Tom's Guide Verdict
The Samsung Galaxy Watch 9 is basically a Galaxy Watch 8 with support for a few extra features that ultimately may or may not come to older models via future firmware. It does boast a faster processor and a lighter, comfier strap, but battery life remains stubbornly the same: 30 hours for the smaller model and 40 hours for the larger one. Oh, and it costs more than the Galaxy Watch 8. At least the vast array of health and fitness insights, which rival the competition, aren't paywalled, unlike Google.
Pros
- +
Lots of useful, new wellness and fitness metrics
- +
+Redesigned health app places a greater emphasis on trend data
- +
Softer, more comfortable strap than Galaxy Watch 8
- +
New raise-to-talk gesture to launch Gemini AI assistant
- +
No paywall for advanced holistic insights
Cons
- -
Same design and display as Galaxy Watch 8
- -
Same underwhelming battery life as predecessor
- -
Price increase across the lineup
- -
No 'Classic' model
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I've been wearing the latest Samsung Galaxy Watch 9 for over a month — collectively, the TG fitness team has been wearing it even longer than that — and it's ultimately a very minor upgrade over 2025's Galaxy Watch 8.
The design, display, and battery life all remain unchanged, but the Galaxy Watch 9 supports a handful of useful new features, a slightly faster processor, and a comfier strap. It also costs more than its predecessor.
Here's everything you need to know about the Samsung Galaxy Watch 9.
Galaxy Watch 9 cheat sheet
- Price: $379 for 40mm (no LTE) or $409 for 44mm (no LTE); add $50 to either for cellular
- Design: Same design and size options as Galaxy Watch 8; 40mm is available in Cream or Graphite; 44mm comes in Graphite or Silver
- 'Classic' model: Samsung did not announce a Galaxy Watch 9 Classic with a clicky bezel
- Screen: Same max brightness, 3,000 nits, as Galaxy Watch 8
- Health features: New 'Vitals' dashboard with key metrics including heart rate, HRV, Sp02, body temp, and breath rate in one place; new 'Heart Health' score
- Fitness features: New 'Cardio Load' insights, new 'Fitness Index' score out of 100 and based on factors like daily step count average, V02 Max, average heart rate, BIA (Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis), and average workout recovery time
- Battery life: Slight increase in battery capacity, but battery life remains unchanged from the Galaxy Watch 8: 30 hours for the 40mm model and 40 hours for the 44mm
Galaxy Watch 9: Versus the competition
| Header Cell - Column 0 | Samsung Galaxy Watch 9 |
Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 |
Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 |
Pixel Watch 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Starting price |
$379 |
$349 |
$699 |
$399 |
Dimensions |
42.7 x 40.4 x 8.6mm / |
42.7 x 40.4 x 8.6mm / |
47 x 47 x 10 mm |
41 x 41 x 12.3 mm / |
Weight |
31.5 g / 34 g |
30 g / 34 g |
61.5 g |
31 g / 36.7 g |
Display |
1.34-inch / 1.47-inch; 3,000 nits max brightness |
1.34-inch / 1.47-inch; 3,000 nits max brightness |
1.52-inch AMOLED, 5,000 nits max brightness |
1.2-inch, 1.4-inch AMOLED; 3,000 nits max brightness |
Water resistance |
50 meters |
50 meters |
100 meters |
50 meters |
Battery capacity |
40mm: 390mAh / 44mm: 445mAh |
40mm: 325mAh / 44mm: 435mAh |
800 mAh |
41mm: 332mAh / |
Samsung Galaxy Watch 9 value: 3.5/5
The Samsung Galaxy Watch 9 was announced on July 22, 2026. It is available worldwide now.
When Samsung announced the Galaxy Watch 8 this time last year, I wasn't surprised to see a $50 price increase across the board compared to the Galaxy Watch 7. However, I was surprised to see Samsung raise the price of the Watch 9 this time around.
