The best fitness watches for women are the ones that can help you track your journey as it goes. It's about being able to see your stats when you want, but also get a feeling about how things are progressing. Safety is a big part of things as well, whether that's something like a reliable battery and GPS system while hiking, or just all-around health tracking. Safety comes in a lot of different ways, and thankfully, modern-day smartwatches cover most safety concerns as well as provide you with an effective way of keeping track of your health and fitness.
That being said, while some of the best smartwatches and fitness trackers offer just about everything you can imagine, it's still worth noting that some are better at certain activities than others. To help make sure you get exactly what you need, we've broken down the best fitness watches for women based on factors like what they're good at, as well as budget. After all, it's important to get what's good for you, not just what's good.
And, as this list is primarily centred around women and women's health, we've taken into account devices which can track key female-only health metrics. For example, the Fitbit Inspire 3 tracks your menstrual health, allowing you to log periods, record symptoms, and find patterns in your cycle. It's features like these, as well as all the usual fitness tracking capabilities, which make our top picks stand out from the competition Let's get into it...
Best fitness watches for women
- Apple Watch Series 9
- Samsung Galaxy Watch 6
- Amazfit Bip 3 Pro
- Garmin Forerunner 965
- Fitbit Inspire 3
- Garmin Instinct 2 Solar
1. Apple Watch Series 9
Best fitness watch for women on iPhone
Low Power Mode - Water Resistance: 50m - Memory: 64 GB - Weight: Between 42.3g and 51.5g - Screen: Always-On Retina display - Bluetooth: Yes - Touchscreen: Yes - GPS: Yes - Sleep Tracking: Yes - Mobile Payments: Apple Pay
It should come as no surprise that Apple has once again raised the bar when it comes to crafting a fitness watch. With the brand's impressive track record in creating smartwatches, our top choice for the best fitness watch for women is none other than the Apple Watch Series 9 - a testament to what a fitness watch can achieve, especially now that it boasts an even more powerful S9 SiP chip.
It also features a stunning design and introduces a range of intuitive double-tap gestures that enhance its user experience. In addition, its water resistance is valuable, making it suitable for most workouts since sweat can accumulate quickly depending on the intensity. Plus, you can confidently wear it while swimming, as it can withstand depths of up to 50 metres.
The watch's fitness-tracking capabilities are nothing short of impressive either. It can monitor various aspects, including blood oxygen monitoring, and it can provide ECG readings at any time through the accompanying app. This set of features ensures that you have all the data you need to assess your fitness progress and plan more specific goals in the future.
Furthermore, the Apple Watch Series 9 goes the extra mile by keeping you informed about significant changes in your health. It can alert you to unusual heart rate patterns, both high and low, and irregular heart rhythms. It also covers women's health through temperature sensing, providing information on your cycle with retrospective ovulation estimates, hence why it's a great fitness watch for women as well as men.
Read More: Best watches under 1500
2. Samsung Galaxy Watch 6
Best fitness watch for women on Android
The Samsung Galaxy Watch line has a long legacy and has historically always been a great smartwatch for Android users. This iteration is no different.
The Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 comes with a heart monitor, offers sleep coaching and tracking, has a large screen, features a range of beautiful colours, and will keep you updated on how your workouts are going. It's especially good if you're a lover of stats because its Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis sensor can assess areas like your body fat percentage and skeletal muscle, thus providing a deeper insight into your body's health.
It's also worth mentioning its lighter, slimmer build. In fact, Samsung boasts its 30% slimmer than its predecessor, despite featuring a 20% larger AMOLED screen. So, taking this as well as the aforementioned features into account, we think it's fair to say this is an easy choice if you're an Android user.
Read More: Best running watches
3. Amazfit Bip 3 Pro
Best budget fitness watch for women
Money isn't exactly flowing for many of us right now, and while it's nice to treat yourself, sometimes sticking to a budget is a wise thing to do. If you're after one of the best smartwatches and don't want to go too deep into your pockets, then the Amazfit Bip 3 Pro has you covered.
