Searching for best cycling watches for your rides? Here is our top pick of 11 watches to give you the best cycling experience in any place on Earth.
With modern gadgets, your health, fitness, and daily cycling data is easy to track. Of course, a smartphone is a good way to do this. However, there are more sophisticated ways to do this because a gadget with heart rate meter monitors and power meters will do best. A good cycling watch will provide you with all the data you will need.
The fitness and sports watch popularity is rising. Once they were just bulky machines with little functionality. Still, today, they can measure data from quality of sleep to heart rate and have an onboard GPS and maps to assist in your rides. Look at the sports watches below to explore the best cycling solutions.
11 Best Cycling Watches
Features- Reliable heart rate
- Built-in GPS
- Fitness test for benchmarking
- Smartphone notifications
- 20 days battery life
Polar M430 is a capable tool for bike riders, which has great wrist-based heart rate tracking, sleep tracking, as well as a great GPS. It also supports smartphone notifications, so it is a good mid-range cycling watch to buy today. This device is retro-looking, so it won't fit all. Despite this, it is very compact and easy to use when you are on the move.
It is simple to pair with your smartphone, and the setup is very simple too. The only disadvantage is that the Polar Flow app sometimes fails to sync with the smartphone, so you need to watch that. You can track a variety of parameters by entering your data like heart rate, weight, and height to get the most of it.
You can also pass a simple fitness test for easy benchmarking that would allow better training. The heart tracking of this device is very accurate, which makes it a must-have for a cyclist.
Read Customer Reviews on Amazon! Features- Personalized cycling workouts
- Built-in GPS
- Tracks pace, distance, routes
- payments
- 4 days battery life
Fitbit Ionic is one of the best fitness solutions up to date. It has an impressive 4-day battery life, which isn't top, but better than most other smartwatches. It is a waterproof device with onboard GPS, which supports payments and has a growing app store. For once, it supports weather apps, Pandora, Strava, Starbucks, and many others. It is great both for iOS and Android.
The heart rating feature of this device is outstanding. This is one of the most important things for a cycling watch, and the device is very accurate. The heart rate readings are easy to access, and there is a specialized workout that helps to track cycling features.
Read Customer Reviews on Amazon!Many call this watch the "sports watch king." This happens for a reason because it has plenty of functions for real sportspeople who enjoy cycling tracker and helper. Garmin Fenix 6 can track bike rides and has wide navigation and mapping features. When you are on an adventure, you will have plenty of battery, so you can be away for weeks.
There is a new solar edition released this year that lets you charge using your screen. The design looks premium. For travelers, the device has TOPO mapping, which is necessary to navigate your surroundings. It shows major trails and roads, but to go off the beaten track, you will need to turn on a more advanced mapping.
The heart rate is incredibly accurate, which lets you keep track of your health and training data via the Garmin app. Smartphone notifications, music, and sports apps let you have a great smartwatch experience.
Read Customer Reviews on Amazon!This is a niche watch aimed at super endurance athletes. The design of Suunto 9 aims to reduce battery life and enhance the accuracy of tracking. So, if you like to go long distances when you cycle, this is the watch for you. It gives you insights into all the useful parameters of your cycle. It has accurate GPS data and features such as a compass and barometric altimeter.
There is a Suunto and Movescount app, which might be a bit confusing when you use them. Still, it offers powerful cycling tracking which you can choose. With its smart sensors, the watch can recommend your recovery time, record daily activity, and even tell you the upcoming weather without downloading third-party apps.
Read Customer Reviews on Amazon!This watch is great both for daily use and cycling. It has a heart rate monitor, which helps to track cadence, power sensors of the bike, as well as speed and elevation. It also helps you to navigate well anywhere. There is a possibility of third-party app downloads, so if you prefer to use Strava for tracking your rides, you will have it at hand.
The device has a cycling mode on the watch, but it is pretty basic. Despite powerful sensors, the app grabs only basic parameters such as speed, distance, heart rate, and its fluctuations. For tracking more features, it's better to use a more advanced app.
Read Customer Reviews on Amazon! Features- Advanced heart rate tracking
- Training Load Pro for different training modes
- Bike activity tracker
- Calories counting
- Up to 30 hrs in GPS mode
This device with onboard GPS is a great fitness tracker that supports multi-sport modes, including cycling. This is a rather affordable option compared to many other Polar models. It has powerful heart rate monitoring properties and special features. Specifically, it has great potential for tracking outdoor sports.
The only reason not to have it is a narrow smartwatch functionality. You can exchange fitness data between the watch and the phone, and see your phone notifications on Polar. If apps, music, and payments are important to you, it's better to search elsewhere.
Read Customer Reviews on Amazon!Garmin Fenix 6s will help you navigate worldwide. It has the three largest satellite systems, which will be in use anywhere, because it offers GPS, GLONASS, and Galileo systems. This ensures more accurate mapping data when you ride in the wild. Also, this is one of the best watches for women, because it is smaller and less bulky than its predecessors.
The heart rate tracking of this phone is perfect, and it has 9 days of battery life in smartwatch mode. As for the GPS mode, it allows up to 25 hours, which can be more with advanced power management. This watch is great for those who want to keep both smartwatch notifications and training stats by hand.