The 40mm Galaxy Watch 9, for example, starts at $379 without LTE, compared to $349 for the Galaxy Watch 8 equivalent. The 44mm Galaxy Watch 9, meanwhile, is $409 versus $379 for last year's equivalent.
Fortunately for Samsung (and Samsung alone), Google also raised prices across the Google Pixel Watch 5 lineup, which means the Galaxy Watch 9 is technically the most wallet-friendly 2026 full-featured smartwatch for Android (by $20).
- Galaxy Watch 9 (Bluetooth, 40mm): $379
- Galaxy Watch 9 (LTE, 40mm): $429
- Galaxy Watch 9 (Bluetooth, 44mm): $409
- Galaxy Watch 9 (LTE, 44mm): $459
Samsung Galaxy Watch 9 design and display: 3.5/5
While Samsung made all sorts of under-the-hood upgrades to the Galaxy Watch 9, including a new processor and increased battery capacity, the outward appearance remains unchanged from its predecessor.
The physical dimensions and the weight are also essentially the same, as is the 50-meter water resistance rating. Finally, the Galaxy Watch 9 also boasts the same 3,000-nit max brightness display and twin-button design as the Galaxy Watch 8.
I was a big fan of the Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 Classic (see image above), which sports a bidirectional clicky bezel for navigation and an additional customizable button compared to the standard Galaxy Watch 8 models.
Unfortunately, there is no Samsung Galaxy Watch 9 Classic. That said, Samsung has confirmed that the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic will remain in the brand's lineup for the time being.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 9 wellness tools: 4.5/5
Samsung already offers an impressive suite of completely free wellness tracking insights, and they only get better with the Galaxy Watch 9. Better yet, important health info is now more visible in the companion app thanks to a new "Vitals" tab. There's additionally a greater focus on long-term trend reports and preventive health.
The newly introduced Vitals dashboard in the Health app brings your most important wellness metrics into one easy-to-view panel. It displays your current heart rate, heart rate variability (HRV), blood oxygen saturation percentage (Sp02), body temperature, and breath rate.
To keep you looped into your cardiovascular well-being, the Galaxy Watch 9 boasts a new Heart Health score based on a scale from one to 100. You'll need to wear the device for at least four consecutive nights to generate your initial score. Ultimately, what makes this tool valuable is its long-term insights, which can clue you in to how your day-to-day choices may be impacting your heart health for better or worse.
Note: As of writing, Samsung's Heart Health score is exclusive to the latest 2026 models.
When it comes to sleep tracking, not much has changed from the Galaxy Watch 8. Users are still presented with a daily sleep score and energy score, both out of 100, along with a breakdown of time spent in each of the various sleep cycles, total time spent asleep, sleep disturbances, the consistency of your bedtime, and more.
I wore both the Samsung Galaxy Watch 9 and Google Pixel Watch 5 to bed for a week and discovered that both of these flagship Android smartwatches calculated surprisingly similar sleep data.
Finally, one major advantage the Samsung Galaxy Watch 9 has over the Google Pixel Watch 5 is an FDA-cleared sleep apnea detection feature. On the flip side, the newest Galaxy Watch lacks some of the heady health safety tools found on the latest Pixel Watch, like Breathing Emergency Detection and Loss of Pulse Detection.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 9 fitness tracking: 4/5
The Samsung Galaxy Watch 9 is a fairly reliable fitness tracker for both indoor and outdoor workouts. When I tested it against the Pixel Watch 5, the Google smartwatch proved slightly more precise, but the Galaxy Watch 9's performance wasn't far behind.
I also pitted the Galaxy Watch 9 against the Garmin Instinct 3, my go-to smartwatch for logging outdoor adventures, and a model that costs roughly the same. During my seven-mile hike, the Samsung watch again performed pretty well, but ultimately struggled to accurately log my climb.
The Galaxy Watch 9 also lacks some of the more common workout tracking modes offered by the competition, like e-biking and skateboarding (two of my faves). That said, the auto workout tracking feature works quite well, a finding my colleague Sam also found impressive.
