Garmin watches can be found in a variety of price ranges, depending on your needs. These watches offer a variety of features and also provide numerous sport-specific devices.
Due to the massive presence of Garmin watches and trackers in the market, it has become confusing to choose the perfect Garmin watch for under $500.
Some fitness trackers are more like smartwatches, while others are focused on hardcore athletes and outdoor enthusiasts.
Don’t worry if you are facing trouble finding the best Garmin watch under $500. Because of our deep research, we have enlisted the best Garmin watches that come under $500. So let’s jump into it.
Our Recommendations
| Image | Name | Rating | Buy |
|---|---|---|---|
  | Garmin Instinct | 4.5 | Click Here |
  | Garmin Forerunner 245 | 4.5 | Click Here |
  | Garmin Venu 2 | 4.6 | Click Here |
Top 7 Best Garmin Watches Under $500
- Garmin Instinct
- Garmin Venu
- Garmin Forerunner 245
- Garmin Vivoactive 4
- Garmin Venu 2
- Garmin Forerunner 45S
- Garmin Venu Sq
Garmin Instinct
According to the research, Garmin Instinct is the best Garmin watch. The new Garmin Instinct watches are designed to keep you connected, regardless of where you are.
Garmin’s Instinct offers a unique design that you won’t find on any other watch in the company’s lineup. The case itself is brighter and more colorful, and the screen uses a small sub-display to provide a unique way for you to see your stats.
Built-in GPS
This device is equipped with key sensors, such as built-in GPS and other outdoor and environmental sensors, like a compass and thermometer. These features will help you to track your outdoor environment.
Additionally, with multiple satellite navigation systems (GPS, Glonass, and Galileo), it can also assist in tracking in more challenging environments than GPS alone.
Effective Health Features
Garmin Instinct provides you with numerous health features, including heart rate monitoring, activity and stress tracking, and much more.
Onboard is also a heart rate monitor to continuously monitor your heart rate during exercise, which work great for hikes and long runs but can falter for high-intensity exercise.
The watch can display notifications, weather updates, and you can choose from a variety of watch faces and data-rich watch faces.
Better Battery Life
If you are curious about the battery life of this watch, then it lasts 14 days for smartwatch mode, 16 hours or 40 hours for GPS mode, and 16 hours for Ultratrac battery saving mode.
Key Features
- Built-in GPS
- Rugged design
- U.S. Military standard Watch
- 3 axis compass
- Barometer
- Altimeter
- Heart rate monitor
- Activity tracker
- 3 axis compass and barometric altimeter,
- Constructed to U.S. Military standard
- High Performance GPS
- 100 meter Water Resistance
- Wrist based heart rate
Prices pulled from the Amazon Product Advertising API on:
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.
Great battery life
Accurate
Smart notification
Heart rate monitor
[/i2pros][i2cons]Monochrome screen[/i2cons][/i2pc]
7 Best Garmin Watches For Cycling
Garmin Venu
This is the first Garmin watch with an AMOLED display, and it is complemented by an excellent range of fitness tracking functions and general smartwatch features to make it the best Garmin watch under $500.
The watch is primarily made of plastic and silicone, and the display is made of Corning Gorilla Glass 3. An etched pattern can be seen on the stainless steel bezel around the display.
Multi-sport Watch
Garmin Venu is a multi-sport watch, so that you can expect a lot of functions and features from your Garmin Venu watch.
This watch can track almost any kind of workout, including running, swimming, strength training, skiing, and so on. An animated workout app was also added to this year’s smartwatch.
On your watch screen, you’ll see an animated person doing the workout with you while you do cardio, strength, yoga, and Pilates etc.
New Breath-Work Mode
Breathwork is a new workout mode, and it isn’t your typical stress-relieving breathing exercise. There’s a workout area in the venue next to it.
Once you select breathwork, you’ll be asked to choose the type of breathwork you wish to do: coherent, relaxed, focused, or tranquil.
In addition, Garmin Venu measures your respiration rate and breathing rate as you go throughout the day.
