Smartwatches · owner-verdict comparison

Garmin Forerunner 165 vs Garmin Forerunner 970: what real owners say

Real owners rate these about evenly: 67% of 147 Garmin Forerunner 165 owners recommend it, vs 68% of 75 for the Garmin Forerunner 970.

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

Garmin Forerunner 165

67%of 147 owners recommend
67% recommend · 8% neutral · 25% 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 Garmin Forerunner 165 owners say

“This video has made me realise the 165 is for me.”
— @CGCGCG91 on YouTube
“ordered a 165 hahah wish I knew sooner!”
— @Joseeppph on YouTube
“To remove a feature that was previously there as soon as you release the product, which contains the hardware for the feature is a really bad look.”
— @Fernweh_8 on YouTube

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