If you have an iPhone and you want a smartwatch, buying an Apple Watch is a no-brainer, and for most people, the Apple Watch Series 8 is the best option available. But with all of Apple’s newly introduced watches, deciding which Apple Watch to choose is harder than ever. This year, Apple has three new models: the Apple Watch Series 8 (which replaces last year’s Series 7), a second-generation Apple Watch SE, and the expensive, rugged, and huge Apple Watch Ultra.
Offering advanced health and fitness features, car-crash detection, and all the notifications and third-party apps that people have come to expect from smartwatches, the Apple Watch Series 8 has the best combination of features and price for most people. If you don’t need the Series 8’s health-tracking functions, which include temperature sensors for more granular data about menstrual cycles, the second-gen Apple Watch SE is our budget pick. Our upgrade pick, the Apple Watch Ultra, is designed for athletes but is also great for anyone who wants a gigantic screen and lengthy battery life.
Our pick
The Apple Watch Series 8 is the model that’s best for most people. With an always-on display, two sizes to choose from, and advanced health and fitness features, it’s great for buyers upgrading from an older Apple Watch or folks who are trying out a smartwatch for the first time.
The Apple Watch Series 8 offers the best combination of style, health and fitness features, app selection, battery life, and price of any smartwatch for any platform. Available in body sizes of 41 mm and 45 mm, it has more active screen area than the Apple Watch SE and watches released prior to the Series 7. The Series 8 also offers more premium features than previous models, including two temperature sensors and car-crash detection in addition to an always-on display, blood-oxygen measurement, ECG, more crack-resistant glass, and fast charging. It’s available in more expensive steel and titanium casings, as well.
Budget pick
The SE offers many of the same key features as the Series 8, minus an always-on display and certain health-tracking tools, for a much lower price.
The 2nd-generation Apple Watch SE looks nearly identical to the 1st-gen model and is slightly smaller than the Series 8. The new SE comes in 40 mm and 44 mm case sizes, which makes it a bit easier to wear for small-wristed folks, but its slightly smaller screen doesn’t stay on when you put your wrist down, so it’s not as useful for telling time. It also lacks the temperature sensors, ECG feature, and blood-oxygen measurements of more expensive Apple Watches. Otherwise, it does the same Apple Watch–y things, including notifications, heart-rate monitoring for health and fitness, and crash detection, and it costs at least 30% less depending on the configuration, making it a great choice for someone on a tighter budget.
Upgrade pick
In the Ultra, you get all the Series 8’s flagship features, plus a whole lot more, such as lengthy battery life and a rugged design—but it’ll cost you.
The Apple Watch Ultra is a rugged smartwatch designed to compete with dedicated diving watches and running watches from the likes of Garmin. The Ultra’s 49 mm case size gives it the biggest display of any Apple Watch you can buy, and at up to 2,000 nits (a unit measuring brightness), it’s also the easiest to see in blazing sunlight. In addition to its larger size, the Ultra has a few key design differences that separate it from other Apple Watches, including a flat-edged screen, a 30% larger Digital Crown, and a new side Action button for quickly launching an app. All those features, combined with its lengthy battery life—more than double that of the Series 8—make the Ultra an absolute beast. Due to its size and price tag, it’s overkill for many people, but for some, the features may be worth the upgrade.
