Smartwatches · owner-verdict comparison

Apple Watch Series 11 vs Garmin Forerunner 970: what real owners say

Real owners lean toward the Garmin Forerunner 970: 68% of 75 owners recommend it, vs 26% of 43 for the Apple Watch Series 11.

Verdicts aggregated from Reddit, enthusiast forums, and YouTube owner comments — affiliate reviews excluded. Sample sizes differ; judge accordingly. How we score

Apple Watch Series 11

26%of 43 owners recommend
26% recommend · 9% neutral · 65% don't
Full owner report →

Garmin Forerunner 970

68%of 75 owners recommend
68% recommend · 9% neutral · 23% don't
Owners praise
  • Remarkably light, slim, and comfortable for all-day and 24/7 wear
  • Packs the full Fenix-level feature set into a smaller, cheaper package
  • Strong battery life in typical use, often a week or more
Owners complain about
  • Ghost touches and an oversensitive touchscreen, sometimes unusable until disabled
  • Battery can drain badly, dying mid-run or dropping to around 30 hours
  • Reboots and reliability issues during workouts, with slow Garmin support
Full owner report →

What Apple Watch Series 11 owners say

“i have it. love it. so comfy and wear it every day. just have to pay attention when you put your watch on”
— facemusk on Reddit
“I’ve been charging my watch during my showers, and it has allowed me to track both my daily activity and sleep activity.”
— kyrie0401 on Reddit
“Apple Watch needs daily charging so I can’t sleep with it and charge during day time. If you don’t monitor your sleep daily you don’t get a good diagnostic.”
— Viplist on Reddit

What Garmin Forerunner 970 owners say

“I just upgraded from the 935 to the 970 and I am very happy with this decision!”
— @WolfgangUllrichPhoto on YouTube
“getting the Flashlight for a forerunner is amazing!”
— @vpnconsult on YouTube
“Garmin overpriced the 970.”
— @mccask on YouTube