Garmin Connect provides a dedicated widget for the watch’s respiration rate, or it can be displayed as a separate card in the app.
Battery Life
Garmin Venu has a bit short battery life because of its brighter and AMOLED display. It gives you a battery life of up to 5 days in smartwatch mode.
And in the GPS and music mode, the Venu will give you a battery life of up to 6 hours.
Key Features
- Brighter AMOLED display
- Music mode
- Multi-sport smartwatch
- Numerous health features
- New breathwork feature
- Built-in GPS
- Animations
- GPS
- GARMIN PAY
- Animated Exercises
- Spotify
- Body Battery, Pulse Ox Sensor
Prices pulled from the Amazon Product Advertising API on:
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.
Best fitness tracking
Up to 5 days battery life
Music storage
Breathing and Respiration tool[/i2pros][i2cons]Limited app store[/i2cons][/i2pc]
Garmin Forerunner 245
In addition to being smaller and lighter, it has a more colorful display and can store music. With the Garmin Forerunner 245, now you don’t need to carry your smartphone along.
With its soft and redefined design, this watch provides you with an attractive and elegant look. Garmin Forerunner 245 ensures extreme durability because of its Corning Gorilla Glass 3.
Music Support
The fantastic thing about Forerunner 245 is that it can store music onboard. With Spotify, you can play and keep your favorite songs directly from your watch by syncing with streaming services.
Excellent Safety And Tracking Features
Additionally, the device offers safety and tracking features, including real-time GPS location sharing and incident detection (during certain activities).
Moreover, it enables you to take advantage of advanced running dynamics, such as ground contact time, stride length, vertical ratio, etc.
Furthermore, it tracks your statistics, crunches the numbers, and learns about your performance, running form, goal setting, and even your training history.
The Garmin Connect online fitness community also provides free adaptive training plans and custom workout planning.
Battery Life
This smartwatch will provide you with a battery life of 7 days in smartwatch mode and up to 6 hours in GPS mode and music.
Key Features
- Corning Gorilla Glass 3
- Store music onboard
- Fiber-reinforced polymer material
- Silicone straps
- Water-Resistant
- Safety features
- Health and tracking features
- Built-in GPS
- Advance Running Dynamics
- 7 Days of Battery life
- Garmin Connect
- Aerobic activity tracking
- Accurate GPS
Prices pulled from the Amazon Product Advertising API on:
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.
3rd party app sync
Brighter display
Music without the phone
Good battery life
Amazing tracking and fitness features
[/i2pros][i2cons]A bit navigation issue[/i2cons][/i2pc]
Garmin Vivoactive 4
Among the touchscreen running watches from Garmin, it has an average price and features compared to others in the lineup.
Vivoactive 4 looks similar to its predecessors and has the metals sitting around the edge of the watch with a band of silver. Vivoactive ensures extreme durability because its screen is protected by Gorilla Glass 3 tech.
Larger And Significant Display
Vivoactive 4 comes with a larger and significant display which provides you ease while using it. With the always-on-display, you have direct access to the features like time, notifications, etc., without unlocking your phone.
It comes with a 1.3 inch 260 x 260 glossy MIP screen. With its transflective screen, it reflects light, so it becomes clearer in sunlight.
Exercise Tracking Features
Vivoactive 4 is a fantastic fitness tracker and provides you with numerous exercise tracking features.
These features include location tracking, heart rate monitoring, Pulse OX for measuring SPO2 level, and respiration tracking, etc.
Music Support
Music is perhaps the most impressive and essential extra feature in the Vivoactive 4. You can enjoy this fantastic feature because of its 3.6GB storage of podcasts, albums, and playlists.
Besides this, you can also plug your Vivoactive 4 into your laptop to add files manually, which is also a fantastic feature.
Additionally, this smartwatch also supports Spotify and Deezer, but you have to buy a premium subscription for these.
Battery Life
Garmin Vivoactive 4 provides you with 4-5 days of battery life with regular tracked runs and up to 8 days battery life with no active tracking.
