If you're interested in joining the wearable world but you need to stick to a budget, there are plenty of cheap Android smartwatches to choose from. However, cheap doesn't necessarily mean you'll have to compromise on features or design. You might be surprised to see how many of the major smartwatch brands offer affordable options. Whether you're loyal to Fitbit, Garmin, or Samsung, you'll be able to find a cheap Android smartwatch that meets all your needs.
There's been a few Versa models to come before it, but the Fitbit Versa 3 is easily one of the company's best watches yet. There are many features to help you track your health and fitness, including activity/sleep tracking, heart-rate monitoring, women's health tracking, and blood-oxygen monitoring. You'll also get up to six days of battery life on a single charge.
You'll have onboard GPS to track your route during workouts, which is mighty convenient when you don't want to carry your phone around. The company also recently introduced the Active Zone Minutes feature, which tracks the time spent in heart-pumping activities. The harder you work, the more credit you'll get. There are some great smart features as well such as Fitbit Pay and voice assistants with Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa built-in. You can also take Bluetooth calls with the built-in microphone and speaker.
The app selection on the Fitbit Versa 3 isn't as abundant as what you might get on, say, an Apple Watch, so keep that in mind. If you owned any of the previous Versa models, those bands aren't compatible with the Versa 3's new band system. As nice as the always-on display feature is, it will drain the battery life a lot faster.
Amazfit might not be quite as popular as some of the other smartwatch players, but they're bringing some serious competition with the GTS 3. The first thing you'll notice is the attractive design, which is both lightweight and comfortable. The Amazfit GTS 3 delivers many key features that users look for.
Some of the best features include onboard GPS, activity/sleep tracking, heart-rate monitoring, stress tracking, blood-oxygen monitoring, smartphone notifications, and Amazon Alexa built-in. Not to mention that you'll get up to 12 days of battery life with typical usage. The convenient 4-in-1 health measurement feature lets you record your heart rate, blood oxygen, stress, and breathing rate all at once. Let's not forget about Amazon Alexa built in, which makes it easy to use voice commands. You can set an alarm, start a workout, check the weather, and more.
However, there's no speaker on the watch so you won't receive audible responses when using the voice assistant. This also means you can't make calls on your watch. The Amazfit GTS 3 doesn't offer NFC payments or third-party app support, either. These are drawbacks worth considering, but if you're looking for a cheap Android smartwatch that offers unbeatable value, this is it. If you want an even-cheaper Android smartwatch, you might prefer the Amazfit GTS 2 Mini, but it has slightly fewer features.
With the Galaxy Watch 5 looming on the horizon, the Galaxy Watch 4 is regularly seeing some pretty impressive discounts. And with those discounts, it's really tough to recommend much of anything else, besides Fitbit's Versa 3.
Samsung's current flagship smartwatch remains the only Wear OS 3 smartwatch, for the time being at least, as we await the arrival of some more competition. And while the Galaxy Watch 4's software looks almost identical to the Galaxy Watch Active 2, the latter won't actually end up getting the latest version of Google's wearable operating system.
Many of the most important health and fitness trackers can be found, including decent (but not great) battery life. The biggest catch here is that if you own one of the best Android phones not made by Samsung, you'll miss out on things like ECG and blood pressure monitoring. But all-in-all, this is still one of the best smartwatches on market, and won't cost you an arm and a leg.
Women deserve to find a cheap Android smartwatch that offers both the features and fashionable aesthetic they're looking for. Fortunately, the Garmin Lily checks all these boxes. It comes in a small but efficient 43mm case, which is ideal for small wrists. The Sport model has an aluminum bezel and comes with a silicone band. The Classic model, which is slightly more expensive, has a stainless-steel bezel and a leather band.
The Garmin Lily might look like nothing more than a fashion accessory on the surface, but there's more to it than that. This smartwatch delivers several perks, including activity/sleep tracking, heart-rate monitoring, women's health tracking, blood-oxygen monitoring, stress tracking, and more. The battery offers five days of juice on a single charge.
Most users will agree the Garmin Lily is one of the best smartwatches for women, especially if style matters to you. The grayscale LCD isn't quite as bright or beautiful as an AMOLED display, though. It's also important to note there aren't a ton of bonus perks to look forward to. If you're searching for NFC payments, LTE connectivity, or voice assistants, you'll want to look elsewhere.
It's no secret that Wear OS watches have always been a topic of debate due to so much untapped potential, but hopefully, things are changing in that arena. Now that Wear OS 3 is on the horizon, some of the best watches may have the opportunity to be even better. One of those watches is the TicWatch E3. Not only is it equipped with a Snapdragon Wear 4100 chipset, but it will also be eligible to upgrade to Wear OS 3. It hasn't happened just yet, but it's expected to occur later this year.
The improved processor leads to smoother performance. Users can expect up to two days of battery life on a single charge. You can use Essential Mode to extend battery life, which disables the always-on display but still allows you to use tilt-to-wake. You'll see the date, time, step count, heart rate, and battery indicator. It's not the most robust TicWatch, but it has most of the essentials. You'll have onboard GPS, activity tracking, heart-rate monitoring, sleep tracking, blood-oxygen monitoring, and more. The bonus perks include Google Assistant and Google Pay.
