Which is Better Fitbit or Garmin?

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If you are planning to buy a fitness tracker, there are a lot of decisions to make. First, the various features and how much money you spend are essential. However, one of the most important considerations you should make is the brand. There are a variety of brand names that specialize in health and fitness trackers. Fitbit and Garmin are currently the most popular brands in terms of fitness tracking. But, which is better Fitbit or Garmin?

However, there are a few essential factors to consider when choosing between them. First, we’re going to look at the main offerings of both brands.

Garmin tends to have more devices with more capabilities, but it’s not quite that simple. So we also want to examine their capabilities in terms of health and fitness tracking, applications, and more.

Fitbit vs. Garmin: The Variety of Fitness Wearables

First up is Fitbit, which has six leading fitness wearables to consider.

Fitbit

First, there is the Fitbit Sense Health Watch and the Versa smartwatch. So as far as smartwatches go, this is it for Fitbit.

Both look pretty similar, with the Sense having various health-related features. The Versa also has health and fitness-related capabilities and comes at an affordable price.

Then, the Fitbit fitness trackers include the Luxe, the Inspire, and the Charge. The newest and most advanced is the Fitbit Charge 5. It comes loaded to the brim with health-related features for a reasonable price.

The Luxe is more fashion-oriented yet still has included health features. The Inspire 2 is one of the more affordable fitness trackers from Fitbit.

Garmin

On the other hand, Garmin has more options from which to choose. This brand offers around 30 models, starting at pretty low prices, leading to the very expensive due to various sensors and functions.

One of the most popular models is the Garmin Forerunner. This can cost up to $700, but it is ideal for serious athletes, particularly runners and triathletes. However, if you want an all-around action and outdoor sports watch, the Garmin Fenix is a great way to go.

Garmin then also has the Vivoactive line to choose from and the Vivofit, which are designed for active people. Then, there’s the Venu, Garmin’s range of smartwatches.

Verdict

Garmin has a more extensive array of products from which to choose. That said, they can also be expensive depending on what you get.

Features and Overall Sports Tracking Capabilities

Let’s now compare the two brands regarding high-quality sports tracking abilities.

GPS

Garmin was once known as the king of GPS; as a result, most Garmin products come with GPS. However, Fitbit has recently started adding this feature to many of its devices.

That said, more Garmin products have GPS than Fitbit products, but with Garmin, you can adjust the accuracy of the GPS. So Garmin is definitely the winner on this front.

Heart Rate Monitoring and Heart Health

Most Fitbit and Garmin fitness trackers track your heart rate. They’ll also offer you information about your heart rate zone, and most will track your VO2 Max.

On a side note, Garmin products seem to be a little more accurate in this regard. Moreover, Garmin provides more and more in-depth information, data, and advice, especially in terms of VO2 max. Some people also note that Garmin is far more accurate in heart rate monitoring.

In addition, Garmin tends to produce more technically in-depth readings; these are like medical-grade readings. That said, this data can be difficult to understand.

Fitbit is a much simpler and more basic option in this sense. In addition, the information is much easier to read and disseminate.

This makes the Fitbit better for beginners and people who aren’t fitness enthusiasts. We would say that there is no clear winner in this category. Fitbit is a little better for basic lifestyles, whereas Garmin is more sports-heavy.

Swimming and Water Resistance

Most Fitbit fitness trackers can be used in the pool. They’re usually water resistance to 50 meters. In addition, they offer basic information about your swimming metrics. However, not all Fitbit fitness trackers are waterproof.

On the other hand, all Garmin fitness trackers, watches, and devices are waterproof; even the most basic Garmin products have a pool swimming mode. As a result, Garmin provides more accurate swimming metrics.

Overall Fitness Tracking Capabilities

Nobody will argue with the fact that Garmin fitness trackers are excellent. They can keep track of activity minutes, steps taken, sleep, and more. They also monitor your heart rate and other such metrics.

However, Fitbit is designed for fitness and health tracking. It does everything the Garmin models do, but maybe even better.

The Fitbit app also has a health metrics dashboard that is great for beginners. However, if you need something purely for fitness tracking, Fitbit is probably the better brand.

Which is Better Fitbit or Garmin

Sleep Tracking

Garmin used to not have any sleep tracking capabilities. However, many models can now track your sleep and provide accurate data.

It measures respiration rate, blood oxygen, and more while sleeping and displays very advanced metrics. However, Garmin metrics displayed by Garmin regarding sleep tracking aren’t any more accurate or detailed than those of Fitbit.

Fitbit will offer you all the same sleep tracking information, but it’s generally a little more meaningful. In other words, Fitbit does its best to disseminate this information for you. It is excellent for offering valuable insights in terms of sleeping habits. Garmin is more about just providing raw data.

The Respective Applications

We could spend a whole day comparing the main Fitbit and Garmin apps. However, we are going to simplify this for you. Garmin products are more fitness-focused and provide more raw data.

Moreover, the watches and fitness trackers themselves generally have more capabilities. There are dozens, if not hundreds, of apps in the Garmin App Store that can be installed on various devices. Garmin is, therefore, the ideal choice for professional athletes and fitness enthusiasts.

However, the Fitbit app is no slouch. Although the Garmin app may provide more raw data, the Fitbit app is much easier for beginners. In addition, the Fitbit app still gives you all of the most essential fitness information while also being very insightful.

Fitbit is designed more for beginners and simply put, it holds your hand a little more than Garmin products do. Fitbit apps tend to be very simple and beginner-friendly, although, at this time, there are not too many of them.

Once again, you can see that Fitbit is a little more lifestyle-focused and ideal for beginners. On the other hand, Garmin is more sports-focused and designed for athletes.

Fitbit vs. Garmin – The Bottom Line

If you are looking for high-end exercise and workout watches and fitness trackers, Garmin produces high-quality products at pretty high prices. In addition, Garmin provides more numbers, charts, and raw data.

On the other hand, if you want something a little more basic and affordable, Fitbit is the better option. This brand produces many products ideal for both basic lifestyles and for athletes. It doesn’t provide as much raw data, but it is more user-friendly. On a side note, if you need something great for sleep tracking, then Fitbit is what you want.

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