One of the best smartwatches for 2025

Smartwatches do extra than simply observe your steps and ship telephone alerts to your wrist. One of the best smartwatches go even additional, supplying you with the flexibility to pay for a cup of espresso, take calls and hook up with apps like Spotify all with out whipping out your smartphone.

Likelihood is, in case you’re studying this, you already know all the advantages of a smartwatch. You’re prepared to take a position, or improve from an getting older accent, however we wouldn’t blame you in case you in case you didn’t know the place to start out. There are dozens of smartwatches obtainable now, together with GPS running watches, fitness trackers that appear like smartwatches and multi-purpose gadgets. Plus, you’ll wish to take into account elements like sturdiness, battery life and working system earlier than you spend some huge cash on a brand new wearable. We’ve examined and reviewed most main smartwatches obtainable in the present day and these are our high picks.

Desk of contents

Greatest smartwatches of 2025

Google / Engadget

Tracks: Sleep, exercise, energy, stress | Connectivity: Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, Mobile (elective) | GPS: Sure, in-built | Water-resistant: Sure | Assistant help: Google Assistant | Show: At all times-on Actua touchscreen | Weight: 31 grams | Battery life: 24 hours

Learn our full Google Pixel Watch 3 review

It solely took three iterations, however Google lastly received it proper with the Pixel Watch 3. It’s probably the most absolutely realized Pixel Watch but, and one which any Android fan would get quite a lot of use out of. The most recent mannequin, which now is available in 41mm and 45mm sizes, has a barely bigger round show that’s brighter than ever and may attain as much as a 60Hz refresh fee. It may additionally drop down to simply 1 nit of brightness once you’re carrying it to sleep, which not solely makes for a greater expertise total, but in addition contributes to its longer battery life. You’ll stand up to 24 hours out of the Pixel Watch 3, which is a giant enchancment over the earlier technology and extra in step with competing gadgets from Apple and Samsung.

The Pixel Watch 3 can also be a terrific exercise monitoring machine, with options like auto exercise detection and customized operating plans, plus the flexibility to trace metrics like Cardio Load. There’s Fitbit smarts in right here, similar to in earlier Pixel Watches, so that you’re lined in terms of each day exercises, steps, sleep and extra. The one draw back to that is that in case you’re involved in extra in-depth teaching, these options are hidden behind the Fitbit Premium paywall.

Whereas Put on OS 5 may use a bit extra polish, the combination with the Google Assistant on the Pixel Watch 3 is useful so you need to use voice instructions to verify on issues like climate forecasts, calendar alerts, map instructions and extra. We additionally recognize the addition of sooner charging on the Pixel Watch 3, so you’ll be able to go from 0 to 100 in a bit much less time than earlier than. That’ll turn out to be useful in case you’re actually eager on utilizing the watch as a sleep tracker. Total, the enhancements Google made on this version of the Pixel Watch helped push it over the sting as a worthy competitor to the Apple Watch and a high decide for Android customers in search of their subsequent wearable.

$350 at Amazon

Photograph by Valentina Palladino / Engadget

Tracks: Sleep, exercise, energy, stress, dozens of exercises | Connectivity: Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, ANT+ | GPS: Sure, in-built | Water-resistant: Sure | Assistant help: None | Show: 1.2-inch AMOLED with elective always-on mode | Weight: 39 grams | Battery life: 11 days in smartwatch mode, 19 hours in GPS mode

Garmin is understood for its prowess on the earth of health watches and the Garmin Forerunner 165 is the watch I examined that I wished to put on probably the most once I went out for a run. The experience of the Forerunner line is within the identify, and Garmin actually excels at making complete but pleasant GPS running watches in flavors that may swimsuit every kind of athletes, from newbie to knowledgeable. The Forerunner 165 stands out with its light-weight design, brilliant AMOLED touchscreen, easy button controls, correct built-in GPS and its means to trace exercise stats simply in addition to all-day exercise information.

