The very best smartwatches for 2025

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

Likelihood is, if you happen to’re studying this, you already know the entire advantages of a smartwatch. You’re prepared to speculate, or improve from an getting older accent, however we wouldn’t blame you if you happen to if you happen to didn’t know the place to start out. There are dozens of smartwatches obtainable now, together with GPS running watches, fitness trackers that appear to be smartwatches and multi-purpose units. 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 right this moment and these are our high picks.

Desk of contents

Greatest smartwatches of 2025

Cherlynn Low for Engadget

Tracks: Sleep, exercise, energy, stress | Connectivity: Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, Mobile (non-obligatory) | GPS: Sure, in-built | Water-proof: Sure | Assistant assist: Google Assistant | Show: At all times-on Actua touchscreen | Weight: 31 grams | Battery life: As much as 30 hours

Learn our full Google Pixel Watch 4 review

With its Google and Fitbit heritage, the Pixel Watch 4 continues in its predecessor’s footsteps of being a well-rounded smartwatch with stable well being options. However it has some new tips up its sleeve, and one shocking benefit it has over the competitors is its extremely quick charging. In mere minutes, the Pixel Watch 4 can go from barely any energy to prepared for half a day of labor.

We additionally love that its repairable design means you may change the show or battery in future if wanted, which makes this a way more futureproof system than every other smartwatch in the marketplace. Plus, Google added a raise-to-talk to Gemini gesture that makes hands-free use of the Pixel Watch 4 a lot simpler.

It additionally comes with emergency satellite tv for pc communication capabilities so that you’ll have some added peace of thoughts when going off the grid. Throw in a sexy design, vibrant curved show, extremely customizable watch faces and good battery life and the Pixel Watch 4 is definitely the perfect Android smartwatch you may get, particularly when you’ve got a Pixel cellphone.

Execs

• Tremendous quick recharging
• Complete well being and health monitoring
• Vivid, stunning show
• Repairable design

Cons

• Gemini wake gesture is finicky
• Have to be related to web for Gemini to work

$350 at Amazon

Picture by Valentina Palladino / Engadget

Tracks: Sleep, exercise, energy, stress, dozens of exercises | Connectivity: Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, ANT+ | GPS: Sure, in-built | Water-proof: Sure | Assistant assist: None | Show: 1.2-inch AMOLED with non-obligatory 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 essentially the most after I went out for a run. The experience of the Forerunner line is within the title, and Garmin really excels at making complete but pleasant GPS running watches in flavors that can swimsuit every kind of athletes, from newbie to knowledgeable. The Forerunner 165 stands out with its light-weight design, vibrant AMOLED touchscreen, simple button controls, correct built-in GPS and its capability 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 may select the train you wish to observe. Run is the primary possibility, however you may have greater than 25 profiles to select from together with observe run, treadmill, stroll, energy, 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 cellular app. The beforehand clunky, complicated app has been properly refined in an effort to customise its homepage the exercise and exercise stats you care about essentially the most, together with issues like Physique Battery, Sleep Rating, menstrual cycle info and extra. It’s simple to dive into your most just 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 largely 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 also get the 165 with music storage in-built or not, with the previous permitting you to retailer music regionally on the watch so you may hear 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 value spectrum for GPS operating watches; you would simply spend $500 or extra if you happen to’re not sure about what you want and what’s simply further fluff. Whereas Garmin does have a number of cheaper units, the Forerunner 165 strikes the best stability of function set and value that can enchantment to seasoned runners and people who are simply diving right into a extra regimented operating routine.

$250 at Garmin

Amy Skorheim for Engadget

Tracks: Sleep, exercise, energy, dozens of exercises, antioxidant ranges, vascular load | Connectivity: Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, LTE (non-obligatory) | GPS: Sure, in-built | Water-proof: Sure, 5 ATM + IP68 | Show: At all times-on, 3000 nits peak brightness | Battery life: 30+ hours

Learn our full Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 review

Samsung fully redesigned its wearable for 2025. The Galaxy Watch 8 appears to be like cleaner and extra refined — however extra importantly, it’s way more snug. One other {hardware} enchancment bumps up the battery measurement, fixing one of many Galaxy Watch 7’s largest flaws. With that watch, the always-on show tanked the battery, however now you may get a full day after which some whereas carrying it.

With Put on OS 6, the watch beneficial properties a brand new tiles-based interface that makes navigating fast and straightforward. It additionally provides the help of Gemini, which can assist you management capabilities and full duties in your watch simply by saying, “Hey Google” (simply word that you just’ll want a Gemini-compatible cellphone close by).

Well being and health additions embody an antioxidant ranges metric and vascular load, which can assist some folks maintain higher tabs on their well being. An AI-fueled operating steering “coach” takes an evaluation of your jogging skills and tailors a program that can assist you run additional and sooner. We expect this can in all probability profit newbie runners essentially the most — these accustomed to teaching might not discover it as helpful.

