Garmin’s been in the smartwatch game for longer than most — the Apple Watch was but a twinkle in Steve Jobs’ eye when the first Forerunner watch was born — and we’ve been testing the best Garmin watch models for over a decade, witnessing their evolution from basic step and distance trackers to full-blown training, recovery and wellness monitoring devices.
With thousands of hours of testing under our running belts, we’re here to help you make sense of Garmin’s admittedly overwhelming smartwatch lineup. For runners, the Garmin Forerunner 265 is at the head of the pack offering a solid mix of training tools, a bright screen, and great battery life in a comfortable and stylish package.
Garmin doesn’t just make devices for runners, though. The Enduro 3 is the best Garmin watch for hikers thanks to a super-rugged and waterproof design, solar charging and a nifty built-in flashlight. But, these aren’t your only options. We’ve also got picks for the budget-conscious, newbie runners, marathoners, triathletes and even golfers.
The quick list
The Garmin Forerunner 265 is the best Garmin watch overall for runners and workout enthusiasts. It sports a bright AMOLED screen and comes in two sporty-looking case sizes. With loads of advanced training metrics on offer and a long-lasting battery, the Forerunner 265 also boasts rock-solid GPS tracking.
The Garmin Forerunner 55 is an affordable, entry-level running and workout watch well-suited for those looking to track their training but who don't need any extra bells or whistles. It still looks and feels like a Garmin watch without the hefty price tag. More importantly, it's just as accurate as far more advanced models.
For folks just getting into running, the Garmin Forerunner 165 is a lightweight and easy-wearing GPS watch with a bright AMOLED touchscreen. It also offers fall detection, live route tracking, plenty of battery life, and some of Garmin's more advanced training tools to grow into, like running form analysis and Pace Pro.
The Garmin Forerunner 965 is the best Forerunner we’ve ever tested. It’s got a bright AMOLED screen, 23 days of battery life and some of Garmin’s most advanced training features for hardcore athletes. It can even keep tabs on complex multisport activities, making it the best Garmin watch for triathlons.
The Garmin Enduro 3 is built for adventures in the outdoors and features a rugged, waterproof design, a handy built-in flashlight and incredible battery life that can be extended indefinitely by the solar panels that ring the watch face. It also supports offline maps, making it the best Garmin watch for hiking.
The Garmin Lily 2 Active is the best Garmin watch for basic fitness tracking. While Garmin also makes a standard Lily 2, only the 'Active' model sports onboard GPS and physical buttons. Lightweight, comfortable and easy on the eyes, this may also be Garmin's best-looking smartwatch model.
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The Garmin Fenix 8 AMOLED is built for adventures — whether that’s 26.2 miles, or further. The best sports watch in Garmin’s range, it's ideal for keen athletes thanks to its impressive sports tracking and training analysis, which can help you prepare for your events and excel on race day itself.
The Garmin Approach S62 comes with key golf features such as access to data on 41,000 courses worldwide, GPS readings on distance and hole hazards, and a shot-tracking function. It also offers solid battery life and is comfy and lightweight enough that it won't throw off your game.
The Garmin Instinct 2 Solar edition boasts an infinite battery life— yep, it has the power to last forever, charging with sunlight. The standard Instict 2 lasts for an also-impressive 28 days. Moreover, this sporty smartwatch is also hard-wearing and waterproof up to 100 meters on the wrist.
The best Garmin watches you can buy today
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Best Garmin watch for runners
✅ You want a mid-level Garmin: The Garmin Forerunner 265 is a perfect training companion for anything from a 5K to an ultramarathon. It has plenty of advanced training metrics to help you PR your next race.
✅ You want a bright screen: The Forerunner 265 has a bright, AMOLED screen, which is easy to see in direct sunlight. It does mean, however, the battery life isn't as long as watches with an MIP display.
❌ You want a smartwatch: Like a lot of Garmin's the Forerunner 265 isn't the most exciting from a smartwatch perspective. That said, you can still view phone notifications, download music and use Garmin Pay.
❌ You're a golfer: If you spend your weekend's on the green, there's no golf support on the Forerunner 265. There is on the Forerunner 965, however.
⌚ The Garmin Forerunner 265 is a wonderful watch, that'll help you train for your next race, and give you a lot of Garmin's advanced training features, without costing the earth.
What you need to know
The Garmin Forerunner 265 is Garmin's mid-level running watch, replacing the Forerunner 255 — check out our Forerunner 255 vs Forerunner 265 face-off here if you're struggling to decide between the two watches. The main change Garmin made to the watch was the screen, which is now a wonderfully bright, AMOLED touchscreen.
The Forerunner 265 comes in two different sizes — the Forerunner 265 has a 1.3-inch display, with a resolution of 416 x 416 pixels, and the Forerunner 265S has a 1.1-inch display, with a resolution of 360 x 360 pixels. During testing, we were blown away by how bright this little watch was, even in direct sunlight.
This is an excellent watch for most runners — it's got a lot of the training tools of the more expensive watches on the market, yet it's far more affordable than the likes of the Fenix, or the Forerunner 955/965. The bright touchscreen also makes it feel more like a smartwatch if you're planning on wearing your Garmin 24/7.
