Suunto vs Garmin: Complete List of Comparison [Selection Guide 2023]

This time we will be comparing Suunto vs Garmin and sharing the key differences between them. We are making this comparison since both Suunto and Garmin are two giant sport watch brands and you might wonder which one is better for you.

Before you do make a decision between these two big rival brands, the Suunto and the Garmin, here we have put together following table to help you better understand the key differences between Garmin and Suunto smartwatches:

As you know, high-end smartwatches are very expensive. Therefore, we would recommend considering what features you would expect from a sport smartwatch. For instance, do you want to keep track of your routine workouts or runs? Do you need a simple watch for this? Or a watch that can multitask and track your every move?

In this post, we made side-by-side comparison for Suunto 7 vs Garmin Fenix 7, Suunto 9 vs Garmin Fenix 7, Suunto 9 vs Garmin Forerunner 955 models since these are the most comparable and feature rich models amongst the others.

If you need to know more about popular smartwatches, you can check out our CampArest – Smart Watch page and learn more about Apple Watch, Suunto and Garmin products and their comparison with each other.

Suunto 7 vs Garmin Fenix 7: Key Differences

We compared the Suunto 7 and Garmin Fenix 7 from the appearance, battery-life, fitness tracking, comfort and usability perspective:

Appearance

If you attach great importance to appearance, like me, Suunto will be the right choice for you. Suunto makes great looking smartwatches, and they look really luxury. Moreover, Suunto watches have large screens.

As for the Fenix 7, although it does not look as good as the Suunto models, it does make watches that are easy to read and see for outdoor sports.

Battery Life Compared: Suunto 7 vs Garmin Fenix 7

We know that Suunto smartwatches have great battery life. Up to 30 hours of GPS use prior to charging will certainly interest you. The fact that this process is quick and simply makes it even more attractive.

Garmin itself says that in normal GPS mode, the Fenix 7’s battery life is up to 57 hours, with soler power up to 73 hours. This means the Fenix 7’s battery life is significantly longer than most of the best GPS watches. Additionally, Fenix 7 enables only the features you need. So, you can customize your battery usage, saving batter life that would normally be wasted when you need it most.

Fitness Tracking

The Suunto 7 allow you to track your steps and the number of calories you burn each day, plan routes that show you where you are after each workout and how well you perform and track your sports.

On the other hand, the Garmin Fenix 7 has advanced capabilities. It offers a wide variety of sports for you to always monitor your performance. Moreover, if you cannot find your own sport in these sport collections, you can create your own sport and follow yourself.

Comfort

First, we can say that Garmin Fenix 7 is more comfortable than the Suunto 7. Because the Fenix 7 has a hinged strap that helps you keep it comfortably around your wrist, no matter the size.

Conversely, Suunto 7’s straps tend to be molded, which may make you uncomfortable and the watch may not fit comfortably on your wrist.

Both Suunto 7 and Garmin Fenix 7 has changeable the strap belts as well.

Usability

In terms of ease of use, we can easily say that Fenix 7 is much better than Suunto 7. This is because Fenix 7 offers a much more personalized interface. Additionally, the Suunto 7 touchscreen may not be as responsive as you might expect, especially in bad weather conditions.

Our verdict for Suunto 7 vs Garmin Fenix 7

It seems that the Fenix 7 is the winner of Suunto 7 vs Garmin Fenix 7 comparison. This is because it is more user friendly and has great features. The functionality of Fenix 7 makes it stand out. Fitness lovers and especially those interested in outdoor sports will be very pleased with the Fenix 7. Moreover, the battery-life of the Fenix 7 is way better than the Suunto 7.

We can say that Suunto 7 also competes very well, but we know that it is not as good as Fenix 7. Their designs are great, and they look very nice, but as we mentioned above, they are not always comfortable to use.

You can check out the following links to see the latest rates on Amazon:

• Best Rates for Garmin Fenix 7
• Best Rates for Suunto 7

Suunto 9 vs Garmin Fenix 7: Key Differences

The Suunto 9 comes with Baro and Peak models which should be considered equivalent to all Garmin predecessors as they share some common features such as multisport modes and core functionality. These watches offer a different experience than Garmin Fenix 7s.

Let’s take a quick look for Suunto 9 vs Garmin Fenix 7 comparison and their key differences:

GPS Systems

In addition to the excellent navigation and GPS tracking features of Suunto 9 Peak, it has a new GPS chipset manufacturer (Sony). GPS, GLONASS, GALILEO, QZSS and BEIDOU are included in the Suunto 9 Peak. These will keep you from getting lost.

