These Are the Best Smartwatches to Gift in 2026

If someone on your list needs a new smartwatch, it can be challenging to figure out which model to buy—there are more than a few on the market, all claiming to be the best at what they do. But unlike other devices, smartwatches are largely dependent on the other devices the user also owns. Once you take that into consideration, the decision becomes much easier. As such, these are the best choices for smartwatch gifts this year.

Best Apple Watch gift for most people: Apple Watch SE 3

It’s tempting to choose one of Apple’s latest watches to be the best gift for most people. The company just dropped the Series 12 and the Ultra 4, both of which come with the latest S11 chip and always-on heart rate monitoring. If someone on your list wants the very best Apple Watch money can buy, this might be the direction to head in. But most people don’t need (or even want) Apple’s latest and greatest features. They’re looking for an Apple Watch they can use for workouts, to track their sleep, and to answer their texts. For those tasks (and many others), the Apple Watch SE is a more than worthy choice.

Apple’s “budget” watch is surprisingly capable. This watch comes in either 40mm or 44mm options with an Always-On OLED display (something I frequently disable to extend battery life) offering up to 1000 nits of brightness. It includes a heart rate monitor, sleep tracking, cycle tracking, and vitals tracking. It might not have the new S11 chip, but it does have the S10, only one generation older and more than up to snuff in 2026. That’s what powers Apple Intelligence and Siri AI, if your giftee is interested in trying the new features Apple introduced with watchOS 26 and watchOS 27.

It doesn’t have as large a battery as the Series 12 or Ultra 4, though its 18 hours should be plenty for most people. (Apple says you can get up to 32 hours in Low Power Mode.) You can also use fast charging: You can get from 0% to 80% in 45 minutes, and up to eight hours of use in 15 minutes.

You will be missing some features from Apple’s more “premium” watches: It isn’t as bright as the Series 12 or Ultra 4; it doesn’t have high-frequency background heart rate tracking, nor does it have an ECG sensor or hypertension alerts; it omits the Blood Oxygen app, as well as Audio Intelligence (though that might prove to be a benefit in the long run); it doesn’t have a depth gauge or water temp sensor. But I’d wager that most people won’t miss those omissions much.

Best Apple Watch gift for athletes: Apple Watch Ultra 4

If your giftee is an athlete, or somone who engages in more extreme activities, the SE might not be the best choice. In fact, the Series 12 might not be right either. Instead, consider the Ultra line. This is Apple’s “rugged” line of smartwatches, which come with larger batteries and displays, and a more durable overall design to handle intense activity and exercise.

Though older models can be great, I actually recommend going for Apple’s latest model, the Ultra 4. That’s not necessarily because Apple made a ton of upgrades from past watches with this model over the Ultra 3. In fact, the upgrades were mostly minor: It runs Apple’s latest S11 chip instead of the S10; has a slightly larger battery capable of 50 hours of runtime versus 42; comes with an upgraded heart sensor and “Health Sensing System;”; supports Audio Intelligence; and has the new “Readiness” app to help guide how intense your workouts should be. Most of the other upgrades are pretty minor.

The main reason I’d recommend it over the Ultra 3, however, is that it seems new Ultra 3 devices are fairly hard to find. If you want to gift someone a refurbished model, you may find some decent discounts, but unopened Ultra 3s are scarce on the ground. For a gift, I think the new Ultra 4 makes more sense.

An iPhone user with a rigorous exercise routine will likely thrive with the Ultra 4. In addition to the aforementioned features, this Apple Watch’s OLED display can reach up to 3,000 nits of brightness, comes with an ECG sensor and blood oxygen monitor, tracks your sleep, supports Emergency SOS with fall detection (and a siren, if you need it), is water resistant up to 100m with a depth gauge up to 40m, and comes with cellular capabilities, so you don’t need to spend more if you think your recipient will want to use their Apple Watch without an iPhone.

Best smartwatch for Pixel users: Google Pixel Watch 4

If your giftee has a Pixel phone, your best bet is a Pixel Watch. The newest model is the Pixel Watch 5, and while that’s the “best” smartwatch Google makes, it might not be the best to gift. The better value right now is the Pixel Watch 4.