Aside from being compatible with most phones, which is always useful, it also has a 14-day battery life, four satellite position systems, and over 60 different sports modes, making it a great choice for anyone who likes to dabble in every sport, martial art, or fitness class available.
It also features handy blood oxygen and heart rate monitors, it can analyse your sleep and assess your sleep quality, plus you can record your current menstrual period, with it then able to predict and remind you of upcoming
menstrual and fertile periods. It does a little bit of everything, basically, and the lower price doesn't mean lower quality in this instance. Definitely, one to check out.
Read More: Best running watches under 100
4. Garmin Forerunner 965
Best running fitness watch for women
If you're a fan of running, whether for a quick jog around the block or for a full day of escapism, then the Garmin Forerunner 965 is the watch for you. It's basically built from the ground up for running and features runner in the same, which essentially guarantees you're in good hands.
Not only does it look great, but this watch has a battery life of up to 23 days, has a built-in race widget if you're mostly driven by competition, and has built-in maps and a GPS, which means you can take new routes around wherever you are, but still come back safely at the end of your run.
The race widget is particularly useful as it can estimate your finishing time based on your pace, plus it's even capable of suggesting workouts based on your training readiness score that takes factors like sleep, stress, and recovery into account to assess your energy levels each day.
Simply put, it's one of the best Garmin watches on the market. And, with the app's built-in Women's Health mode, allowing you to track your cycle, pregnancy, including weight gain goals, and more, it's up there as one of the best fitness watches for women as well.
Read More: Best marathon watches
5. Fitbit Inspire 3
Best swimming fitness watch for women
The Fitbit Inspire 3 is a very solid, and surprisingly budget-friendly, smartwatch. It's one of the best fitness watches for women though, because it's light, small, and can deal with water pressure, hence it being a great pick for swimming.
While a lot of watches match its water-resistance rating of up to 50 metres (although please check before jumping in the pool) the Fitbit Inspire 3 features a more streamlined, lightweight build (weighing just 17.9g), meaning it's incredibly comfortable and, therefore, well worth checking out.
It also boasts a ten-day battery life, and it offers all the usual smartwatch accompaniments like phone notifications and contactless payments. On top of that, it tracks sleep, can give you a specialised alarm, and can help you with stress management too, making it all-around great choice for swimming and exercise, and, generally speaking, is just a top Fitbit to consider.
Read More: Best watches for swimming
6. Garmin Instinct 2 Solar
Best hiking fitness watch for women
Hiking is a joyous hobby to have, especially if you happen to live near some good routes. In fact, if you explore your local areas regularly, you might not think you even need a watch to help you stay safe. However, we're of the opinion that it's always better to be safe than sorry, and that's where this Garmin Instinct 2 Solar watch comes in. Why? Well, mainly because this thing has built-in GPS, but that's not all...
Not only can it help you orient yourself, but this watch also has solar charging, allowing it to keep going for what Garmin states is an unlimited amount of time, meaning you never have to worry about charging it. However, even if solar charging isn't in use, it can still last up to 65 days in battery-saving mode.
It also has plenty of built-in sports apps to make sure you can get the most out of whatever activity you're doing. Adding to the navigation side of things, it has a 3-axis compass, barometric altimeter, and tracks all sorts of stats like your heart rate, sleep quality, and even respiration. It really is a great smartwatch, arguably one of the best hiking watches around.
Read More: Best Garmin watches for hiking
Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
Buying a new smartwatch or fitness tracker can pose quite a few questions. No need to panic though as we've answered some of the most commonly asked queries below.
What features should you look for from a fitness watch for women?
This all depends on what exactly you're buying a fitness tracker or smartwatch for. Therefore, it's important to first consider specific features that fit with your fitness goals, lifestyle, and preferences.
