The best smartwatches 2024

What's more impressive is that many of today's best models can do a ton of tricks, like letting you search the Internet with your voice, track your workouts with GPS, and let you pay at the grocery store without reaching for your wallet.

They look great. If you think a smartwatch is a crazy, pointless accessory, think again. These options are well-made, sturdy, and can make you look more polished.

1. Apple Watch Series 7

The Apple Watch 7 is the best Apple Watch yet. It's not a huge upgrade over the Apple Watch 6 in terms of features, but it does have a larger display. For the first time, the Apple Watch comes in 41mm and 45mm sizes, which complements the larger display. The 7th generation Apple also has some exclusive watch faces and a full QWERTY keyboard.

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While battery life hasn't improved, the Series 7 does benefit from faster charging. You can fully charge the watch in about an hour, reducing the time you spend plugged in and increasing the amount of time you spend using the device. Whether you want a smartwatch to work out, answer calls from your wrist, or use the best Apple Watch apps, this is the best smartwatch for you. That is, provided you have an iPhone.

2. Samsung Galaxy Watch 5

The Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 has a new skin temperature reading tool, a more scratch-resistant display, and longer battery life. This is Samsung's best watch yet, because while there's not much to differentiate the Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 from the Galaxy Watch 4, the changes make an already great device that much better. Starting at around $300, it's still considered a reasonable price.

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There are a lot of things to love about the Galaxy Watch 5. For starters, it lasted two days in our testing and charged to nearly 50% from 0% in 30 minutes. Wear OS 3 with Samsung's skin also has more perks, including Google Assistant and better interoperability with other Samsung devices. For more GPS features and even longer battery life, check out the Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 Pro.

3. Fitbit Sense

The Fitbit Sense is the company's flagship smartwatch, and it comes with more advanced health features than the Versa line. Not only does it have an FDA-cleared ECG sensor and blood oxygen sensor, but the Sense can also measure electrodermal activity and skin temperature.

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One of Fitbit's best watches, the Sense works with both iOS and Android, and comes with onboard GPS, a native app store, Alexa, and more. Fitbit is no longer just a brand with step trackers, watches like the Fitbit Sense represent a serious take on our overall health.

4. Apple Watch SE

The Apple Watch SE is a hybrid of the Apple Watch Series 5 (discontinued) and Apple Watch Series 3. The $279 smartwatch doesn't have all the features of the Series 6, but it still stands out thanks to its fast processor and signature security features. It also offers an LTE version, making it a good choice for those who want to use Family Setup.

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When choosing between the Apple Watch 6 and the Apple Watch SE, your only concern will be whether you want to spend an extra $120 for a brighter always-on display, an ECG monitor, and blood oxygen (SpO2) measurement. If those features aren't important to you, the SE is a much better choice for iPhone users.

5. Garmin Venu 2 Plus

The Garmin Venu 2 is already an excellent fitness tracker. It's considered one of the best Garmin watches. The Garmin Venu 2 is both a capable fitness companion and a stylish wearable. The Garmin Venu 2 Plus, priced at around $500, adds the ability to make calls from your wrist and use a voice assistant. While it still maintains Garmin's reputation for accurate GPS and activity tracking, the Venu 2 Plus is now the better seller for those who want their smartwatch to act as an extension of their smartphone.

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While Garmin still lacks a large third-party app store and continues to lack LTE support, having more communication tools is an important step toward mastering the full smartwatch experience. The Garmin Venu 2 has a battery life of 10 days.

6. Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 Classic

Even though there's a newer Galaxy Watch 5, the Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 Classic is still a worthy option for those who prefer a traditional look. This classic version of the watch has luxury features, namely a physical rotating bezel (starting at $300).

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Thanks to its three-in-one health sensor, the Galaxy Watch 4 Classic can measure your heart rate, take an ECG, and read your body composition. And despite the compelling features of the Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 Wear OS, it still pays homage to Tizen, making it the perfect companion to the best Samsung phones. Note that some features are exclusive to Samsung users, so not all Android users will benefit from everything the Galaxy Watch 4 can do.

7. Fitbit Versa 3

The best mid-range smartwatch for sleep tracking is the Fitbit Versa 3, the successor to the Fitbit Versa 2. The Versa 3's big upgrade is its built-in GPS. Now, even if you leave your phone at home, the Versa can track your location while exercising outdoors. The larger, curved screen design is also a hit with users.

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Plus, the Versa 3 has a great motivational workout feature – Active Zone Minutes. Introduced with the Charge 4, Active Zone Minutes tracks how much time you spend burning fat, cardio, or peak heart rate during exercise. The goal is to achieve the AHA and WHO-recommended Active Zone Minutes score of 150 each week.

8. Amazfit GTR 3 Pro

Many people often wonder whether they should buy an Amazfit watch, and the answer is yes, especially the large Amazfit GTR 3 Pro. This is the best smartwatch from the brand. While users often wish for a bit more features for the price (for example, the Amazfit GTR 3 Pro lacks NFC), there are still plenty of health and fitness-related functions equipped on this device. With improved accuracy compared to the previous generation Amazfit GTR 2, the GTR 3 Pro offers a great tool for measuring heart rate, blood oxygen, stress levels, etc. in one reading.

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You can work out with over 150 types of exercises, the watch's built-in apps, hands-free voice control, and a menu layout that can be adjusted to suit your needs. With up to 12 days of battery life, this is one of the best smartwatches for Android that doesn't come from one of the top names in wearables.

9. Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2

The Galaxy Watch Active 2 is a worthy rival to the Apple Watch for its price. Samsung's watch works with both Android and iOS smartphones (though not as well optimized), has GPS, heart rate tracking, and LTE (on the high-end). It can also automatically track activity and sleep.

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The Galaxy Watch Active 2's round design is beautiful, whether you choose the 40mm or 44mm model. Running Samsung's Tizen operating system, the Galaxy Watch boasts other useful features like Samsung Pay, integrated music streaming via Spotify, and heart health features. But the biggest reason the Galaxy Watch Active 2 is one of the best smartwatches for Android users is its excellent battery life.

10. Apple Watch 3

Starting at $199, the Apple Watch Series 3 is a more affordable smartwatch option than the Series 6 and SE for iPhone users. The Series 3 is smaller, has thicker bezels, and lacks features like an ECG and SpO2, but it's still a good choice for the price.

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When compared to the Apple Watch 6 or Apple Watch SE, the Apple Watch 3 doesn't lack much compared to the newer versions. You still get a heart rate monitor, GPS, 8GB of storage, and support for offline Apple Music playback. The watch is also water-resistant if you want to go swimming, and many of the best software features of the Apple Watch Series 6 are also found in the Series 3.

Lesley Montoya

Update 06 October 2024