as synonymous with out of doors sports activities as Garmin. You’ll discover these health trackers and smartwatches on dozens of wrists at any 5K, marathon, or Ironman. You’ll additionally discover Garmin devotees amongst divers, thru-hikers, golfers, kiteboarders — you title it. However these units aren’t simply for athletes. The corporate’s made important strides in its life-style choices, so no matter your health stage, there’s a Garmin for everybody.

For those who’re coming from a extra conventional smartwatch, Garmin’s core strengths lie in health, GPS, adventuring, and sturdiness. These are hardy units that are supposed to stand up to the weather and final weeks on a single cost. A number of fashions include offline maps, superior navigational options, and extra coaching metrics than some other platform. Garmin units are usually on the pricier facet, and the corporate introduced in March 2025 that it will start placing its latest options behind a paywall. That’s a bummer given Garmin spent years publicly stating it had no intention of charging its customers further.

Garmins aren’t too shabby on smarts, both. Whereas extra fitness-focused than something from Apple, Google, or Samsung, there’s sufficient to get you the fundamentals like notifications after which some. For instance, most Garmins have fall detection and security options, and a number of other Garmins launched since 2023 have an FDA-cleared EKG function. (You’ll want a telephone available, nonetheless, as just one Garmin mannequin has mobile connectivity.) Many Garmin units additionally help offline music playback and include a small third-party app ecosystem.

There are a lot of Garmin watches to select from. No, critically, there are six main lineups, and every has a large number of fashions. However no worries — I take a look at a number of Garmins yearly and may also help level you in the suitable course.

The very best Garmin for runners

Sizes: 42mm w/ 18mm straps; 46mm w/ 22mm straps / Weight: 39g (42mm); 47g (46mm) / Battery life: As much as 15 days (42mm); 13 days (46mm) in smartwatch mode / Show sort: OLED touchscreen / GPS: All-systems GNSS and dual-frequency GPS / Connectivity: Bluetooth, Ant Plus, Wi-Fi / Water resistance: 5ATM / Music storage: 8GB

Garmin has many operating watches, and a number of them are nice. However the Forerunner 265 or 265S (in case you have petite wrists) strikes a superb steadiness between value, function set, and battery life. Its vibrant OLED show additionally impressed us. We obtained a couple of week on a single cost with always-on show enabled, and as much as 15 days with that setting turned off.

The 265 has dual-frequency GPS (also called multi-band), which will get you get far more correct maps in difficult environments like cities and dense forests as a result of you possibly can entry each the L1 and L5 satellite tv for pc frequencies. You don’t lose an entire lot of battery life with dual-frequency GPS enabled. I wore it throughout a half marathon with that and the AOD enabled, and I nonetheless had over 80 % battery by the point I obtained dwelling. That is additionally a superb value, as nearly all of multi-band GPS watches price effectively over $600.

My fundamental criticism is that $450 (exterior of a deal, a minimum of), whereas not unhealthy for Garmin, remains to be quite a bit when you think about that’s the identical value as smarter smartwatches with nice operating options. Some runners gained’t care. However should you’re on a finances — otherwise you’re new to operating and really feel iffy about spending that a lot — then take into account the Forerunner 165 collection. It begins at $249.99 (add one other $50 for onboard music) and does nearly all the pieces the 265 collection does. The principle stuff you’re lacking are dual-frequency GPS and some extra area of interest sport profiles. However should you’re largely sticking to operating, health club gear, biking, swimming, and mountain climbing, you’re lined.

Neither has all of Garmin’s coaching options, nevertheless it’s obtained what you’ll must run something from a 5K to a full marathon. That features a Race Predictor, which supplies you an estimate of what your greatest time could be based mostly in your precise coaching. You may also use PacePro to determine your pacing technique for a race. You additionally get Garmin’s Coaching Readiness function to assist gauge load and restoration, Garmin Coach plans, and a number of operating kind metrics. It additionally helps offline music and security options like fall detection. The one factor they lack is superior mapping. (They nonetheless have trackback, point-to-point navigation, and real-time breadcrumb path help, nonetheless.)

However, in case your finances permits, you could possibly additionally take into account the Forerunner 570 and Forerunner 970, which have been launched in June and price $549.99 and $749.99, respectively. Each fashions have a built-in speaker and microphone, OLED display screen, pores and skin temperature sensors, flashlight, and built-in EKG reader with atrial fibrillation detection. In addition they provide you with a each day night report with recommendations on how a lot sleep it is best to get, plus a digest of your upcoming occasions, exercises, and the climate. You additionally get entry to Garmin Coach, a free multipart exercise program, which lets you add your course and obtain notifications once you’ve hit sure distance benchmarks.

