The Best Triathlon Smartwatches of 2024, Reviewed (2024)

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As smartwatches continue to evolve in terms of functions, battery life, screen type, and technology, 2024 marks the first year that the latest crop of the best triathlete-ready smartwatches is going down in price. While in many ways this might mark “peak smartwatch” in terms of what they can actually do, that’s good news for those who don’t want to spend $1,000 on a capable smartwatch that lasts long enough to do a full iron-distance triathlon. (Don’t worry, you can still mount the equivalent of a fully functioning laptop on your wrist for $1,000 if you want!)

There are more smartwatches than ever, at a wider range of prices than ever, and even the sub-$400 smartwatch category is starting to threaten the super-premium devices at the top of the pile. To help break down the latest crop, we’ve got the specs/prices alongside our exclusive eight-point rating system and hands-on review for each watch.

We’ve also included a “Where does it stand?” section for each watch to help understand where it fits in today’s smartwatch ecosystem. And if you want to dig deeper, we’ve got links for longer reviews for most of the watches below.

Looking for an older smartwatch? We don’t miss much, so check out our previous roundups for quick looks and deep dives on watches from 2023, like the Polar Pacer, Coros Apex 2 Pro, Garmin Forerunner 965, Suunto 9 Peak Pro, Apple Watch Ultra 1, and Garmin Enduro 2. Or watches from 2022, like the Timex R300, Wahoo Rival, Apple Watch Series 7, Garmin Instinct 2 Solar, Polar Grit X Pro, Suunto 9 Peak, Coros Vertix 2, and Garmin Fenix 7X Solar. Or our 2020 buyer’s guide with reviews of the Coros Pace 2, Apple Watch SE, Garmin Forerunner 745, Fitbit Sense, Polar Vantage V2, and Suunto 7.

RELATED: How to Choose the Best Smartwatch for Triathletes

Triathlete’s 2024 Smartwatch Guide—The Ratings, Explained

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Timex Ironman Classic 30 x The James Brand

$99 at Timex $99 at James Brand

I’ll put this obvious note up front: This is not a smartwatch in the technical sense. But, I could argue this is one of the smartest watches for triathletes who really shun the over-datafication of multisport, and instead prefer to ignite interesting conversations about their wristwear while timing their laps or runs.

Like all of the Timex Ironman Classic 30 watches, this version boasts a 30-lap memory, an Indiglo light, a countdown timer, an alarm, and 100m water resistance. Unlike the other “Classic 30s,” this watch has a unique colorway and matching cloth strap (take care as it will soak up and deposit water post swim), thanks to their collaboration with accessory company The James Brand.

Looks aside, the Classic 30 (regardless of colorway) is a perfect solution for a super lightweight, low real-estate watch with a battery that’ll basically never need to be recharged but still needs to be adjusted for daylight savings. There are no smartwatches of note even close to this pricepoint, and if reliability and style are important, you likely won’t find anything better.

Where does the Timex Ironman Classic stand?

While there are other non-smart watches for $100 (or under, the non James Brand collabo Timex Ironman Classic 30 is $60), there aren’t any other watches on the market that’ll elicit comments and spark conversation about wrist tech “back in the day.” If you want GPS, heart rate, or connectivity, look elsewhere, but if you love the retro look and want something rugged enough for swim/bike/run, this is it.

Timex Ironman Classic Specs

• Weight: 44g
• Listed Everyday Battery Life: 2-3 years
• Listed GPS Battery Life: N/A
• Approximate Tri Battery Life With Daily Multisport Use: 2-3 years
• Bevel Size: 40 x 40mm
• Screen Size: 25 x 25mm

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Coros Pace 3

$229 at REI $229 at Amazon

In the last 12 months, the Coros Pace 3 stood out as one of my favorite multisport smartwatches. It ticks all of the boxes: tri-related functions—open-water swimming, on-wrist running with power, triathlon mode—as well as sleep tracking, onboard music, a touchscreen, super accurate GPS/barometric altimeter, and excellent battery life. It also comes in far below its competition in terms of price.

If there were any downsides with the Pace 3, it’s that the touchscreen (which likely pushed the price just above $200) doesn’t have a ton of use, given that there’s no mapping—something no watches under $400 have, to be fair.

Otherwise, I loved the screen, the light weight, and the dearth of sports functionality listed above, even if it struggles a tiny bit in the lifestyle realm. This is a sports watch—or rather a decidedly triathlete-friendly sports watch—and for the price, it doesn’t need to be anything else.

Where does the Coros Pace 3 stand?