After all, that is solely a good selection for Samsung cellphone customers. And one other downside is the raised glass display, which appears destined for injury. However we’ll word that you may keep away from that threat (and rating some critical heritage-watch model factors) by going with the Traditional variant of the watch. — Amy Skorheim, Senior Reporter

Execs

• Remarkably snug match
• Tiles interface is snappy
• New antioxidant degree and vascular load well being metrics might assist customers control their well being
• The operating coach might be inspiring for newbies
• Good Gemini integration
• Improved battery makes the AOD extra viable

Cons

• The raised glass display might be simply broken
• AI-running coach might be extra personalised
• Notifications are simple to overlook

$315 at Amazon

Fashionable smartwatches: Fossil and extra

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

Finally, the one factor you may’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 just a little extra like a conventional watch. Most wearables are provided in a selection of colours and you may pay further for premium supplies like stainless-steel for further sturdiness. When you determine on a case, your band choices are countless – 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 alter up your look everytime you please.

Components to contemplate earlier than shopping for a smartwatch

Compatibility

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

The smartwatch OS may even dictate the kind 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

The very best smartwatches usually value between $300 and $400. In comparison with funds smartwatches, which value between $100 and $250, these pricier units have superior working methods, communications, music and health options. Additionally they typically embody perks like onboard GPS monitoring, music storage and NFC, AMOLED shows, and lengthy battery life, issues that funds units usually don’t have.

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

Battery life

Battery life stays one in every of our largest complaints about smartwatches, however there’s hope as of late. You may count on two full days from Apple Watches and most Put on OS units. Watches utilizing the Snapdragon Put on 3100 processor assist prolonged battery modes that promise as much as 5 days of battery life on a cost — if you happen to’re prepared 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 lots 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 cellphone calls, and do the identical with textual content messages, with out your system 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 if you happen to completely must test your cellphone proper now.

Health monitoring

Exercise monitoring is an enormous 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 right this moment’s wearables have a coronary heart fee monitor as properly.

Many smartwatches’ health options embody a built-in GPS, which is helpful for monitoring distance for runs and bike rides. Swimmers will need one thing water-proof, and fortunately most all-purpose units now can stand up to no less than 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 units 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 accumulating these sorts of wellness metrics is essential to you, you’ll must pay for the privilege.

Music

Your watch cannot solely observe your morning runs but in addition play music whilst you’re exercising. Many smartwatches allow you to save your music regionally, so you may join wi-fi earbuds through Bluetooth and hearken to tunes with out bringing your cellphone. People who don’t have onboard storage for music normally have on-watch music controls, so you may management playback with out whipping out your cellphone. And in case your watch has LTE, native saving isn’t required — you’ll have the ability to stream music instantly 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 occasions 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 beneficial properties with the latter, although, as a result of the additional battery basically will get used up when these units have always-on shows, as most flagship wearables do right this moment. Some smartwatches have this function on by default whereas others allow you to allow it through tweaked settings. This good function means that you can look down at your watch to test the time, well being stats or every other info you’ve set it to indicate on its watchface with out lifting your wrist. This can little question have an effect on your system’s battery life, however fortunately most always-on modes dim the show’s brightness so it’s not operating at its peak unnecessarily. Cheaper units received’t have this function; as an alternative, their touchscreens will routinely flip off to preserve battery life and also you’ll must deliberately test 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 info, you may maintain your smartwatch as much as an NFC reader to pay for a cup of espresso in your manner house from a run. Remember that completely different watches use completely different fee methods: Apple Watches use Apple Pay, Put on OS units use Google Pay, Samsung units use Samsung Pay and so forth.

Apple Pay is without doubt one of the hottest NFC fee methods, with assist for multiple banks and credit cards in 72 completely different international locations, whereas Samsung and Google Pay work in fewer areas. It’s additionally essential to notice that each NFC fee assist varies by system as properly for each Samsung and Google’s methods.

Different smartwatches our specialists examined

Apple Watch Extremely 3

The Apple Watch Ultra 3 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 most important battery of any Apple Watch so far. Apple designed it for essentially the most rugged amongst us, however in 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 an excellent cause to contemplate the Apple Watch Extremely 3.

Apple Watch SE 3

The Apple Watch SE 3 is much less feature-rich than the flagship mannequin, however it’s going to in all probability suffice for most individuals. We really regard the Watch SE as the perfect smartwatch possibility for first-time patrons, or folks on stricter budgets. The hole has narrowed between the SE 3 and Apple’s important flagship smartwatch, too, so you will not must make as many compromises.

Garmin Forerunner 745

Garmin watches basically might be nice choices for essentially the most lively amongst us. The Garmin Forerunner 745 is a superb GPS running watch for critical athletes or those that prize battery life above all else. Once we examined it, we discovered it to supply correct distance monitoring, a killer 16-hour battery life with GPS turned on (as much as seven days with out it) and assist 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 respectable, nevertheless it’s a irritating smartwatch. For exercises, the built-in GPS tracks runs and rides with out your cellphone and, mixed with the guts fee and blood oxygen sensors, collects an excellent quantity of knowledge 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 vibrant 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 units and Garmin watches supply. And because the watch battery lasts for over every week on a cost, chances are you’ll be much more apt to put on it to mattress than a watch you need to cost each day.

