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A excellent hiking watch gives you important information for your outdoor experiences in addition to the time and date. Hiking watches can display information such as altitude, position, air pressure, sunrise/sunset times, and more. You can use this information to plan ahead, navigate, and predict the weather.
These days, hiking watches are highly well-liked, and the businesses that produce them are excelling at fusing fashionable elements with practical technology. Four GPS watches and two non-GPS watches (one is featured in the honorable mentions section at the bottom) are included in this group of hiking watches.
Although GPS offers benefits, some hikers prefer a watch without GPS. Without GPS, hiking watches offer a longer battery life, a simpler user interface, and lower prices. All of the watches in this collection come with a compass, an altimeter, and a barometer—features we think are crucial for outdoor pursuits like hiking, trekking, mountaineering, and backpacking.
| Image | Product Name | Editor's Rating | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Garmin fenix 7 | Check Price | |
 | Suunto 9 Baro | Check Price | |
 | Polar Grit X | Check Price | |
 | Coros Vertix 2 | Check Price | |
 | Suunto Core | Check Price |
Best Watches for Hiking Reviews
We frequently update this collection when new hiking watch models are launched so that we can always give you the finest recommendations. However, the tried-and-true classics listed below haven’t yet been surpassed in terms of functionality.
1. Garmin fenix 7
The wildly popular Garmin Fenix 6 watch was superseded with the Garmin Fenix 7X Solar timepiece. It resembles a Smartwatch in essence and has an outdoor-friendly, high-resolution color display. The watch is built of materials that are quite durable.
Only the Sapphire model’s lens is made of Sapphire glass; the bezel is made of stainless steel. As a result, the watch has excellent durability and abrasion resistance. The watch is nevertheless classy enough for more formal events like business meetings. The watch has an altimeter, barometer, thermometer, and a 3-axis compass. You can link it to an external temperature sensor (Garmin Tempe) for readings that are more accurate. GPS is used to automatically calibrate the compass and altimeter.
The watch can also automatically set the time based on your location and, of course, enables navigation (routes and POIs) and tracking, all of which are made possible by GPS. The Garmin Connect app allows users to save activities and obtain extensive information about each activity.
With apps, widgets, and distinctive watch faces, the watch may also be customized. A smartphone and the Garmin Fenix 7 can be synced for the display of texts, alerts, emails, and other notifications. Topographic maps and music played using Bluetooth headphones are also supported.
The watch comes in three distinct sizes: 42 mm/1.7 in, 47 mm/1.9 in, and 51 mm/2.0 in, and two separate types (Standard and Solar). The battery life is increased by a solar charging lens in the Solar variant. The Sapphire glass lens is an option for all Solar models.
2. Suunto 9 Baro
Amazing watch, the Suunto 9 Baro can easily compete with the Garmin Fenix 7X Solar described above. The Suunto 9 Baro watch has a color touch screen and a stainless steel bezel. The watch does, however, have buttons so that you may still use it while wearing gloves.
GPS, an altimeter, a barometer, a thermometer, and a compass are all features of the watch. The Suunto software, which also makes it simple to plan routes before a trip, can be used to import waypoints and GPX routes, making it incredibly simple to navigate trails with the watch.
Furthermore, you can use the Heatmap feature, which displays the most popular routes in a specific area, to identify existing routes from other Suunto app users and import them to your watch.
The Suunto app provides a thorough overview of your activities in addition to planning them, as a calendar displays the workouts according to factors like length, distance, calories burned, etc. In addition, the Suunto 9 watch can show current speed, calculate a route back to your starting position, and monitor distance.
It includes a wrist-based heart rate monitor, thus a heart rate belt is not necessary. You can pair your watch through Bluetooth with your smartphone to get notifications from the phone on your watch. Sapphire glass is also included in the Suunto 9 Baro for improved abrasion resistance.
The Garmin Fenix 7 Solar can play music and maps, while the Suunto 9 cannot. The battery cannot be recharged by the sun. But because it has a stronger GPS antenna, it offers more precise tracking.
3. Polar Grit X
The Polar Grit X watch was introduced at the start of 2020 and quickly gained popularity among hikers, backpackers, and mountaineers due to its appealing design and cutting-edge capabilities. Similar to the watches described above from Suunto and Garmin, the Grit X is a multisport timepiece.
The watch has a sturdy design and satisfies MIL-STD-810G requirements for durability. It supports a digital compass, altimeter, barometer, temperature, and GPS. Additionally, it contains a navigation capability that can be turned on in a variety of sport modes.
The Polar Flow platform, which has web and mobile applications, allows you to import routes to the watch. The popular Komoot app and the Polar Flow platform may be linked, so your Komoot routes will instantly sync to your watch.
