Best GPS Tracking Watches For Adults

By Madeeha Shahbaz | Updated 3 years ago

As we are advancing in technology, GPS, maps and device trackers are getting a lot of attention and well-deserved hype. Why not do a detailed review of best GPS tracking watches for adults. In the past, no one would have imagined how convenient human tracking would get in years to come. It ideally helps in locating an individual and can be handy in many theft cases. It makes it easier for the police to track where an individual was present at the time of a crime. This enables them to make quicker arrests and reduce false accusations. Human tracking data is also used by companies to study the consumer patterns of the individuals. With this data, they are able to market their products in a better way and practice enhanced product positioning.

After a lot of devices with tracking features, GPS tracking watches have been introduced to track adults. These watches also track our daily fitness and activity stats. This facilitates the individual working on to build a healthy lifestyle and fitness regime. We will be including the best watches in the list from different price ranges so the information helps anyone with different purchasing powers in planning their purchase. You will be able to distinguish between the different products from the list of the best GPS tracking watches for adults. We will talk about the key features, product comparisons and finally sharing our verdicts to purchase. Let’s get started!

Reviews For Best GPS Tracking Watches for Adults

1. Garmin Forerunner 935 GPS 

   

The first watch on our list will definitely catch your attention. It is priced over $400 and comes with some amazing features to provide value for money.  Now it has been in the market for some time but its price has not fallen. It is a bit expensive and only targeted to those who are committed to develop a healthy lifestyle routine.

It is a powerful watch and it can track everything in a “forerunner” shell with less hardened glass and metal. It has more sleek rubber all around which adds to its cosmetic appearance. It has emerged also as a fashion statement due to its striking design. It has metal buttons around the display. The strap is made of silicone which stretches to fit perfectly on the wrist. That makes it convenient for putting on the watch on a wrist.  In comparison to the double band watches which are difficult to put on.

Garmin Forerunner 935 is impeccable and exactly what a buyer is looking for in a GPS tracking watch. It comes with a 240 x 240 resolution in the 1.2-inch round display. It uses transflective technology, which means that it’ll take the ambient light and reflect it back really well. This makes is always convenient for the user to read from the watch even in outdoors.

It has just the perfect size. Not too overpowering but also easily enabling the user to see four data screens. All the information regarding your heart rate, how fast you are going, for how long, the time sun sets all is visible on the screen at the same time. So at a glance on the watch, you can get all that information.

It does not come with the touchscreen option. However, the buttons on the outside of the Garmin Forerunner 935 are metal and very easy to find and hit without looking. It weights 49g and is a bit heavier than many watches. Moreover, the watch comes with excellent battery life. A customer has exclaimed it to last for 12 days with its running every day and being connected to a smartphone and giving notifications.

Let’s get onto the real reason you’re here: to find out how good this watch is for tracking running, biking and monitoring your fitness. The run tracking on the Garmin Forerunner 935 is outstanding. It’s really hard to actually fault it, as it does everything you want it to do and more. Even if you’re a fairly elite-level runner, you’ll see some functionality in here that you’ll think is a bit above your station. You can customize loads of screens, which you can cycle through with the up and down arrows easily, and see everything from pace, to time, to monitoring which foot is more dominant (with the chest strap or optional foot pod), to the time the sun is going to come up.

Key Features

• Comfortable and easy to put on
• 2-inch 240 x 240 display
• The screen is visible even in sunlight
• Premium GPS running/triathlon watch with wrist-based heart rate
• Strap material: silicone
• Smartphone Compatibility: iPhone, Android, Windows; designed for sale and support in North America only.
• Weighs 49 grams
• Provides elevation changes with a built-in barometer; altimeter and electronic compass help you keep your bearings
• Evaluates your training status to indicate if you’re undertraining or overdoing it and offers additional performance monitoring Features
• Provides advanced dynamics for running, cycling and swimming, including ground contact time balance, stride length and more
• Brilliant Battery Life

Comparison

In comparison to other watches, Garmin Forerunner 935 is priced higher. The striking feature of the watch is its battery life. In comparison to high end watches like Sunnto Traverse Alpha has longer battery life. Garmin Forerunner 935 has a battery life of around 12 days which is not offered by other products in the market.

