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Apple Watch Ultra
Best big smartwatch for iPhone owners
$749 at Amazon
Price alerts on for Apple Watch Ultra
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Apple Watch Series 8
An update to the winning Apple Watch formula
$379 at Best Buy
Price alerts on for Apple Watch Series 8 GPS 45mm Midnight Aluminum Case with Midnight Sport Band – M/L – Midnight
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Garmin Venu 2
Great fitness companion for Android and iOS
$289 at Amazon
Price alerts on for Garmin Venu 2
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Google Pixel Watch
Android’s answer to the Apple Watch
$429 at Walmart
Price alerts on for Google Pixel Watch (Black)
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Samsung Galaxy Watch 5
One of the best Android watches
$230 at Amazon
Price alerts on for Samsung Galaxy Watch 5
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Apple Watch SE
Best value Apple Watch
$229 at Amazon
Price alerts on for Apple Watch SE (2nd Gen) [GPS 40mm] Smart Watch w/Starlight Aluminum Case & Starlight Sport Band – S/M. Fitness & Sleep Tracker, Crash Detection, Heart Rate Monitor, Retina Display, Water Resistant
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Fitbit Versa 3
Best cross-platform Apple Watch alternative
$156 at Amazon
Price alerts on for Fitbit Versa 3
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Garmin Epix 2
Perfect for adventurers and athletes
$900 at Amazon
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Polar Grit X Pro
Rugged adventure watch with great battery
$449 at Amazon
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You might think that looking for the best smartwatch is as easy as looking in the direction of the Apple Watch. While Apple’s smartwatch is great, it’s not quite so simple. There are so many different options with vast arrays of features. One of the ways to narrow down your search is to remember that you have to find a smartwatch that’s compatible with your smartphone. Some smartwatches only work with iPhones, while others only work with Android.
But that only scratches the surface. Most smartwatches should include additional features such as heart-rate monitoring, activity tracking, sleep tracking, GPS tracking and smartphone notifications on your wrist. Many of the best smartwatches also support contactless payments and others have LTE or cellular connectivity, so you really can leave your phone at home.
We’ve rounded up the top smartwatches you can buy in 2023 based on function, price and compatibility to help you decide which is the best smartwatch for you. This list is updated periodically with new reviews of the best smartwatch options.
Read more: Best Budget Smartwatches Under $100
James Martin/CNET
Apple Watch Ultra
Best big smartwatch for iPhone owners
The Apple Watch Ultra is a souped-up Apple Watch Series 8, but comes with a tough titanium construction, larger 49mm case size and new Action button to quickly start workouts or launch apps. It has an incredibly bright screen, able to reach a maximum of 2,000 nits which makes it incredibly easy to see when adventuring in the great outdoors. It also has a built-in siren for safety and dual-band GPS for accurately tracking your route. LTE is also onboard so you can venture out without a phone and still stay connected.
While many of its key hardware and software features are aimed towards adventurers and athletes, it’s still a fantastic all-round smartwatch. The microphones help reduce wind noise during calls and you get all the same health and fitness tracking features found on other Apple Watches, including a blood oxygen sensor, electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG) app, fall detection and emergency SOS. The battery also lasts at least twice as long as all other Apple Watch models. But it’s only compatible with iPhone, so if you have an Android phone, you’ll want to look at another option on this list.
Read our Apple Watch Ultra review.
$749 at AmazonGet Price AlertsYou’re receiving price alerts for Apple Watch Ultra
James Martin/CNET
Apple Watch Series 8
An update to the winning Apple Watch formula
The Apple Watch Series 8 might not be as adventure-focused as the Apple Watch Ultra, but it still features a dust- and crack-resistant design, a blood oxygen and ECG sensor and comes in 41 and 45mm sizes. You can also choose a cellular or LTE model that lets you take calls and answer messages from your wrist without your phone, although that does cost extra.
It also has a new temperature sensor that can be used for applications like ovulation tracking. But battery life generally lasts 18 hours with typical use, less than many of its competitors.
Read our Apple Watch Series 8 review.
$379 at Best Buy$429 at Apple$429 at CrutchfieldYou’re receiving price alerts for Apple Watch Series 8 GPS 45mm Midnight Aluminum Case with Midnight Sport Band – M/L – Midnight
Lexy Savvides/CNET
Garmin Venu 2
Great fitness companion for Android and iOS
The Garmin name has long been synonymous with fitness tracking, but many of the company’s earlier watches haven’t exactly looked or felt that “smart.” The Venu 2 has a sleek, round design with a bright screen that’s easy to see in direct sunlight. It’s also compatible with Android and iOS, has great in-depth fitness features like comprehensive workout tracking, a body battery that tells you if you should push yourself to workout or take a rest day, plus women’s health tracking. It can also take blood oxygen levels and the battery will last several days with moderate use.