With the Suunto 9 APP’s Points of Interest, you can go to the most remarkable places. Suunto’s APP features heatmaps specific to your sport to help you plan your destinations, as well as popular starting points that may be of interest to you.

However, GPS, GLONASS, GALILEO and multi-frequency locations are also available on Garmin Fenix 7. The Fenix 7 displays a GPS-linked message within seconds and quickly recognizes GPS when you press the start activity tracking button.

Design

Suunto 9 Peak is the smallest watch Suunto has ever produced. The watch is ultra-thin. It has a large and clear display, which makes it easy to read. In addition, its buttons are very easy to use and can guide you through the use and features of your watch.

On the other hand, the Fenix 7’s case is 47mm, and it’s 3mm larger than the Baro 9. The screen is very easy to see, and you can see all your vital information at any time. Yet, the Fenix 7’s buttons are not as intuitive as Suunto’s buttons.

The 9 Peak and Fenix 7 perform well outdoors, thanks to their LCD panels. But we must say that the Fenix 7’s display is significantly superior. Screen resolution of Garmin Fenix 7 is way better than the Suunto 9 Peak. Wherever you are, this feature will come in handy.

• The Suunto 9 Peak: 240 x 240-pixel resolution
• The Garmin Fenix 7: 260 x 260-pixel resolution
• The Garmin Fenix 7X: 280 x 280-pixel resolution

Battery life Compared for Suunto 9 vs Garmin Fenix 7

It must be said that Suunto’s battery life is incredible. The Suunto 9 Peak and 9 Baro last about 7-days on full charge and about 25 hours in GPS mode. but in tour mode (the GPS on), the battery-life of Suunto 9 is 170 hours. 

On the other hand, the Garmin Fenix series is also known for its excellent battery life. Its Solar features also increase this. With GPS on, the Fenix 7 battery lasts for approx. 30 hours. If you prefer the Fenix 7 Solar, battery life will be extended if you’re in direct sunlight.

However, when we compare the battery-life of Suunto 9 vs Garmin Fenix 7, the Suunto 9 is the winner by far.

Our Verdict for Suunto 9 vs Garmin Fenix 7

We know that Garmin Fenix 7 is known as the best smart watch in overall. On the other hand, the Suunto 9 is known for how durable it is and for its navigation functions.

Although the Suunto 9 has great battery-life, it should be noted that in general Suunto 9 offers less than the Garmin Fenix 7.

If you are looking for an outdoor smart watch with great battery-life, you can check out our Garmin Instinct vs Fenix comparison.

Suunto 9 vs Garmin Forerunner 955: Key Differences

Since we compared the Suunto 9 product line with the Garmin Fenix line, it will be better to include the Garmin Forerunner series in this competition which is known among professional athletes for domination the running watch industry.

Although, the Garmin Forerunner series have many variants, we would like to compare the Forerunner 955 with the Suunto 9 since the 955 is the most feature rich and comparable to Suunto 9 amongst the other Forerunner models. Yet, you can check out following article to get to know more about other Forerunner models.

Here are the key differences between the Suunto 9 and Garmin Forerunner 955:

Design

Suunto 9 Design

Comparing the design of Suunto 9 and Garmin Forerunner 955, the Suunto 9 has a stainless-steel frame which makes it more durable. They implemented sapphire crystals to the screen protect these watches from scratches and abrasions. Although the Suunto 9 is a high-quality product, it is heavier than the Garmin Forerunner 955. On the side of the Suunto 9, there are three buttons for navigating through menus and controlling functionality.

We know that Suunto 9 is water resistant up to 100 meters. This allows you to wear it while swimming. Suunto’s 76 grams weight may be a bit bulky, but the silicon makes this watch more comfortable.

Speaking of display, we have to say that Suunto 9 is larger than standard screens. You can easily see the screen even under direct sunlight.

Garmin Forerunner 955 Design

When it comes to the Garmin Forerunner 955;

The bezel of this watch is made of fiber-reinforced polymer and the screen is covered with Corning Gorilla Glass DX, which is very durable. The solar model has Power Glass on it instead of Corning Gorilla Glass DX.

The Forerunner 955 is durable and one of the best for running and walking. However, Suunto 9 is water resistant up to 100 meters, while Forerunner is water resistant up to 50 meters.

