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Hybrid smartwatches are one of the most useful pieces of wearable tech out there. The chunky bodies and digital faces of the sensor-packed Apple Watches and Fitbits of the world don’t appeal to everyone’s sensibilities. So while the biggest tech companies build watches that emphasize the tech, many brands have integrated some of the simplest, most useful smartwatch features into conventional timepieces. The average hybrid smartwatch features analog hour and minute arms, with a small screen or screens underneath to show stats like heart rate and tracked steps. For many people, the best hybrid smartwatches provide a good balance between a watch that will give you the fitness tracking and heart rate monitor you desire without looking out of place in a professional workplace.
- Best overall: Withings ScanWatch
- Best for iPhone: Skagen Jorn Hybrid HR
- Best with heart rate monitor: Garmin Vivomove HR
- Best for smaller wrists: Fossil Women’s Monroe Hybrid Smartwatch HR (38mm)
- Best for adventures: Garmin Instinct Crossover Solar
- Best budget: Withings Steel HR
How we chose the best hybrid smartwatches
I’ve been writing about tech for nearly a decade for publications such as PC Gamer and Input, among others, so I know how to discern between the next big thing and the next big bust. I’m also a watch enthusiast who has owned more than my fair share of smart and traditional timepieces over the years. To determine these recommendations, I consulted technical specs and tests conducted by experts and consumer reviews to find the best hybrid smartwatches for all kinds of people.
The best hybrid smartwatches: Reviews & Recommendations
If you’d like a little help jumpstarting your search, we’ve selected the best hybrid smartwatches for all kinds of users. Whether you want to shell out a bundle for a high-end watch with all the bells and whistles or buy a cheaper model with just the essentials, we have you covered.
Best overall: Withings ScanWatch
Best overall
Keeps on Ticking
Pros
- Great feature set
- Water resistance
- Comes in multiple sizes
Cons
- A little expensive
Buy it used or refurbished: eBay
Specs
- Size: 38mm or 42mm
- Heart monitor: Yes, with oxygen levels
- Sleep tracking: Yes
- Activity tracking: Yes, with altimeter
- Water resistance: 50m
- Battery life: 30 days
French health tech manufacturer Withings specializes in devices that monitor your body, including smart scales, thermometers, and blood pressure monitors. Their flagship watch, the ScanWatch, integrates deep health-tracking functionality into a simple, elegant hybrid timepiece. Going beyond basic step and heart rate tracking, it features an altimeter to track vertical movements, such as climbing stairs, and a pulse oximeter for blood oxygen (SpO2) tracking. Its 30-day battery life makes it one of the longest-lasting watches. It’s also waterproof and certified for up to 50 meters (or 5 atmospheres) of water pressure.
It also provides lots of room for you to pick a watch that fits your style. It comes in two sizes, and Withings offers more colors and styles than many competitors. In plain black with metal hardware, it’s a simple and elegant everyday accessory. All of that function pushes the ScanWatch’s price higher than many of our other picks, but it offers a strong blend of style and tech substance.
Best for iPhone: Skagen Jorn Hybrid HR
Best for iPhone
E-Ink It In
Pros
- Multiple size options
- Stylish design
- Decent features
Cons
- E-ink display may not appeal to everyone
- Interface can be confusing
Buy it used or refurbished: eBay
Specs
- Size: 38mm or 42mm
- Heart monitor: Yes
- Sleep tracking: Yes
- Activity tracking: Yes
- Water resistance: “Water Resistant”
- Battery life: 14 days+
Skagen is known for their fashion watches, and the Jorn brings a very appealing “Bauhaus”-like sensibility—a cleanly geometric German retro-modern aesthetic—to the hybrid smartwatch market. Its signature feature is a sharp e-ink display, akin to what you’d find in an Amazon Kindle Paperwhite or the classic Pebble Watch. It shows your steps, heart rate, and other stats with chronograph-like icons that perfectly match the watch’s look. The unique design and controls aren’t as intuitive as other watches, but it’s a small price to pay for such attention to detail.
If you’re a fan of buttons, the Jorn has three for you to play with rather than the traditional “hold/tap” design of the Apple Watch, and its app integration and customizability have received high marks from reviewers. As a whole, the Skagen Jorn is a strong hybrid smartwatch for those who care more about the watch and its aesthetics than smart features. However, it works very well for what it is.