Beginning a run with the Forerunner 165 is as simple as urgent a single button — the top-right button on the case actually has “run” embossed onto it, and it takes you to the exercise profile menu the place you’ll be able to select the train you wish to observe. Run is the primary possibility, however you’ve gotten greater than 25 profiles to select from together with observe run, treadmill, stroll, power, swim and extra. When operating outdoors, the GPS took a median of 15-20 seconds to lock onto my location, however you don’t have to attend for it to take action — press the run button once more to start and the GPS will catch up by itself.

The Forerunner expertise has benefited tremendously from the continual enchancment of the Garmin Join cell app. The beforehand clunky, complicated app has been properly refined with the intention to customise its homepage the exercise and exercise stats you care about probably the most, together with issues like Physique Battery, Sleep Rating, menstrual cycle data and extra. It’s simple to dive into your most lately tracked exercise and get within the weeds with tempo, cadence, coaching impact (cardio or anaerobic), energy and stamina stats.

Garmin places the battery lifetime of the Forerunner 165 at 11 days in smartwatch mode, and I discovered that to be principally correct even with a handful of GPS-tracked runs thrown in. The corporate claims you’ll stand up to 19 hours of battery life with steady GPS use, which must be sufficient for many runners and athletes competing in long-haul races. You may as well get the 165 with music storage in-built or not, with the previous permitting you to retailer music regionally on the watch so you’ll be able to pay attention with a pair of Bluetooth headphones.

The Garmin Forerunner 165 will set you again $250 with out music storage, or $300 for the mannequin with music storage in-built. That’s on the decrease finish of the worth spectrum for GPS operating watches; you can simply spend $500 or extra in case you’re uncertain about what you want and what’s simply further fluff. Whereas Garmin does have just a few cheaper gadgets, the Forerunner 165 strikes the appropriate steadiness of characteristic set and value that may attraction to seasoned runners and people who are simply diving right into a extra regimented operating routine.

$250 at Garmin

Trendy smartwatches: Fossil and extra

Sure, there are nonetheless corporations on the market making an attempt to make “modern” hybrid smartwatches. Again when wearables had been novel and customarily ugly, manufacturers like Fossil, Michael Kors and Skagen discovered their area of interest in trendy smartwatches that took cues from analog timepieces. You even have the choice to choose up a “hybrid” smartwatch from corporations like Withings and Garmin – these gadgets appear like traditional wrist watches however incorporate some restricted performance like exercise monitoring and coronary heart fee monitoring. They continue to be good choices in case you favor that look, however fortunately, wearables made by Apple, Samsung, Fitbit and others have gotten far more engaging over the previous few years.

In the end, the one factor you’ll be able to’t change after you purchase a smartwatch is its case design. When you’re not into the Apple Watch’s squared-off corners, all of Samsung’s smartwatches have spherical circumstances that look a bit of extra like a standard watch. Most wearables are supplied in a selection of colours and you’ll pay further for premium supplies like stainless-steel for further sturdiness. When you resolve on a case, your band choices are infinite – there are dozens of first- and third-party watch straps obtainable for many main smartwatches, and for each bigger and smaller wrists, permitting you to vary up your look everytime you please.

Components to think about earlier than shopping for a smartwatch

Compatibility

Apple Watches solely work with iPhones, whereas Put on OS gadgets play good with each iOS and Android telephones. Smartwatches made by Samsung, Garmin, Fitbit and others are additionally appropriate with Android and iOS, however you’ll want to put in a companion app in your smartphone.

The smartwatch OS may even dictate the sort and variety of third-party apps you’ll have entry to. Many of those aren’t helpful, although, making this issue a reasonably minor one within the grand scheme of issues.

Value

One of the best smartwatches usually value between $300 and $400. In comparison with finances smartwatches, which value between $100 and $250, these pricier gadgets have superior working programs, communications, music and health options. In addition they usually embrace perks like onboard GPS monitoring, music storage and NFC, AMOLED shows, and lengthy battery life, issues that finances gadgets usually don’t have.