That said, there are a few general features that you should look out for when buying a watch, the first being its activity and health-tracking metrics. Look for a fitness watch that can accurately track a wide range of activities, such as steps, calories burned, heart rate, and sleep quality, and comes with various workout modes which, crucially, include any and all sports you partake in.
You may also want to keep an eye out as to whether the watch in question comes with a built-in GPS, as having one allows for accurate tracking of outdoor activities like running or cycling without needing to carry your phone with you.
Additionally, you'll likely want a device with a decent battery life, certainly one with another juice to last through a typical day's activities and workouts without requiring frequent charging.
Being water-resistant to some degree is also a useful feature as it should minimise the risk of your watch breaking from excess moisture build-up during your workouts. It also gives you the option to wear it in a pool, shower, or while having a bath.
And finally, and something we alluded to in our introduction, take note as to whether a watch features health tracking specifically designed for women, such as menstrual cycle recording and fertility insights. Generally speaking, these are handy tools to keep on top of women's health in particular.
How long does the battery last on a typical fitness watch?
This can vary significantly depending on the brand, model, features, display type, and usage patterns. Generally, though, as demonstrated by our list, most fitness watches offer a battery life that ranges from a few days to several weeks.
There are, however, some watches that can last even longer, and most devices will feature different modes that can change how much of its battery it's using at any given moment. Take Garmin, for example, which typically includes a Battery Saver mode to keep its power usage to a minimum if you know you're not going to be able to charge your device for a while. Garmin also includes solar-charging lenses with some of its watches, which essentially gives you unlimited battery life if kept in sunlight long enough.
Ultimately, before you purchase a fitness watch, make sure you check the manufacturer's specifications for battery life and read user reviews to get a real-world sense of how long the battery lasts under typical usage conditions. Charging habits and settings adjustments, as touched on above, can also play a role in extending or conserving the battery life.
Can a fitness watch be worn all day?
Absolutely, most fitness watches are designed to be worn all day, providing you with continuous monitoring and insights into your health and fitness. They're wearable technology that can seamlessly integrate into your daily routine, tracking your activity levels, heart rate, sleep patterns, and more, from the moment you put them on to when you take them off.
One of the key advantages of wearing a fitness watch all day is the ability to monitor your overall physical activity. These watches keep track of steps taken, distance travelled, and even calories burned, which can be particularly motivating for those aiming to achieve daily activity goals.
Moreover, fitness watches provide continuous heart rate monitoring, allowing you to gauge your cardiovascular health and exertion levels during various activities. This real-time heart rate data can help you optimise your workouts, ensuring you're pushing yourself effectively while also avoiding overexertion. This technology also allows you to check up on your resting heart rate, a valuable metric for tracking your overall fitness progress and potential health issues.
In short, then, wearing a fitness watch all day is not only possible but highly beneficial. It offers a comprehensive view of your health and fitness, encouraging you to make positive choices and stay mindful of your well-being from morning to night. Whether you're taking a brisk walk, hitting the gym, or simply going about your daily routine, a fitness watch can be your constant companion on your journey toward a healthier lifestyle.
Are fitness watches water-resistant or waterproof?
Fitness watches offer various levels of water resistance, which can vary based on the make and model. These water resistance ratings are typically expressed in metres or ATM (atmospheres) and signify the maximum depth to which the watch can be submerged without incurring damage.
Typically, most fitness watches come with either a 5 or 10 ATM resistance rating, allowing them to endure submersion to depths of 50 or 100 metres, respectively. Always double-check though before buying, and read exactly what the manufacturer has to say about a watch's water resistance as descriptions can vary.
For those who require even greater water resistance, there are specialised dive watches designed for scuba diving, often labelled with an ISO 6425 resistance rating. These robust timepieces are engineered to withstand depths of 200 metres or more, typically speaking.
It's worth noting that most high-quality fitness watches are designed with at least some level of water resistance, primarily to endure the sweat generated during workouts. Nonetheless, it's crucial to conduct thorough research to select a wearable device with a water resistance rating that aligns with your specific needs.