The Best Smartwatches, According To Rigorous Testing

In addition to serving you notifications, the best smartwatches help you to take calls hands-free, track your health metrics and even allow you to leave your phone at home and listen to music while running errands. Put simply, they can expand your phone’s accessibility by a lot. It’s a combination of these features that make my top pick, the Apple Watch Series 9, as the best smartwatch overall, with a caveat. That caveat is, of course, that you can only wear it if you use an iPhone.

According to Avi Greengart, President of Techsponential, “The smartwatch generally has tremendous lock-in effect. Once you go Apple Watch, you’re very unlikely to leave the Apple ecosystem and move to Android, even if Android makes perfect sense for you on the phone.” As Greengart suggests, many smartwatches are dependent on the kind of smartphone you use. If you’re using an Android phone, I tested options for that too, starting with the Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 and the Google Pixel Watch 2. Without further ado, here are the best smartwatches according to my testing and insight from experts.

Best for:

• Apple users who want the best dollar-for-dollar value
• People who are starting to get into fitness

Skip if:

• You have an Android phone
• You want more advanced health metrics

The Apple Watch Series 9 is Apple’s flagship smartwatch. The Series 9 has a more powerful sibling, which I discuss below, but when it comes to a combination of features and value, the Series 9 is your best bet. The Apple Watch Series 9 comes in two sizes (41 mm and 45 mm) and two finishes (aluminum and stainless steel, with the latter costing double the price).

Apple brings a slew of health metrics to my wrist, tracking my sleep, steps, activity and heart rate. But more than health features, Apple has built an app ecosystem that is unrivaled in any other smartwatch after my testing. Apple matched me up with apps on my phone that also have corresponding watch-friendly apps that made my life more convenient. From the Apple Watch, I can start my car, arm my home’s security system and even order pizza from my wrist without ever picking up my smartphone. It’s the extra functionality that you don’t get in other ecosystems that puts the Apple Watch above the rest of the field.

Of course, I needed to use an iPhone to use the watch—a downside, since I’m primarily an Android user. Also, Apple estimates up to 18 hours of battery life on a charge; my testing says it was actually closer to 30 hours, so Apple’s estimate is quite conservative. While your mileage may vary, its battery life could be improved. I needed to charge the Watch just about every day, especially if I used it for frequent workouts or continuous sleep tracking. However, the extra functionality of the app ecosystem more than makes up for that battery deficiency, making this the best smartwatch you can buy. You can also read more about in the Apple Watch Series 9 review.

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Best for:

• Apple users who want the very best Apple offers
• Adventurers and those away from a charger for days at a time

Skip if:

• You don’t want to spend close to four figures
• You don’t regularly climb mountains or dive in the ocean

While the Apple Watch Series 9 takes the award for best overall smartwatch, if you want the very best of the best you can get for Apple, the Apple Watch Ultra 2 is it. As its name suggests, the Ultra embodies a philosophy of excess. The Apple Watch Ultra 2 isn’t really built for everyday use; it’s built for when your everyday gets extraordinary. This is a watch built for adventurers, like climbers and divers, as implied by the elevation and diving depth complications that come with Ultra’s specialized watch faces.

Additionally, the Apple Watch Ultra 2 is larger, with a 49 mm case. I didn’t find that extra bulk to be an issue, personally. The titanium case makes the Apple Watch Ultra 2 even more durable than the stainless steel version of the Series 9. The screen gets extremely bright at 3,000 nits. The battery is good for a solid two days of use (Apple advertises a more conservative 36 hours), based on my testing. And, in speaking with Greengart, he adds, “The solution to [Apple Watch’s battery life] is the [Apple Watch] Ultra 2, but that really provides features that some people don’t actually need.”

I got all the same apps and features that came with the Series 9, including the innovative new double-tap feature, which lets me navigate my watch by tapping my thumb and forefinger together twice. It’s handy when I’m loaded down carrying something and need to answer an incoming call. The Apple Watch Ultra 2 also adds an action button on the case to which I could assign a number of different activities, including a flashlight function. Note: The Apple Watch Ultra 2 doesn’t have an actual flashlight built into the case, but I found that the aforementioned 3,000-nit screen can act as a nice one in a pinch.

But all this comes at a cost—arguably, a ridiculous cost. The Apple Watch Ultra 2 starts at $799, which is the same price as the base iPhone 15. That’s a very expensive piece of hardware, and it’s simply not practical for many. Most users—myself included—aren’t climbing, backpacking or diving, and they don’t require the additional durability and utilities that drive up this watch’s price. But if you can afford it, this is peak Apple Watch.

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Best for:

• Android phone users who value style
• Someone with smaller wrists

Skip if:

• You want your watch to last more than a day
• You want a bigger smartwatch

In 2022, Google finally got into the hardware game, launching the Pixel Watch in arguably one of the most anticipated hardware launches in years. People were excited to see what the makers of Android and WearOS could do. The Google Pixel Watch 2 looks very similar to its predecessor but manages to solve one of the Pixel Watch’s biggest issues: battery life.

It’s true, the battery life on the Pixel Watch 2 is not amazing. I got just a hair over 24 hours on a single charge, but the classy look and refined hardware make it worth the sacrifice. The Pixel Watch 2 has a domed crystal on top that curves all the way around and blends seamlessly with the aluminum casing. The straps even have a proprietary attachment, much like Apple Watches. The difference is that while the Pixel Watch does have third-party strap options, they are far more numerous for Apple’s wrist-rider.

The software experience on the Pixel watch is natural and intuitive. I can navigate the interface using the digital crown or by swiping the screen directly. I can install watch apps that coincide with my phone’s apps, but the discovery process is a bit rough. Rather than being presented with a list of compatible apps, Google let me go find compatible apps for things like Pocketcasts. This is an area where WearOS could stand to be improved.

Another area where it falls short is the size of the watch. A 41 mm case is great for people with smaller wrists, or those who don’t want to wear a big chonker, but it’s also limiting from both a battery and style perspective. Some people simply like bigger watches, and others want the extra battery life a larger case could accommodate. Most experts I spoke to anticipate that the Pixel Watch 3 will address this shortcoming, but for now, it’s one size fits all. I also go into more detail in my Google Pixel Watch 2 review.

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Best for:

• Peo