Like the Apple Watch SE, opting for the Pixel Watch 4 doesn’t require making many sacrifices. This watch comes in either 41mm or 45mm options, with an AMOLED display capable of reaching 3,000 nits. It ships with an assortment of sensors, including those for heart rate, ECG, temperature, and many others. It comes with a Snapdragon W5 Gen 2 chip with 2GB of RAM and 32GB of storage, with a 325mAh battery (41mm) or 455 mAh battery (45mm). Google says you can get 30 hours of battery on the 41mm model, and 40 hours on the 45mm, with 15 hours of use after 15 minutes of charging. It also has an IP68 rating, indicating this watch is quite dust and water-resistant.

It has emergency satellite connectivity, dual-band GPS, and, of course, Gemini integration—this is a Google product. Health features, including Google Health Coach, Loss of Pulse Detection, and a “Readiness” score to indicate how your body may respond to certain workout intensities.

While you might expect the Pixel Watch 5 to be a significantly better option, there are actually fewer upgrades than usual here. It has an “Accelerated” version of the Pixel Watch 4’s Snapdragon W5 Gen 2 chip and a more accurate GPS, but most of the other specs remain the same. Plus, as CNET highlights, Google’s latest smartwatch features, such as Workout Builder, Health Guardian, and blood pressure and insulin resistance tracking, are available on Pixel 4 and the Pixel 5. That being said, you can’t go wrong with a Pixel Watch 5. While it might not be a huge upgrade, you’re still gifting the best Pixel Watch Google currently makes, and that upgraded chip will future-proof the device a bit.

Best smartwatch for Samsung Galaxy users: Galaxy Watch 8

Similarly, if your giftee has a Samsung Galaxy phone, they will likely get the most out of a Galaxy Watch. And, like the Pixel Watch situation, the last-generation Galaxy Watch might be the better value here than the latest model. The Galaxy Watch 8 runs the Samsung Exynos W1000 chip, which comes with 2GB of RAM and 32GB of storage. The watch is available in either 40mm or 44mm options (the “Classic” variant comes in 46mm). Those AMOLED displays can reach up to 3,000 nits, like the Pixel Watch. Samsung claims you can get 30 hours of battery life with the Always-On display enabled. It’s also IP68-rated against dust and water, and supports emergency SOS and fall detection.

The Galaxy Watch 8 comes with Samsung’s flagship health features, like sleep coaching, Running Coach, sleep apnea tracking, stress alerts, cycle tracking, among other options. Samsung Watch also offers an “Energy Score,” which, like the Pixel Watch, gives you a general “readiness” score for your workouts. It also supports Google Gemini (this is still an Android smartwatch, after all), but your giftee will find the most support if they also have a Galaxy phone to connect it to.

Again, the Galaxy Watch 9 is Samsung’s “best” smartwatch, as it comes with an upgraded processor, as well as some exclusive features, so you can’t go wrong buying one for a Galaxy user. But the Galaxy Watch 8 offers nearly all the same features (not to mention the same design) as its successor, for a more reasonable price.

Best Android smartwatch for fitness: Garmin Venu 4

Many runners and athletes swear by Garmin above all other fitness watch and smartwatch brands. While Apple, Google, and Samsung all offer excellent health tracking features, fitness is Garmin’s main focus. Its smartwatches have advanced health and fitness tracking and the best battery life on the market. The Apple Watch Ultra 4 can reach 50 hours of battery life according to Apple; the Garmin Vemu 4 can run for over a week.

This watch comes in 41mm or 45mm variants, both of which have OLED displays. If you keep your Always-On display enabled, you can let your watch run for four days straight between charges. But turn it off, and you’ll extend that to a maximum of 12 days. It comes with a laundry list of sensors and health features: The heart rate monitor checks your pulse every second; there’s sleep tracking and a sleep coach, including nap detection; you can receive daily suggested workouts for all types of activities; there are coaches for different exercises, including running and cycling, and of course it tracks a series of stats, including your heart rate zones, heart rate calories, recovery time, and VO2 max. If you’re a runner, you can see GPS-based distance tracking, stride length, running power, ground contact time, projected race time and pace, among many other variables.

While the Venu 4 is compatible with either Android or iOS, iPhone users may miss out on some of the perks Apple offers within its own ecosystem. Android users can text from the Venu 4 and view images from notifications, while iPhone users cannot. Still, users of both platforms can benefit from this watch.