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

Advertising and marketing particulars state that the Bip 6 can auto-detect exercises, together with strolling and bike using. Throughout testing, I walked a couple of 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 in a position to 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 most important 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 completely different functions.

A health tracker is primarily targeted 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, however, is sort of a mini smartphone in your wrist. It gives health monitoring options, but in addition helps you to do issues like reply to texts, take calls, use apps and management good house units. Many smartwatches assist voice assistants, cellular funds and even LTE connectivity, so you may depart your cellphone behind in some circumstances.

When you primarily need well being and exercise monitoring with lengthy battery life, a health tracker is the way in which to go. If you need a extra related expertise with further options, a smartwatch is the higher selection.

How lengthy do smartwatches final?

How lengthy a smartwatch lasts largely will depend on two issues: battery life and total sturdiness.

Smartwatch battery life varies lots relying on the model, options and the way you utilize it. Primary 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 every single 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, an excellent smartwatch ought to final a number of years earlier than that you must improve. Premium fashions with scratch-resistant glass, water resistance and robust construct supplies have a tendency to carry up properly over time. Nonetheless, software program assist issues too — manufacturers like Apple and Samsung usually present updates for no less than a number of years, whereas some funds smartwatches might not get long-term software program assist.

You may count on to cost most smartwatches each day or each few days, and if you happen to handle them, they need to final 3-5 years earlier than an improve is important.

How a lot must you spend on a smartwatch?

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

When you simply need the fundamentals — step monitoring, notifications, coronary heart fee monitoring and fundamental health monitoring — you will discover some stable budget-friendly choices from manufacturers like Amazfit, Fitbit and a few Put on OS fashions. These normally have respectable 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 fashionable fashions just like the Apple Watch SE and Fitbit Versa collection. These supply an excellent mixture of health monitoring, good options and design high quality. You’ll get higher construct supplies, extra correct sensors and app assist, however battery life may 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 assist. These are nice for critical athletes, out of doors adventurers, or anybody who desires the most recent and biggest options.

When you simply desire a easy smartwatch for notifications and health monitoring, a funds 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 perfect stability of options and worth.

Do all smartwatches have GPS?

Not all smartwatches have built-in GPS. Some depend on your cellphone’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 while not having to be related to your cellphone. It’s essential for critical athletes or anybody who desires correct location monitoring with out carrying a cellphone.

Some funds and mid-range smartwatches (like some Fitbit and Amazfit fashions) don’t have built-in GPS however can use your cellphone’s GPS when related through Bluetooth. This works advantageous if you happen to normally carry your cellphone whereas figuring out, nevertheless it’s much less handy if you happen to desire to depart it behind.

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

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

Sure, nevertheless it will depend on the smartwatch and what you wish to do with out your cellphone.

In case your smartwatch has LTE or mobile connectivity , you may make calls, ship texts, stream music, use maps and even entry apps with out your cellphone close by. Nonetheless, 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 a lot 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 assist downloads from Spotify or Apple Music), might contactless funds with options like Apple Pay and Google Pockets and management good house units.

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

Can a smartwatch make calls with out a cellphone?

Sure, a smartwatch could make calls with out a cellphone — however provided that it has the best options.

Some smartwatches have built-in LTE connectivity, which means they will work independently out of your cellphone. You can also make and obtain calls, ship texts, stream music and use apps so long as you may have a cellular information plan for the watch. Nonetheless, 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 related to your cellphone through Bluetooth or Wi-Fi. It basically acts as a distant speaker and microphone in your cellphone’s calls. Watches like the usual Apple Watch or Samsung Galaxy Watch (Wi-Fi variations) can do that. Nonetheless, in case your cellphone isn’t close by or related 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 with out a cellphone 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. If in case you have an Android cellphone, you may’t use an Apple Watch in any respect. Android smartwatches (Put on OS, Samsung Galaxy, Garmin and so on.) largely work with Android telephones, however some additionally assist iPhones with restricted options. If in case you have an iPhone, the Apple Watch is your best option. If in case you have an Android cellphone, go for a Put on OS or Samsung Galaxy Watch.

Apple Watch (watchOS) has the perfect app assist with seamless integration into Apple’s ecosystem (iMessage, FaceTime, Apple Pay, Apple Health+, Siri and so on.). Android smartwatches supply extra selection, with entry to Google companies (Google Assistant, Google Pockets and Google Maps), and a few assist Amazon Alexa or Samsung’s Bixby.

When it comes to design, Apple Watch has a single design however is available in completely different sizes and supplies. It’s glossy, however your solely actual customization comes from bands and watch faces. Android smartwatches, however, are available in tons of kinds and types (Samsung, Google Pixel Watch, Garmin, Fossil and so on.), which means you may decide a spherical watch, a rugged design or a luxury-looking mannequin.

If battery life is essential 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.