Top 5 compared
The best smartwatches for iPhone
Glance at your iPhone’s messages without pulling it out, with every workout and night’s sleep tracked.
As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. It costs you nothing extra. How this works
The top 5 at a glance
A smartwatch is a second screen for your phone: texts, calls, music and directions arrive on your wrist, while it counts steps and tracks sleep, heart rate and workouts in the background. Apple’s own watches are the app-rich kind, with bright screens that want charging every day or two; fitness-led watches from other makers do a little less and go a week or more between charges.
Apple Watches work only with iPhones, and the newest need an iPhone 11 or later. Other makers’ watches pair through their own free apps and show your notifications and calls, though some extras, such as text replies from the wrist, are kept for Android phones. Android owners have a list of their own: the best smartwatches for Android.
What matters
- Battery life, and whether a nightly charge suits you.
- Built-in GPS, for runs and rides with the phone left at home.
- 5 ATM (164 ft) of water resistance or more, for swimming.
#1Apple Watch Series 12 (GPS, 42mm)
Over $300
An always-on screen, built-in GPS, Apple Pay and phone calls, plus a nightly sleep score and a morning readiness check. Apple’s first watch went on sale in April 2015, and this is its main model now; the Ultra 3 and SE 3 both have a higher Picked Rating, one for long days outdoors, one with shorter battery life at a lower price.
What owners say: Owners like how it looks and how well it tracks workouts and heart rate, and they’re happy with the battery and with how easily it pairs with an iPhone. The 42mm size splits opinion, perfect on some wrists and smaller than expected on others, and the fit of the band divides them too.
A closer look: Fifteen minutes on the charger gives up to 12 hours of use by Apple’s figures, so a quick charge while getting ready rescues a day that started low. The 42mm case sits comfortably on most wrists, while the 46mm version leaves more room for reading messages and maps.
- Always-on screen
- Nightly sleep score
- Readiness check each morning
- Fall and crash detection
Best for: Workdays, workouts and sleep
- Works with
- iPhone only
- Battery (maker’s figure)
- Up to 24 hours
- Built-in GPS
- Yes
- Contactless payments
- Apple Pay
- Calls on the watch
- Yes
- Water resistance
- 164 ft (50 m)
#2Apple Watch Ultra 3 (GPS + Cellular, 49mm, Black Ocean Band)
Over $300
Apple’s toughest watch, in a titanium case with a sapphire face, runs up to 42 hours between charges. It has its own cellular connection, dual-frequency GPS for trail runs and rides and water resistance to 100 meters for swimming and water sports. That’s more than a workday and a gym session call for, but it suits long days outdoors.
What owners say: Owners praise how well it performs and how long it runs between charges, and find the health tracking useful and the watch easy to use and to pair with an iPhone. The big 49mm screen divides them: some love the size, others find it too large.
Heads up: Apple has since followed it with the Ultra 4; the Ultra 3 is still sold new.
A closer look: Cellular means calls, messages and music with the iPhone left at home, once your carrier has added the watch to your plan. The screen doubles as a flashlight, and Low Power Mode stretches a GPS workout with heart-rate tracking to 20 hours, enough for a very long day on the trail.
- Titanium case, sapphire face
- Cellular: leave the iPhone home
- Hypertension notifications
- Screen doubles as a flashlight
- ECG and AFib check
Best for: Outdoor sports and long days
- Works with
- iPhone only
- Battery (maker’s figure)
- Up to 42 hours
- Built-in GPS
- Yes
- Contactless payments
- Apple Pay
- Calls on the watch
- Yes
- Water resistance
- 328 ft (100 m)
#3Apple Watch SE 3 (GPS, 40mm)
$200–$300
Apple’s SE watch now has an always-on screen and a daily sleep score, and covers the essentials: messages, calls, Apple Pay and workouts tracked with its own GPS. It runs fewer hours on a charge than the Series 12 but charges quickly, with 15 minutes giving up to eight hours.
What owners say: Easy to set up and easy to live with, owners say, with plenty of useful features and sleep and activity tracking they trust. Battery life gets a mixed hearing, older iPhones can’t pair with it, and the 40mm case is just right for some and too small for others.
A closer look: The 40mm case suits slimmer wrists, and the 44mm leaves more room for reading messages. Fall detection can call for help after a hard fall, a reassuring extra for older wearers, and the temperature sensor feeds the Vitals and Cycle Tracking apps overnight without anything to switch on.
