For the longest time, Apple Watch has felt like the only choice for me. I have an iPhone and naturally, the Apple Watch seemed to be the only smartwatch that made sense. But years later, after reviewing so many wearables, especially the Garmin watches, an Apple vs Garmin debate has started to form.
The picture is not about the winners or losers, but of priority shifting. It is less about what this watch can do for me and more about how this watch fits into my life. We know Garmin watches don’t come cheap, so to keep the Apple vs Garmin debate healthy, I am comparing the Apple Watch Ultra 3 and the Garmin Forerunner 955.
Design
Apple’s idea of rugged is the Apple Watch Ultra. The titanium case, flat Sapphire glass, bright OLED, display and a design that still very much feels like a luxury tech product. It is bold, big and undeniably well made, but it still lives inside the Apple ecosystem.
Garmin takes the opposite approach. It doesn’t try to look premium; however, it does look purposeful. It is lighter and more balanced on the wrist, despite its size. The physical buttons are actually made to matter during workouts and it is a design that prioritizes stability over elegance.
One very subtle difference in both of these watches is how we treat them. With Apple, even a little scratch would feel like damaging the product. With Garmin, scratches feel like evidence. It is made to be used out and about.
Fitness Accuracy and GPS: Where Garmin Still Has the Edge?
This is where the Apple vs Garmin debate starts to tilt. The Apple Watch Ultra 3 has excellent dual-frequency GPS that is accurate enough.
But the Garmin Forerunnerseries is built around GPS accuracy and has a multi-band GNSS with smarter satellite selection and cleaner tracks under trees, near buildings and on trails. It also has a faster GPS lock before workouts and integrated navigation during activities.
The difference between Apple and Garmin is pretty small for casual runs, but for long runs, hikes or races, Garmin simply feels more trustworthy.
Health Accuracy
I have always thought of the Apple Watch to be more fitness focused than health focused.
However, if I compare Apple vs Garmin in this area, Apple Watch Ultra seems to have a more medical first approach.
Apple Watch Ultra has features like FDA-approved ECG and AFib detection. The Crash and Fall Detection is something that I have always admired, especially for senior citizens. These features are genuinely important, especially for people with non-medical conditions and you can bet that Apple won’t ship a health feature unless it’s medical grade.
Garmin doesn’t chase FDA or other medical certifications. This freedom allows it to go deeper into HRV based stress tracking, readiness and recovery recommendations, sleep score and coaching and features like body battery.
When we pit Apple vs Garmin, Garmin seems to be purely for training and recovery.
Battery Life
As much as I love my Apple Watch, the battery is a turning point for me, as well as for most people who switch to Garmin.
Although the Apple Watch Ultra lasts longer than the regular Apple Watch series, it still needs near-daily charging. The battery lasts me around 2-3 days.
The Garmin Forerunner, on the other hand, removes battery anxiety with up to 20 days of battery life. Even while using the GPS constantly, Garmin is a clear winner.
Smart Features
Like I said before, Apple Watch Ultra dominates when it comes to being a smartwatch. At the same time, Garmin dominates when it comes to fitness tracking.
The Apple Watch Ultra three has features like:
- LTE calling and messages,
- Siri with raise to speak,
- Apple Pay has nearly universal support,
- Seamless Apple Fitness+ integration and
- An unmatched ecosystem.
The Garmin Forerunner 955 has features like:
- Read only notifications in most cases,
- Garmin Pay with limited bank support,
- Music syncing that feels pretty stuck in 2018.
If you want a phone replacement on your wrist, Apple wins without a debate.
The Real Reason People are Experiencing Apple Watch Fatigue
Listen, I love my Apple Watch, but this switch is not about one big flaw. The constant notifications are honestly distracting. Fitness data feels shallow if I compare it to the Garmin. The touch screen is a little bit of a struggle to work in the rain or when I’m wearing gloves. Couple all of this with a daily charging ritual and Garmin just feels different and a good change.
The buttons on Garmin always work and there are very few interruptions. The data feels purposeful, and for many people like myself, this fitness-focused approach is just refreshing.
Wrap Up
If you are a casual user, the Apple Watch Ultra is still the best smartwatch you can buy. But for me, personally, I no longer want the best smart watch. I want something that gives me reliable fitness tracking and a longer battery life, without having to worry about my watch running out of juice at the gym.
I want data that helps me train and recover better with fewer distractions and not constant notifications. The Garmin Forerunner 955 gives me all of this. It is not exciting in the way that Apple is, but it is consistent and dependable. And these are the things that matter to me in my life at this stage.
The reason for this switch for me is about my priorities changing and for a growing number of people, this is why Garmin is the watch that they are switching to.
Also read: COROS Nomad vs Garmin vs Suunto – Best Outdoor GPS Watch, Apple Watch 3 Vs Apple Watch 5: Which One Is Still Worth It in 2025? and I Tested WHOOP, Oura, and Apple Watch — Here’s Which One You Should Spend Your Money On
