Best Smartwatch for Fitness at Walmart – Top Picks
Finding the right smartwatch for your fitness journey can feel overwhelming. With so many options available at Walmart, from budget-friendly basics to feature-packed premium devices, it’s easy to get lost in the specs and price tags. This guide cuts through the noise to bring you the best fitness-focused smartwatches you can buy at Walmart right now—tested for real workouts, priced for every budget, and selected based on what actually matters for reaching your fitness goals.
Quick Picks: Top 3 Smartwatches for Fitness
If you want the short version, here are our top three recommendations for fitness-focused smartwatches available at Walmart.
Best Overall: Apple Watch SE (2nd Generation)
The Apple Watch SE delivers the best balance of fitness features, price, and ecosystem integration for most people. It has the Workout app with over 100 workout types, from running and cycling to swimming and yoga. The watch tracks your heart rate continuously, monitors your blood oxygen levels, and can detect falls—making it suitable for everything from casual walks to intense gym sessions.
What sets it apart is sleep tracking with the Sleep app, which helps you understand your rest patterns over time. The always-on altimeter tracks elevation changes during hikes or stair climbs, while GPS lets you leave your phone at home during outdoor runs. Battery life runs about 18 hours, which means you’ll need to charge it daily, but the fast charging feature gets you back up and running quickly.
Best Value: Fitbit Inspire 3
For fitness on a budget, the Fitbit Inspire 3 offers impressive value. This slim, comfortable tracker focuses on what matters most: activity tracking, heart rate monitoring, and sleep analysis. It records 20+ exercise modes and automatically detects exercises like walking, running, and swimming, so you don’t have to manually start tracking every session.
The Inspire 3 shines with its battery life—up to 10 days on a single charge means you can wear it continuously without the daily charging routine. It tracks your oxygen saturation (SpO2) levels overnight and provides a daily Sleep Score to help you understand your rest quality. While it lacks built-in GPS (you’ll need your phone nearby for distance tracking), the price point makes it an excellent entry point for fitness tracking.
Best for Outdoor Fitness: Garmin Forerunner 55
The Garmin Forerunner 55 is built specifically for runners and outdoor fitness enthusiasts. It has built-in GPS that locks onto satellites quickly and provides accurate distance and pace data without requiring your phone. The watch includes free Garmin Coach training plans that adapt to your fitness level and goals, making it perfect if you’re training for your first 5K or trying to improve your marathon time.
Beyond running, the Forerunner 55 tracks cycling, swimming, and strength training. It monitors your heart rate variability (HRV) to gauge your recovery status and suggests daily workouts based on your recent activity. The battery lasts up to 14 days in smartwatch mode or 20 hours in GPS mode—solid endurance for longer training sessions or multi-day hiking trips.
How to Choose a Fitness Smartwatch
Picking the right fitness smartwatch comes down to understanding what features align with your specific workout routine and goals. Here’s what to consider before making your decision.
Key Features That Matter for Fitness
Heart rate monitoring forms the foundation of any fitness smartwatch. Most devices use optical heart rate sensors that shine light into your skin to measure blood flow. While accuracy varies between models and during high-intensity movements, this technology has improved significantly. If you’re serious about heart rate training, look for watches that support chest strap compatibility for medical-grade accuracy.
GPS tracking matters if you run, cycle, or hike outdoors. Built-in GPS provides accurate distance and pace without carrying your phone, though it does drain battery faster. Some watches also support GLONASS or Galileo satellite systems for better coverage in challenging environments like dense forests or urban canyons.
Water resistance determines what activities you can do with your watch. Ratings like 5ATM (50 meters) allow swimming and showering, while 3ATM handles splashes and rain. If you’re a swimmer, look specifically for swim-proof models with lap counting and stroke detection.
Battery life affects how often you need to charge and whether the watch can track extended activities. Some fitness-focused watches offer multi-week battery life in exchange for limited smart features, while premium smartwatches typically need daily or every-other-day charging.
Price vs. Features: What You’re Really Paying For
Smartwatches under $100 typically offer basic step counting, heart rate tracking, and limited workout modes. They’re great for beginners who want to understand their daily activity patterns without investing heavily.
The $100-$200 range delivers significant upgrades: more accurate sensors, built-in GPS, better displays, and dedicated fitness apps. This is where most people find the best balance between capability and cost.
Premium watches above $200 add features like ECG heart rhythm monitoring, blood oxygen sensing, maps, music storage, and smartphone-free connectivity. They’re designed for serious athletes or anyone who wants the most advanced health and fitness tracking available.
Compatibility Considerations
Your smartphone operating system matters. Apple Watch works exclusively with iPhones, while most other brands support both iOS and Android. Samsung Galaxy Watch offers deeper integration with Android phones but limited iPhone functionality. Fitbit and Garmin watches work with both platforms but may have some feature differences depending on your phone.
Before buying, check that the watch’s companion app works with your phone and that all the fitness features you want are available on both iOS and Android.
