I test Garmins for a living and I’ve ranked the 5 best Black Friday deals on Garmin watches

This was an easy pick for the best Garmin deal this Black Friday, because it's the cheapest the Forerunner 265 has ever been and $299 is a fantastic price for such a feature-rich AMOLED sports watch. It comes in two sizes to suit different wrists, and has useful smart features alongside its reliable sports tracking. This is the watch I'd buy in the sale myself, though I'd be tempted by the Forerunner 965, which is coming up next.

The main reason to upgrade to the Forerunner 965 over the Forerunner 265 is the offline maps and navigation tools it offers, but the 965 also has longer battery life and more training analysis features. It's a superb watch and $150 off in the sale, which makes it $300 cheaper than its successor, the Forerunner 970.

We have the release of the Fenix 8 Pro to thank for this huge saving on the Fenix 8, which has all the same features bar the LTE and satellite connectivity on the Pro model. If you don't need those features, then the Fenix 8 is much cheaper, and also thinner and lighter than the Pro model. This is still a pricy watch, but it makes my top three deals because the Fenix 8 has a good case for being straight up the best sports watch available, so a $250 saving is not to be sniffed at.

Those looking for the biggest savings on former Garmin flagship watches should look at the Epix Pro and Fenix 7 Pro (which has a MIP display instead od AMOLED). Both have been reduced by hundreds of dollars, and while they're not the newest watches, they still offer impeccable sports tracking and navigation features, long battery life, and rugged, adventure-ready designs.

Amazon seems to have sold out of the Venu X1 at this reduced price, but Garmin still has it available. This $200 saving is by far the best deal we've yet seen on the Venu X1, which has a square, ultra-thin design that stands out from the rest of the Garmin range. It's one of the newest Garmins in the sale, having only launched in June, and it has the same impressive sports and navigation features as the Forerunner 970 (bar dual-band GPS). I loved testing the Venu X1 but did consider it too pricy at $799, so this deal makes it a lot more enticing and grabs it a spot in my top five.