You are an Apple fan, and you are looking for a quality smartwatch compatible with iPhone? Or you just want to check which smartwatch work with iPhone flawlessly? You came to the right place. You don’t need to be an expert to understand that the first choice should be – na Apple Watch. It is really a perfect choice for every iPhone owner, but there are at least three downsides that could make you look the other way: Single-day battery, square design, and – the price.
That’s why we will cover the pros and cons of the best Apple Watches you can buy and also do thorough research among the other smart watches compatible with iOS and find the best smartwatch that works with iPhone for you.
DID YOU KNOW: Seiko released the world’s first smartwatch on 10 June 1998. It’s called Ruputer, and it was pioneering technology. As there was not touch screens back then, it was operated by the surrounding buttons and a yellow joystick below the display. It wasn’t easy to navigate the interface and incredibly challenging to write the text on the screen. There was even a custom version of the Paint app and some other third-party apps.
Competition among smartwatches has never been greater, and that’s the good news for us, the consumers. But, big competition is bringing a more difficult task to the buyers in picking the best possible option they can get for their money. That’s why there are two essential things you have to do in advance:
- Read as many reviews as you can and find the product that suits you the most,
- Find the best possible price for the smartwatch you want to buy.
I will help you with the first thing, you will find here your best smartwatch compatible with iPhone. It’s up to you now to check the best prices around for your desired model and grab the best deal. Amazon, as always, is the first place you should check.
I have to admit that many smartwatches work with iPhone now perfectly. Smartwatches that run Google’s Wear OS are working flawlessly with iOS, but you should always check are there any features working on the Android phones only. Samsung’s products have their own Tizen software, and you can sync their smartwatches with iPhone in a few minutes. Fitbits top-rated smartwatches are compatible with iPhone, as well as some other quality hybrid wearables.
The best smartwatch compatible with iPhone 2021 picks
- Apple Watch 6
- Apple Watch 5
- Apple Watch 4
- Apple Watch 3
- Apple Watch SE
- Samsung Galaxy Watch 3
- Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2
- Xiaomi Mi Watch
- TicWatch Pro 3
- Fitbit Ionic
- Garmin Vivoactive 4
- Skagen Falster 3
- Fitbit Versa 3
- Ticwatch GTX
- Fossil Gen 5
- Fossil Sport
Best Smartwatch for iPhone – 2021
| 1. Apple Watch 6 – The Best Overall |
| 2. Apple Watch SE – The Best Smart Buy |
| 3. Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 – The Best non-Apple Watch |
| 4. TicWatch Pro 3 – The Best Buy Smartwatch |
| 5. Skagen Falster 3 – The Best for Battery Life |
| 6. TicWatch GTX – The Best for Budget Smartwatch |
| 7. Garmin Vivoactive 4 – The Best for Fitness and Sports |
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Apple Watch 6
| Announced: 2020, September | OS: watchOS | Compatibility: iOS | Display: 1.78″ Retina LTPO OLED | Resolution: 448 x 368 pixels (~326 ppi density) | Chipset: Apple S6 | CPU: Dual Core | RAM: 1 GB | Battery: 18 hours | Charging method: Wireless | Storage: 32GB | Camera: | Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC, LTE |
☏ It’s the best Apple Watch you can buy and probably the best smartwatches available on the market. If you don’t mind the higher price, square design, and single-day battery, go for it. It is the best smartwatch compatible with iPhone, as both are Apple products. Apple Watch 6 is not a significant upgrade on the Apple Watch 5, but you will find some new features like blood oxygen monitoring or improved screen and battery life. Talking about battery life is not a considerable improvement, you will still need to charge it every day, or almost every day, with casual usage. We don’t need to say that this is the best smartwatch compatible with iPhone.
| ✔ BUY BECAUSE: It’s the best smartwatch for your iPhone |
| ✘ DON’T BUY BECAUSE: It’s not cheap and single-day battery |
Apple Watch 5
| Announced: 2019, September | OS: watchOS | Compatibility: iOS | Display: 1.78″ Retina LTPO OLED | Resolution: 448 x 368 pixels (~326 ppi density) | Chipset: Apple S5 | CPU: Dual Core | RAM: 1 GB | Battery: 18 hours | Charging method: Wireless | Storage: 32GB | Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC, LTE |
☏ This model is a bit inferior to the new model 6, and the price is still not cheap enough to sacrifice some improvements and upgrades from the latest Apple Watch. One of its best features is an always-on display option, and it doesn’t drain your battery life as much as you would expect. You can also update it to the new watchOS version and have an almost the best Apple Watch available. But if you ask me, I would still wait for the price drop.
