Today, I’m reviewing the best smartwatch for seniors. As someone who knows how difficult it can be to care for an older loved one, having a device capable of protecting and monitoring them can be a blessing. I based my decision on a couple of different factors. The selections below can help you determine and shop for the best smartwatches for an elderly individual in your life.
The Best Smart Watch for Seniors
Below, I take a look at some of my favorite smart watch choices for seniors. For my choices, I primarily focused on devices that I felt had the best health and safety options for the folks who need them.
1. Apple Watch
I’ve recently written about how great the Apple Watch Ultra 2 can be for seniors, but in case you haven’t noticed, I’m a bit of an Apple fan. With the company having an entire lineup of different Watches—the main Apple Watch, the Apple Watch SE, and the Apple Watch Ultra—there are plenty of choices that can match virtually anyone’s budget.
Personally, I love my Apple Watch Series 9. It’s great being able to track my fitness goals, check my health metrics, and answer messages directly from the little device on my wrist. For seniors, an Apple Watch can be life-saving. However, I would recommend the main series or Ultra Watches over the SE, as you do miss out on some health features with the SE. Nevertheless, with features like heart monitoring, fall detection, sleep monitoring, and Emergency SOS, there’s a multitude of reasons why I think these Watches are perfect for an older individual in your life.
Features: Sleep apnea notifications (Main Series and Ultra only), heart rate notifications, irregular rhythm notifications, accessibility features, and fitness tracking.
Price: Varies. Apple Watch SE starts at $259, Main Series starts at $399 and Ultra 2 starts at $799.
Learn more about the Apple Watch here.
2. Health Smartwatch 4 by Spade and Co.
What can be better than a watch that’s perfectly designed with your health in mind? While some may know this, Spade and Co. is an off-shoot of the brand Fossil, which I’m personally a fan of. This watch has an obvious focus on health, and it sports some rather impressive features. These include oxygen saturation (SpO2) monitoring, heart rate tracking, sleep tracking, and fitness tracking.
On top of all that, the watch itself is a quality build, featuring an AMOLED screen that’s super bright, and it’s waterproof. It works with Android or iPhone so it’s great for compatibility and also boasts a 10-day battery life. This is a great watch for seniors, or anyone that’s looking to monitor their health and fitness.
Features: Fall detection, Oxygen Saturation monitoring, heart rate tracking, fitness tracking, camera controls, and more.
Price: Currently on sale for $79.99, typically $299.99.
Learn more about the Health Smartwatch 4 here.
3. Garmin Venu 2
Folks may recognize the name of this brand from back in the day when you needed a separate GPS device for your vehicle. One thing that stands out about this watch is that it has the option to measure your stress levels, which I think helps make it stand out from the other smart wearables I’ve covered. On top of that, it has many of the same health monitoring features you’ve likely come to expect from a device: heart rate, blood oxygen, sleep tracking, and fitness. I also like that this watch includes some additional safety features, including an incident detection feature, which can be great for seniors who may be prone to falling.
Just like the Health Smartwatch, Garmin’s offering is compatible with either iOS or Android and it has some really cool benefits outside of health tracking as well. While I think this one has a bit more focus on fitness than the others, I think it’s an overall great choice if you’re needing to look after someone in your life.
Features: Stress, sleep, blood oxygen, and heart tracking, ability to download additional apps, built-in sports apps, large battery life, and more.
Price: Around $149.99
Learn more about the Garmin Venu 2 here.
4. Google Pixel Watch 3
I suppose it was only a matter of time before I hyped a Google product on an Apple website. If you use an Android device, well, first off, what brings you here? Jokes aside, this is a great choice for those that stick to the Google ecosystem, or any senior that’s in need of a smartwatch. While Google’s offerings focus more on fitness than on overall health, that doesn’t mean there aren’t a lot of great features packed into this device.
The Pixel Watch 3 has the capability of sharing medical details during an emergency and can also be used to notify contacts during such a situation. For those willing to get a 4G model, Google’s Safety Signal feature can be extraordinarily useful. However, one thing that sort of bugs me about the Pixel is that it does require an Android device, while an Apple Watch does not. However, this can be great for a senior in your life who has access to a Google device.
Features: Six months of FitBit premium for free, performance and fitness tracking, readiness insights, and more.
Price: Starting at $279.99
Learn more about the Pixel Watch 3 here.
At the end of the day, I would recommend talking a bit with the individual in your life that you plan on buying the device for. Explore and consider all their options, and do your best to ensure you both agree. Any of the above watches will do wonders, but see what works best for you.