Best Smartwatch for Runners, Sleep & Health Tracking

TL;DR

No single wearable is right for everyone; the best pick depends on whether you run, cycle, track sleep, or focus on health. For runners, sports watches from Garmin, Suunto, Polar, and Coros all deliver strong GPS, but pairing them with an external chest strap like the Polar H10 gives the most reliable heart rate data.

Transcript

As a data scientist, I've tested hundreds of devices over the years, and I can say confidently that no one device is right for everyone, but it depends on your personality or maybe your partner's personality, which device is right for you or for them. So, in this video, I want to discuss a bunch of different wearables to see which person this devic... Read More

Key Insights

• No one wearable device is right for everyone; the best choice depends on your personality and whether you prioritize running, cycling, sleep tracking, general health, or gym workouts.
• The four main sports-watch brands recommended for runners are Suunto, Garmin, Polar, and Coros, and all of them make quite good running watches with strong GPS tracking.
• The Garmin Forerunner 970 is the most expensive Garmin running watch tested, but most people can drop a few notches to the Forerunner 570 or older 965 and still get very solid running performance.
• The Coros Pace 3 and Pace 4 offer the best bang for your buck at around $230 to $270, far cheaper than the roughly $700 Garmin Forerunner 970.
• Wrist-based heart rate tracking on sports watches is only pretty okay; an external monitor is more reliable, whether a chest strap or a biceps band like the Polar Verity Sense.
• The Polar H10 is described as the most robust chest strap available, and an H9 or H10 can be bought for roughly 60 to 90 dollars and connects seamlessly to most watches.
• The Garmin Forerunner 970 correlated with the reference better than 74% of tested devices for running, but only performed okay for indoor and outdoor cycling, suggesting it is designed mainly for running.
• For health-obsessed people who want sleep and broader health tracking, the Whoop strap is a top recommendation; it is an expensive subscription device whose strength is sleep tracking and its app.

Questions & Answers

Q: What is the best smartwatch for runners?

There is no single best running watch; the presenter recommends choosing among four main sports brands: Suunto, Garmin, Polar, and Coros, all of which make quite good running watches with strong GPS. Garmin offers the Forerunner 970, 965, and 570; Coros offers the value-focused Pace 3 and Pace 4; Suunto has the Race 2; and Polar offers the Vantage M3. The right pick depends on budget and which features you need.

Q: How much do the recommended running watches cost?

Prices vary widely across brands. The Coros Pace 3 and Pace 4 are the best bang for your buck at around $230 to $270. The Garmin Forerunner 570 is still around $450, while the most expensive option, the Garmin Forerunner 970, runs roughly $700 or euros. External heart rate monitors like the Polar H9 or H10 chest strap can be bought separately for about 60 to 90 dollars.

Q: Why should I use an external heart rate monitor with my watch?

Wrist-based heart rate tracking on sports watches is only pretty okay, and there are stronger heart rate trackers available. The presenter recommends an external monitor because it is much more reliable. Options include a chest strap like the Polar H10, described as the most robust available, a biceps band such as the Polar Verity Sense or Coros device, or a Wahoo tracker. These connect seamlessly to most watches and deliver some of the best heart rate tracking out there.

Q: How did the Garmin Forerunner 970 perform in heart rate testing?

For running, the Garmin Forerunner 970 did quite well, correlating with the reference better than 74% of other devices tested, shown high on the vertical axis of the correlation plot. However, for indoor and outdoor cycling it only performed okay, with more previously tested devices outperforming it than doing worse. This suggests the 970 is designed for running more than any other activity, based on the presenter's testing.

Q: Is the cheaper Garmin Forerunner 570 good enough for most people?

Yes, for most people the Forerunner 570 is good enough. In testing it had very similar performance to the more expensive 970, doing well for running while being weaker for indoor and outdoor cycling compared to competitors. The 570 is missing some features like certain mapping capabilities and ECG measurement, and costs around $450. Buyers can even go cheaper to the Garmin 165, which still did quite okay and is smaller, potentially good for women.

Q: Which chest strap is the most reliable for heart rate tracking?

The most reliable way to track heart rate is an ECG chest strap, and the presenter currently recommends the Polar H10 or a Wahoo tracker. Both perform well in testing. The Wahoo has a built-in battery, whereas the Polar's battery must be replaced every once in a while. The Polar H10 is also described as the most robust chest strap available. Biceps-worn options like the Polar Verity Sense are also more reliable than wrist tracking.

Q: What is the best wearable for tracking sleep and overall health?

For health-obsessed people who want to track both sports and health including sleep, one of the presenter's top recommendations is the Whoop strap. It can be worn on the wrist or biceps, is quite expensive, and uses a subscription model. While it is a decent heart rate tracker, what it does best is track sleep, and its app is really nice, giving an overview of how you slept, long-term health trends, and a Whoop age. Cheaper alternatives exist but are not quite as good yet.

Q: Why does the presenter say no single device is right for everyone?

Rob, a post-doctoral scientist specializing in biological data analysis who has tested hundreds of devices, explains that the right device depends on your personality or your partner's, and on what you want to focus on. He identifies five user types: the runner, the cyclist, the health-obsessed person, the person tracking sleep, and the gym rat. Most people are a combination of these, so the ideal device or combination of devices differs from person to person.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• The presenter, Rob, a post-doctoral scientist specializing in biological data analysis, argues no single wearable suits everyone and identifies five user types: the runner, the cyclist, the health-obsessed person, the sleep tracker, and the gym rat, each best served by different devices or combinations.

• For runners, he recommends sports watches from Garmin, Suunto, Polar, and Coros. The Garmin Forerunner 970 is priciest at around $700, while the Coros Pace 3 or 4 at $230 to $270 offer the best value. Cheaper Garmin models like the 570 or 165 still perform well.

• Heart rate data shows sports watches excel at GPS but only do okay on wrist heart rate, so he advises external monitors like the Polar H10 chest strap, Verity Sense biceps band, or Wahoo tracker. For health and sleep tracking, the Whoop strap is a top, though expensive, pick.