Some corporations make specialised health watches: These can simply run north of $500, and we’d solely advocate them to severe athletes. Luxurious smartwatches from manufacturers like TAG Heuer and Hublot also can attain sky-high costs, however we wouldn’t endorse any of them. These gadgets can value greater than $1,000, and also you’re normally paying for little greater than a model identify and a few needlessly unique collection of construct supplies.

Battery life

Battery life stays one in all our greatest complaints about smartwatches, however there’s hope as of late. You’ll be able to count on two full days from Apple Watches and most Put on OS gadgets. Watches utilizing the Snapdragon Put on 3100 processor help prolonged battery modes that promise as much as 5 days of battery life on a cost — in case you’re keen to close off most options except for, you realize, displaying the time. Different fashions can final 5 to seven days, however they normally have fewer options and lower-quality shows. In the meantime, some health watches can final weeks on a single cost. If lengthy battery life is a precedence for you, it’s value testing the watch’s specs beforehand to see what the producer estimates.

Communication

Any smartwatch value contemplating delivers name, textual content and app notifications to your wrist. Name and textual content alerts are self explanatory, but when these imply so much to you, take into account a watch with LTE. They’re dearer than their WiFi-only counterparts, however mobile connectivity permits the smartwatch to take and obtain telephone calls, and do the identical with textual content messages, with out your machine close by. So far as app alerts go, getting them delivered to your wrist will allow you to look right down to the watch face and see in case you completely must verify your telephone proper now.

Health monitoring

Exercise monitoring is a giant cause why folks flip to smartwatches. An all-purpose timepiece ought to perform as a health tracker, logging your steps, energy and exercises, and most of in the present day’s wearables have a coronary heart fee monitor as properly.

Many smartwatches’ health options embrace a built-in GPS, which is beneficial for monitoring distance for runs and bike rides. Swimmers will need one thing waterproof, and fortunately most all-purpose gadgets now can face up to a minimum of a dunk within the pool. Some smartwatches from corporations like Garmin are more fitness focused than others and have a tendency to supply extra superior options like heart-rate-variance monitoring, restoration time estimation, onboard maps and extra.

Well being monitoring on smartwatches has additionally seen advances through the years. Each Apple and Fitbit gadgets can estimate blood oxygen ranges and measure ECGs. However the extra inexpensive the smartwatch, the much less seemingly it’s that it has these sorts of superior well being monitoring options; if gathering these sorts of wellness metrics is vital to you, you’ll need to pay for the privilege.

Music

Your watch cannot solely observe your morning runs but in addition play music when you’re exercising. Many smartwatches allow you to save your music regionally, so you’ll be able to join wi-fi earbuds by way of Bluetooth and hearken to tunes with out bringing your telephone. People who don’t have onboard storage for music normally have on-watch music controls, so you’ll be able to management playback with out whipping out your telephone. And in case your watch has LTE, native saving isn’t required — you’ll be capable to stream music immediately from the watch to your paired earbuds.

Shows

Most wearables have touchscreens and we advocate getting one which has a full-color touchscreen. Some flagships just like the Apple Watch have LTPO shows, which stands for low-temperature polycrystalline oxide. These panels have sooner response instances and are extra energy environment friendly, leading to a smoother expertise when one interacts with the touchscreen and, in some circumstances, longer battery lives.

You received’t see vital features with the latter, although, as a result of the additional battery basically will get used up when these gadgets have always-on shows, as most flagship wearables do in the present day. Some smartwatches have this characteristic on by default whereas others allow you to allow it by way of tweaked settings. This sensible characteristic lets you look down at your watch to verify the time, well being stats or another data you’ve set it to indicate on its watchface with out lifting your wrist. This can little question have an effect on your machine’s battery life, however fortunately most always-on modes dim the show’s brightness so it’s not operating at its peak unnecessarily. Cheaper gadgets received’t have this characteristic; as a substitute, their touchscreens will robotically flip off to preserve battery life and also you’ll need to deliberately verify your watch to activate the show once more.

