If you’re looking for the ideal Father’s Day gift, giving your loved one something that can help them maintain or improve their health is always a great choice. With how dependent everyone is on technology these days, a smartwatch is the perfect tech gift that offers a blend of usefulness and well-being. So in this article, we’ve listed nine of the best smartwatches you can consider giving as a present on this occasion.

Regardless of which smartphone your dad owns, whether it’s the latest and greatest or a device you gifted to him in the last three years, the smartwatches on this list will be compatible with them. But keep in mind, the Apple Watch only works with an iPhone.

Apple Watch Series 6

best apple watch for fathers day

If your father has an iPhone, the Apple Watch Series 6 is the perfect accessory to add alongside it, especially if they’re getting serious about general wellness or if you feel the device’s health-based features are likely to come in handy.

The Series 6 comes in two sizes — 40mm or 44mm — and a lot of finishes, available across price points ranging from $399 to $1,499. With Apple’s latest S6 SoC, always-on-display technology, ECG and heart rate monitoring, fall detection, notification delivery, and all-day battery life, this device is well worth the money.

New Apple Watch Series 6 (PRODUCT)RED
Apple Watch Series 6

Apple Watch Series 6 brings Apple's premier smartwatch experience to iPhone users with features like an always-on-display, fall detection, heart rate monitoring, ECG recording, and all-day battery life.

Apple Watch SE

apple watch se

An option similar to the Apple Watch Series 6, the Watch SE is the one to pick if you need to stick to a budget. It’s a device that mixes and matches hardware from the Series 5 and Series 6 to be available at a more affordable price.

Like the flagship version, it’s available in two sizes but offers a limited number of finishes on its aluminum chassis; Silver, Space Grey, or Gold. Nevertheless, the device features the S5 SoC from Series 5, heart rate monitoring, fall detection, notification delivery, and all-day battery life. ECG monitoring and always-on-display capability are missing.

Apple Watch SE

Apple Watch SE is a device that offers a value for money package by making the right compromises to bring costs down, all the while maintaining the overall experience.

Fitbit Sense

fitbit sense

Fitbit Sense is a great device to pick if you’re looking for a smartwatch compatible with Android and iOS. It has a refined design and offers a feature set comparable with Apple and Samsung’s flagship devices. You’ll notice a capability to monitor heart rate, capture ECG readings, use a GPS to track your runs, and a unique on-wrist skin temperature sensor. Fitbit states that their device can last over six days on a single charge or for 12 hours if you activate GPS for the entire duration.

fitbit sense
Fitbit Sense

Fitbit's most expensive wearable is a device that offers a great combination of features at an appealing price point.

Garmin Forerunner 55 Smartwatch

forerunner 55

Garmin Forerunner 55 is the device to pick if you need a smartwatch for someone who has recently got involved with running. With its inbuilt GPS, PacePro feature, cadence alerts, and track run measurement preset, it offers the ideal host of settings that can provide information essential to improving someone’s running or overall fitness. The Garmin Coach service, which works in conjunction with a smartphone, is also a great addition. The watch has a claimed battery life of two weeks, which reduces to 20 hours with continuous GPS use.

Garmin Forerunner 55

A device perfect for those that aim to give running a shot for the first time.

Garmin Forerunner 945 Smartwatch

best smartwatch for runners

If you’re buying a smartwatch for a more seasoned athlete of a father, in that case, the next best option to consider is the Garmin Forerunner 945. This watch takes everything that the Forerunner 55 has to offer and increases the fitness features by a multitude. It adds the ability to better track workouts by providing metrics, like recording oxygen uptake during a run and performance condition reports. Garmin claims the device can last for up to two weeks in its smartwatch mode, 36 hours when GPS is on at all times, and ten hours with GPS on and music playing. Yes, the watch can store up to 1,000 songs.

best smartwatch for runners
Garmin Forerunner 945

This Garmin is the watch for those who value accurate metrics to analyze and improve performance in the field.

Garmin Fenix 6 Pro Smartwatch

fenix 6 pro best fathers day garmin smartwatch

Garmin Fenix 6 Pro is a device that goes another level above the Forerunner 945 by adding more of a flair to the design of the watch and some additional features. It also has a screen larger by 0.1 inch.

This device shares almost every fitness feature with the Forerunner 945 and only makes quality of life improvements in terms of storage, battery life, and design. It has a claimed battery life of two weeks, which increases to six weeks with a battery saver mode. Having GPS on all the time will kill the watch in 36 hours, but this is prolonged to 72 hours if the battery saver feature is in effect.

Garmin Fenix 6 Pro

The Fenix 6 Pro is the Garmin to consider if battery life is high on the priority list with a claimed two weeks of usage, further extended to six weeks with the built-in power-saving mode. The inbuilt 32GB of storage is also a welcome addition for storing over 2,000 songs and workout information locally.

Moto 360 (2020)

Pixel Watch competitor

If you’re looking for a device that will look good with any outfit, the latest generation of the Moto 360 is a great place to start. It has some of the most reliable hardware components, and the Snapdragon Wear 3100 SoC coupled with 1GB of RAM can handle WearOS without much of a hiccup. With a battery that claims to have the capacity to power 24 hours worth of use and the ability to quick charge in 60 minutes, this smartwatch makes for a pretty great deal if your father appreciates a clean and simple design.

Pixel Watch competitor
Moto 360 (2020)

A classic-looking watch with a stainless steel frame combined with the Snapdragon 3100 SoC guarantees a smooth user experience.

Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2

galaxy watch active 2 best fathers day tizenOS smartwatch

Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 is a device that can be placed right next to the Moto 360 when comparing designs, as it offers one of the best looks available. Although, it does use Tizen for its software compared to WearOS. Nevertheless, the device does have several apps available to use and health features like other top-of-the-line devices. But its standout feature has to be the touch-sensitive dial built into the bezel of the watch. Samsung’s listed specifications claim a battery life of three to four days on a single charge.

Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2

The Galaxy Watch Active 2 is a great smartwatch to pick if you're involved with the Samsung Ecosystem. The device's clean look combined with the touch-sensitive bezel makes it a great option to consider.

TicWatch Pro 3

ticwatch 3 pro best fathers day wearOS smartwatch

The TicWatch Pro 3 might be the best WearOS smartwatch to buy at this point. This device by Mobvoi bundles Qualcomm’s latest chip, the Snapdragon Wear 4100, with hardware that offers a variety of health and fitness monitoring features. Talking about something unique to this smartwatch, you’ll find a dual-layer display that puts an AMOLED and a backlit TN panel together, usable at your discretion. Mobvoi claims that battery life on this watch can range from three days up to 45 days when used in Smart Mode and Essential Mode, respectively. 

TicWatch Pro 3

The TicWatch Pro 3 is a well-rounded WearOS Smartwatch with the latest Qualcomm Processor. Its dual-layer display gives users a highly efficient way to save some battery if push comes to shove.

Our Smartwatch Recommendations

So if you’ve gone through this list but are still unable to make a decision, if you’re looking to buy a smartwatch to use with an iPhone, then your best bet has to be the Series 6, because of how it ties into the Apple Ecosystem. Although, if you’re looking for a device where battery isn’t a constraint, the Fitbit Sense is a great option to consider.

When you’re choosing between Samsung smartwatches or other WearOS options (while these are some of the best devices), if you’re always looking forward to the next big software update, we currently recommend holding off on making a purchase. We say this because it’s still unknown when these will receive an update for the new software announced at Google IO 2021. But if you’re into fitness, any option you pick from Garmin can’t be the wrong choice.