Best heart rate monitor: Garmin Vivomove HR
Best heart rate monitor
Keep It Moving
Pros
- Good fitness features
- Many color options
- Easy to read
Cons
- Expensive
- Short battery life for smart mode
Buy it used or refurbished: eBay
Specs
- Size: 40mm, 43mm
- Heart monitor: Yes, with oxygen levels
- Sleep tracking: Yes
- Activity tracking: Yes
- Water resistance: 50m
- Battery life: 5 days (smart mode), 14+ days (watch only)
Though it is not specifically a “fitness watch,” the Garmin Vivomove HR delivers more fitness-driven features than most hybrid smartwatches, making it a notable choice for people who specifically want one to monitor their heart discreetly. It has dedicated stress tracking and relaxation timers so you can track your vitals in any situation, as well as SpO2 tracking. It falters a bit on battery life compared to other hybrids, especially when you use the smart features, though.
The design of its face is a bit simple compared to our other picks, and it’s less customizable than most, but it does have that true “Bauhaus” look. While it comes in multiple sizes and many colors, we found that many styles and colors are much harder to come by in the 40mm “small/medium” size. If you’re a fitness enthusiast, the Vivomove has the edge over competitors thanks to its stress monitor and relaxation timers. But its high price limits its appeal compared to other watches in the space.
Best for small wrists: Fossil Women’s Monroe Hybrid
Best for small wrists
Fossil Women's Monroe Hybrid
Pros
- Fits any wrist
- The feminine silhouette isn’t common among smartwatches
- Competitive feature-set
Cons
- No signature feature
Buy it used or refurbished: eBay
Specs
- Size: 38mm
- Heart monitor: Yes
- Sleep tracking: Yes
- Activity tracking: Yes
- Water resistance: 30m
- Battery life: 14+ days
Look, there’s no delicate way to put this: The overwhelming majority of smartwatches out there feature masculine (or at least masculine-leaning) designs. Hybrid watches, in particular, are often based on larger “men’s” watches. If you’re looking for something feminine rather than simply picking a smaller case size, Fossil’s Monroe is definitely the way to go. The mid-sized 38mm case will fit almost any wrist, unlike the 42mm (or even bigger) smartwatches out there.
It doesn’t skimp on the features either, with notification support, activity tracking, a heart rate monitor, and more. The only real downside to this hybrid smartwatch is that it lacks a unique tech-driven feature. The Monroe is purely a style play, but since feminine hybrid watches are fairly rare, that is a signature feature unto itself.
Best for adventures: Garmin Instinct Crossover Solar
Best for adventures
Garmin Instinct Crossover Solar
Pros
- Advanced performance metrics
- Superb battery life with solar charging
- Navigation tools
- Luminescent analog watch hands
Cons
- Watch hands break up the screen
Specs
- Size: 38mm
- Heart monitor: Yes
- Sleep tracking: Yes
- Activity tracking: Yes
- Water resistance: 30m
- Battery life: 70 days in smartwatch mode, 31 hours in GPS mode
Most hybrid smartwatches tend toward the watch spectrum’s fashion end. They may offer some health tracking features but aren’t built to withstand adventures. The Garmin Instinct Crossover, however, offers robust fitness watch features in a hybrid body, making it a fantastic hiking watch or companion for the adventurous soul. As the name suggests, the Instinct Crossover Solar has much in common with the Instinct Solar. It’s a rugged watch—water-rated to 10 ATM and thermal- and shock-resistant—so you don’t need to worry when you’re out in the mountains or swimming in the ocean.
The Instinct Crossover Solar offers Garmin’s full suite of fitness features, including VO2 Max measurement, workout suggestions, training tools and metrics, and an expansive list of activities to track. And it provides impressive battery life with plenty of customization to get the right balance for your life. The battery life is unlimited if you put the watch in battery saver mode and get at least 3 hours per day outside in 50,000 lux conditions. With GPS mode, you can get up to 31 hours with solar or up to 553 hours in Max Battery GPS Mode with solar.
The display of the watch is a monochrome, transflective memory-in-pixel design that is easily visible in sunlight. On top of the display sit the luminescent analog watch hands, making it easy to see even at night. And it utilizes RevoDrive technology to keep the time accurate no matter what. It’s an impressive balance of analog functionality with full smartwatch and fitness watch features.
