Running~$450

Garmin

Garmin Forerunner 265

Name: Garmin Forerunner 265
Brand: Garmin
Price: 450 USD
Availability: InStock

Android; iPhone with limitsPaid tier: Garmin Connect+

Garmin moved this mid-range runner to an AMOLED screen in March 2023, and it remains on sale beside the newer 570. Multi-band GPS, music storage and Garmin Pay are all included, which the 2026 Forerunner 170 lacks or charges extra for. Two cases are sold: the 41.7 mm 265S, which lasts longer at 15 days, and the 46.1 mm 265.

Approx. price

~$450

maker's list price, not a live price

Battery, smartwatch mode

15 days

the maker's headline

Battery, always-on display

not published

the maker gives no figure

Battery, GPS workout

24 h

maker's figure

Works with

Android; iPhone with limits

see the limits below

Weight

39 g

Garmin spec, 265S: 'Weight: 39 g' (band inclusion not stated)

Best for: A runner training for a half or full marathon who wants multi-band accuracy and music below flagship pricing

Battery: the claim and the other two figures

Claimed (smartwatch mode): 15 days
With always-on display: not published
GPS workout: 24 h

Headline: Garmin, 265S (41.7 mm): 'Smartwatch mode: Up to 15 days'; 265 (46 mm): up to 13 days.
GPS: Garmin, 265S: 'GPS-Only GNSS mode: Up to 24 hours'; 265 (46 mm): GPS-only up to 20 hours, SatIQ (AutoSelect) up to 16 hours.
Dual-band GPS: 15 h.
Garmin, 265S: all-systems + multi-band up to 15 hours (265: 'All-Systems GNSS mode + Multi-Band: Up to 14 hours'); Garmin publishes no always-on figure for this model

The ring’s outer track is the headline claim; the inner two are the always-on and GPS figures as a share of it. An empty track means Garmin does not publish that figure. Why the figures differ

Phones, paid tier and updates

iPhone:: Yes, with limits.
Android:: Yes.; Garmin's spec table marks text replies and reject-call-with-text as Android only; iPhone owners get notifications but cannot reply from the watch
Paid tier:: Garmin Connect+, $69.99/year.; No watch feature requires it: Garmin's chart keeps activity details, health stats, performance metrics, Garmin Coach plans, courses and LiveTrack in the free app. Connect+ adds Active Intelligence AI insights, nutrition logging, a desktop performance dashboard, live activity on the phone, 3D maps and offline Garmin Trails downloads; Watch plus two years of Garmin Connect+: ~$590.
Software updates:: Garmin does not publish a guaranteed number of update years for this model.

Cleared health features

Garmin cites no regulator clearance for a health feature on this model. Its heart-rate, sleep and blood-oxygen readings are wellness features.

A clearance says what a feature is allowed to claim, not that it replaces a doctor. Cleared versus wellness features

What the extra money buys: Against the Garmin Forerunner 70, the extra ~$200 buys dual-band GPS, music storage, contactless pay, 1 h more GPS time, a longer headline battery (15 days vs 13 days) and more case sizes. See the Garmin Forerunner 70.

Specifications

Approx. price: ~$450 (Forerunner 265S or 265, both $449.99 list on garmin.com/en-US/p/886785 and /p/886689)
Type: Running
Platform: Garmin
Case sizes: 41.7 mm (265S) / 46.1 mm
Weight: 41.7 mm (265S): 39 g · 46.1 mm: 47 g (Garmin spec, 265S: 'Weight: 39 g' (band inclusion not stated))
Battery, smartwatch mode: 15 days (Garmin, 265S (41.7 mm): 'Smartwatch mode: Up to 15 days'; 265 (46 mm): up to 13 days)
Battery, always-on display: Not published by the maker
Battery, GPS workout: 24 h (Garmin, 265S: 'GPS-Only GNSS mode: Up to 24 hours'; 265 (46 mm): GPS-only up to 20 hours, SatIQ (AutoSelect) up to 16 hours)
Battery, dual-band GPS: 15 h
Battery note: Garmin, 265S: all-systems + multi-band up to 15 hours (265: 'All-Systems GNSS mode + Multi-Band: Up to 14 hours'); Garmin publishes no always-on figure for this model
Works with: Android; iPhone with limits
iPhone: Yes, with limits
Android: Yes
Phone limits: Garmin's spec table marks text replies and reject-call-with-text as Android only; iPhone owners get notifications but cannot reply from the watch
Paid tier: Garmin Connect+, $69.99/year
What the paid tier gates: No watch feature requires it: Garmin's chart keeps activity details, health stats, performance metrics, Garmin Coach plans, courses and LiveTrack in the free app. Connect+ adds Active Intelligence AI insights, nutrition logging, a desktop performance dashboard, live activity on the phone, 3D maps and offline Garmin Trails downloads
Update years: Not published by the maker
Cleared health features: None the maker cites
Display: AMOLED
Always-on display: Yes
Dual-band GPS: Yes
Maps: Route line only (Garmin lists Courses, Back to start and TracBack; no built-in maps)
Music on the watch: Yes
LTE: No LTE version
Contactless pay: Yes
Flashlight: No
Water rating: 5 ATM
Case: fiber-reinforced polymer
Released: 2023