| ✔ BUY BECAUSE: It’s almost the best smartwatch for your iPhone |
| ✘ DON’T BUY BECAUSE: Still too expensive and not the latest model |
Apple Watch 4
| Announced: 2018, September | OS: watchOS | Compatibility: iOS | Display: 1.78″ Retina LTPO OLED | Resolution: 448 x 368 pixels (~326 ppi density) | Chipset: Apple S4 | CPU: Dual Core | RAM: 1 GB | Battery: 18 hours | Charging method: Wireless | Storage: 16GB | Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC |
☏ It was the first Apple’s smartwatch with display size increasment to 1.78-inch OLED, and there are 44mm and 40mm versions. With its lightweight design, better quality speaker, and ECG monitor, Apple Watch 4 still represents a really good smartwatch. After Apple Watch 6 came out, this model is available at cheaper price and I consider it as a smart buy – if you find a good deal.
| ✔ BUY BECAUSE: It’s not much behind the Series 6, find a good deal |
| ✘ DON’T BUY BECAUSE: Don’t have always-on display, short battery life |
Apple Watch 3
| Announced: 2017 September | OS: watchOS | Compatibility: iOS | Display: 1.65″ Retina OLED | Resolution: 390 x 312 pixels (~303 ppi density) | Chipset: Apple S3 | CPU: Dual Core | RAM: 768 MB | Battery: 18 hours | Charging method: Wireless | Storage: 16GB | Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC |
☏ This is probably the “best-buy” option if you don’t want to pay the full price for the brand new Apple Watch 6 or you don’t like Apple Watch SE. Apple Watch 3 doesn’t have some of the new features, but it is still an excellent smartwatch to use with your iPhone. It’s a good option for the gym or business meetings, especially now, with an extra price cut. Apple Watch 3 and 6 have similar battery life, although the new model brought some improvements, it’s still not a huge difference.
| ✔ BUY BECAUSE: It’s still a really good smartwatch and it’s a smart buy |
| ✘ DON’T BUY BECAUSE: Smaller screen and resolution that new models |
Apple Watch SE
| Announced: 2020, September | OS: watchOS | Compatibility: iOS | Display: 1.78″ Retina LTPO OLED | Resolution: 448 x 368 pixels (~326 ppi density) | Chipset: Apple S5 | CPU: Dual Core | RAM: 1 GB | Battery: 18 hours | Charging method: Wireless | Storage: 32GB | Camera: | Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC, LTE |
☏ Apple Watch SE offers almost all features that offer new Series 6 for less money. So, where’s the catch? This Smartwatch is physically identical to the Series 6 and 5, just with smaller choice on finishes. But, the processor is S5 used for Series 5. Apple Watch SE doesn’t have always-on mode and also missing ECG and SpO2 sensor. That means if you are looking for more extra health data, that’s what SE is lacking. But, there are still plenty of fintess features. It’s certainly not a cheap Apple Watch, but an excelletn option for less money. If you find Series 3 crazy deal, go for it, but if you find that Apple Watch SE is not much more expensive – this should be your option.
| ✔ BUY BECAUSE: It looks and feel like Series 6 with some compromises |
| ✘ DON’T BUY BECAUSE: The lack of extensive health features |
Samsung Galaxy Watch 3
| Announced: 2020 August | OS: Tizen | Compatibility: iOS, Android | Display: 1.4″ Super AMOLED | Resolution: 360 x 360 pixels, 1:1 ratio (~364 ppi density) | Chipset: Exynos 9110 (10 nm) | CPU: Dual Core | RAM: 1 GB | Battery: 3 days | Charging method: Wireless | Storage: 8GB | Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC, LTE |
☏ It’s the best you can find on the other side of the market. Samsung got their own OS now – Tizen, which is still behind the watchOS, but it’s a big improvement from Google’s Wear OS. It is compatible with iOS and Android, so it is among the smartwatches that work with iPhone. Why is this best non-Apple smartwatch available? It’s packed with fitness features and top-rated smartwatch functions. Its rotating bezel is fantastic and makes navigating the interface really easy. The battery life is better than those on Apple Watch. It’s also one of the most stylish smartwatches around that can access thousands of watch faces to make it more attractive. Samsung’s App store is limited compared to Apple’s, but it is still an excellent option as the smartwatch compatible with iPhone.