Our Verdict

It might be costly, but for the tech Garmin Forerunner, 935 is arguably the best running, triathlon, cycling and hiking watch available in the market. Its battery life is one of the key selling points.

This is an expensive watch and it’s pointless to spend on it unless you’re training hard for a triathlon race. Also, if you are too desperate for excellent battery life and want to go for the best option available.

Otherwise, this will be a waste of money. Yes, it’s outstanding, but you’d never get close to using it to its full potential.  There are a lot of cheaper watches that would suit you and your pocket better.

2.     Sunnto Traverse Alpha

It is marketed as a sports watch to help the bearer monitor their body while doing physical activity. The GPS tracker enables the runners and hikers to monitor where they are and where they have been. It helps them not getting lost and find their way back. The GPS feature also helps in hunting for fishing as it facilitates in finding their prey. It weights within the range of 75grams.

It comes with a scratch-resistant sapphire crystal glass, a knurled stainless steel bezel and water repellent nylon strap. These attributes make the eye look pleasing to the eye. The device even has the ability to mark trails and specific locations using the POI (point of interest) types for hunters. That would like to record their treestand or fishing locations. Topographic maps also feature elevation data to accurately track and record a hunter’s short distance.  Watch also records elevation in order to create insightful altitude profiles and waypoints.

Key Features

• Automatic shot detection (helps hunters keeps track of the number and location of shots taken during a hunt)
• A red backlight face
• GPS/GLONASS satellite systems
• Full route navigation, with waypoint approaching alerts and breadcrumb trail
• Route preview and altitude profile
• 10 hunting-specific POI types (used to mark trails and important locations)
• Location-based moon phase calendar with both moonrise and moonset times
• An alarm for Barometric pressure, weather trends and storms
• Customization for sunrise and sunset alerts

Comparison

In comparison to Garmin Forerunner 935, Sunnto Traverse Alpha battery life is less. However, both products offer great features for sports geeks. The choice is really up to the users and their loyalty with the brand. Both the watches deliver pretty much the same result apart from the better battery life of Garmin Forerunner. So, if you want better battery life and have the funds to invest in then better go for Garmin Forerunner than Suunto.

Our Verdict

Our verdict for this watch is also to only purchase if you are as sports geek and aspire to use the watch for outdoor activities like running, hunting, fishing, and cycling.

3.        Garmin Instinct, Rugged Outdoor watch with GPS

This watch is designed for outdoor activities and is number three in our list of Best GPS Tracking Watches For Adults. It is listed amongst the best sports watches to buy. Instinct provides all the standard expertise you’d expect to see from one of Garmin’s outdoor-friendly watches. There’s GPS, GLONASS and Galileo support to offer sufficient mapping coverage. There’s a barometric altimeter to measure altitude when you’re climbing up mountains, a heart rate monitor and an aptitude of battery life that will go the distance.

The real magnificence of the Instinct comes from the customization features. First of all, you can customize your top-level screens (there are 12 standard watch faces off the bat). Each piece of observable information acts as a little modifiable block. Once selected (using the top right customization button) you can scroll through dozens of other options to replace it with.  For instance, people who want hardcore outdoor activities can use pieces of information apart from the daily step goal. Customizable data includes the usual offenders such as heart rate, cadence, temperature, elevation, target, intervals and stress data.

Above all, the Instinct is an elegant compass that precisely tells you the direction you’re going and your tracks.  You may not be able to see landmarks on the Instinct, but you can use topography and direction data to work out a hell of a lot. You just need to devote a bit of time into it.

It is a good sports watch but if you want a watch for a specific sport, then there are far better substitutes. That doesn’t mean the Instinct isn’t a multi-sport watch, it just means that for the price, you’d perhaps be disappointed if you were predominantly using it for road running. You won’t get the level of information and detail you can define in more advanced running watches. It’ll cover enough for common users but certainly not for marathon runners.

Instinct offers 24/7 activity tracking. So we’re talking counting steps, monitoring sleep. There are also stress tracking and adaptive step goals to push you a little further each day.