Grit X, Grit X Pro, and Grit X Pro Titan are the three variations of the Polar Grit X watch that are offered. The Grit X Pro model sports a Sapphire glass lens that is scratch-resistant in addition to a number of other features. It features a “outdoor dashboard” that displays an altitude chart, a compass, coordinates, and times for sunrise and sunset.
When you are tracking your activity, the basic model just displays an altitude chart and compass. The track back feature and elevation profiles of imported routes are both supported by the Pro model. Additionally, the Pro and Titan models are the only ones that offer performance and recovery tests.
All of the PRO model’s characteristics are present in the Titan model, which is also composed of stronger but lighter materials. The Polar Grit X is a fantastic outdoor watch, but it lacks some functions like storm alert and atmospheric pressure chart that are helpful for weather prediction when compared to Suunto 9 Baro and Garmin Fenix 7X. However, it is also a more affordable watch.
4. Coros Vertix 2
When the Coros Vertix 2 watch was unveiled in August 2021, players and sports fans took an immediate liking to it. Although it is a multisport watch, it has a lot of functions that are beneficial for mountaineering and trekking. The watch offers accurate and quick GPS tracking because it can connect to five satellite systems at once.
Additionally, it offers dual frequency satellite connection, which enhances the GPS signal further. The Coros Vertix 2 watch has an altimeter, barometer, temperature, and compass. It also enables phone notifications, storm alerts, and connecting with external devices like heart rate belts and Insta360 cameras.
The materials used to create the Coros watch are quite robust. Sapphire glass makes up the screen, and titanium serves as both the case and the bezel. As a result, you can engage in sports like climbing without worrying about scratching it. The screen is fairly big (1.4 inches), and it can show 8 various metrics while you’re doing things.
A very strong battery is also included with the Coros Vertix 2 watch. When GPS tracking is enabled, the battery life increases to 140 hours from 60 days in time mode. Outdoor enthusiasts can consider the Coros Vertix 2. The Coros app does not have a route planning tool, thus importing GPX routes is a little more difficult than it is with the watches mentioned above.
5. Suunto Core
For people who want a watch with lots of hiking functions but not necessary GPS, the Suunto Core is a fantastic choice. Additionally, it costs a lot less than all of the GPS watches discussed above. The Suunto Core has a thermometer, barometer, altimeter, and compass. When in barometer mode, it gives you meteorological data from the atmospheric pressure trend graph and trend indicator and automatically transitions between altimeter and barometer mode (it senses when you change altitude).
The watch determines if a storm is developing, at which point the storm alarm sounds. Time, alarm, dual time, and sunset/sunrise times are the watch’s fundamental characteristics. About a year is the average lifespan of the changeable battery. Unfortunately, a heart rate belt, which would be helpful on trekking expeditions, is incompatible with the Suunto Core watch.
The Suunto Core watch is a fantastic option for individuals looking for a straightforward hiking timepiece with exceptional features thanks to its simplicity and durability. It is available in five different variations, all of which have the same functionality but differ in terms of the materials and colors they are made of: All Black, Regular Black, Black/Red, Black/Yellow, and Brushed Steel (Sapphire glass lens, stainless steel case, silicone strap). All of these variations have mineral glass lenses, composite cases, and elastomer straps.
Hiking Watch Buying Advice
The functionalities of an altimeter, barometer, and compass should be included in any hiking watch. ABC watches are watches that have these attributes. Why are these three functions on a hiking watch so crucial, then? Let me clarify.
Barometer
The ability to anticipate the weather is made possible by the barometer, which tracks variations in air pressure. If atmospheric pressure is rising, the weather will get better and vice versa; if it is falling, the weather will get worse (clouds, rain, etc.). A rising storm is typically signaled by a sudden reduction in air pressure. The atmospheric pressure and its tendency graph, which depicts how the atmospheric pressure has changed over the previous hours, is displayed on each watch featured in this review. Additionally, each one of them has a storm alarm feature that alerts you if the air pressure dramatically drops. If you are on a mountainside that is exposed, this could save your life. In our article How to use the barometer on a Suunto watch to predict the weather, you may learn more about watches’ barometer features.
Altimeter
An altimeter uses barometric pressure or GPS data to calculate your elevation above sea level. A GPS altimeter doesn’t need to be calibrated and is far more accurate than a barometric altimeter. Knowing how far above sea level you are makes it simpler to locate your location on a map, so the altimeter feature is useful for navigation.
Compass
A compass is essential for navigation since it provides the four cardinal directions (North, East, South, and West) as well as bearing. A good map and the compass feature make it simple to use triangulation to find your current location.
Thermometer
A thermometer is sometimes included in hiking watches, which is useful for multiday excursions. For instance, you can gauge the outdoor temperature before setting out on the path once more to layer your clothing correctly. The thermometer will typically measure temperature most precisely while the watch is not on your wrist because your body heat affects the data, it is crucial to know.