This Garmin Forerunner 35 vs Fitbit Versa comparison table will give you an insight into how the Forerunner 35 and Fitbit Versa 2, Versa 3, and Versa 4 compare.
A Comparison Table for Garmin Forerunner 35 and Fitbit Versa
| Garmin Forerunner 35 | Fitbit Versa | |
| Display | 0.93-inch, 128 x 128-pixel, Not Touchscreen | 1.32 Inch, Touchscreen |
| Battery Life | Up to 9 days for watch mode | Up to 4+ days |
| Water Resistance | Up to 50 meters | Up to 50 meters |
| Tracking | Sleep, Heart Rate, steps, calories burned | Sleep, Heart Rate, breathing rate, oxygen levels, skin temperature |
 Buy on Amazon |  Buy on Amazon |
Design And Display
The Garmin Forerunner 35 looks exactly like the Garmin Vivoactive which is square in both display and shape.
Forerunner 35 has a monochrome LCD display that displays things in bold for easy seeing. Its casing is made of plastic that measures 1.4 x 1.6 x 0.5 inches.
Unlike say, Fitbit Surge, which is slightly bulky, the Forerunner 35 is light and comfortable to have around the wrist weighing only about 1.3 ounces.
Fitbit Versa on the other side features a ‘Squircle’ design with an OLED display. If I were to choose between the watches based on their physical appearance, I would definitely choose Fitbit Versa over Forerunner 35.
The watch is also comfortable and light on the wrist, sometimes you could even forget you are having it on. Lastly, the Versa features a super clean display that I brilliantly bright.
The GPS Connection
Garmin Forerunner 35 comes with a GPS feature that is less powerful. A lot of time is wasted waiting for the smartwatch to catch signals.
Also, the location reports sometimes are not as accurate as they are expected to be.
If routes and paces are your things then the Garmin Forerunner 35 isn’t the right fitness tracker for you; consider investing in a Fitbit Versa tracker because it is accurate and has second location updates in real-time.
The Heart Rate And Sleep
Although Garmin Forerunner 35 has a weak GPS connection it still does a good job on sleep and heart rate tracking.
With the activity tracker on the wrist, it can accurately tell how well or bad your sleep was plus tell when your heart is beating as supposed to or abnormally.
For those searching for a smartwatch that gives real-time data of the resting heart rate then Garmin Forerunner 35 is up to the task. To get to see your stats, access the Garmin Connect App.
On the other hand, Fitbit Versa will also monitor your sleep. It will categorize your sleep into 3, deep, light, and REM. Apart from monitoring the heart rate, this activity tracker is also able to track your breathing rate, oxygen levels, and variation in skin temperature. All these data are also accessible via the Fitbit App.
The Apps
Garmin Forerunner 35 provides users with fitness and wellness data via the Garmin Connect App. The Garmin Connect App is available for both devices; Android and iOS.
To get access to the apps, the user will have to head to the Apple or Google Play Store. The Garmin Connect App is user-friendly thanks to its simple interface.
The only problem is that it takes a lot of time to connect to smartphones via Bluetooth and to run an update. But after connecting to the phone it syncs so fast. From the app, you will access your sleep data, calorie burn, step count etc.
Fitbit versa on the other hand also comes with a Fitbit App which is too available in the store for both Apple and Android devices.
The Fitbit App comes packed with more insights. The Fitbit App also connects to the smartphone through Bluetooth to sync data. You will be able to see stats of calories burnt, steps taken, heart rate, and much more.
Ease Of Use
The Gamin Forerunner 35 and Fitbit Versa are both intuitive to use. We are certain because of their user-friendly interfaces. So far, we have heard of no complaints from users claiming any of the above fitness trackers are hard to use.
Water Resistance
Forerunner 35 is great for doing shallow dives in the pool, hitting the shower, or any non-extreme water activities.
And that is because it can resist water pressure up to 5ATM. Fitbit Versa is also good at ensuring that it doesn’t get water damaged because it’s water-resistant up to 50 Meters.
And that means Fitbit versa can be used for showers and swimming as well. Unlike Fitbit Flex and Ionic, the Versa can be good to track swimming.
Battery Life
Garmin Forerunner is claimed to keep charger for 9 days after a complete charge when used in watch mode but will only last 13 hours at most if used in training mode.
While Fitbit Versa, Versa 3, and Fitbit versa Lite Edition will only last for up to 4 days after a full charge. Now, that means Fitbit versa and versa lite have poor battery lives altogether.
Both Garmin Forerunner and Fitbit Versa have rechargeable batteries that can be juiced up using USB cables. And Fitbit Versa charges within minutes (30 minutes).
Music
Fitbit Versa together with other Fitbit trackers like Fitbit charge 2, charge 3, Versa 2, Versa Lite, and Ionic support the storage of music to keep you entertained while working out.
You only need to pay Spotify Premium fees to access music. Garmin Forerunner 35 doesn’t connect to Spotify to stream music nor allow users to load songs to it. But it allows users to pair and listen to music via their smartphones.
Calls
Fitbit versa, Versa 2 comes with microphones but cannot make or receive calls. Forerunner on the other hand can only show call notifications but also doesn’t allow users to make/receive calls.
You may also like the comparison between Fitbit Sense vs Versa 3.
What to Like about Garmin Forerunner 35
- The smartwatch comes at an affordable price considering its numerous amazing features.
- Garmin Forerunner feels so much more comfortable on the hand.
- The watch has the best battery life plus it is easy to use since it has few bells and whistles, plus it syncs fast.
- It is able to keep track of your heart rate.
What to Like about Fitbit Versa
- It is waterproof, hence can be worn at the swimming pool or in the shower.
- It doesn’t take much time to charge to completion.
- You can stream music directly from Spotify.
- It Will track skin temperature, heart rate, and calories burnt.
- So comfortable hence won’t cause wrist pain.
What not to Like about Fitbit Versa
- Has a poor battery life
What not to Like about Garmin Forerunner 35
- The GPS is not as accurate as expected.
- The design used on the watch is not appealing to most people.
- Cannot track swimming.