If we want to check information about data accuracy recorded by the watch. Not much complains have been registered. Only about sleep tracking tended to attribute more sleep time than in actual. This is due to the fact the inactive hours before sleeping like reading the book, watching TV were recorded by the watch as actual sleeping. This resulted in escalated hours of sleep than in actual.

Key Features

• 45mm watch with interchangeable 22mm straps
• 128 x 128-pixel monochrome display
• Up to 16 hours of GPS battery life
• GPS/GLONASS/Galileo
• Works with iOS and Android
• 24/7 activity tracking
• Heart rate monitoring
• Multisport tracking (running, cycling, swimming, hiking, skiing and more)

Comparison

Instinct is a multisport watch. It is not suited for a particular sport rather caters to all kind

of sports like running, cycling, swimming, hiking, skiing, and alike sports. In comparison

to Suunto, the price of Instinct is less. This attribute can attract the price sensitive

customers.While comparing to other watches from the list of “the best GPS watches for

adults” like Garmin Vivoactive 3 Music we observe that it lacks the music feature.

Our Verdict

This watch is not designed for any particular sport. So, players enthusiastic about a

particular sport should invest in other watches specific to their area of interest. It is

advised to invest in the watch of their particular interest. However, this watch does the

job for the common players who do not want pitch perfect accurate data.

4.     Garmin Vívoactive 3 Music, GPS Smartwatch 

While talking about best GPS watches for adults it is worthwhile to include this recent entry. Vivoactive 3 added the music feature and launched Vivoactive 3 music watch. Apart from this feature, there is nothing new offered by Vivoactive 3 music from its previous version Vivoactive 3. The most predominant feature offered by Vivoactive 3 music which is upgraded from Vivoactive 3 is that it has different hardware. The huge storage option offered by Vivoactive 3 music required more hardware space to be stored and only software upgrade wouldn’t suffice for the purpose.

The Vivoactive 3 comes with 3.5GB of functioning storage space for music. Although, that includes any apps and workouts in the phone. But the total storage space for apps and workouts is less than a single song. Thus, realistically almost all of that is going to be music.

The VivoActive 3 Music continues the latest design with a round watch face and a 20mm wide silicone band with a quick release system. It has a touch-screen and only one physical button is present at 3 o’clock, where the crown would be in a normal watch. This button is used to start/pause/stop sports activities. The screen has a resolution of 240×240 pixels which not as compact as smartwatches like the Apple Watch or Samsung Gear. Nevertheless, it is the current standard for activity trackers and GPS running watches. The watch is reasonably large at 43.1mm diameter, but it doesn’t feel or look too big at all once on the wrist. That can be contributed to the low weight of 40 grams.

The watch gives the option to monitor a lot of workouts from strength training to cardio, indoor rowing, swimming, cycling and many more. The watch is waterproof that enables the swimmers to use the watch while swimming and track their performance.

The watch offers two kinds of selections when it comes to music

Files you transfer: This includes all of the following supported file types MP3, M4A, AAC, ADTS, WAV, M3U, M3U8, WLP, ZPL, PLS.
Streaming services: This includes iHeartRadio and Deezer (soon on Deezer, hopefully)

The only thing to remember while transferring files is that they have to be unprotected. Therefore, protected music cannot be transferred in the watch. Correspondingly, when streaming services are used in the watch for music the services need to be the ones with Garmin partnership. That doesn’t include Spotify.

This watch is recommended to a runner who looks forward to getting accurate information about the stats while spending a considerable amount of money. Meanwhile running and also aspiring to enjoy a few hours on music.

Key Features

• Great exercise tracking
• Very good battery life
• Software not as slick as Wear or Watch OS
• Garmin Pay not ready yet
• No standalone music playback
• Customization options
• Battery life for activity tracking
• On-device music storage
• Garmin Connect software eco-system

Comparison

If we compare Vivoactive 3 Music with other watches like Instinct and Suunto Core, the most distinguishing feature is the music capacity in the watch. This feature is not available even in the high-end watches. This certainly attracts the music lovers and proves to be their instant pick while choosing a watch among the best GPS tracking watches for adults.