The downside is that it doesn’t have as many smart features as other watches on this list, including no LTE or cellular connectivity. If you want a speaker and mic onboard to talk to your voice assistant or answer quick calls on your wrist while your phone is in range, take a look at the newer $450 Garmin Venu 2 Plus. It only comes in one 43mm size but shares all the same features with the original Venu 2 and 2S.
Read our Garmin Venu 2 review.
$289 at Amazon$350 at Best Buy$300 at TargetYou’re receiving price alerts for Garmin Venu 2
Andrew Lanxon/CNET
Google Pixel Watch
Android’s answer to the Apple Watch
Google’s first Pixel Watch wants to tackle the Apple Watch head-on. For the most part, it succeeds thanks to a sleek, curved design and a range of health sensors including an ECG app and blood oxygen tracking. It has a suite of fitness tracking features and analysis through the Fitbit app and accurate heart rate tracking.
Beware that the battery isn’t as strong as other options on this list and you will likely find yourself charging this watch every day, especially if you like to do outdoor GPS workouts and track your sleep. It’s also only available in one 41mm size.
Read our Google Pixel Watch review.
$429 at Walmart$350 at Best Buy$320 at TargetYou’re receiving price alerts for Google Pixel Watch (Black)
Lexy Savvides/CNET
Samsung Galaxy Watch 5
One of the best Android watches
Samsung’s Galaxy Watch 5 and Watch 5 Pro are among the best Wear OS watches you can get right now. They have longer-lasting batteries than last year’s Galaxy Watch 4 models and plenty of great fitness tracking features. Google apps including YouTube Music, the Google Assistant and Google Maps are available, with many more apps accessible through the Play Store. You do need a Galaxy phone to use the ECG, but all the other features work seamlessly with other Android phones.
But the new temperature sensor isn’t active yet, and both watches miss out on the classic physical rotating bezel, one of the signature features of Samsung’s Galaxy Watch and Gear watches from years past.
Read our Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 review.
$230 at Amazon$280 at CrutchfieldGet Price AlertsYou’re receiving price alerts for Samsung Galaxy Watch 5
Apple Watch SE
Best value Apple Watch
If you’ve never owned an Apple Watch, this is the one to get. The second-generation Apple Watch SE is a cheaper alternative to the Series 8 but has plenty of the same great features including crash detection, heart rate monitoring and water resistance. It misses out on health sensors like ECG, blood oxygen and temperature sensing like the Series 8, but the most notable difference between the two is that the SE doesn’t have an always-on display. But you might not miss it if you’ve never had this smartwatch feature.
Read our Apple Watch SE review.
$229 at Amazon$229 at Best Buy$249 at AppleYou’re receiving price alerts for Apple Watch SE (2nd Gen) [GPS 40mm] Smart Watch w/Starlight Aluminum Case & Starlight Sport Band – S/M. Fitness & Sleep Tracker, Crash Detection, Heart Rate Monitor, Retina Display, Water Resistant
Angela Lang/CNET
Fitbit Versa 3
Best cross-platform Apple Watch alternative
The Versa 3 is compatible with both iOS and Android phones and lets you choose between Alexa or Google Assistant as your go-to voice assistant. It doesn’t offer all the apps and smart features as some of its competitors, but it’s a well-rounded smartwatch with plenty of health and fitness features to keep you on track like onboard GPS and live heart rate zone notifications. It has the best sleep tracking feature on this list and even gives you health features including a breakout of your SpO2 and body temperature data overnight (Fitbit Premium users). There’s a newer version, the Fitbit Versa 4, but we haven’t fully reviewed that watch yet so stay tuned.
Read our Fitbit Versa 3 review.
$156 at AmazonGet Price AlertsYou’re receiving price alerts for Fitbit Versa 3
Lexy Savvides/CNET
Garmin Epix 2
Perfect for adventurers and athletes
The second-generation Garmin Epix features a tough titanium construction and a laundry list of features athletes want, including extensive mapping capabilities. It also has a bright AMOLED display which sets it apart from a multitude of other sports watches, including Garmin’s own Fenix line, that often use transflective displays. The Epix 2 also has great battery life considering its size and feature set, lasting almost a week under regular conditions.
But it doesn’t have LTE capabilities or an ECG app. Considering this is the most expensive watch on this list at $1,000, that might be a big drawback.
Read our Garmin Epix review.
$900 at Amazon$900 at Best Buy$1,000 at TargetYou’re receiving price alerts for Garmin Epix 2
Lexy Savvides/CNET
Polar Grit X Pro
Rugged adventure watch with great battery
Polar’s Grit X Pro is an outdoor watch for adventure seekers. The rugged design can withstand the elements as it’s water-resistant to 100 meters and has a sapphire glass watch face that’s scratch-resistant. With onboard maps, turn-by-turn navigation and overnight recovery tools, you can determine if you’re ready to take on that workout. This is much more a sports watch than a smartwatch, but it can still get notifications from your phone, control music playback and has 24/7 heart rate monitoring.
The touchscreen is less responsive than other watches on this list — it’s transflective rather than AMOLED — but you can get away with using button controls.
$449 at Amazon
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