There are only two other smartwatches in this price range—the Polar Pacer and the Garmin Forerunner 165. The former inexplicably doesn’t have on-wrist running with power, but more notably suffers from a sub one-week battery life and oddly poor GPS accuracy. The Forerunner 165 is a worthy adversary, but while it wins for its bright AMOLED screen and competent battery life, it doesn’t have tri or multisport modes.

Read our deeper review of the Coros Pace 3 here: Reviewed: The New Coros Pace 3 Smartwatch

Coros Pace 3 Specs

• Weight: 30g
• Listed Everyday Battery Life: 17 days
• Listed GPS Battery Life: 15 hours multiband, 25 hours all-on
• Approximate Tri Battery Life With Daily Multisport Use: 15-25 days
• Bevel Size: 45 x 45mm
• Screen Size: 30 x 30mm

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Garmin Forerunner 165

$250 at REI $250 at Running Warehouse

The Garmin Forerunner 165 is the first model in the Forerunner 1xx line—effectively replacing/obsoleting the Forerunner 0xx line. This is likely because it’s the first endurance sports-focused smartwatch with an AMOLED touchscreen in this price range. That means that the screen is brighter, with more resolution, and has more color than any non-AMOLED counterparts. Of course this also hurts its battery life, but not badly.

The screen itself actually outperforms other AMOLED smartwatches that cost substantially more (Polar Vantage V3, I’m looking at you), and in terms of functions it has most of the things triathletes would need, including open-water swimming, on-wrist running with power, cycling, and more. What it doesn’t have (oddly) is a triathlon or multisport activity mode, which simply means you must end one activity and start another when you transition. It’s a little clunky, but it’s not the hardest thing in the world to do.

That oddity aside, the Forerunner 165 actually punches way outside of its weight class, not only in physio/lifestyle functions, but it punches way up when it comes to the crisp touchscreen that has very little lag or raise-to-wake delay. Of all of the Forerunner watches I’ve reviewed, this is hands-down the best bang-for-your-buck smartwatch that Garmin has ever released.

Where does the Garmin Forerunner 165 stand?

The other two new models of endurance-focused watches in the $300 range are the Coros Pace 3 and the Polar Pacer. The Polar Pacer suffers from a few key setbacks and is hard to truly recommend in this environment, but the Pace 3 is a great watch if you don’t care about an AMOLED screen and want more battery. That said, if you want an AMOLED screen on a competent watch, the 165 is literally it for under $300.

Read our detailed review: Garmin Forerunner 165 Reviewed: a Little Watch That Does a Lot

Garmin Forerunner 165 specs

• Weight: 40g
• Listed Everyday Battery Life: 11 days
• Listed GPS Battery Life: 17 hours all-on
• Approximate Tri Battery Life With Daily Multisport Use: 7 days
• Bevel Size: 43 x 43mm
• Screen Size: 30.4 x 30.4mm

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Suunto Race

$549 at Amazon

The Suunto Race is my favorite smartwatch released in the last 12 months when it comes to all-around performance at a reasonable price. Like many, it has all of the tri-related functions (open-water swimming, on-wrist running with power, cycling, triathlon, and more) as well as a super-accurate multiband GPS, HRV tracking, and more. But what sets the Race apart is its intersection between price, battery life, offline mapping, and AMOLED screen.

This is a crucial space to dominate in because in the Suunto Race, you have a smartwatch with a big screen, that can display tons of bright information, and won’t wear out the battery with all of the training triathletes do. And though it might not be a big deal for triathletes, those who like to explore (hike or trail run) in their free time, the touchscreen and offline mapping is almost unparalleled, at any price.

If there are any complaints on the Race, it’s the sluggish raise-to-wake (likely due to the processor being optimized for battery life and the hefty AMOLED screen) and the fact that Garmin or Coros users will find the Race a little less customizable on activity modes and watch faces. It’s also a little chunky, but that’s to be expected.

Though Suunto has had some missteps with AMOLED screens and endurance-focused watches before, last year was a complete 180 between their excellent adventure-focused Vertical and the nearly perfect Race.

Where does the Suunto Race stand?

This is a tough one, because the Suunto Race is in a busy price point, but few of its direct competitors are quite as effective. I won’t say the Race is in the same world function/use/battery-wise as the $530 Polar Grit X Pro, and the new Garmin Forerunner 265 is the same price and has a nice AMOLED screen, but the battery isn’t nearly as good, nor does the 265 have the excellent offline mapping of the Race. That only leaves the $450 Coros Apex 2 pro, but that is a smartwatch slightly behind the times in terms of screen.