| ✔ BUY BECAUSE: It’s the best non-Apple smartwatch in the world |
| ✘ DON’T BUY BECAUSE: Some of the features only work on Android |
Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2
| Announced: 2019, August | OS: Tizen | Compatibility: iOS, Android | Display: 1.4″ Super AMOLED | Resolution: 360 x 360 pixels, 1:1 ratio (~364 ppi density) | Chipset: Exynos 9110 (10 nm) | CPU: Dual Core | RAM: 1.5GB | Battery: 2-3 days | Charging method: Wireless | Storage: 4GB | Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC, LTE |
☏ Another watch with Tizen OS with great battery life and really good performance. After Apple Watch, Fitbit Sense, and Galaxy Watch 3, electrocardiogram (ECG) came to Galaxy Watch Active 2, as well. If you don’t like Apple Watch’s square design, this circular display could be attractive to you. It’s waterproof and well designed. You have tons of apps and features to choose from. You can easily connect this smartwatch with iOS, and the price will be much more attractive comparing to Apple Watch 6.
| ✔ BUY BECAUSE: Its advantage is good performance and many features |
| ✘ DON’T BUY BECAUSE: Some of the features only work on Android |
Xiaomi Mi Watch/Mi Watch Color
| Announced: 2020, September | OS: Wear OS | Compatibility: iOS, Android | Display: 1.78-inch AMOLED | Resolution: 454*454 high-resolution| Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon Wear 3100 | CPU: Quad-core 1.2 GHz Cortex-A7 | Storage: 8GB | Battery duration: 36 hours of continuous use | Charging method: Wireless | Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.1, NFC, LTE |
☏ Although Mi Watch and Mi Watch Coor have been available in China for a while, new upgraded versions are announced recently and the company is planning the bigger expansion to the western world. The specs and features are really great, but you will certainly be amazed by the price of $109 (in the moment of writing this article). You have very big high-quality AMOLED display with 454×454 resolution, heart rate, GPS, NFC, blood oxygen… And the battery life should be even 2-3 times longer that on Apple Watch. The Color model difference is in the casing – it is made from aluminium instead of stainless steel. It also comes in a number of different colors. Well, you don’t need to be Sherlock to get that from the watch name. It’s using WearOS, so you won’t have problems to connect smartwach with your iPhone.
| ✔ BUY BECAUSE: Really excellent smartwatch for a cheap price |
| ✘ DON’T BUY BECAUSE: Still not recognized enough in the USA |
TicWatch Pro 3
| Announced: 2020, September | OS: Wear OS | Compatibility: Android 4.3+, iOS 8+ | Display: 1.4″ AMOLED paired with LCD screen | Resolution: 454*454 high-resolution| Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon Wear 4100 | Storage: 4GB | Battery duration: Up to 3 days, up to 45 days in Enhaced Essential mode | Charging method: Magnetic connecting pin | Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.2 NFC, LTE |
☏ I had to add one smartwatch model that you’ve probably never heard of before. I added it because of its quality, features, and the price. If you are not strictly connected to the big brands, you should consider this one. TicWatch Pro 3 is the latest product by the Mobvoi company headquartered in Beijing, one of the best Wear OS smartwatches and probably the best buy smartwatch at the moment. It is an incredibly capable smartwatch with fantastic battery life – as the Dual-layer Display 2.0 supports Smart Mode (up to 3 days) and Enhanced Essential (up to 45 days!). The main display is AMOLED, and it’s really bright and very enjoyable. The two different displays are making this smartwatch different from others. It’s also the first Wear OS smartwatch with the Qualcomm Snapdragon Wear 4100 chip. There are also many other features available, and this smartwatch is compatible with iOS. All of this is making it one of the best buys here.
| ✔ BUY BECAUSE: It’s one of the best buys on the market, all-round player with excellent performance, powerful specs and great features |
| ✘ DON’T BUY BECAUSE: It’s not a big brand with worldwide reputation |
Fitbit Ionic
| Announced: 2017, August | OS: Wear OS | Compatibility: iOS, Android | Display: 1.45-inch LCD | Resolution: 348 x 250 pixels| Storage: 4GB | Battery duration: Around 4 days of mixed use | Charging method: Proprietary wired | Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.1, NFC |
☏ Many people and reviews call this smartwatch a next-gen fitness smartwatch. There’s no different features and apps like Apple Watch has, but it focuses on fitness and sports with heart-rate monitoring, guided workouts, run-detect features, and sleep tracking. The battery life is excellent, better than on most top-rated smartwatches, but some people won’t like its design. But, as the design is subjective, and I even like that 80s look, so I won’t take that as a minus. With sleep insights, great battery life, and some top fitness features, this device is a a good option for your iPhone.
