Garmin

Forerunner 955 Series

TL;DR: Best value, clear MIP screen; limited smartwatch features.

Overall

#2 in

Fitness Trackers

according to Reddit Icon Reddit

Sentiment score80% positive
266
35
33

Top Pros

Top Cons

Last updated: Jul 12, 2026

Reddit Reviews

Reddit Icon010backagain
10 months ago

I have it for more than 2 years now. I have the 955 solar, but the solar is not useful as it needs many hours to charge only a little. Only when really low on energy and no charger it might give you a few extra hours of life when placed in the sun. My main disappointment was the maps feature. I've tried planning bicycle routes on it but failed completely, it always errors out with no route to be found. I did preload some routes, but that's too much hassle in general. Pairing it with my phone using Google maps and the Garmin gmaps app is 1000x more user friendly though. The music feature together with the screen was the main selling point for me.

Reddit Icon05778
10 months ago

My 955 solar will easily last 48 hours and it’s 3 or 4 years old

Reddit Icon2009e90
about 2 months ago

Forerunner 955 is still super viable

Reddit Icon5lipn5lide
10 months ago

I got a 955 in January and really like it. One of the main reasons I got it was for navigation on more remote trail runs so the map feature on the watch was important to me. If it wasn't for that the 255 would probably have done me.

Reddit Iconabzlute
10 months ago

Bro you can get a "used" (often actually still new in box) 955 on marketplace for like $300. The only complaint I have about mine is the barometer/elevation data is jacked up, but that doesn't seems to randomly occur with different garmin devices and isn't isolated to this one. The 965 is basically the 955 with OLED, which isn't a real upgrade to me. The 970 is marginally more advanced. But don't spend $500 on it, that would be crazy for a watch 2 generations behind.

Reddit IconAccomplished-Air-773
12 months ago

Forerunner 55 for the absolute basics. Forerunner 165 is the cheapest with a AMOLED screen. Forerunner 255, 265, 955 and 965 are just discontinued. In my opinion 955 is the most value for money as it includes mapping. 965 is the same watch as the 955, but with an AMOLED screen. If you don’t need mapping, then go for the 265. It is the same as the 965, but without maps. So if you can find a 955 that would be your best bet in my opinion. Forerunner 570 and 970 introduce unnecessary features, such as microphone & speaker, sapphire glass, shiny metal bezels all of which add nothing to running but do increase the price.

Top Fitness Trackers on Reddit

1
Garmin Forerunner 255 Series

Garmin

Forerunner 255 Series

86% positive of 466 users

Long battery; but wrist HR tracking is inconsistent.

2
Garmin Forerunner 955 Series

Garmin

Forerunner 955 Series

78% positive of 353 users

Best value, clear MIP screen; limited smartwatch features.

3
Garmin Fenix 7 Series

Garmin

Fenix 7 Series

71% positive of 691 users

Durable, multi-week battery, flashlight; high price, buggy software.

4
Garmin Instinct 2 Series

Garmin

Instinct 2 Series

83% positive of 276 users

Rugged, solar multi-week battery; bulky, small screen readability issues.

5
Garmin Enduro 3

Garmin

Enduro 3

83% positive of 243 users

Multi-week solar battery, lightweight; but bulky form factor.

Rankings by Use Case

Other Reddit Recommendations:

FAQs