Whereas each smartwatches have quite a bit in widespread, they do have some key variations, the principle being that the 970 has maps. The Forerunner 570 is available in 42mm and 47mm sizes, and Garmin says its battery lasts as much as 10 or 11 days based mostly on which mannequin you choose (with the always-on show off.) The Forerunner 970 solely is available in a 47mm measurement, and Garmin says it might probably last as long as 15 days per cost. The Forerunner 970 additionally contains three unique metrics: operating tolerance, operating economic system, and pace step loss.

These three instruments offers you a weekly most mileage suggestion (with the choice to regulate it up or down), and assess operating effectivity. The operating economic system and step pace loss options require Garmin’s $169.99 HRM 600 coronary heart charge monitor.

The Forerunner 570 is a particular step up from the Forerunner 265, however not a large enough leap to advocate it to everybody as a substitute of that mannequin, particularly as a result of it doesn’t provide offline maps. The Forerunner 970 could also be overkill for all however probably the most avid runners, nevertheless it’s good to see Garmin frequently including options to the highest of its line.

The very best Garmin for endurance sports activities

Sizes: 42mm w/ 20mm straps; 47mm w/ 22mm straps; 51mm w/ 26mm straps / Weight: 42mm: 63g chrome steel, 58g titanium; 47mm: 78g chrome steel, 70g titanium; 51mm: 98g chrome steel, 88g titanium / Battery life: 42mm: as much as 10 days (4 with AOD); 47mm: as much as 16 days (6 with AOD); 51mm: as much as 31 days (11 with AOD) / Show sort: OLED / GPS: All-systems GNSS and dual-frequency GPS / Connectivity: Bluetooth, Ant Plus, Wi-Fi / Water resistance: 10ATM / Music storage: As much as 32GB

The Epix Professional will get you most health options Garmin needed to provide, plus topographical maps, turn-by-turn navigation, and extra coaching metrics than even a seasoned triathlete would know what to do with.

The Professional is extra size-inclusive than the usual second-gen Epix, which solely is available in 47mm. You will get the Professional in that measurement, too, nevertheless it additionally is available in 42mm and 51mm. This was a significant criticism I had with the second-gen Epix, and also you like to see firms truly take this type of factor critically. The very best half is that the Professional fashions begin on the identical value because the common Epix did. You’ll must pay $100 further for supplies like titanium and sapphire crystal, however that’s additionally true of the usual Epix.

That stated, it muddies the waters should you’re attempting to choose between the Epix Professional, Fenix 7, Fenix 7 Professional, and now, the Fenix 8. The principle distinction is that the Epix watches all have OLED shows. One purpose I desire OLED screens is that they’re a lot simpler to learn indoors — the place most of us spend nearly all of our time. The Fenix 7 collection’ memory-in-pixel shows (plus photo voltaic charging should you go for it) enable for weeks and weeks of cost, however the smallest Epix Professional can get round 10 days with regular utilization. The 47mm and 51mm Professional fashions can go longer between expenses as a result of larger batteries, however I felt that the 42mm has sufficient juice to fulfill most use instances. Garmin additionally has so many battery-saving modes and choices that I extremely doubt this may ever be a problem.

Not serving to issues is the truth that the Fenix 8 allows you to select between an OLED and an MIP show. You additionally get good options like an onboard voice assistant, the power to take calls from the wrist, and the Garmin Messenger app. The principle downside is that the beginning value is now $350 extra (barring any offers) than the usual Fenix 7 and proper about on par with the Epix Professional. My private feeling is that the Fenix 8’s good options are simply okay and that you simply’re actually not lacking a lot by not having them. We additionally usually see reductions on older fashions, so I’d placed on my bargain-hunting hat for a reduced Epix Professional or Fenix 7 Professional whereas stock remains to be accessible.

However actually, the successful function of the Epix Professional is the hands-free flashlight. It’s so helpful in my day-to-day life, and all it’s important to do is double-press a button. It’s as shiny as your smartphone, comes with a purple gentle possibility if you’d like one thing simpler on the eyes, and might act as a strobe in an emergency scenario. The Fenix 7 Professional and eight watches even have a flashlight, so a number of that is going to return down to private desire for the show, value, and whether or not you care about good options.