| ✔ BUY BECAUSE: You need a quality fitness watch and like its 80s look |
| ✘ DON’T BUY BECAUSE: It’s time for some newer models |
Garmin Vivoactive 4
| Announced: 2019, August | OS: Wear OS | Compatibility: iOS, Android | Display: 1.3 Inch (3.3 cm) | Resolution: 260 x 260 pixels (~283 ppi density) | RAM: 1.5GB | Battery: Up to 5 days | Storage: 3.6GB | Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, ANT+, NFC |
☏ This Garmin’s smartwatch is one of the best smartwatches you can buy for fitness and sports. It’s coming in two sizes – 40mm and 45mm. It’s offering everything you need from tracking the health stats and workouts, and much more. You can track up to 20 activities, and there is 5ATM water resistance on board. If you are the guy who loves workout data, this device is for you. One nice extra feature is offline Spotify playback. Garmin claims the battery charge should hold up to eight days in smartwatch mode. GPS battery life is up to 18 hours. With GPS and music streaming – six hours. So, it depends on how you use it. If you are fitness fan this could be your serious option as a smartwatch compatible with iPhone.
| ✔ BUY BECAUSE: It is a top option for fitness and sports tracking |
| ✘ DON’T BUY BECAUSE: It’s not the prettiest and it has older hardware |
Skagen Falster 3
| Announced: 2020, January | OS: Wear OS | Compatibility: iOS, Android | Display: 1.3 Inch OLED | Resolution: 416×416; 328 ppi | Chipset: Snapdragon Wear 3100 | RAM: 1GB | Battery: Four different modes, From 2 to 20 days | Charging method: Magnetic | Storage: 8GB | Connectivity: Bluetooth v4.2 + LE; Wi-FI 802.11n; NFC |
☏ There is good and bad news when talking about Skagen Falster 3. The good news is that it’s a really excellent smartwatch and one of the best Wear OS watches available. The bad news is that it’s still running Wear OS. We should first say that Skagen Falster 3 is a battery champion. If you are looking for a great specs, watch packed with features and excellent battery life, this is your pick. Of course, if you don’t mind using the Google Wear OS, as many watchmakers are not using it anymore. Skagen updated the Falster 3 hardware, and it is using now Snapdragon Wear 3100 SoC chip. Fossil built functionality into Skagen Falster 3, so this smartphone works with the iPhone, enabling iOS calling through Bluetooth.
| ✔ BUY BECAUSE: It’s got powerful battery life and good other specs |
| ✘ DON’T BUY BECAUSE: It’s still on Wear OS and it deserves better |
Fitbit Versa 3
| Announced: 2020, August | OS: Wear OS | Compatibility: iOS, Android | Display: 1.58 AMOLED | Resolution: 336 x 336 pixels | RAM: 1GB | Battery: Up to 6 days | Storage: 4GB | Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC |
☏ Versa is not a Fitbit’s flagship model anymore and it’s coming behind Sensa, but Versa 3 is the best value smartwatch from Fitbit. It’s also one of the smart watches compatible with iPhone, making him one of the favorite models on this list. You’ve got three color case options to choose from and you can even connect Alexa with your smartwatch. So far, it’s working well. As you expect from Fitbit, there are plenty of fitness features as swim tracking, monitoring heart rate and HIIT coaching. You can make contactless payments and listen to music on the move, but the main issue is the lack of GPS. If you don’t need GPS, this smartwatch should be high on your shortlist.
| ✔ BUY BECAUSE: It’s got a good price, battery and a lot of fitness features |
| ✘ DON’T BUY BECAUSE: Less health features and hidden main button |
Fossil Gen 5
| Announced: 2019, August | OS: Wear OS | Compatibility: iOS, Android | Display: 1.28-inch AMOLED | Resolution: 416 x 416, 328 ppi | Chipset: Snapdragon Wear 3100 | RAM: 1GB | Storage: 8GB | Battery duration: Around 2 days | Charging method: Magnetic charging disc | Connectivity: Bluetooth 4.2 LE, GPS, NFC, WiFi |
☏ Fossil Gen 5 is one of the best Google Wear OS watches you can buy. It’s not cheap, but it is far from being expensive comparing to the Apple Watch latest model. As one of the last remaining watchmakers committed to Wear OS, Fossil put a lot of effort to use the best from this operating system. Although many Wear OS smartwatches are slow and have problems with battery life, Fossil Gen 5 is far from that. It features a bright 1.28-inch AMOLED display with a pixel density of 328ppi. It comes with Snapdragon Wear 3100 chip, and the performance is very good. You also get an upgraded heart rate sensor and a decent battery life.
