The best GPS smartwatches don’t only have GPS. Yes, your regular smartwatch has other Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) such as GLONASS and BeiDou, but they will only access one at a time. Because of this, obstacles such as buildings, mountains, leaves or even clouds will distort your GPS position, spoiling your fitness results.
That’s why the best smartwatches for GPS accuracy offer multi-system GNSS or multi-band GPS. “All-system GNSS” pulls data from multiple satellite systems, as one can replace its data if another becomes blocked. “Dual frequency GPS” is particularly accurate because it uses the original L1 satellites and newer, more precise L5 satellites with a protected aeronautical frequency and faster correction of signal errors.
Our picks below aren’t just smartwatches with more accuracy on paper. We actually tested these smartwatches and ranked the most accurate models at the top. Plus, we’ve included a few rare fitness trackers that offer built-in GPS instead of relying on your smartphone.
These are the best GPS smartwatches for location accuracy and mapping
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The most accurate GPS smart watch
In addition to being our top pick for the best running watches, the Forerunner 265 also supports All-Systems GNSS and dual-frequency GPS. Our reviewer found its maps extremely accurate after practice in areas where foliage and buildings interfere with GPS-only watches. It lasts 16 hours in SatIQ mode, which switches to dual-frequency when the signal weakens, but otherwise uses battery-saving GPS.
The most affordable two-frequency
The COROS PACE 3 costs just $230, lasts a day longer than the Forerunner 965, and offers 15 hours of dual-frequency GPS or 25 hours of “all systems” mode that actually uses five GNSSs at once (most watches only use two at a time). It’s a fantastic job, and while its accuracy was a little less than the Garmin Forerunner series in tests, it’s still very accurate compared to most other brands.
The best accuracy available
Although the COROS PACE 3 wins on paper, the Garmin Forerunner 165 — which only offers 17 hours of GNSS mode for all systems and lacks some features like exercise load — beat the PACE 3 in the GPS accuracy test for both standard driving and running on the track. It’s not as accurate as the 265, but the Forerunner 165 costs $200 less and is accurate enough that everyday runners should be happy with the results.
Hardcore fitness for iPhone
You’ll rarely find dual-frequency GPS on a traditional smartwatch. The Apple Watch Ultra 2 is an exception, with 12 hours of dual-frequency tracking that automatically corrects behind the scenes with Apple Maps data and a national track database; in our accuracy testing, it did exceptionally well. You’ll have to accept its limited 36-hour battery life, but the apps and ultra-bright wolf screen make up for it.
Same technology, better battery and maps
The Garmin Forerunner 965 has the same benefits as the 265 for a slightly higher price, but lasts 19 hours in dual-frequency GPS mode and an additional 10 days in smartwatch mode. Unlike the Forerunner 265, it also comes with pre-downloaded topographic maps, so you can go on a hike and look ahead to the starting trail instead of having to download GPX files in advance. Our Forerunner 965 vs. 265 guide goes through the other key differences.
Dual-band + MaxTrack accuracy
The Cheetah Pro has a “circularly polarized” satellite that Amazfit claims is “99.5% accurate as a gold standard professional GPS locator.” In practice, our Cheetah Pro reviewer noticed “floating and suspiciously slanted lines” in his maps after a run, but otherwise said it followed “pretty closely with [his] Map Forerunner 965.” It’s a pretty affordable alternative to the Forerunner if you need other smarts like a microphone and speakers.
The best watch for GPS and battery life
Dual-frequency GPS requires a lot of power, so most AMOLED watches can’t use it for long before running out of battery. The Garmin Instinct 2X Solar uses its huge battery, low-power display and solar panel to last 36 hours in multi-band mode. Outside of training, it can last “indefinitely” in low-power modes if you spend enough time outside and don’t use the built-in flashlight too much.
Robust dual-band fitness
The Amazfit T-Rex 2 gives you dual-band and all-system tracking in GPS Accuracy mode, and at a much lower price than most of the other GPS smartwatches on our list. We’re big fans of its bright display, military-grade protection, and decent number of fitness sensors for health data. Even without MaxTrack, it’s pretty accurate for GPS.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 Pro
Your Android “pro” option
In this list, we mostly highlighted fitness watches over traditional Android watches. The Galaxy Watch 5 Pro only lets you use one GPS-like GNSS at a time, but its 80-hour battery life is among the best ever for this type of watch, and it lets you download offline GPX maps if you don’t have a Google Maps signal.
Want a fitness tracker with built-in GPS? Try one of these!
Our favorite fitness tracker
One of the few fitness trackers with built-in GPS, the Fitbit Charge 6 is about as accurate as your typical GPS-only device, relying on your smartphone’s tracking data to correct it in “Dynamic GPS” mode. The lack of an altimeter for elevation data and some reported antenna issues make it difficult to recommend for running, but it’s extremely good in other areas such as heart rate data and is very affordable.
Basically a mini-smartwatch
We’re including this on our list of fitness trackers with built-in GPS even though it’s barely a tracker with a screen this size. We haven’t reviewed the new 8 Pro yet, but we liked the Smart Band 7 Pro for its wide AMOLED display and affordable price. 8 Pro has running workouts, vitality score and other useful fitness data.
The favorite of the last generation
The Fitbit Charge 5 is no longer something we recommend buying now that the Charge 6 has replaced it, but if you can find a refurbished one for cheap, it has essentially the same design and features as the newer model, including built-in GPS. Otherwise, the fact that we’re including it here should show you how rare built-in GPS is for smaller fitness bands.
Decide how much GPS accuracy you really need
We’ve covered all the different watches with All-Systems GNSS or dual-frequency/multi-band GPS, but do you really need them? Or is simple GPS data all you need? Well, it depends on where you usually practice.
All-Systems mode uses two or more satellite systems at once, but its benefit depends on how well alternative systems such as GLONASS, GALILEO, BeiDou or QDZZ work in your area. Garmin says multiple GNSSs help with “increased performance in challenging environments and faster positioning than using GPS alone,” while COROS recommends it for these areas: “cities near tall buildings, neighborhoods with large tree canopies, or mountainous/ hilly terrains.” All in all, this is a useful feature, but you’ll still have to deal with reflective location signals.
Dual frequency mode offers the most accurate data you can get as it tracks you via L1 and L5 satellite data coming from multiple directions, so if one signal is blocked you can still count on the other to pick up the time. Garmin says this brings “more consistent track records, improved positioning, improved multi-track errors, and fewer atmospheric errors.” COROS recommends it for “climbing steep rocks in narrow canyons, hiking deep within forests, between mountain peaks, or near steep cliffs such as the Grand Canyon.”
In other words, you might not need dual-frequency tracking outside of extreme conditions, but it’s certainly nice to have and generally offers better tracking even if you live somewhere completely flat. On the other hand, this mode also consumes the most battery, so you need to consider which GPS smartwatch will last long enough for your needs.
As for trackers, most of our favorite fitness trackers rely on connected GPS, meaning you need your phone nearby to track your workout. Most phones have pretty accurate location data on par with what you’d get from a GPS-only smartwatch, so a fitness tracker or watch with built-in GPS allows you to run without a phone, but doesn’t necessarily give you great accuracy. Only with All-Systems or dual-frequency will you get the best possible performance, which means choosing a bulky fitness watch instead of a tracker.