A sports watch is anything but a waste of time.

Don’t get me wrong: I love running based on feel. I’m not the type of athlete who checks their pace every second, unless I’m doing a programmed speed workout.

But keeping track of how fast you’re going is vital. Even if you’re not seeking a personal record, watching your speed over long distances ensures you don’t gas out too early. 

I’m an active member of the NYC running community, and two particular names kept coming up when I asked for recommendations: Garmin and Coros. The watches look similar, have similar features and price points, and have both received thousands of positive reviews — so what’s the difference?

I took the Garmin Forerunner 165 and Coros Pace 4 out for a spin to settle the debate as to which watch is superior.

Display: 1.2 inch AMOLED touchscreen, 390 × 390 pixels | Materials: Fiber-reinforced polymer case with chemically strengthened glass | GPS: GPS, GLONASS, Galileo (no dual-band) | Smart Features: Notifications, Garmin Pay, music on the Music edition, Garmin Connect and safety features | Health Metrics: Heart rate, SpO₂, sleep, stress, Body Battery, respiration, HRV, calories and fitness age

Display: 1.2 inch AMOLED touchscreen, up to 1,500 nits | Materials: Nylon-reinforced polymer case with mineral glass | GPS: Dual-frequency GPS with GPS, GLONASS, Galileo and QZSS | Smart Features: Notifications, music playback, voice notes and COROS app integration | Health Metrics: Heart rate, SpO₂, sleep, HRV, stress, recovery, training load, calories and fitness metrics

My Review

I’ve run two marathons with a subpar wrist accessory that died before I even hit mile 20.

Ever heard of hitting “the wall?” By mile 20 of the New York City Marathon in 2022, I reached a point of intense exhaustion where I was sure I couldn’t put one foot in front of the other. I was dehydrated. I hadn’t eaten enough carbs that week and I wasn’t taking gels often enough during the race. Above all, I came out the gate too fast and too strong on the Verrazzano Bridge — and I didn’t have a watch holding me accountable.

I’m running the Berlin Marathon next month. At the start of this training cycle, I made a vow to myself that I would be running this race stronger and smarter than ever — starting with a new watch.

Best setup: Garmin

Overall, the setup for each watch was relatively straightforward. 

Both watches come with a pamphlet that guides users through connecting the accessory to an app on their phone (Garmin Connect and Coros App), which later syncs workout data so it can be viewed from a separate device.

However, it did take me a while to figure out how to attach the watch band of the Coros (admittedly, I had to wait for my boyfriend to get home to do it for me). The Garmin band is already fixed to the watch face from the second you take it out of the box, with no additional setup needed.

Best battery life: Coros

Without a doubt, Coros has the superior battery life for runners. A three-hour long run uses approximately 7 percent of the Pace 4’s stated GPS capacity, versus approximately 16 percent of the Forerunner 165.

The Coros Pace 4 lasts up to 19 days of normal smartwatch use and up to 41 hours when only using the GPS. Meanwhile, the Garmin Forerunner 165 lasts 11 days with regular use and up to 19 hours of GPS-only use, which is a substantial difference.

However, note that the Pace 4 does not include a USB-C charging cable, while the Forerunner 165 does. This means you have to go through the hassle of purchasing your own cable separately before your first charge. 

Best variety of sports to track: Garmin

Coros is known as a running-first watch that provides top-of-the-line tracking data for running, cycling and biking. Garmin supports all of the above, plus more niche athletics such as diving and golfing.

That said, the interface of the Garmin looks pretty much identical to Coros, with initial options to run, bike or swim.

Both allow users to choose between tracking an indoor treadmill run and an outdoor run so that you are presented with the most accurate data. Indoor runs estimate pace and distance by your wrist movements, while outdoor runs can use GPS to retrieve the same metrics.

Best voice control: Coros

Unlike Garmin, the Coros has voice control, so users can dictate the type of run they want to program (i.e., “Start a 5-mile run targeting 20 minutes”). Simply press and hold the action button to talk to the watch before, during or after a run.

One of my favorite features it offers is Voice Pins. During a run, you can “pin” a voice note tied to your specific location and workout that you can come back to later. Example: “This hill was really tough on my knees,” or “This spot is perfect for interval training.” You can also leave a voice note post-run detailing how you felt. 

That way, runners have an honest log of their training and routes to inform future decisions (i.e., looking back at a hilly location and deliberately skipping it one day if you feel an injury coming on).

On the Garmin, you can’t use your voice, but you can use the buttons to mark your perceived effort and choose a facial expression based on how you’re feeling.

