Best Garmin Running Watches in 2021

When it comes to running, everyone has different requirements. These Garmin running watches will meet your criteria if you run marathons, are on a budget, want a multisport watch, or a little bit of everything.

For years, Garmin has always been at the top of GPS watches. It’s no coincidence that they produce the ultimate devices watches available. Though Garmin watches are not cheap, you get a high-quality, long-lasting watch with excellent tech support and a one-year warranty.

We’ll look at some of the best Garmin running watches. We’ll also look at the target market for these watches and what their best features are.

Garmin Forerunner 245

The Forerunner 245 contains no specifically new material. Instead, you get a lot of features that were exclusively available in more costly Garmin running watches. So, for $300 or $350 (for the version with music), you get some high-end features that aren’t available on the older Forerunner 235.

Size

The watch’s weight and physical size shrank… However, for almost the same screen size, the resolution is greater. With a better battery (24 hours if using GPS compared to 11 hours on the Forerunner 235), you get a lighter, more compact watch that’s easier to read and has longer battery life.

Accessories

The Forerunner 245 also has better accessory compatibility, like Garmin’s Running Pod.

This small device gives you more accurate and in-depth information about your running style. Cadence, vertical oscillation and ground contact are all tracked. When you combine the two, you get a clearer understanding of your running style than if you didn’t use the pod.

In the case of cyclists, the Forerunner 245 is compatible with Garmin’s Varia cycling protection devices, which alert you to vehicles close by while enabling them to see you better.

Safety

This Garmin also has an Assistance button, which is a new feature on the safety front. If you need assistance, pressing the button notifies selected friends and family of your present location via text and email. If you crash on a bike ride, incident warning takes it a step further by immediately notifying friends and family.

Maps

A real-time breadcrumb type map and point-to-point navigation are now included in navigation and mapping. While not as good as the city and topo maps on the Fenix 5+, Breadcrumb maps do give you an idea of where you’ve come from and how far you need to go. TracBack, which returns you to your initial starting point if you go off-piste, is also included.

Sport modes

The 245 monitors pool and open water swimming. However, while it can track biking, it does not have a multisport feature that enables you to swap between sports during the same workout.

Activity monitoring and regular GPS run tracking are all carried over from the 235. (time, distance, pace, auto-pause, auto-lap, etc.).

Music

Finally, the Forerunner 245, like the Vivoactive 3, is available in both music and non-music versions. The music edition is $50 extra and includes the capacity to store music on the watch. You can also use the watch to adjust the volume, pause, skip and play music (providing you have a smartphone with you).

Pros:

• Decent display
• Good battery
• Safety features
• Optional music version
• Decent maps

Cons:

• Does track swimming but no automatic switch between sport modes for triathletes
• Music version costs extra

Garmin Forerunner 945

Garmin’s newest and leading multisport and triathlon GPS watch improves on the Forerunner 935’s already impressive battery life, music storage, and new functionality to make your training runs more reliable and safer.

Features

The Forerunner 945 is a compact device with 35-hour battery life (if using GPS, but not music). It records runs, bike rides, and swimming (both pool and open water), as well as having a multisport feature that allows you to record each of these exercises in one file for brick sessions and triathlons. GPS monitoring and accuracy have improved thanks to a new Galileo sensor.

Maps

Complete city and trail maps are included on the full-colour screen to assist you in navigating wherever you go. Garmin Pay and music storage are also new features in the 945. Songs can be stored and regulated directly from the watch for on-the-go listening. You can also use Spotify to listen to music (you’ll need a tablet for this).

Tracking

Although older Garmins could track training load (a measure of how hard you were working out) and training status (how successful your workouts were), the 945 takes things a step further by including the temperature and altitude in these metrics.

Safety

Safety features that enable selected friends and family to be notified of your position during a workout are also new. If you need assistance, you can share your position with selected contacts by pressing a button. Automatic incident monitoring may be disabled – this is mostly used for cycling in the event of a crash.

Extras

The 945 can be combined with the Running Dynamics Pod, which can be purchased separately. This aids in the monitoring of running form and the improvement of the cadence measurement that all Garmin running watches record.

Pros:

• Excellent battery
• Decent sport modes
• Compact and light on the wrist
• Playback and storage of music
• Detailed maps and navigation

Cons:

• Does it offer too much, to a fault?

Garmin Forerunner 745

This is a multisport watch designed as a sibling to the Forerunner 945. But it’s also a fantastic straight-up running watch – a welcome change from Garmin’s previous high-end running watch, the 645.

Design

The Forerunner 745 has a slim design with an easy-to-read screen and is comfortable to wear. It has all of the features you need for running and music storage, and capabilities for swimming and cycling.

Black, white, frost blue and red are the four colours available for the 745. The straps are rubberized, but they’re easy to fasten and broad enough. The resolution is excellent, and the watch is lighter than previous models.

Sports modes

Running drills can be programmed into the Forerunner 745. With the Garmin Running Pod, it also monitors advanced running form metrics. It has a wrist-based heart rate monitor, but it can also be used with a chest strap.

Multi-sport athletes would appreciate swim monitoring in the pool and open water. Cycling monitoring is also excellent, and the 745 can be used with a variety of cycling accessories.

How does it differ from the 945?

You may be wondering what makes this timepiece distinct from the 945?  For starters, the battery isn’t as efficient. In GPS mode, expect up to 16 hours versus 36 hours with the 945 (note, this is with GPS on but no music – battery life can vary considerably on how you use it).