Our Verdict

The VivoActive 3 (Music) is quite a thorough running watch, featuring data tracking options such as distance, pace, and heart-rate but also more detailed metrics such as cadence. This all comes with customizable data screens to suit diverse info needs for different runners.
It is waterproof and tracks indoor swimming too, together with a dozen of other pre-loaded activities. Its music features probably make it stand out amongst the rest of the watches. It is definitely a watch to buy if you are looking for all these features and want to buy one of the best GPS watches for adults.

5.     Suunto Core Wrist-Top Computer Watch

Talking about the best GPS watches for adults, Suunto Core is worthy to be included in the list. This watch comes with altimeter, barometer, compass and depth measurements.  It stores information about sunsets and sunrise for over 400 destinations. It comes with easy to understand menu which is user-friendly and easily understood.  It holds altitude log for upto 7 days. This enables you to keep track of your performance and store information about your whereabouts.

Suunto Core is a total GPS watch with the added advantage of the altimeter. It is even included in our review post for best tactical watches.  This is the predominant feature of his watch. Barometer works along with altimeter for this watch. Not all watches included in our list of the ‘best GPS watches for adults’ come with this feature. These two features combined enables the watch to measure altitude gains and records it as air pressure increase as opposed to barometric pressure coming from a storm. The barometer feature also enables calculating long term pressure trends for a more accurate reading.

Suunto Core’s thermometer has a wide range to record the temperature. It measures from -5F to 140F. But there is a condition to put out the watch from the wrist to correctly measure the temperature. Moreover, the watch can measure ascending hikes and descending inaccurate, 3 foot or 1-meter increments. This is possible due to its capability of using altimeter and barometer both at a time. The standard in the industry is currently 10 feet. This is a great improvement. However, it is a stand-alone watch with the battery life which lasts for around a year. Suunto has built-in storm alarms, sunrise, sunset times and stopwatch information. Additionally, it features the Movescount app which is compatible with many of the watch available.

The watch comes with a wide range of colors and 13 holes to adjust to human wrists. This a lot of variety given in a wrist band of a watch. The external buttons are small to the eye yet big enough for easy usage for the selection of the menu items. The crown around the display is notched to add on ease for the user. The design of the watch is certainly eye-catching. It stands out coming off with a compass crown, round watch face and external buttons. It also gives the option with switching the black band with different color options as per your style and preference. The display also gives the liberty to the user to be set on time or any selected screen preferred for a prompt glance at the watch. The face of the watch is black with white writing. The display can show up to 3 pieces of information at a time such as stopwatch, timer and the current time.

Suunto Core is waterproof up to 100 feet. It will tell true vertical height gained on trails. This is certainly an outdoor watch made for sustaining all weather conditions whether it be raining, cold, sweating hot or windy. Unfortunately, there is only one size available for Suunto Core. Nonetheless, it has many holes for adjusting it on your wrist as per your size. As stated before as well that it is a stand-alone watch and does not depend on any other apps or connections to be made prior to its use.  Compared with competitors in the list of ‘the best GPS watches for adults’, Suunto is priced adequately.

Key Features

• Waterproof up to 100 feet
• Pre-programmed sunset and sunrise
• Altimeter and barometer combination for storm alarm and precise descend/ascend recording
• Stopwatch, compass and timer functions
• Easy to use interface, with display options and screen locking

Comparison

Suunto Core does not provide the music feature and capacity offered by the recently released Vivoactive 3 music watch. Therefore, it might not attract the music enthusiast. But Suunto Core does not lack behind in the striking feature about the monitoring sports statistics and tracking GPS. It stands out in the lost even in the presence of watches like Tomtom runner and Vivoactive 3 music due to its feature of deadly combination offered of altimeter and barometer.

Our Verdict

It comes with a deadly combination of altimeter and barometer. This enables it to give accuracy for the direction information required by the users. The many features discussed above in this watch definitely makes it stand out in a lot of the best GPS watches for adults. You can wear this watch day and day and persist excitement about your purchase. It is definitely worth your money.

6. TomTom Runner GPS Watch

   

TomTom Runner is another stirring entry in our list of the best GPS watch for adults. The watch is made of two parts. The core watch module and the rubber strap. The module can be removed from the strap when off the wrist. However, when you are wearing the watch you need not worry about the module coming off. Both of them come in flawlessly together fitting. Also, this enables you to change the strap to any desired color of your choice.