Key Features
- Extreme durable
- Larger and significant display
- Always-on-display
- 3.6GB of storage
- Exercise and tracking features
- Health tracking features
- GPS Smartatch
- Animated Workouts
- Pulse OX sensor
- 8 days battery timing
- Body Battery Energy Monitoring
Prices pulled from the Amazon Product Advertising API on:
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.
Built-in GPS
On-board music streaming
Dozens of tracking features
[/i2pros][i2cons]Spotify/Deezer integration should be more friendly[/i2cons][/i2pc]
Garmin Venu 2
Garmin Venu 2 is one of the best Garmin watches that you can buy. It is one of those watches which bridges the gap between a smartwatch and a running watch.
With its advanced workout tracking toos and simple apps, Venu 2 is a smartwatch that can be used for any occasion.
Classic Design
Venu 2 looks much similar to its predecessor and comes with a classic design that’s also ideal and smart enough for daytime wear and easy to wear while working out.
It provides a highly durable screen that is almost groundbreaking and comes with a metal bezel and polymer case. Talking about the bands, it comes with silicone bands which are incredibly comfortable even in extended wear.
Venu 2 comes with the Vivid AMOLED screen, which has a high resolution and extra details. Moreover, it has an adjustable brightness level.
Fitness Tracking
Venu 2 has dozens of shocking fitness tracking features for outdoor and indoor tracking and workouts. Among these features, one is highly accurate GPS which has proved very impressive in many tests.
Now you can know your body better with the extensive health monitoring features, including sleep tracking and score, stress tracking, fitness age, and more.
It includes 25 built-in GPS sports apps that keep you active with walking, running, swimming, HIIT, golf, cycling, and many more.
Smart Notifications
Now you will never miss a call, social media alert, or any text with the smart notifications on your wrist. An amazing fact about this watch is that it is compatible with both Android and Apple smartphones.
Extra Features
Venu 2 allows you to download up to 650 songs from Spotify, Deezer, and Amazon Music with a subscription.
Moreover, the Garmin Pay contactless payments to allow you to pay for purchases on the go. So, with a supported payment network and supported country, you can leave your cards and cash at home.
Key Features
- Extremely durable
- Built-in GPS
- Classic design
- Music support
- Support Garmin pay
- Smart notifications
- Health tracking
- Fitness tracking features
- Accurate GPS
- Bright AMOLED Display
- Slate Bezel
- 11 days Battery Life
Prices pulled from the Amazon Product Advertising API on:
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.
AMOLED display
Accurate GPS
Good battery life
Amazing sports tracking[/i2pros][i2cons]IPhone users cannot reply to messages[/i2cons][/i2pc]
Garmin Forerunner 45S
The Forerunner 45S running watch comes with dozens of activity and health tracking features, making it one of the best Garmin watches.
This running watch is very easy to use and is perfect for your daily runs and training session. It comes with a circular face and is also equipped with a five-button navigation.
Safety And Tracking Features
This Garmin watch has numerous safety and tracking features that make it easy for you to share your location with chosen contacts when you need assistance.
It has built-in accident detection, which increases the safety level. A lot of safety features are also available.
You can also capture your sweat equity by using this watch. Moreover, you can record your data while cycling or running on the treadmill or while doing cardio, yoga, and more.
Smart Notifications
You can now stay connected with the smart notifications for your calls, texts, or other alerts. Also, there is a feature to play music when your phone is connected with this Garmin watch.
It comes with a built-in watch and many health features, including heart rate tracking, etc. With the help of GPS, you can also track the distance, intervals, and much more.
Battery Life
Garmin Forerunner 45S gives you a battery life of up to 7 days in smartwatch mode and up to 14 hours in GPS mode, which is fantastic.
Key Features
- Durable and beautiful design
- Built-in GPS
- Dozens of fitness features
- Health features
- Tracking features
- Safety features
- GPS watch
- Garmin Coach
- 1.04 Inches dial
- Easy to use watch
- Comfortable
Prices pulled from the Amazon Product Advertising API on:
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.