We haven’t had an opportunity to get our palms on it but, however Garmin additionally lately introduced the Fenix 8 Professional. The watch, which begins at $1,199.99, is accessible in 47mm and 51mm sizes with both an OLED or MicroLED show. All fashions function LTE and satellite tv for pc connectivity, which prices $7.99 a month and lets you ship textual content and voice messages by means of the Garmin Messenger app when your telephone is unavailable. The expanded connectivity additionally allows LiveTrack location sharing and entry to real-time climate forecasts, in addition to SOS requests, which get routed to Garmin’s Response Heart and emergency companies within the occasion of an emergency.

For those who’re set on getting probably the most battery life doable, I like to recommend the Fenix 7 Professional over the usual 7 for just a few causes. Its MIP show is barely brighter, all sizes have the flashlight, and, just like the Epix Professional, it has an up to date sensor array. I additionally advocate it over the MIP variations of the Fenix 8 as a result of it is available in extra sizes, and prices round $300 much less. Particularly because the Fenix 8’s good options are a bit half-baked.

The very best Garmin for these on a finances

Sizes: 40mm w/ 20mm straps / Weight: 19g / Battery life: As much as 5 days / Show sort: “Hidden” OLED touchscreen / GPS: Tethered GPS / Connectivity: Bluetooth, Ant Plus / Water resistance: 5ATM / Music storage: N/A

What I really like most in regards to the Vivomove Sport is that it doesn’t seem like what most individuals count on from a Garmin. It’s a hybrid smartwatch, which implies it appears like an everyday watch however can observe health and ship notifications. Garmin’s hybrids are additionally distinctive in that all of them use an OLED show that stays hidden till you want it.

That is greatest fitted to a casually energetic one who desires type and worth in a light-weight package deal. Suppose wellness, extra so than health. It will get you steady coronary heart charge monitoring and blood oxygen stage monitoring, and might even present irregular coronary heart charge alerts. You additionally get entry to extra in-depth metrics like respiration charge, health age, stress, and Physique Battery, which is Garmin’s software for visualizing how well-rested you might be. For good options, you get all of the fundamentals, like notifications, alarms, and timers.

The Sport isn’t fairly as full-featured as another Garmin watches you’ll discover on this record. For example, you’re giving up built-in GPS in favor of tethered GPS by means of your telephone. There are not any contactless funds, neither is there a microphone or speaker for taking calls on the wrist. However this is a finances choose, and also you get quite a bit, contemplating that is an entry-level gadget that would cross for a Swatch at a look.

I don’t love that the battery life is brief for a hybrid, at round three to 4 days. Even so, that’s nonetheless significantly better than what you’ll get on a current Apple Watch or Android watch operating Put on OS 5 or 6. For those who’re prepared to spend about $100 extra, the $269.99 Vivomove Pattern has extra stylish supplies, will get you extra display screen actual property, and wi-fi Qi charging. In any other case, it is a nice life-style wearable that may function a classier various to your typical health band.

For those who desire one thing newer to the Sport that’s additionally fashionable, the Garmin Lily 2 is one other good possibility, particularly should you’ve obtained notably small wrists or desire one thing extraordinarily light-weight. The swipe and faucet gestures are nonetheless somewhat fiddly to make use of — which was additionally the case with the first-gen mannequin — however the contemporary design is a enjoyable solution to evenly monitor your health with out bogging your self down with notifications. Garmin additionally affords the Lily 2 Lively, which provides a bodily button, GPS, and help for extra sports activities monitoring for a beginning value of $299.99.

The very best Garmin to interchange a Fitbit

Sizes: 40mm w/ 20mm straps / Weight: 38g / Battery life: As much as 11 days / Show sort: OLED touchscreen / GPS: All-systems GNSS / Connectivity: Bluetooth, Ant Plus / Water resistance: 5ATM / Music storage: 4GB (for Music Version)

For those who have been disenchanted by the Fitbit Sense 2 and Versa 4, the Venu Sq 2 is the following smartest thing (and, in some methods, higher).

At a look, the Venu Sq 2 may simply be mistaken for an Apple Watch. On the wrist, you’ll discover it’s product of plastic, nevertheless it nonetheless appears fairly stylish and intensely light-weight. The display screen is shiny, simple to learn, and appears higher than any Versa or Sense ever did.