Best real-time metrics: Garmin

Garmin and Coros each allow you to customize which metrics appear on their multiple display screens, but as someone who’s constantly on the go, I count on the default settings to deliver right from the start.

The first thing I noticed about the Coros was how long it took for my pace to calibrate. Every time I glanced down at my watch, the timing varied by 30 seconds to 1 minute, and I wasn’t doing an interval workout.

One of my biggest pain points surrounding the Pace 4 was the default metrics layout for runs. On the first Garmin Forerunner 165 screen, the biggest measurement is time, while on the first Coros Pace 4 screen, the biggest metric is heart rate. Personally, I wasn’t a fan of heart rate being front and center, but I know some runners geek out over that data.

On the second screen of the Garmin, you can see lap time, distance and pace. But for Coros, there are six metrics that require you to squint to read them all: lap distance, lap time, lap pace, heart rate, overall distance and overall pace. I didn’t know where to look, and because there are so many numbers, they’re not as large or clear to read as the Garmin. I later learned that you can remove some of the metrics in settings so you aren’t stuck with the six-field layout, but again, I wanted it to be optimized for use straight out of the box.

That said, with the Garmin default settings, I wish that the screen featuring the lap screen and live pace also showed total mileage. I kept finding myself swiping back to the first screen to see how many miles I had done; the mileage resets every mile on the lap screen (since each lap is automatically considered to be one mile).

However, I will shout out Coros for matching Garmin with its live tracking feature, which allows friends to follow your stats and location in real time for safety purposes.

Best functionality: Garmin

Both watches give users the ability to disable touchscreen features and solely navigate with buttons, which can be beneficial in case of any accidental swiping during runs.

I liked how the Garmin synced up to my headphones so that after each mile, I was told what my average pace was without needing to look down at my watch. But remember: if you miss the lap pace spoken in your ear, it won’t repeat.

While running through New York City, stoplights are inevitable. When you pause your Garmin, it shows you your average pace and calories — even at a standstill. That said, consider turning on the auto-pause and resume feature. If you forget to resume after manually pausing, your mileage tracking may get thrown off.

I don’t need much out of a running watch: just accurate mileage and pace metrics in real time. The Coros did the job, but I did notice it made pretty loud buzzing and beeping noises, which were quite distracting as I chipped away at my long run.

Best GPS: Coros

Unlike the Garmin Forerunner 165, Coros Pace 4 has dual-frequency GNSS, which uses several satellite frequencies to figure out where you are and how fast you’re moving. This is especially helpful if you’re running around tall buildings or trees where satellite signals are unstable.

I witnessed Garmin’s GPS weakness in real time as I was running through the MetLife Building (59-story) during Summer Streets last month. My pace was inaccurately showing a 5-minute mile for at least five minutes, which completely threw off the average pace metric I was later shown for the entire run.

The person I ran with was wearing a more expensive generation of the Garmin, and he was displaying the same pace as well, give or take a few seconds.

Most durable: Coros and Garmin

Each model features a rubber band that doesn’t slide off your wrist — even during sweaty summer training sessions.

They’re also water-resistant, meaning you can wear them while swimming, running in heavy rain or showering.

Technically speaking, they’re 5 ATM, meaning they can withstand water pressure to about 50 meters of static water depth. However, you should not actually take the watches scuba diving; they’ve been tested based on controlled laboratory pressure, not real-world water.

Best music compatibility: Garmin

Both watches let you pause and play music and control soundtracks being synced from your phone.

The Pace 4 has 4 GB of storage for locally transferred MP3s, which can be played directly to your headphones. You can also use voice control to switch songs and turn the volume up or down.

Garmin includes Forerunner 165 Music, which allows users to download playlists from third-party music providers. This means you can run in Bluetooth headphones without bringing your phone or manually transferring MP3 files.

Final Verdict: Which is worth it?

Honestly, I’m going to hold on to both of these superstar watches. But headed into the Berlin Marathon, I’ve decided to go with the Garmin Forerunner 165.

Coros Pace 4 takes the edge on creativity (the Voice Note feature is brilliant), but I wish the default settings were easier to understand — it simply had more of a learning curve. I needed to Google how to tweak the number of metrics I was seeing in settings before taking the accessory out on the road. Sometimes, less is more, especially because athletes may not want to be overwhelmed by metrics the first time they log on.

Yes, the Garmin’s GPS and battery life could be better. And if you’re a runner who likes lots of data, Coros is superior.

But, I’ve got enough on my plate ahead of running 26.2 miles. All I want is a simple and durable watch to give me large, clear metrics that help me stay on track in Germany — and Garmin delivers.

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