Sleep monitoring
Heart rate monitoring
Safety features
Smart notifications
[/i2pros][i2cons]No swim tracking[/i2cons][/i2pc]
Garmin venu Sq
Garmin Venu Sq is one of the most amazing Garmin watches because it has almost every health and fitness tracking feature that you could get at a low price rather than expensive watches like Apple.
It comes with a square watch face with round edges and is different from other Garmin watches because they have a circular dial.
Menstrual Cycle Tracking
One of the best features of this watch is that it has the Menstrual cycle, which you can use. The Garmin Connect app, which is compatible with your phone and can track your cycle. You have to download the Menstrual Cycle Tracking app on your smartwatch.
Further, you can also track the emotional symptoms, log physical of each phase of the cycle. Also, you can learn about training and nutrition through the app.
Amazing Health Tracking Features
This watch comes with dozens of health tracking features: stress tracking, Pulse OX sensor, mindful breathing, hydration tracking, respiration tracking, and much more.
One of its unique features is the Pulse OX sensor which monitors your blood saturation all day and tells you how your body is absorbing oxygen.
With the body battery energy monitoring, you will be able to see how your body is doing throughout the day, so you’ll know when to exercise and when to rest.
Hydration And Respiration Tracking
By using the hydration tracking feature, you can keep track of your fluid intake so that you can stay hydrated throughout the day. Even as much as sweat is lost during exercise, you can set an automatic hydration goal.
With the respiration tracking feature, you can see how you are breathing throughout the day and at night. You can also use this feature during exercises like yoga, etc.
Built-in Sports Apps
You can track your every move with the help of more than 20 built-in GPS and indoor apps. These include running, walking, cycling, swimming, and golf, etc.
Key Features
- Big display screen
- Battery energy levels
- Built-in GPS
- Fitness tracking features
- Health tracking features
- Menstrual Cycle tracking
- Six days battery life
- Hydration and Respiration tracking
- More Premium Features
- Support Music
- GPS
- BODY BATTERY ENERGY MONITORING
- PRELOADED WORKOUTS
Prices pulled from the Amazon Product Advertising API on:
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.
Nice screen
Good battery life
Health features
Sports coach
Accurate
[/i2pros][i2cons]No barometer or altimeter[/i2cons][/i2pc]
What To Consider Before Buying The Garmin Watches
No doubt, all the Garmin watches we reviewed are the best ones. But to get the perfect one, it’s essential to consider the following factors:
- Battery life
- Training features
- GPS
- Smartwatch features
- Onboard music
Battery Life
It’s essential to consider the factor of battery in Garmin watches. Although most of the Garmin watches have excellent battery life, some are better than others.
We recommend you consider the battery life factor and go with the one which has at least 6-7 days of battery life.
Training Features
Most Garmin watches have excellent training features, but make sure you focus on what matters most to you.
Other than standard metrics, some models track altitude and heat, which are essential for planning the impact of outdoor workouts.
GPS
Nearly all Garmin watches come with excellent GPS features because the company is known for its GPS technology. So, it’s not so big a deal but always go for the most accurate one.
Smartwatch features
Garmin smartwatches come with more features in some models than in others. An example is the Venu, which is equipped with a touchscreen and AMOLED display.
Both are new features for Garmin products and support mobile payments, onboard music, and stainless steel bezels.
Onboard Music
Onboard music with built-in storage is not available on all Garmin watches. A tracker that allows you to leave your phone behind will be ideal for athletes who want to listen to music during workouts.
For example, the Forerunner 245 Music offers a dedicated music variant.
Conclusion
We understand that it’s difficult to find the best one at a cheaper price among the numerous Garmin watches. That’s why in this article, we discussed the 7 best Garmin watches for your ease.
No doubt, all the watches we reviewed are the best, but to get the perfect Garmin watch, we recommend you consider the buying guide before buying any watch.
Hi, I’m Saad Dastagir. I’m a tech and fitness enthusiast who loves writing about smartwatches and fitness trackers. When I’m not testing out new gadgets, you can find me out on a hike or exploring new adventures. My passion for technology, fitness, and the great outdoors has led me to create a platform where I can share my experiences, insights, and reviews on the latest gear.