The function set can be nice for the value, with built-in GPS, a ton of watch faces, emergency security options, and contactless funds. For those who pay $50 extra for the Music Version, you’ll additionally get sufficient storage to carry about 500 songs, however we wouldn’t advocate it. This watch doesn’t have mobile connectivity and, subsequently, isn’t actually standalone. You’ll most certainly be carrying your telephone with you anyway.

As for well being options, the Venu Sq 2 principally has all the pieces you’d get on a Versa or Sense smartwatch however with Garmin’s treasure trove of metrics as effectively. That features coronary heart charge monitoring, blood oxygen monitoring, depth minutes (how a lot reasonable train you get in per week), stress monitoring, hydration monitoring, respiratory charge, interval monitoring, and Garmin’s restoration function, Physique Battery. So far as health goes, you additionally get entry to Garmin Coach, which offers free 5K, 10K, and half marathon coaching plans. You like to see it.

One other massive leg-up Garmin has over Fitbit? None of those options or metrics are locked behind a paywall, even when Garmin’s AI-powered insights and some different expanded options are solely accessible as a part of Garmin Join Plus ($6.99 a month / $69.99 yearly).

The very best Garmin smartwatch

Sizes: 41mm w/ 18mm straps; 45mm w/ 22mm straps / Weight: 40g for the 3S; 47g for the three / Battery life: As much as 10 days for 3S; 14 days for 3 / Show sort: OLED touchscreen / GPS: GPS, GLONASS, GALILEO / Connectivity: Bluetooth, Ant Plus, Wi-Fi / Water resistance: 5ATM / Music storage: 8GB

Garmin has shored up the smarts in its watches over the previous a number of years, and the Venu 3 collection is among the smartest (and most inexpensive) of the bunch.

The Venu 3 collection is available in two sizes: 41mm and 45mm. Just like the Venu 2 Plus, it has a microphone and speaker. You possibly can take calls straight from the wrist and situation instructions to your telephone’s digital assistant through Bluetooth. It’s not the identical as having Siri, Bixby, Amazon Alexa, or Google Assistant constructed straight into the watch, nevertheless it’s a intelligent workaround that works effectively for hands-free management. It additionally helps security options like fall detection and dwell monitoring, in addition to contactless funds.

Like different OLED Garmins, the show is each vibrant and simple to learn. As for well being and health, you get a pleasant mixture of primary and extra superior options and metrics. It has a coronary heart charge sensor that permits FDA-cleared EKG and AFib detection options. General, it leans a bit extra on the wellness and well being facet of issues, with depth minutes, blood oxygen monitoring, sleep monitoring, interval monitoring, irregular coronary heart charge alerts, and stress monitoring. As for coaching, you continue to get built-in GPS, VO2 Max, coronary heart charge zones, respiration charge, and downloadable coaching plans through Garmin Coach.

The Venu 3 and 3S have a sleep coach that elements in metrics like coronary heart charge variability and up to date exercise to find out your sleep wants. It additionally provides nap detection, a function that’s been lengthy overdue for the Garmin platform, and audio-guided meditation classes. From an accessibility standpoint, this additionally provides a wheelchair mode.

Technically, the Fenix 8 is barely smarter in that it has an onboard voice assistant. Nevertheless, additionally it is greater than double the value and never what I’d take into account an excellent worth for the typical athlete. It’s extra for individuals who spend hours upon hours coaching each week.

That is the Garmin for you if you’d like the platform’s in-depth coaching with out sacrificing the productiveness of a smartwatch. The principle options it’s missing are mobile choices and a strong third-party app ecosystem. That stated, it’s obtained Spotify, Amazon Music, and Deezer for offline listening. It’s additionally an excellent possibility should you’re fed up with MIP shows and need a smarter Garmin fairly than a full-on smartwatch.

Nevertheless, it’s value noting that Garmin lately launched the Garmin Venu 4. That mannequin is accessible in two sizes, 41mm and 45mm, each of which can be found from Amazon, Finest Purchase, and Garmin for $549.99. The smartwatch options extra superior wellness options than the Venu 3, together with the power to log your caffeine and alcohol consumption, offering insights into how they could be impacting your sleep. Garmin’s Health Coach may create a personalised exercise routine from a pool of 25 workout routines, that are based mostly in your prior efficiency, restoration stage, and up to date sleep patterns.

Replace, December 17th: Adjusted pricing and availability. Brandt Ranj additionally contributed to this put up.