Garmin’s Entry-Level Running Watch Is Still on Sale at a Great Price After Prime Day.
The Garmin Forerunner 55 isn’t the most luxurious model in the lineup. At its original price, I wouldn’t recommend it. But even after Prime Day, you can get it brand new for $129 . There was previously an offer on a refurbished model for $99.99 , which is now out of stock—but likely not for long. Prices for refurbished watches tend to fluctuate, and I expect this model to be discounted again.
The Forerunner 55 is as simple as it gets: instead of a modern AMOLED screen, it features a MIP display , single-band GPS, and limited functionality compared to Garmin’s more expensive models. Released in 2021, it was the most affordable model in the lineup at the time. (Other models in the lineup included the workhorse Forerunner 255 and the premium Forerunner 955 with offline mapping.)
But the 55 gets the job done, as we saw earlier this year when Sebastien Sawe wore it during his record-breaking London Marathon . At its original price of $199, it couldn’t match newer watches that offered far more features for a similar or slightly higher price. But I’ve always believed that if the price drops enough, it would be a great buy for anyone looking for their first running watch that accurately displays pace, distance, and heart rate without complicating it with too many extra features.
There’s no shame in wearing an old Garmin watch: these watches are well-preserved, and there’s no subscription or software upgrade that would remove or degrade older features. Whatever features your watch had when you bought it, it’ll likely last forever. (I constantly meet runners who have no idea what Garmin model they have, and when we check, it turns out they’re watches old enough to have been in elementary school. These watches last a long time.)