NFC

Many new smartwatches have NFC, letting you pay for issues with out your pockets utilizing contactless funds. After saving your credit score or debit card data, you’ll be able to maintain your smartwatch as much as an NFC reader to pay for a cup of espresso in your method house from a run. Take into account that totally different watches use totally different cost programs: Apple Watches use Apple Pay, Put on OS gadgets use Google Pay, Samsung gadgets use Samsung Pay and so forth.

Apple Pay is without doubt one of the hottest NFC cost programs, with help for multiple banks and credit cards in 72 totally different international locations, whereas Samsung and Google Pay work in fewer areas. It’s additionally vital to notice that each NFC cost help varies by machine as properly for each Samsung and Google’s programs.

Different smartwatches our consultants examined

Apple Watch Extremely 2

The Apple Watch Ultra 2 might be overkill for most individuals, nevertheless it has a ton of additional options like further waterproofing to trace diving, an much more correct GPS and the largest battery of any Apple Watch so far. Apple designed it for probably the most rugged amongst us, however on your common individual, it seemingly has extra options than they’d ever want. When you’re significantly clumsy, nevertheless, its excessive degree of sturdiness might be a terrific cause to think about the Apple Watch Extremely 2.

Apple Watch SE

The Apple Watch SE is much less feature-rich than the flagship mannequin, however it’ll most likely suffice for most individuals. We truly regard the Watch SE as the most effective smartwatch possibility for first-time patrons, or folks on stricter budgets. You’ll get all of the core Apple Watch options in addition to issues like fall and crash detection, noise monitoring and Emergency SOS, however you’ll need to do with out extra superior {hardware} perks like an always-on show, a blood oxygen sensor, an ECG monitor and a pores and skin temperature sensor.

Garmin Forerunner 745

Garmin watches normally may be nice choices for probably the most energetic amongst us. The Garmin Forerunner 745 is a wonderful GPS running watch for severe athletes or those that prize battery life above all else. Once we examined it, we discovered it to offer correct distance monitoring, a killer 16-hour battery life with GPS turned on (as much as seven days with out it) and help for onboard music storage and Garmin Pay.

Amazfit Bip 6

The Amazfit Bip 6, an $80 smartwatch from Zepp Well being, didn’t fairly make the minimize. As a health tracker, it’s first rate, nevertheless it’s a irritating smartwatch. For exercises, the built-in GPS tracks runs and rides with out your telephone and, mixed with the center fee and blood oxygen sensors, collects a great quantity of information to create correct photos of your exertion ranges, cadence and tempo. It’s remarkably light-weight however doesn’t really feel low cost and the AMOLED display is brilliant and sharp. It’s not an always-on show, however lifting your wrist wakes it reliably.

The sleep monitoring information is on par with what we measured on different smartwatches and there’s even a each day readiness rating that compares your sleep high quality and the day prior to this’s exertion to estimate how bodily ready you’re for the day forward — much like what Pixel Watches, Fitbit gadgets and Garmin watches supply. And for the reason that watch battery lasts for over every week on a cost, it’s possible you’ll be much more apt to put on it to mattress than a watch you must cost each day.

We weren’t anticipating an $80 machine to be a severe Apple Watch challenger, however the Bip 6’s glitches and overly difficult interface (each on the app and on the watch itself) had been disappointing. Throughout every week of testing, I received a number of repeated notifications, even after they had been deleted, together with ideas to face once I was actively doing chores round the home. The watch faces will not be customizable, so it was onerous to get the data I wanted at a look (the Zepp app has plenty of paid watch faces which will have what I wished, however I didn’t wish to pay $3 for one thing that’s free elsewhere).

Advertising particulars state that the Bip 6 can auto-detect exercises, together with strolling and bike using. Throughout testing, I walked a few times per day for over one mile and went on two bike rides, however no exercise was ever detected. The watch integrates with Apple Well being, so I used to be capable of see the way it compares to the info my Apple Watch gathers. After every week of carrying the Bip 6, with no adjustments to my each day routine, I averaged 400 fewer energy burned and a couple of.4 fewer miles tracked every day. That was presumably the largest disappointment of all. — Amy Skorheim, Senior Reporter

Smartwatch FAQs

Is there a distinction between a smartwatch and a health tracker?