| ✔ BUY BECAUSE: It’s got a strong battery, good display and features |
| ✘ DON’T BUY BECAUSE: It deserves a bigger display and better battery |
TicWatch GTX
| Announced: 2020, October | OS: Custom OS | Compatibility: iOS, Android | Display: 1.28 inch TFT | Resolution: 240*240 | Chipset: RLC8762C (40Mhz) | RAM: 1GB | Storage: 16GB | Battery duration: Up to 10 days | Connectivity: Bluetooth 5.0 |
Mobvoi has launched TicWatch GTX to try to dominate the entry-level smartwatches range and it’s price of just around $60 is confirming that. For this price you get a feature-rich smartwatch with up to 7 days battery life with regular use and up to 10 days with power saving mode on. It’s got excellent health monitor features, sleep tracking and 14 fitness modes. There is no GPS, but we expected that for this price. Mobvoi usually go with Wear OS, but this model uses a custom OS. That means less apps, but for the casual user, available option should be just ok.
| ✔ BUY BECAUSE: It’s cheap and really a bargain for that price |
| ✘ DON’T BUY BECAUSE: Don’t have GPS and have limited features |
Fossil Sport
| Announced: 2018, October | OS: Wear OS | Compatibility: iOS, Android | Display: 1.28-inch AMOLED | Resolution: 390×390 | Chipset: Snapdragon Wear 3100 | RAM: 1GB | Storage: 4GB | Battery duration: 1-2 days | Charging method: Magnetic rapid charging | Connectivity: Bluetooth Smart Enabled / 4.2 Low Energy |
☏ If you are looking for a reliable and affordable budget option, you should seriously consider Fossil Sport. It’s not top of a notch model, but it’s doing everything you would expect from a decent smartwatch. It is run by Qualcomm Snapdragon 3100 chipset, so you should expect a smooth experience while using it. You can give your watch a unique look by selecting one of the dozens of available colors. It is a smartwatch compatible with iOS and Android, and if you are a casual user, you will be satisfied with it.
| ✔ BUY BECAUSE: It’s a decent model with smooth performance |
| ✘ DON’T BUY BECAUSE: The battery life, specs and features are average |
The things you should pay attention to when buying a smartwatch!
| 1. Check the smartwatch compatibility with the smartphone. 2. Pay attention to the battery life and reviews on that 3. Check the best phone features and take those with heart rate sensor and GPS (if you need it) 4. Consider what features do you need 5. Check the selection of apps for the model you like 6. If the design is the priority, pick the devices with the most options to modify its look 7. Remember that Apple’s watchOS is the best, Samsung’s Tizen is second, and Google’s Wear OS is in third place. 8. Set your budget and go over it only if you find an incredible deal 9. Pick size and style carefully. Almost every model have different sizes and styles 10. The price! There are plenty of deals around. Spare some time to grab your new smartphone on a perfect deal |
Frequently asked Questions
Are smartwatches really worth the money?
The smartwatches are now more worth than ever. The top models can be expensive, but you have to be aware of how many features you get in that little device, besides showing the time, of course. It’s the GPS, fitness tracker, messenger, medical advisor, entertainment center and much more than that.
Will a smartwatch drain my phone’s battery?
It will take a part of your phone’s battery, but on the other hand, you will save some juice by not unlocking and turning on your screen for every notification you get, as you will deal with it on your smartwatch.
How can I save the battery on my smartwatch?
There are many ways you can save the battery on your smartwatch. You can block unnecessary notifications, adjust the brightness level, turn off wi-fi syncing, disable wrist gesture, use the snooze, and the theater mode.
Is the smartwatch health data accurate?
Although health tracking via these devices is not 100% accurate, I can say the data is pretty reliable. Besides, health tracking will allow you to track many aspects of your sports or fitness activities. Many big brands like Apple, Samsung, and Garmin, are very serious about precision so that you can put your trust in their metrics.
Can the smartwatch detect an irregular heart rhythm?
Yes, many new and top-rated smartwatches have a possibility to detect atrial defibrillation, an irregular heart rhythm, through the electrocardiogram (ECG) sensor. So far, Apple Watch is the only FDA-approved watch for detecting atrial defibrillation.
Are smartwatches safe?
Yes, smartwatches are safe. They are the mainstream electronic devices now, and you should feel even safer when using it, as you have the ability to make calls from your wrist. Besides, they could monitor our health and alert us if there is some irregularity…
CONCLUSION
Finding the best possible smartwatch compatible with iPhone is not an easy task. You should be aware of the pros and cons of every model. That’s why it is essential to ask yourself these crucial questions:
1. Why do I need a smartwatch?
2. What features do I need?
3. What’s the design I like?
4. What’s my budget?
When you have answers to these four questions, you will have a much easier job shortlisting your potential favorite. You have a brilliant phone; you just need to find a top smartwatch that works with your iPhone perfectly…