Features, per Garmin

Multi-band GPS with SatIQ
Music storage and Garmin Pay
Training readiness, HRV status and race predictor
Barometric altimeter and compass
8 GB storage
265S (41.7 mm) and 265 (46.1 mm) cases

Where the specs put it ahead

Multi-band GPS for cleaner tracks in cities and forests, which the Forerunner 70 and 170 lack
Music and Garmin Pay are both included instead of being split across model versions
The small 265S gives two more days per charge than the 46 mm case
Same training-readiness and race-predictor tools as the Forerunner 570

What it gives up

A 2023 design: no speaker or calls, which the Forerunner 570 and 970 add, and no flashlight, which only the 970 adds
Garmin publishes no always-on battery figure, so the real AOD runtime is unknown
No maps; navigation is breadcrumb courses only
Only 5 ATM water rating
Text replies from the watch need an Android phone
Fewer health additions than the 570, which adds skin temperature and Health Status

The two lists above are drawn from the maker’s own pages and prices, not from owner reports. Where owner discussion has been read it appears in its own section below, so the two are never mistaken for each other.

What owners say

From what 18 owners of the Forerunner 265 and 265S reported between July and August 2026. Earlier generations are not counted.

Owners keep the Forerunner 265 for the training side. People who used it through half and full marathon builds describe it as a reliable running partner, and a couple who moved on to a 570 or a fēnix 8 say they preferred the older watch's smooth, predictable software. Newer owners mention the AMOLED screen and comfort.

Owners' complaints are about sensors and numbers rather than the hardware. Several owners describe wrist heart rate that spikes or drops mid-run, and sleep tracking that starts late, leaves gaps or quietly stops. Auto-set values such as VO2 max, fitness age and lactate threshold sometimes strike owners as too generous, and a few hit sync gaps between the watch and Garmin Connect.

It suits a runner who wants proven training tools at a lower price than the 570 and is willing to pair a chest strap for hard sessions. Owners who care about accurate heart rate in intervals or in the gym tend to add a strap or step up a generation.

What owners like

Owners who trained for half and full marathons with it describe it as a dependable long-term partner; one used the race pacing screen to check whether a target time was still on through two marathons
Several owners who moved on to a newer or pricier Garmin still prefer it: one found it smoother and more reliable than the fēnix 8 that replaced it, and another went back to wanting a 265S after two months on a Forerunner 570
Newer owners are pleased early on: one singles out the AMOLED screen and how comfortable it is, another calls it a great watch a few weeks in
The training data itself gets good marks: heart rate zones, training status and race pacing are what owners say they lean on

Common complaints

Wrist heart rate has rough patches: owners report readings that spike or crash for no reason mid-run, and one who later moved to a 570 says the difference in accuracy was obvious, though another found zone 2 easy runs tracked fine
Sleep tracking misfires for some owners: sleep logged two hours late with patchy overnight data, an optical sensor that switched itself off overnight, and one 265S that stopped recording sleep and steps altogether
Auto-calculated numbers can look generous or off: owners question a VO2 max and fitness age that felt too flattering and a lactate threshold that pushed zone 2 well above an easy effort
Garmin Connect occasionally drops the ball: an activity visible on the watch never reached the app, and multisport workouts built in Connect showed the watch as incompatible even though it can build them on the wrist
One owner's watch broke twice in a couple of years before they returned it

Questions owners ask about the Garmin Forerunner 265

Is the 265's wrist heart rate good enough for zone training?

For steady easy runs some owners find it fine, but others report sudden spikes and drops, and race-day readings that ran well above how the effort felt. Owners who train by zones tend to pair a chest strap for intervals and races.

Why does my 265 think I fell asleep hours after I did?

Owners have run into late sleep onset, patchy overnight heart rate data and, once, the optical sensor turning itself off overnight. Adjusting the fit and a factory reset did not fix it for at least one owner, so a support ticket is the usual next step.