The new Galaxy Watch also boasts several new fitness-focused metrics, including Cardio Load and a Fitness Index score. While Cardio Load will be supported by older Galaxy Watch models, the Fitness Index Score is, for now, exclusive to the Galaxy Watch 9 and Galaxy Watch Ultra 2.
Based on factors like daily step count average, V02 Max, average heart rate, BIA (Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis), and average workout recovery time, the Fitness Index score is on a scale from zero to 100.
As of writing, mine is an 82, or "average." The Health app further breaks that score down into five individual categories, each with its own score: Body Composition, Cardio, Endurance, Strength, and Flexibility. These scores, along with the overall Fitness Index score, are calculated by comparing your fitness levels to other users in your age range.
For example, from my score breakdown, I can glean that my endurance is solid (rated 93/100) while my overall strength could use attention (rated 63/100).
For high-cardio athletes, the new Cardio Load metric is designed to help you train more effectively. It takes seven days to fully calibrate, i.e., establish a baseline for your maximum training capacity. Once complete, users get a daily cardio intensity rating ranging from "under target" to "over." This rating is calculated by analyzing how much time you spent doing activities that pushed your heart rate into Zone 3 or higher.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 9 AI features: 3/5
The Samsung Galaxy Watch 9 ships with Google's Gemini AI voice assistant built in, and it's easily the best smartwatch personal assistant I've tested. Even better, the Galaxy Watch 9 now supports a wrist raise gesture control to unlock Gemini, something first introduced in last year's Pixel Watch 4.
As of writing, the Galaxy Watch 9 and Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 are the only two Samsung models that support using Raise to talk to unlock Gemini.
In terms of usefulness, Samsung's Google AI assistant does a reasonably good job answering random, hyper-specific questions like, "How many adult penguins can I fit in a 1995 Ford Taurus?"
It's also good at context-specific tasks. For example, Gemini was helpful when I was searching for new restaurants within walking distance of my house to order for dinner. The Gemini AI assistant additionally correctly named the opening acts and start time for an upcoming concert I was seeing (The Strokes).
Samsung Galaxy Watch 9 battery life: 3/5
Both the 40mm and 44mm Samsung Galaxy Watch 9 models see tiny battery capacity increases. The smaller model jumps from 325 mAh for the Galaxy Watch 8 to 390 mAh for the Galaxy Watch 9. The bigger model has increased from 435 mAh on the Galaxy Watch 8 to 445 mAh for the Galaxy Watch 9.
Unfortunately, these bigger batteries don't result in any tangible longevity improvements. The 40mm is still rated at 30 hours per charge, and the 44mm is still rated at 40 hours per charge, just like last year's model.
In real-world use, the 40mm Galaxy Watch 9 averaged about 32 hours of use per charge. That's behind the Pixel Watch 5, which averages closer to 48 hours of use per charge in my testing.
The Galaxy Watch 9 also recharges a little slower than its Google rival. Again, testing the smaller model, a full recharge took about 90 minutes for the Galaxy Watch 9, compared to closer to 60 minutes for the Pixel Watch 5.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 9: Verdict
The Samsung Galaxy Watch 9 is easily one of the best smartwatches for Android, but that doesn't mean you should buy one, especially if you already own the Galaxy Watch 8. Aside from a faster processor, a softer strap, and a couple of exclusive health metrics, the Galaxy Watch 9 is pretty much the same as the Galaxy Watch 8, just pricier.
It does support a handy new (for Samsung) raise-wrist gesture for unlocking the excellent onboard Gemini AI assistant. However, battery life remains unchanged compared to its predecessor. More notably, the Galaxy Watch 9 doesn't last as long per charge as its biggest rival, the Google Pixel Watch 5. It also lacks the Pixel Watch's impressive suite of safety tools.
That said, Samsung, unlike Google and Garmin, provides all of its wellness and fitness insights without forcing you to pony up for a monthly/annual subscription. That I like.
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