- Always-on screen
- Fall and crash detection
- Overnight temperature sensing
- Daily sleep score
- Sleep apnea notifications
Best for: Slim wrists and older wearers
- Works with
- iPhone only
- Battery (maker’s figure)
- Up to 18 hours
- Built-in GPS
- Yes
- Contactless payments
- Apple Pay
- Calls on the watch
- Yes
- Water resistance
- 164 ft (50 m)
#4Garmin Venu 4 GPS Smartwatch (45mm, Slate with Black Band)
Over $300
Up to 12 days between charges on a bright AMOLED screen, in a stainless steel case with a built-in flashlight, plus Garmin Pay, built-in GPS and a speaker and mic for calls. It pairs with an iPhone through the free Garmin Connect app, for anyone who would rather not charge a watch every night.
What owners say: Owners get five or six days from a charge and trust its heart-rate and workout tracking; they like the metal case, a bright screen that stays readable in sunshine and how smoothly it syncs with Garmin Connect. Some feel it costs more than it should.
A closer look: Log habits such as coffee and alcohol in the Garmin Connect app and it shows how they line up with your sleep, stress and heart-rate variability over the following weeks. The built-in flashlight is handy on early runs and dark driveways, and the 45mm case fits wrists from about 5.3 to 7.9 inches around.
- Built-in flashlight
- Stainless steel case, AMOLED screen
- Links habits to sleep, stress
- Free Garmin Connect app
Best for: Long battery, any phone
- Works with
- iPhone and Android
- Battery (maker’s figure)
- Up to 288 hours (12 days)
- Built-in GPS
- Yes
- Contactless payments
- Garmin Pay
- Calls on the watch
- Yes
- Water resistance
- 164 ft (50 m)
#5Amazfit Active 3 Premium Smart Watch (Apex Silver, Black Band)
$150–$200
A round AMOLED watch with a stainless steel frame and sapphire glass for well under the price of an Apple Watch, with up to 12 days between charges, built-in GPS with free offline maps and turn-by-turn directions, and Bluetooth calls on the wrist. The Zepp app that runs it charges no subscription.
What owners say: Owners call it a well-made watch and good value. They praise the steel and sapphire, the battery, the automatic workout detection and the heart-rate tracking, and like its clean, modern look.
A closer look: Before a hike or a ride somewhere new, download the map in the Zepp app and the watch gives turn-by-turn directions with no signal. Speech-to-text replies need an Android phone, so with an iPhone it shows your texts and takes calls but leaves answering messages to the phone.
- Offline maps with turn-by-turn
- Sapphire glass, steel frame
- No subscription in the app
- 170+ workout modes
Best for: Turn-by-turn routes on hikes and rides
- Works with
- iPhone and Android
- Battery (maker’s figure)
- Up to 288 hours (12 days)
- Built-in GPS
- Yes
- Contactless payments
- –
- Calls on the watch
- Yes
- Water resistance
- 164 ft (50 m)
How they compare
Swipe sideways or rotate device to see all 5.
| Feature | #1Apple Watch Series 12 | #2Apple Watch Ultra 3 | #3Apple Watch SE 3 | #4Garmin Venu 4 | #5Amazfit Active 3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best overall | Best premium | Best Apple for less | Best budget | ||
| Picked Rating | 9.1 | 9.3 | 9.2 | 8.9 | 8.9 |
| Price | Over $300 | Over $300 | $200–$300 | Over $300 | $150–$200 |
| Works with | iPhone only | iPhone only | iPhone only | iPhone and Android | iPhone and Android |
| Battery (maker’s figure) | Up to 24 hours | Up to 42 hours | Up to 18 hours | Up to 288 hours (12 days) | Up to 288 hours (12 days) |
| Built-in GPS | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Contactless payments | Apple Pay | Apple Pay | Apple Pay | Garmin Pay | – |
| Calls on the watch | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Water resistance | 164 ft (50 m) | 328 ft (100 m) | 164 ft (50 m) | 164 ft (50 m) | 164 ft (50 m) |
| Best for | Workdays, workouts and sleep | Outdoor sports and long days | Slim wrists and older wearers | Long battery, any phone | Turn-by-turn routes on hikes and rides |
| Buy now | Amazon | Amazon | Amazon | Amazon | Amazon |
Photos are illustrative, some computer-generated. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. It costs you nothing extra. How we pick · How this works.
