I wore Coros and Garmin’s sub-$300 sports watches

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Smartwatches used to cater to larger wrists — especially rugged models. Today, however, there are a lot more options. Garmin and Coros are two brands with compelling lightweight sports watches with brilliant AMOLED displays, heart rate sensors, powerful smartphone companion applications, and advanced training metrics.

Unlike traditional smartwatches from Apple, Google, and Samsung, the Garmin Forerunner 170 and Coros Pace 4 have more than twice the battery life of a standard smartwatch — requiring a charge about once a week. Both Garmin and Coros also offer full website access to your data, so you don’t have to rely on viewing trends, creating workouts, and evaluating reports in the app.

Also: The best smartwatches of 2026: Expert tested and reviewed

I’ve been biking, walking, hiking, rowing, and living with these two watches for the past few weeks — and although they’re too small for my wrists for long-term wear, I found a lot to like with both. 

Specifications

You should buy the Garmin Forerunner 170 if…

1. You prefer physical watch controls

Even though the Garmin Forerunner 170 is a small watch, it still sports the traditional five-button configuration seen on nearly all Garmin watches. This means that you can move around the watch interface using just the buttons and not the touchscreen, which is important if you run in inclement weather (or sweat a lot). 

The physical buttons can also be customized to get you quickly to your favorite activities, metrics, or settings. If you are new to Garmin it takes a bit of practice to optimize button use, but once you have it down it’s tough to go back to a watch with one or two buttons.

2. You live and play in the Garmin ecosystem

Garmin offers a lot of products for various activities, including screenless bands, chest heart rate monitors, bike computers, weight scales, blood pressure monitors, and more. So, if you use other Garmin products, it is nice to stay in the ecosystem and have all of the data from various devices synced to Garmin Connect.

The Garmin Forerunner 170 also supports Garmin Pay, so you can be out on a run and pay for refueling snacks right from your watch without having to carry along your phone or credit card.

3. You want to use third-party apps

Garmin’s Connect IQ store offers thousands of apps, watch faces, widgets, and data fields so that you can completely customize the Forerunner 170 for your needs. Some apps also connect to other gear, such as the Engo AR glasses and Meta Vanguard sunglasses, so you can enhance your Garmin watch experience through these apps and services.

You should buy the Coros Pace 4 if…

1. You want more accurate location tracking

I use flagship Garmin watches as the standard to measure location accuracy, but the Garmin Forerunner only has single-frequency GPS, so it can be challenged by trees and buildings. The Coros Pace 4 supports five global satellite systems and has a dual frequency GNSS chipset, so it has proven to be more accurate when out running.

Also:I tested the best sports watches in 2026: Here are the latest and greatest watches, no matter your budget

When you’re training for a 5K or half-marathon, location accuracy is important. While some variance may be fine, you also want to have the highest accuracy for the amount you are spending on a watch. Coros also regularly updates location accuracy through the Coros smartphone application so you can find and connect to satellites quickly when you want to start your workout.

2. You want longer battery life

Battery life is better on the Pace 4 than on Garmin’s Forerunner 170. Coros has long been known for its superior battery life, and even with the move to vibrant AMOLED displays, the company continues to stand out in its product offerings. 

Coros also now provides a handy keychain adapter that connects to the back of the watch and supports plugging in a standard USB-C cable. It’s a bit more convenient to carry around the charging adapter than a separate Garmin cable. 

3. You want a robust training platform

Garmin Connect is a great platform for viewing the data captured by the watch and Garmin continues to enhance the training plans available to users. However, Coros offers its own capable (and free) Training Hub that lets you and your coach create fully customized training plans quickly and easily. 

Your training plans and status are easily viewed online or in the Coros smartphone app, and if you want coaching, Coros offers that service for free through the Training Hub. Coaches can also use it to personally manage teams, including sending out custom plans, viewing all the training metrics, and providing coaching through the Training Hub system

Writer’s choice

The Garmin Forerunner 170 and Coros Pace 4 are excellent options for those with smaller wrists who want an entry-level sports watch at an affordable price. You can’t go wrong with either one, and it comes down to the preference of the platform supporting the watches.

I have a long list of Garmin devices so it is more convenient for me to use a Garmin watch, but I do like the interface, long battery life, and Training Hub provided by Coros. If I had smaller wrists, I would use the Forerunner 170 Music so that I could take music along with me, pay for snacks on runs, and continue to collect data in the Garmin ecosystem.

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