Want to read more on the Suunto Race? We Review the New Suunto Race Smartwatch in detail here.

Suunto Race specs

• Weight: 83g
• Listed Everyday Battery Life: 26 days
• Listed GPS Battery Life: 40+ hours all-on
• Approximate Tri Battery Life With Daily Multisport Use: 12-20 days
• Bevel Size: 50 x 50mm
• Screen Size: 37 x 37mm

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Polar Vantage V3

$600 at Polar

Polar’s latest version of their flagship line, the Vantage V3, is a watch that would have been at the top of the heap maybe about two or three years ago, but as it stands, it’s a necessary catch-up to a line that’s been behind for some time. The Vantage V3 marks Polar’s first endurance-focused AMOLED screen, and it repairs some notorious shortcomings with its excellent dual-band GPS and a better (but not amazing) battery life.

In terms of physio tracking and data visualization, Polar continues to lead the way. This watch boasts HRV, ECG, and pulse ox measurement and tracking (like many watches in this range), but it actually presents the data in a very clear, concise, actionable way (unlike some watches).

However its substantially lower-than-advertised 6-8-day daily smartwatch battery life (which is roughly half other similarly priced smartwatches) and its super-laggy processor paired with a scarily inconsistent raise-to-wake makes it a tough sell—unless this was a sub-$400 watch. If Polar could reduce the price and fix the battery/processor issues, this would be an entirely competent watch, but as it sits, it’s too much for too little.

Where does the Polar Vantage V3 stand?

On its own, it’s an ok watch, but when you compare it to watches in the same price range, like the excellently well-rounded Garmin Forerunner 965, the battery behemoths Suunto Vertical and Coros Vertix 2, or even the Apple Watch Ultra 1 (when on sale), it’s no contest, and it doesn’t top any of the above in more than one category—enough to make it a contender. Even if you compare the Vantage V3 to the $450 Suunto Race, it still falls behind, making the Vantage V3 a tough sell at its existing price of $600.

Interested in more? We’ve got our deep dive on the Polar Vantage V3 here: We Review the New Polar Vantage V3 Smartwatch

Polar Vantage V3 specs

• Weight: 57g
• Listed Everyday Battery Life: 12 days
• Listed GPS Battery Life: 60 hours all-on
• Approximate Tri Battery Life With Daily Multisport Use: 6-8 days
• Bevel Size: 47 x 47mm
• Screen Size: 39 x 39mm

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Apple Watch Ultra 2

$780 at Amazon $799 at Apple

When Apple released the first Ultra, it was hailed as the first Apple Watch to (finally) be able to complete an iron-distance event without fear of running out of juice. This was a big leap compared to other Apple Watches that needed to be recharged pretty much every night and bled battery while working out, making an Ironman all but impossible. While I loved the all-in approach of the Ultra 1 (though it was pricey and still not on par with other smartwatches in this range), the Ultra 2 has improvements that are nearly indistinguishable to the triathlete or endurance athlete.

Yes, the Ultra 2 is 50% brighter at its peak compared to the Ultra 1, yes, it has the cool “double-tap” feature, and yes it’s more eco-friendly as well (it also has a faster processor, but again, that wasn’t a complaint I had on the Ultra 1), but the $800 price tag for a literally gigantic watch is still hard to swallow when there are better watches out there for endurance sports.

That said, if you are an iPhone user (you won’t get any real use with an Android smartphone) and you don’t care too much about data or battery life, the Ultra 2 is easily the best lifestyle watch you can buy. And you won’t find yourself necessarily limited when it comes to physio/sport data and tracking, it’ll just be far less customizable and robust than you can find on a more sports-focused watch for even under $300.

Where does the Apple Watch Ultra 2 stand?

This is one of the few smartwatches that struggles in an apples-to-apples comparison (no pun intended), because its biggest benefit is that “it’s an Apple Watch with way more battery than the rest.” Put up against top-tier endurance-focused smartwatches like the $600 Garmin Forerunner 965 (or even the > $600 Garmin Fenix 7 line), the $700 Coros Vertix 2, or the $840 Suunto Vertical, and you’ll have a hard time finding much common ground, in terms of battery life, activities, functions, and physio tracking—let alone navigation or activity customization.

Learn more with our review of the Apple Watch Ultra 2.

Apple Watch Ultra 2 specs

• Weight: 96g
• Listed Everyday Battery Life: 36 hours
• Listed GPS Battery Life: 15+ hours all-on
• Approximate Tri Battery Life With Daily Multisport Use: 2-3 days
• Bevel Size: 45 x 50mm
• Screen Size: 37 x 44mm

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