Best budget: Withings Steel HR
Best waterproof
oing For a Dip
Pros
- Competitive price
- Visually appealing
- Good battery life
Cons
- Some may prefer a larger case size
- Older model
Buy it used or refurbished: eBay
Specs
- Size: 36mm, 40mm
- Heart monitor: Yes
- Sleep tracking: Yes
- Activity tracking: Yes, with multi-sport support
- Water resistance: 50m
- Battery life: 25 days
The Withings Steel HR is an older, simpler hybrid smartwatch, but one that still holds up. For less than $200, the Steel HR offers only slightly less functionality than our top pick for $100 less. More importantly, the Steel is rated for 50m of water resistance, which means you can take it in the pool or the ocean without worrying about it. It offers great battery life—25 days—and features multi-sport tracking to record more accurate activity-specific health data.
Though many of the watches on this list feature a minimalist style, the Steel features what may be the simplest look. I quite like its two-dial configuration. However, with a 40mm case, it’s smaller than most of the picks on our list and may not be a great fit for people with very large wrists.
Things to consider before buying a hybrid smartwatch
Picking a hybrid smartwatch over a conventional smartwatch or fitness tracker is, more often than not, rooted in taste. You want some smart features, but not at the expense of how a classic wristwatch looks and feels on your wrist. In keeping with that, most hybrid smartwatches have a relatively standardized set of smart features, including step tracking, sleep tracking, and more. Some features, like surfacing notifications from your phone, aren’t on every model, though, so it does pay to think about how “smart” you want your watch to be.
It’s all about the features
Though hybrid smartwatches don’t vary as much in feature set and price range as other tech, like Apple watches or their alternatives, you should remember that they aren’t all identical. Most hybrid smartwatches offer some degree of fitness tracking, sleep tracking, and water resistance. Certain features—like GPS integration, altimeters, blood oxygen (SpO2) tracking, and 100-meter water resistance—tend to be reserved for more expensive models.
High-end hybrids also tend to have better battery life, though even the least expensive of the bunch last longer than more tech-forward smartwatches like the Apple Watch Series 8 and Samsung Galaxy Watch5. The average battery life of a hybrid smartwatch is around two weeks, though some go as high as 25 to 30 days without a charge.
Aesthetics are everything
There are two main reasons to buy a hybrid smartwatch: less frequent charging and sheer aesthetics. As a watch enthusiast, I strongly prefer the round face and analog movement of a hybrid over the blocky silhouette of a Fitbit. As such, you should really consider the look and feel of the hybrid you want before you buy it.
You should also measure your wrist before making any purchase. Most hybrid watches have a case diameter of 42mm, which is quite large on those of us with smaller wrists. If you have a wrist size of 6.5 inches or less, you will probably want to invest in a smaller 38mm model instead.
FAQs
Absolutely, many of our recommended hybrid smartwatches can be purchased refurbished from Amazon, eBay, or other resellers for a reduced price. For example, you can buy a refurbished Garmin Vivomove for less than $100 right now. We’ve added a link to at least one used purchasing option for each watch on this list.
Hybrid smartwatches can tell time perfectly fine without syncing to a smartphone, as they are watches first and foremost. Their smart features—heart rate monitoring, step tracking, and so on—require one, though.
Most hybrid smartwatches charge via magnetic USB cables that you plug into a wall, similar to traditional smartwatch chargers.
Many hybrid smartwatches either display your texts or at least show you a notification when you receive one on your phone. Most, however, do not allow you to respond. If texting via your watch is a priority, you should consider buying an Apple or Android Wear watch.
Final thoughts on the best hybrid smartwatches
- Best overall: Withings ScanWatch
- Best for iPhone: Skagen Jorn Hybrid HR
- Best with heart rate monitor: Garmin Vivomove HR
- Best for smaller wrists: Fossil Women’s Monroe Hybrid Smartwatch HR (38mm)
- Best for adventures: Garmin Instinct Crossover Solar
- Best budget: Withings Steel HR
As with many products out there, these hybrid smartwatches ultimately have quite a lot in common with each other. Still, the devil is in the details. If you’re looking for top-of-the-line features, you may decide to go for a more traditional smartwatch instead. However, if aesthetics are what you’re looking for, all of these watches will have you well-covered. Besides, who wants to charge their watch every day, anyway?