Whereas smartwatches and health trackers share some similarities, they’re designed for barely totally different functions.

A health tracker is primarily centered on well being and exercise monitoring. It retains tabs in your steps, coronary heart fee, sleep and exercises, and a few even supply superior metrics like blood oxygen ranges and stress monitoring. Health trackers are usually extra compact, have longer battery life and are constructed with exercise in thoughts.

A smartwatch, alternatively, is sort of a mini smartphone in your wrist. It affords health monitoring options, but in addition permits you to do issues like reply to texts, take calls, use apps and management sensible house gadgets. Many smartwatches help voice assistants, cell funds and even LTE connectivity, so you’ll be able to go away your telephone behind in some circumstances.

When you primarily need well being and exercise monitoring with lengthy battery life, a health tracker is the best way to go. In order for you a extra linked expertise with further options, a smartwatch is the higher selection.

How lengthy do smartwatches final?

How lengthy a smartwatch lasts principally relies on two issues: battery life and total sturdiness.

Smartwatch battery life varies so much relying on the model, options and the way you utilize it. Fundamental fashions with e-ink shows or monochrome screens can final every week or extra, whereas full-featured smartwatches just like the Apple Watch or Samsung Galaxy Watch normally want a cost day by day or two. When you’re utilizing options like always-on show, GPS monitoring or LTE connectivity, count on the battery to empty sooner.

Bodily, a great smartwatch ought to final a number of years earlier than you should improve. Premium fashions with scratch-resistant glass, water resistance and powerful construct supplies have a tendency to carry up properly over time. Nevertheless, software program help issues too — manufacturers like Apple and Samsung usually present updates for a minimum of just a few years, whereas some finances smartwatches might not get long-term software program help.

You’ll be able to count on to cost most smartwatches each day or each few days, and in case you care for them, they need to final 3-5 years earlier than an improve is critical.

How a lot must you spend on a smartwatch?

How a lot it is best to spend on a smartwatch relies on what options you want and the way usually you propose to make use of it.

When you simply need the fundamentals — step monitoring, notifications, coronary heart fee monitoring and fundamental health monitoring — yow will discover some strong budget-friendly choices from manufacturers like Amazfit, Fitbit and a few Put on OS fashions. These normally have first rate battery life however might lack premium options like LTE, superior well being monitoring or third-party apps.

Within the mid-range smartwatch value bracket, you’ll discover in style fashions just like the Apple Watch SE and Fitbit Versa collection. These supply a great mixture of health monitoring, sensible options and design high quality. You’ll get higher construct supplies, extra correct sensors and app help, however battery life would possibly nonetheless be restricted to a day or two.

Excessive-end smartwatches just like the Apple Watch Extremely, Samsung Galaxy Watch Extremely and Garmin Fenix/Epix collection supply superior well being monitoring, rugged designs, LTE connectivity and longer software program help. These are nice for severe athletes, out of doors adventurers, or anybody who needs the most recent and best options.

When you simply need a easy smartwatch for notifications and health monitoring, a finances or mid-range mannequin will do the job. However if you need a premium really feel, superior well being monitoring or LTE connectivity, it’s value spending a bit extra. For most individuals, $200 – $350 hits the most effective steadiness of options and worth.

Do all smartwatches have GPS?

Not all smartwatches have built-in GPS. Some depend on your telephone’s GPS, whereas others have it built-in for unbiased monitoring.

Excessive-end and fitness-focused smartwatches, just like the Apple Watch, Samsung Galaxy Watch and Garmin fashions have their very own built-in GPS. This implies they will observe your runs, walks, bike rides and hikes with no need to be linked to your telephone. It’s a must have for severe athletes or anybody who needs correct location monitoring with out carrying a telephone.