On the other hand, the Forerunner 955 has a resolution of 260 x 260 pixels which is a higher pixel density for greater clarity and a brighter screen in comparison to the Suunto 9.

Forerunner 955 does have a touchscreen. But, it still has five buttons that let you control the full functionality. It is on purpose though, since touchscreen is hard to use compared to the buttons while running.

Battery life Compared for Suunto 9 vs Garmin Forerunner 955

To begin with, Both Suunto 9 and Garmin Forerunner 955 have long battery life. The Forerunner 955 comes up with a 15-days of battery life in smartwatch mode. In GPS mode, Forerunner offers 42-hours of standby time. On the other hand, Suunto 9 comes with a battery life of 7-days in smartwatch mode and 25-hours in GPS mode.

It is good to note that Forerunner 955 has also solar model out there which has an improved battery life. You can check the table under the first heading to fully understand how Forerunner 955 Solar performs in comparison to the Suunto 9 in terms of battery life.

To sum up, the Garmin Forerunner 955 is way better than the Suunto 9 when it comes to the batter-life.

Activity Tracking

When it comes to the activity tracking, the winner of Suunto 9 vs Garmin Forerunner 955, is the Forerunner 955 by far. It is because, Suunto 9 focuses more on outdoor features. Therefore, it has more limited monitoring capabilities. It tracks things like heart rate, calories, steps, and cadence. Suunto 9 Peak includes blood pressure monitor and blood oxygen saturation monitoring, but these features are not available in Suunto 9. However, we must add that Suunto 9 has 80 sport modes.

When it comes to health, the Forerunner 955 is ahead. The Forerunner 955 has more advanced health monitoring features compared to the Suunto 9. Moreover, with the Forerunner 955, you can view the data of even the last 7 days on your watch. In addition, you can monitor your blood oxygen saturation level during activities or sleep.

Our Verdict for Suunto 9 vs Garmin Forerunner 955

If health monitoring features and battery-life are very important to you, we highly recommend choosing the Garmin Forerunner 955 instead of Suunto 9. However, if you are not a runner, it would be better to go with Suunto 9 which is an all-around darn good watch.

Which one is the best smart watch: Suunto or Garmin?

In this article, we tried to list their key differences and compared the Suunto vs Garmin side-by-side. Here it this section, we would like to list the Pros and Cons for the Garmin and Suunto smart watches based on our own experience.

Garmin Pros & Cons

Here is the list of the things that we liked to most on Garmin Smart Watches:

• It has a wide product range.
• There are alternatives for every budget.
• Aesthetic and lightweight design.
• Running dynamics measurement.
• Navigation success.
• Innovation leader.
• It has solar powered options.
• Has multi-sport skills.

Here is the list of the things that we DON’T like on Garmin Smart Watches:

• Expensive top-end prices.
• Classic button design.

Suunto Pros & Cons

Here is the list of the things that we liked to most on Suunto Smart Watches:

• Using the same GPS chip in models
• Accurate distance measurement.
• Durable body structure, durable glass.
• Finnish design.
• Compatible with Wear OS by Google Fit.
• It has multi-sport abilities.
• There are affordable starter options.
• More high-tech and advanced
• More luxury-looking

Here is the list of the things that we DON’T like on Suunto Smart Watches:

• Expensive top-end prices.
• Less sensitive touchscreen
• More bulky
• Doesn’t have solar powered options.

Bottom-line for Suunto vs Garmin Comparison

We are aware that both Suunto and Garmin are giant pioneers. These two brands produce various watches according to the various needs of each athlete. Before choosing a watch, or even choosing a brand, you should definitely decide on your needs and what you care about the most.

Long story short:

• If you are a runner who is looking for great activity tracking feature and battery-life, we will recommend the Garmin Forerunner 955 instead of Suunto 9.
• If you are looking for the durability the Suunto 9 is a great option in comparison to the Garmin Fenix and Forerunner series.
• If you are looking for all-around best smart watch, then the Garmin Fenix 7 is the best and it comes with solar option as well.

You may be interested in the following articles, if you need to get to know more about Garmin and Suunto smart watches:

• Garmin Epix vs Fenix 7: Final decision for the best smart watch?
• Garmin Forerunner vs Fenix: Which one to Pick?
• Suunto 7 vs 9: Compared and the key differences listed
• Garmin Forerunner 745 vs 955: Which one is better?
• Apple Watch vs Garmin Fenix: Key Differences