If you're a fan of Mobvoi and you've been looking for a cheap Android smartwatch, the TicWatch 3 might be everything you need. The short battery life is a drag, but some users might find Essential Mode useful in stretching it past the two-day mark. You'll also have to wait a little longer for Wear OS 3, but at least you know it's coming soon. The charging port on the watch is poorly placed right under where the strap connects, so the cord may easily disconnect while charging. While the design is rather basic, the chunky bezel can feel like extra bulk on small wrists.
While the Fitbit Charge 5 may not look like a typical smartwatch, it certainly functions like one. If you'd prefer a compact design that's ideal for frequent workouts, this wearable might be right up your alley. Keep an open mind, especially considering the Fitbit Charge 5 offers more health and fitness features than some of the other options on this list. It offers an AMOLED touchscreen and a full week of battery life. The sleek, refined design is an improvement from the previous models, too.
You'll have tons of key features, including onboard GPS, activity/sleep tracking, automatic workout recognition, heart-rate monitoring, Active Zone Minutes, and Fitbit Pay. More importantly, there are new advanced health sensors that give you more data. The electrodermal activity (EDA) sensor takes precise temperature measurements and records stress levels while the electrocardiogram (ECG) sensor monitors your heart rhythm and can detect irregular heartbeats. The Daily Readiness Score is designed to help users understand when to prioritize rest and when to be more active.
In some cases, you'd have to make some sacrifices for all these amazing features. With the Fitbit Charge 5, you'll have to be comfortable with paying for an expensive tracker. But when you consider just how smart this fitness tracker is, that may not be a deal-breaker. This device uses new proprietary bands, so previous Fitbit Charge bands won't work. Some of the features, like the Daily Readiness Score, require a Fitbit Premium subscription. Your purchase comes with a free trial, but once that expires, you'll have to pay for it to keep using these perks.
A hybrid smartwatch is another option to consider when you're shopping for a cheap Android smartwatch. More specifically, the Garmin Vivomove Sport is worthy of your attention. This is one of the latest hybrids from Garmin and it has more to offer than you might think. If you love the look of a traditional timepiece, this one might be for you. It comes in a lightweight 40mm polymer case and comes in three colors, including Ivory, Cocoa, Cool Mint, and Black. The battery can last for five days on a single charge and an additional day in watch mode.
The unique display is what makes this hybrid smartwatch different from others on the market. Rather than a standard E-Ink display, there's a hidden OLED panel on the bottom half of the screen. You can wake the display by raising your wrist or double-tapping the screen. Other features include activity/sleep tracking, heart-rate monitoring, Pulse Ox, Body Battery, stress tracking, smartphone notifications, and music controls.
Whether you're buying your first wearable or you prefer the look of a traditional watch, the Garmin Vivomove Sport is an excellent choice. It comes with the basic perks that most users need in a smartwatch. With that in mind, there aren't any extra perks such as NFC payments or voice assistants. Additionally, you'll have to rely on connected GPS via your smartphone to track your route during an activity. As interesting as the hidden OLED concept is, the sunlight visibility isn't as good as it could be.
Runners who need a cheap Android smartwatch that offers stellar battery life will be in good hands with the all-new Polar Pacer. You might be worried that cheap means compromise, but not in this case. The Pacer is equipped with all the features you need for a successful wearable experience. For starters, it offers a lightweight design (just 40g) with interchangeable wrist straps and new "super-grip" buttons for better navigation.
Any feature you might expect in a running watch is present, including onboard GPS, heart-rate monitoring, activity/sleep tracking, numerous workout modes, and more. Battery life may not be as impressive as something like the Coros Pace 2, but the Polar Pacer is powered by a brand-new chipset and 7x more RAM compared to the Polar Vantage M2.
Polar also updated the display, covering it with Gorilla Glass 3 for better durability, along with "Enhanced Backlight Management." This feature automatically, and more intuitively, adjust your screen's brightness so you'll be able to see what you need, regardless of how much sun is shining. While the 7-days of battery life might not be what you were looking for, the Pacer will last up to 100h in power-saving mode, and more than 45 days if you stick to Watch Mode.
Best cheap Android smartwatch: Making a choice
Shopping on a budget doesn't mean you have to pass up on smartwatch ownership. While you may need to adjust your expectations and narrow the playing field a bit, there are still various cheap Android smartwatches to pick from. Think about what features you need and what type of experience you prefer.
Are you looking for a smartwatch that can do it all with impeccable fitness tracking and impressive smartwatch perks? If so, you'll probably find the Fitbit Versa 3 to be a perfect fit for your needs. You get nearly a full week of battery life and a slim design that's both comfortable and attractive.
If you're looking for something more specific, there are many other cheap Android smartwatches to consider. For example, whether you're seeking a hybrid wearable, a watch that's made for women, or a model that's focused on delivering long-lasting battery life, you can find it at an affordable price with all the features you need.
Andrew Myrick is a Senior Editor at Android Central. He enjoys everything to do with technology, including tablets, smartphones, and everything in between. Perhaps his favorite past-time is collecting different headphones, even if they all end up in the same drawer.