Some finances and mid-range smartwatches (like some Fitbit and Amazfit fashions) don’t have built-in GPS however can use your telephone’s GPS when linked by way of Bluetooth. This works nice in case you normally carry your telephone whereas understanding, nevertheless it’s much less handy in case you favor to go away it behind.

Some very fundamental or finances smartwatches skip GPS totally and rely solely on step monitoring or movement sensors. These are nice for informal customers who don’t want location monitoring.

Can you allow your telephone at house and nonetheless use a smartwatch?

Sure, nevertheless it relies on the smartwatch and what you wish to do with out your telephone.

In case your smartwatch has LTE or mobile connectivity , you can also make calls, ship texts, stream music, use maps and even entry apps with out your telephone close by. Nevertheless, you’ll want a separate information plan out of your service, which normally comes with an additional month-to-month value.

Even with out LTE, some smartwatches can nonetheless do loads on their very own, together with observe exercises and GPS routes (if they’ve built-in GPS), play music offline (in the event that they help downloads from Spotify or Apple Music), might contactless funds with options like Apple Pay and Google Pockets and management sensible house gadgets.

If going phone-free is vital to you, search for a smartwatch with LTE and built-in GPS for the most effective expertise.

Can a smartwatch make calls and not using a telephone?

Sure, a smartwatch could make calls and not using a telephone — however provided that it has the appropriate options.

Some smartwatches have built-in LTE connectivity, that means they will work independently out of your telephone. You can also make and obtain calls, ship texts, stream music and use apps so long as you’ve gotten a cell information plan for the watch. Nevertheless, you’ll must pay for a separate mobile plan and battery life drains sooner when utilizing LTE.

In case your smartwatch doesn’t have LTE, it might nonetheless make calls, however solely when linked to your telephone by way of Bluetooth or Wi-Fi. It basically acts as a distant speaker and microphone on your telephone’s calls. Watches like the usual Apple Watch or Samsung Galaxy Watch (Wi-Fi variations) can do that. Nevertheless, in case your telephone isn’t close by or linked to Wi-Fi, calling received’t work.

Some fitness-focused smartwatches (like sure Garmin, Fitbit and Amazfit fashions) don’t have a built-in speaker or microphone, to allow them to’t make or obtain calls in any respect — solely present notifications.

If calling and not using a telephone is a should, ensure that to decide on an LTE mannequin with a built-in mic and speaker.

What is the distinction between an Android and Apple smartwatch?

The largest distinction between Android and Apple smartwatches comes right down to compatibility, options and ecosystem integration.

Apple smartwatches (Apple Watch) solely work with iPhones. In case you have an Android telephone, you’ll be able to’t use an Apple Watch in any respect. Android smartwatches (Put on OS, Samsung Galaxy, Garmin and many others.) principally work with Android telephones, however some additionally help iPhones with restricted options. In case you have an iPhone, the Apple Watch is your best option. In case you have an Android telephone, go for a Put on OS or Samsung Galaxy Watch.

Apple Watch (watchOS) has the most effective app help with seamless integration into Apple’s ecosystem (iMessage, FaceTime, Apple Pay, Apple Health+, Siri and many others.). Android smartwatches supply extra selection, with entry to Google providers (Google Assistant, Google Pockets and Google Maps), and a few help Amazon Alexa or Samsung’s Bixby.

When it comes to design, Apple Watch has a single design however is available in totally different sizes and supplies. It’s glossy, however your solely actual customization comes from bands and watch faces. Android smartwatches, alternatively, are available tons of types and types (Samsung, Google Pixel Watch, Garmin, Fossil and many others.), that means you’ll be able to decide a spherical watch, a rugged design or a luxury-looking mannequin.

If battery life is vital to you, the Apple Watch lasts a couple of day or two per cost, relying on utilization and mannequin. Many Android smartwatches (particularly Garmin, Amazfit or Mobvoi TicWatch) final a number of days and even weeks on a single cost.

Georgie Peru contributed to this report.