Design: Like all of Garmin's touchscreen watches, the touchscreen is automatically disabled in sports modes, meaning you can still navigate around the watch using the buttons — three on the left, and two on the right. This makes it easier to start, stop, pause, or lap the watch with sweaty fingers, or when wearing gloves.
The Forerunner 265 is lightweight and comfortable around the wrist, and the smaller size option is beneficial for runners with petite wrists.
Battery life: Despite the brighter display, the battery life of the Forerunner 265 has pretty much stayed the same. The 265S has a 15-day battery life in smartwatch mode and a 24-hour battery life in GPS mode. The 265 has 13 days in smartwatch mode and 20 hours in GPS mode. Normally, it’s the larger of the two watches that have the longer battery life, but it seems with the bigger and brighter screen, the larger 265 will need charging ever so slightly sooner.
Training features: Aside from the screen, the only other difference between the 265 and the older 255 is Garmin's Training Readiness Score. The score shows you at a glance how ready you are for a difficult day of training based on sleep, recovery time, HRV status, acute load and stress. Each category carries a different weight, so your Training Readiness might go up during the day, as your needed recovery time goes down.
The Forerunner 265 has Garmin’s Elevate V4 sensor — the green light records heart rate and the red light records blood oxygen levels (referred to as Pulse Ox on the watch). This sensor is used to calculate breathing rate, HRV, and stress. It also has Garmin’s Morning Report feature, which gives you a snapshot of how well you slept, how hard you’ve been training, and a look at the weather for the day ahead.
Read the full review: Garmin Forerunner 265
| Test | Notes | How it stacks up |
|---|---|---|
| Battery life | 15 days/ smartwatch, 24 hours GPS (265S), 13 days smartwatch, 20 hours GPS (265) | ★★★★☆ |
| Features | Multisport mode, Body Battery, Training Readiness Score, Race day widget, Suggested workouts, LiveTrack | ★★★★☆ |
| Design | 1.1-inches (265S), 1.3-inches (265) | ★★★★★ |
| Display | 416 x 416 pixels (265), 360 x 360 pixels (265S) AMOLED touchscreen | ★★★★★ |
Best budget Garmin watch
✅ You're looking for an entry-level watch: The Garmin Forerunner 55 is an excellent watch if you want to keep an eye on your running training and sleep, without all the extra bells and whistles. It's simple, and easy to use.
✅ You're on a budget: Unlike some of the other watches on this list, the Forerunner 55 won't cost you a month's rent. It's definitely the most affordable Garmin for runners.
❌ You want to listen to music from your watch: There's no built-in music storage on the watch, so if you want to leave your phone at home, you won't be able to here.
❌ You want to record strength workouts: There's no strength training mode on the Forerunner 55, so you'll have to record strength workouts as 'Other'.
❌ You want to make contactless payments from your wrist: Unlike other watches on this list, the Forerunner 55 doesn't support Garmin Pay contactless payments.
⌚ The Garmin Forerunner 55 is a basic running watch that definitely isn't to be sniffed at. Sure, it doesn't have Training Readiness or Garmin Pay, but it'll give you suggested workouts, connect with Garmin Coach, and let you get a better idea of how well you're sleeping.
What you need to know
If you’re starting to get into running, chances are you want a device that’s a step up from a basic fitness tracker and won't break the bank. Among Garmin watches, the Forerunner 55 is a clear choice. It's a simple, easy-to-use running watch that'll help you keep an eye on your running stats, heart rate and sleep from your wrist.
The watch doesn't have some of the high-end training features you'll see in other watches on this list. There's no Training Readiness Score, for example, and the watch doesn't let you listen to music, or pay for groceries from your wrist, but don't let this put you off.
Design: The Forerunner 55 looks like most of the other Forerunners in the Garmin collection — it doesn't have a touchscreen, so you'll need to navigate around the watch using the buttons, three on the left and two on the right. The watch only comes in one size and has a 1-inch, MIP display, with a resolution of 208 x 208 pixels. However, even on the sunniest days, we could see the Forerunner 55’s transflective MIP display without an issue. But, if you're worried, consider the Garmin Forerunner 165 instead.
Battery life: A fully charged Forerunner 55 can last up to two weeks in smartwatch mode and 20 hours in GPS mode, a significant increase from its predecessor. This is especially impressive compared to the latest Apple Watch Series 9. However, the screen on the Forerunner 55 isn't anywhere near as bright as Apple's smartwatch. Either way, you could go away for a weekend marathon without worrying about packing your charger.
Training features: The Forerunner 55 has Garmin's PacePro technology, which gives you gentle speed and cadence alerts on the run. There are also suggested recovery times and workouts, based on your training history, fitness levels and recovery.
Like most of the watches on this list, you can also use Garmin Coach on this watch, which lets you download free training plans from one of Garmin's coaches.
Read our full review: Garmin Forerunner 55
| Test | Notes | How it stacks up |
|---|---|---|
| Battery life | 2 weeks smartwatch/ 20 hours GPS | ★★★★☆ |
| Features | Garmin Coach, Pace Pro, Cadence alerts | ★★★☆☆ |
| Design | 1-inch screen | ★★★☆☆ |
| Display | 208 x 208 pixels MIP display | ★★★☆☆ |