Read Customer Reviews on Amazon!This watch can track everything you want to.There is an optical heart rate sensor, which ensures better tracking. It is very accurate together with Pulse Ox, so it offers advanced parameters such as training load balance. There are great maps to guide you on the run. There are safety features, so your rides are even more protected from accidents.
Still, one of the most outstanding features of this device is music on the go. You can sync your playlists with Deezer, Spotify, or any other streaming services. There is a place for 1,000 songs, which you can listen to for 10 hours in GPS mode.
Read Customer Reviews on Amazon!For bike performance, this watch has a guided FTP test. A cycling performance test measures an estimated FTP value, V02 Max, and Watts/Kg value. You can opt for tests that last for 20, 30, 40, or 60 minutes. These tests will later help you build up your workout predictions and tips.
There are cycling profiles for the road, mountain biking, and indoor sports. Also, there are power, speed, and custom heart rate zones for each profile, which you may change to your liking. You may use some third party power sensors in addition to this.
The watch has Komoot-powered planning and navigation by Polar Grit X. Also, TOPO maps will help you navigate when you are using the phone in low GPS mode. The sensors of the device are very accurate, so when you ride, you can use the hill splitter and elevation to get more detailed results.
Read Customer Reviews on Amazon!This multifunctional device feels compact and comfortable. You wouldn't want to take it off, because its battery is enough to wear it several days in a row. An onboard GPS will be great if you ride with your phone with you because it will allow you to record distance, pace, and give you a map of the route.
The device has a typical Fitbit's array of apps such as step and calorie counting, sleep tracking, and so on. You can use Cycling workout anytime you want it, as it is available in the Exercise choices. Even if you don't, the device can track your route if you have your GPS on, because it can auto-detect the start of your workout.
This device is great in terms of tracking and design. It is also great for women, as it allows women's health tracking. However, if you want a watch that would have its own GPS, look at the other Fitbit models or choose another brand.
Read Customer Reviews on Amazon! Features- Cycling workouts
- Up to 5 days of battery life
- Up to 6 hours in GPS and music mode
- Tracks energy levels, stress, sleep, respiration, heart rate
This classic style watch has a very bright, catchy display which slightly affects battery life. Still, it is visible even on the sunniest day. The device can last three days between charges, which might be less than other devices but still enough to get your going.
You can play music while you cycle, which is great news for everyone who likes to listen to their favorite songs on the go. The sports tracking of this device is amazing because its advanced sensors and onboard GPS allow it to detect your route. Respiration tracking is a novelty, but this parameter adds to the overall tracking accuracy.
The Body Battery feature can always show you your estimated energy levels, as well as sleep, activity, and stress tracking. This is very useful when you cycle, so you will always see your energy and health levels and adjust your routes to them.
Read Customer Reviews on Amazon!What to look for in a Cycling Watches
GPS is one of the most important tools for cycling watch. It will allow you to track your route correctly, so if you want all of your rides tracked correctly, search for a powerful GPS. Also, you will benefit from it when you cycle in new places.
We often cycle outdoors. That is why the screen should have an always-on option and be visible even in the bright sunlight.
The watch should comfortably sit on your wrist and shouldn't cause any discomfort. When you ride, the last thing you want to do is wanting to take your watch off!
The rule is - the more, the better! Longer battery life will let you track for longer and also listen to music, use maps, and much more.
This is a must-have for a cycling watch. The heart rate sensor will read your pulse and track your fitness data, so you could see your areas for improvement.
When you buy a cycling watch, choose one with a reliable touch screen and comfortable buttons. Don't forget that your watch has to be waterproof, because you may ride in different weather conditions.
It depends on what you want from your watch. Still, some of the common choices include Strava, TrainingPeaks, Pandora, Spotify, and app notifications.
Smartwatches need to support a variety of sensors such as heart rate sensors or blood oxygen sensors, along with some others, to give more health insights and tracking.
These features are essential when you buy a watch for cycling. They allow you to track the speed and altitude of your route to give you more advanced data.
Conclusion
Cycling smartwatches are different from the rest. They need to have specific bike riding properties and features that would track your rides and workouts better. Choose Polar M430 if you want a watch in the affordable segment, because it has all the necessary functions for a great price. Still, if you are buying your first cycling watch, pay attention to Fitbit Ionic, which has all functions the beginner needs.
If GPS is really important to you, don't hesitate to buy Garmin Fenix 6. Its "slimmer" counterpart, Garmin Fenix 6S, will give you the same good navigation pick. Another Garmin, this time Venu, will give you a bunch of health monitoring. And if you want your battery to last for days and days, Suunto 9 will be your perfect companion. If you value fashion, then Apple Watch Series 6 is for you.
If you search for a music watch, pay attention to Garmin Forerunner 945. Still, for a range of fitness tracking functions, we would advise you to look at Polar Vantage M. Another Polar Vantage, V2 multisport, will allow you to pass a cycling performance test to get better every day. And finally, for multiple exercise modes, Fitbit Versa will be the best companion.