The watch is waterproof up to 50m. this is good news for all the swimmers out there who want to keep track of their work out while in the water. This feature like in other watches also makes the watch weather resistant and compatible with all weather conditions. So it works perfectly in rain, snow or humid summers.

TomTom accesses the mapping signals through the GPS receiver that TomTom has positioned below the screen to form the four-way button. There’s also an accelerometer on board for using the treadmill function. But before you head out with the Runner, you’ll need to sync it up with the TomTom MySports Connect program and fill out your personal profile. Your age, weight, height, and gender will all be collected here, but you can also enter these into the watch directly.

Once you’re set up, we’d also suggest confirming that all your mapping data is updated. Not doing so means you might find your watch starts giving some inaccurate results before you’re even out the door. The TomTom Runner is also able to pair with other secondary devices, such as a heart rate monitor. Therefore, the idea is to connect them before heading out.

After you’re synced up, you’re ready to go. Push left and you can see the battery status, internal storage, and other stats. Hitting the right button lets you select either Run or Treadmill, depending on what you’re about to do. Hit right again on Run and the watch will attain your location data through TomTom’s Quick GPS Fix technology. This process takes a minute or two. Just assure that you are standing while performing this connection. That is because sitting or walking around will take it longer to connect.

The Graphical Training Partner, accessed by hitting the down button on the GPS calibration screen, will likely be the widely used feature of the watch. It offers up to four different modes: Zone, Race, Goal, and Laps.

Key Features

• Comfortable on the wrist
• QuickGPSFix is accurate
• Good Battery life
• No, build in USB charging
• GPS syncing can be slow
• TomTom Mysports is very basic in comparison to the latest watches

Comparison

TomTom Runner is a recent and new entry in the GPS tracking watches and stands fairly among the touch competition offered by other watches in the market. However, it does not have the combination of altimeter and barometer offered by Suunto Core. Nevertheless, the watch is admired by many and gained many reviews on Amazon by users in comparison to ZDY S888A.

Our Verdict

TomTom’s watch is purely about the fitness focus; there is none of the added expertise and booms you’ll be found in the range of smartwatches looming on the horizon.

But with its unremarkable, lightweight design and respectable price tag, the Runner is strong on features that make it a quality companion for both the keen and amateur runner alike. This is the reason it makes in our list for the best GPS watches for adults. However, if you are sports enthusiastic it is recommended to go for the other options discussed in the list.

7. ZDY S888A Adult/Elderly Smart Watch Phone 

   

This watch comes with dual positioning. It gives the option of connecting the watch with your selected phone. It can be used for elderly with problems like Alzheimer’s or related issues. This watch can also be used for kids to track their location. Whenever the person who needs to be tracked goes out of the range, the selected phone gives the alert.

This watch also performs the activities of a walkie talkie. It is a multi-function device and like other smartphone devices offers alarm clock, safety zone alerts, SOS emergency alarm, low battery alarm. A smartphone can also be used to unlock your phone. The watch comes with high-quality battery and waterproof features. This makes the watch user-friendly without worrying about removing the watch while washing hands or going out in rain. It has a built-in battery of 400mAh. It works up to 72 hours after standby. It has a battery life of up to 8 hours.

Key Features

• Comes with GPS, LBS, WIFI and Bluetooth tracking 1
• SOS, two-way conversation, voice intercom, electric fence, track playback, anti-fall alarm
• Built-in battery 400mAh, standby time up to 72 hours, fully charged, battery life up to 8 hours.
• Waterproof and weather resistant

Comparison

It is a fairly less technical watch in the list. It cannot be directly compared with TomTom runner which a technical watch for runners. However, the location tracking feature of the watch gives a fairly good chance for the users to track location and get accurate information. GBD smart watch tracks sports more precisely than ZDY S88A watch as well.

Our Verdict

This watch is relatively less popular among the sports pros. It is mostly targeted towards the elderly to monitor their health and watch out from health hazards. It also helps to track them and help them find their way back home. The watch is only recommended for the elderly or for basic use. Not recommended to track or record outdoor sports performances or to be used in practices by an athlete. If you are looking for any of the suck options better to look out for other watches from the list of Best GPS watches for adults.