Best Smartwatches Under $100
Walmart offers several solid fitness trackers in this price range that provide essential tracking without breaking the bank.
Fitbit Inspire 3
The Inspire 3 stands out as our top pick under $100. It tracks heart rate, steps, calories, and sleep with reasonable accuracy for everyday use. The slim band design feels comfortable enough to wear 24/7, and the battery genuinely lasts up to 10 days.
The display shows time, date, and basic stats at a glance, while the Fitbit app provides detailed analysis of your activity trends, sleep stages, and heart rate patterns. You can set daily goals for steps, calories, and active minutes, and the watch gently reminds you to move if you’ve been sedentary.
One limitation: there’s no built-in GPS, so outdoor distance tracking requires your phone. Also, you don’t get onboard music or contactless payments at this price point. However, for pure fitness tracking fundamentals, the Inspire 3 delivers excellent value.
Garmin Lily 2
The Garmin Lily 2 targets style-conscious fitness enthusiasts who want something more elegant than a typical sports tracker. It has a slim, watch-like design with a small touchscreen and physical button combination that’s easy to use during workouts.
Fitness features include heart rate tracking, stress monitoring, body battery energy tracking, and menstrual cycle tracking. It supports GPS tracking when connected to your phone, and the battery lasts about 5 days in smartwatch mode. The Women’s Health Tracking feature sets it apart from competitors, making it a thoughtful choice for female athletes.
Samsung Galaxy Fit 3
If you already use Samsung phones, the Galaxy Fit 3 integrates seamlessly with Samsung Health. It tracks over 100 workout types automatically, monitors sleep quality, and provides heart rate alerts if it detects unusually high or low readings.
The Fit 3 displays smartphone notifications, controls music playback, and lets you find your phone if it’s misplaced. Battery life reaches about 13 days, which is impressive among connected fitness trackers. The simple interface makes it accessible if you’re new to fitness tracking.
Best Smartwatches $100-$200
This sweet spot delivers meaningful upgrades in fitness capabilities and overall user experience.
Apple Watch SE (2nd Generation)
At around $170-$190, the Apple Watch SE offers a strong fitness ecosystem in this price range. The Workout app covers everything from traditional exercises to dance, functional strength training, and cooldown sessions. You can track specific activities like HIIT, yoga, and swimming with dedicated modes.
The SE includes crash detection and fall detection—important safety features for any active lifestyle. Cellular models let you stay connected during workouts without your phone, though they cost more. The watch automatically syncs with Apple Fitness+ if you’re subscribed, providing guided workout videos directly on your wrist.
The main tradeoff is battery life. You’ll charge the watch nightly, which works for most people but may frustrate users who want continuous sleep tracking without interruption.
Fitbit Sense 2
The Fitbit Sense 2 focuses on holistic health monitoring with temperature sensing, continuous heart rate tracking, and stress management tools. It has an ECG app to check for heart rhythm irregularities and a SpO2 sensor for blood oxygen monitoring during sleep.
Fitness features are comprehensive: 40+ workout modes, built-in GPS, swim-proof design to 50 meters, and Fitbit’s signature accurate step and calorie tracking. The battery lasts about 6 days with typical use, though heavy GPS use reduces this.
What makes the Sense 2 unique is its emphasis on mental wellness. It offers guided breathing sessions, daily stress management scores, and skin temperature tracking that may indicate hormonal changes or illness onset.
Garmin Vívoactive 5
The Garmin Vívoactive 5 balances fitness tracking with everyday smartwatch features. It has built-in GPS, animated workouts on the watch face, and automatic activity tracking that recognizes when you start exercising without prompting.
This watch tracks over 30 preloaded sports apps, including golf, pickleball, and SUP paddling—more variety than most competitors. It also offers body battery energy monitoring, which combines heart rate variability, stress, and activity data to tell you when to push hard and when to rest.
Battery life reaches about 11 days in smartwatch mode or 21 hours with GPS. The vívoactive 5 also supports music storage and Spotify streaming, so you can leave your phone behind during workouts.
Best Premium Smartwatches $200+
Premium fitness watches add the most advanced health sensors, longest battery life, and broadest feature sets.
Apple Watch Series 9
The Series 9 represents Apple’s most capable fitness companion. Beyond everything the SE offers, you get a brighter display, faster processor, double-tap gesture control, and precision finding for iPhone. The S9 chip enables on-device Siri processing, so voice commands work even without internet connectivity.
Health sensors include blood oxygen monitoring, ECG heart rhythm checking, and temperature sensing for cycle tracking. The always-on Retina display is easier to read in bright sunlight, and the 1000-nit brightness helps during outdoor activities. Battery life matches the SE at around 18 hours, but fast charging gets you to 80% in about 45 minutes.