It doesn’t have the same maps or navigation as the 945. Also, it has only half the 945’s music storage capacity. The 945 has golf-specific features, but we’re unsure how relevant that would be to many runners and triathletes.

However, at $100 less than the 945, it’s a great alternative for runners or triathletes looking for a less expensive timepiece.

Pros:

• Big screen
• Training modes that can be customised
• Lightweight and comfortable

Cons:

• In comparison to the 945, this model has a less powerful battery 

Garmin Forerunner 45 And 45S

With their beginner-friendly, simple GPS watch, Garmin has raised the bar once more. The Forerunner 45 not only records runs using GPS, but it also serves as a fitness tracker and a heart rate monitor thanks to a wrist sensor.

The Forerunner 45 is an excellent, simple timepiece. In comparison to more expensive ones, we’d call it basic. However, it has a few extra features that make this a good choice at an affordable price.

Build

The Forerunner 45 is available in two sizes: the 45 and the 45S, which is significantly smaller and lighter. The 45S is available in white or purple, whereas the 45 in red or black, indicating some unnecessary gendering.

However, both models now have a colour screen with a greater resolution than the Forerunner 35 and 25. With 13 hours of GPS mode, the battery life is about the same.

New safety features added

Safety features are new to the Forerunner 45. An assistance button can send a text and email to chosen contacts to alert them of your location if you need assistance during your training. If you fall while cycling, the incident detection will do the same.

Music

Although these devices do not store or stream music, they will control the playback of music on an Android phone. This removes the need to take out your phone any time you want to adjust the volume.

Sports modes

Interval exercises were applied to Garmin’s simple watch with the Forerunner 35. The Forerunner 45 expands on that by allowing you to incorporate more advanced workouts. These are basically personalised workouts that you (or your trainer) can create in any way you want.

Pros:

• Nice readability
• Two sizes for different wrists
• Compact and lightweight
• Superb at the basic measures
• Safety measures are a nice addition

Cons:

• Gendered colours aren’t necessary
• Expensive for a more basic option

Garmin Fenix 6x Pro

The Garmin Fenix 6X Pro is the company’s most powerful and feature-rich watch. It’s perfect for more traditional outdoor activities like cycling, swimming, hiking, and more adventurous sports like skiing and paddleboarding.

Design and build

The very first thing that strikes you about this watch is its size. Garmin running watches are renowned for industrial designs, and this model is no exception. It comes with a  widescreen with a resolution of 280 X 280 pixels.

Maps

Colour street and topo maps are included with the Fenix 6X Pro and can be viewed directly on the watch. When it comes to navigating new locations or making your way through the trails, this is critical. It also has a barometer for tracking elevation. The watch has some good ascent, and altitude tracking features built-in.

Features

The use of a wrist-based heart rate monitor is commonplace. The 6X Pro, like previous models, has Garmin Pay, which allows you to pay for items with your watch. It’s also one of the few devices that sync Spotify and can store music (up to 2000 songs).

The Fenix 6X Pro can be configured with workouts or used with Garmin’s virtual training features to track speed while running. Advanced measures such as cadence, fitness level, and fitness recovery time are tracked.

Battery life

The battery life is very impressive. In standard watch mode, you’ll get 21 days. In GPS mode, it can last up to 60 hours, and with GPS and audio, it can last up to 15 hours. Power Manager, on the other hand, is new to the Fenix 6X. This diagram illustrates how various features affect battery life. Using your favourite features, uninstall the ones you don’t, and save battery life by customising the watch. You can also make changes on the fly while running.

Watch bands and watch faces can be quickly and easily personalised.

Pros:

• Music storage
• Garmin Pay
• Street and topo maps on-screen
• Huge screen
• Excellent battery life

Cons:

• Costly
• Quite bulky and so unsuitable for smaller wrists

Garmin Vivoactive 4 And 4s

Garmin’s variant of a smartwatch is the Vivoactive 4/4S. It’s designed for daily use, but with GPS monitoring, it’s ideal for racing.

But unlike Vivoactive 3, the new edition is available in two sizes: 4 and 4S. The Vivoactive 4 is slightly larger than the previous version, whereas the Vivoactive 4S is smaller, making it suitable for runners with slim wrists.

Like most Garmin running watches, both the Vivoactive 4 and 4S have a wrist-based heart rate monitor that acts as a fitness tracker and displays phone alerts on the watch face.

The original Venu, which was released with the Vivoactive 4 and 4S, is almost identical to the Vivoactive 4/4S with three distinctions:

The AMOLED show, in particular, is simple, crisp, and colourful. It’s likely Garmin’s best and sharpest show on any watch. It is available in two different shapes: square and circular.

In smartwatch mode, the original Venu can last up to five days, and in GPS mode with audio, it can last up to six hours. Again, in smartwatch mode, the Venu 2 can last up to 11 days, and in battery-saver mode, it can last up to 12 days. Finally, in GPS mode with music, it can last up to eight hours, and in GPS mode without music, it can last up to 22 hours.

Garmin running watches – Conclusion

Whilst this list of the best Garmin running watches isn’t exhaustive, it should give you an idea of the choice on offer from this one brand alone. No matter if you’re just starting out or if you’re a seasoned triathlete, Garmin caters to all abilities. As such, also all budgets.

If you need more help, check out our Garmin comparison article.

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Last Updated on October 4, 2021