8. GBD Smart Watch 

   

It is a full-screen touch watch. Launched in 2019 Updated Y7 Plus version adopts a new generation of full-screen touch technology. It supports navigation while supporting click and touch. It brings you rich content and better interactive facility. It consumes low power consumption and charges in 3 hours. It comes in bright colors and gives a variety of options to the users for selection.

It displays actual Heart Rate, Blood Pressure, monitors sleep, and other body functions. Also monitors the recovery of the body after exercise. It definitely facilitates in observing your fitness levels. The watch is compatible with Android 5.1 or higher, iOS 8.0 or higher smartphones (not work with tablet or PC).

The surface of the watch comes with international waterproof quality. Hence, it facilitates and is compatible with all weather conditions rainy, snowy and humidity. It is ideal for outdoor sports and swimming. However, please note not to wear it while having a hot shower as hot steam can cause expansion.

Talking about the accuracy of the statistics of your activities, the watch is pretty much reliable. It counts steps, distance, calories, sleep status and heart rate. Additionally, it comes with offers more features like water drinking reminder, anti-lost alert, an alarm clock, running and climbing rate, stopwatch, calculator and other related features. It has a lifetimes warranty. It proves to be a good gift for anyone be it, men or women.

Key Features

• Heart rate detection, blood pressure monitor, blood oxygen saturation measurement, Sleep detection
• Displays the basic measures like clock alarm, time, pedometer, calorie consumption, distance calculation, sleep time, off display.
• Standard exercises functions
• Task Reminder (Sedentary reminder).
• Find device, alarm reminder, photo, drink reminder, gesture control, do not disturb mode, reminder mode, automatic heart rate detection.
• Call Push, SMS Push, QQ Push, WeChat Push, Add More Push
• Support 10 Languages: Simplified Chinese, English, German, Russian, French, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, Hindi, Arabic. These additional features helped it to reach our list for Best GPS Tracking Watches For Adults.

Comparison

GBD Smart Watch supports 10 languages. Another predominant feature of the watch at a good price is that it is a full touch screen watch. Comparing it to Fosa Smartwatch, GBD Smartwatch is priced higher and definitely offers better features and it targeted for a different target market. Also, unlike ZDY S88A it is for everyone and not only suited for the elderly or kids to track their location.

Our Verdict

It is a relatively cheaper option in the tracking watch options. This is good to go if you just want to track your routine and watch out your health. It is not recommended for sports enthusiasts. They should probably invest a bit more and look out for other options from the list of the best GPS watches for adults.

9. Fosa Smart Watch

   

This watch is under $30. It attracts the price-conscious users who want to experiment with a GPS tracking watch yet do not want to spend much on the purchase. Fosa Smartwatch does 24 hours monitoring of your health. We want to suggest watches to all category of buyers that is why we are including this watch in our list of Best GPS watches for adults. It provides heart rate, blood pressure, and electrocardiogram. It can be tracked and analyzed on per day and per week basis.

It comes with an adjustable band. This feature makes the watch user-friendly and it can be easily worn by people of the large or small wrist. The movement trail is tracked by GPS in the watch like any other fitness tracker. Once the watch is connected with your phone it displays the notifications of your phone on your watch. It displays the caller’s name and notifies the message content from Wechat, QQ, Email, Calendar, Alarm Clock and alike apps.

Its high-temperature resistance and scratch resistance makes is prevalent among users to consider buying this watch among the stream of GPS tracking watches in the market.

Key Features

• Cost Friendly option of GPS tracking watch
• High temperature and scratch resistance
• Adjustable wrist band

Comparison

It is the most cost friendly and economical option in our list of the best GPS watches for adults. It cannot be directly compared with the high-end watch suited for sports geeks. This watch is better targeted for individuals trying to maintain a good fitness regime or making an effort to monitor their outdoor activities by keeping a track of their step count.

Our Verdict

As discussed already, this watch is just for the test running mostly users want to do before making a proper investment in a product. It is suitable for the daily track of health and monitoring improvements in your health over the passage of time. However, the watch is not suited for hardcore sports activities by sports pros. Nonetheless, it is a good buy for a regular user trying to track health and watch out health hazards.