For iPhone users who want the most complete fitness and health monitoring available, the Series 9 delivers. The only real barrier is the higher price and the need for daily charging.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 6
The Galaxy Watch 6 brings Samsung’s most advanced health monitoring to fitness enthusiasts using Android phones. It has BioActive sensors that measure heart rate, blood oxygen, and body composition metrics including skeletal muscle weight and body water percentage.
Fitness tracking covers over 100 exercises with automatic detection for running, walking, and cycling. The watch has built-in GPS and supports Samsung Health for comprehensive fitness analysis. The rotating bezel provides intuitive navigation through menus, even with sweaty fingers during workouts.
Galaxy Watch 6 offers sleep coaching with personalized Sleep Scores and tips for improving rest quality. It also monitors blood pressure and ECG, though these features require FDA clearance in certain regions. Battery life reaches about 40 hours with typical use.
Garmin Fenix 7
The Garmin Fenix 7 targets serious athletes and outdoor adventurers who need the most rugged, feature-packed fitness watch available. It comes in multiple sizes (42mm, 47mm, 51mm) to fit different wrists and includes a choice of solar-charging sapphire lenses that extend battery life significantly.
Fitness features include multi-band GPS with TopoActive maps for hiking, ski maps, golf course maps, and advanced training metrics like VO2 max, training load focus, and recovery recommendations. The 7X Pro model offers a built-in LED flashlight—useful for night workouts or emergency situations.
This watch tracks essentially every activity you can imagine, from trail running and mountain biking to open water swimming and triathlon. It’s bulkier and more expensive than casual fitness trackers, but for dedicated athletes, the Fenix 7 provides tools to seriously improve performance.
Fitness Feature Comparison
When choosing your fitness smartwatch, comparing key specifications helps narrow down the right choice for your needs.
Feature
Apple Watch SE
Fitbit Sense 2
Garmin Forerunner 55
Fitbit Inspire 3
Built-in GPS
Yes
Yes (some models)
Yes
No
Heart Rate
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
SpO2 Monitoring
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
ECG
No
Yes
No
No
Water Resistance
50m
50m
5ATM
50m
Battery Life
18 hours
6+ days
14 days
10 days
Sleep Tracking
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Workout Modes
100+
40+
20+
20+
The right choice depends on your priorities. Built-in GPS matters if you run or cycle without your phone. ECG and SpO2 sensors appeal to users focused on health monitoring beyond basic fitness. Battery life becomes crucial if you want continuous sleep tracking or multi-day activity tracking without charging.
Conclusion: Our Top Pick
After evaluating the full range of fitness smartwatches at Walmart, the Apple Watch SE (2nd Generation) earns our recommendation as the best overall choice for most people. It combines comprehensive fitness tracking with the broadest app ecosystem, intuitive interface, and reasonable price for everything you get.
That said, the right watch ultimately depends on your specific situation. Android users will find better value in the Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 or Garmin vívoactive 5. Budget-focused buyers can’t go wrong with the Fitbit Inspire 3. Runners and outdoor athletes should look seriously at the Garmin Forerunner 55 or Fenix 7.
Consider your primary fitness activities, how often you’re willing to charge, and which smartphone you use. Visit your local Walmart to try on different sizes and styles—comfort matters when you’ll be wearing this during workouts. With the right fitness smartwatch on your wrist, you’ll have the motivation and data to reach your health goals.
FAQs
What is the best smartwatch for fitness under $100 at Walmart?
The Fitbit Inspire 3 offers the best value under $100, with 10-day battery life, heart rate tracking, sleep monitoring, and 20+ workout modes. It’s slim, comfortable, and provides the essential fitness tracking most people need without unnecessary complexity.
Does Walmart sell Apple Watches?
Yes, Walmart sells Apple Watches both in-store and online. You can find the Apple Watch SE (2nd Generation), Series 9, and occasionally other models depending on availability. Prices at Walmart are competitive with other retailers.
Which smartwatch has the best battery life for fitness?
Garmin watches typically offer the best battery life. The Garmin Forerunner 55 lasts up to 14 days in smartwatch mode, while the Fenix 7 with solar charging can extend battery life to months in certain battery-saver modes.
Can I swim with my fitness smartwatch?
Many fitness smartwatches are water-resistant to 50 meters (5ATM), including Apple Watch, Fitbit Sense 2, and Fitbit Inspire 3. You can swim, shower, and surface dive with these watches. Always check the specific water resistance rating before submerging your device.
Do I need GPS in my fitness smartwatch?
Built-in GPS is essential for accurately tracking outdoor activities like running, cycling, and hiking without carrying your phone. If you primarily work out indoors or always have your phone nearby, a watch without built-in GPS can still serve your needs at a lower price.
Which brand is best for fitness tracking accuracy?
Garmin and Apple consistently rank among the most accurate for heart rate and GPS tracking, based on independent testing. Fitbit excels at step counting and sleep tracking. For casual fitness, any major brand provides adequate accuracy; serious athletes may prefer Garmin’s specialized sports-focused approach.
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