For swim lovers or athlete swimmers, open water swimming like swimming in the sea is adventurous. If you are seeking a swim tracker smartwatch in the sea or ocean this article will numerous suggestions and user guidance for open-water swimmers.
In the following section, swimmers will top the list of open water swimmers based on water resistance, durability, GPS tracking accuracy, sports modes: especially open water swimming, battery life, and so on. After the list, we strongly recommend reading the “Open water swim tracking vs Pool water swim tracking” and “must-have features in an open-water swim tracker”.
All of the smartwatches are qualified for swimming in the sea. However, before diving into the details you may check the summary list and verdict:
1. Sunnoto 9 Baro | ![]() | Highly Advanced GPS tracking muti-sport durable Swim Tracking smartwatch |
2. Apple Watch Ultra | ![]() | High water resistant, durable, premium, high battery life swim smartwatch |
3. Garmin Fenix 6 Pro | ![]() | High athletic design, durable, water-resistant swim smartwatch |
4. Garmin Fenix 5 | ![]() | Muti-sport advanced GPS, lightweight, classic swim tracker |
5. Amazfit T-rex Pro | ![]() | Advanced multiple sports, adventurous, sporty, swim tracker |
Sunnoto 9 Baro: Advanced GPS tracking Swim Tracker
Our Verdict: Sunnoto 9 Baro is an advanced GPS Sportswatch for Swimming, running, and cycling. With the athletic design, Miltary grade durability, and lightweight users get detailed performance metrics.
In the list of swim trackers, we have included Sunnoto 9 Baro GPS sports watch. After the top analysis, we can see Sunnoto 9 Baro is a highly athletic smartwatch. With 10 ATM water resistance, and 25-120 hours of GPS Mode battery life.
With a 1.34″ LED, Touchscreen, and colored matrix display, users get Sapphire glass, Glass fibre reinforced polyamide case, and stainless steel bezel. Sunnoto 9 Baro comes with military standard 810H durability.
Inside the sports modes and GPS tracking, swimmers are free to access more than 80 sports modes with swimming. Most useful activity tracking provides open water swim distance, swim stroke type detection, pace, lap count, SWOLF Score, interval duration, etc. In GPS tracking, get advanced location tracking using GPS, GLONASS, GALILEO, QZSS, and BEIDOU including global heatmap and POI navigation, etc.

Inside, the health monitoring, get personalized health-tracking metrics about heart rate monitoring, Spo2, Sleep score, Stress, and so on. In the health monitoring App, users will receive detailed metrics of health monitoring.
A light design: 2.86 ounces, silicone strap material, and stainless steel bezel Sunnoto 9 Baro smartwatch stands with a comfortable swim tracker. After connecting with Bluetooth, swimmers can enjoy mobile App integration, GPS, and music controls.
Specifications
Battery Life | 25-120 Hours With GPS mode |
Water Resistance | 10 ATM |
Display Type | Touch screen, Colored Matrix |
Durability | military standard 810H |
Sports Mode | 80+ Sports Mode (Including Swimming) |
GPS | GPS, GLONASS, GALILEO, QZSS, BEIDOU |
Health Tracking | Heart Rate, Spo2, Sleep, stress |
Wireless Compatibility | Smartphone via Bluetooth, Wi-fi |
Weight | 2.86 Ounces |
Pros And Cons
Pros | Cons |
10 ATM water resistance | Display can be bigger |
Military Grade 810H Durability | Strap material can be better |
Advanced GPS, Health Tracking | |
Multiple-Sports Mode | |
Battery Life better completely Impressive |
Related: Should you wear a smartwatch inside the pool?
Apple Watch Ultra
Our Verdict: Apple Watch Ultra is a highly premium Sports watch. Sports like high-speed water game, scuba-diving, and sea swimming is best with this Apple watch. All available features of Apple watches’ is optimally developed in Apple Watch Ultra.
Although a very percentage of people use Apple Watch Ultra still it is only for affordability. It’s a truly expensive smartwatch that costs $8000. However, the benefits are not underrated. From battery life to voice quality you can get everything in hand.
As a swimmer, you can get 36 hours of continuous battery life with 24 hours of usage of GPS and heart rate monitoring. In the test of durability and water resistance, we have results like- Titanium body, Edge protection, and Flat Sapphire scratch-protected display, with ML-STD 810H strength. This level of durability is less for athletes and more for the military or Army.

With 10-ATM water resistance and 200-meter water submersion ability, Apple Watch Ulta is quite safe in Sea Swimming. 49 mm vivid LTPO OLED Always-on display shows elements under bright sunlight or underwater.
According to the brand claim, the Apple Watch Ultra is capable of Scuba-diving. It has EN13319 Certification of international recognition for dive computers and gauges. And Ocean bands in tabular structure for stretch and security.
In addition, this is a multi-sport and health-oriented Sports watch. In Apple Watch Ultra, advanced Swim modes with multi-level detection, Pool water modes, open water modes, Sea Surfing, Skiing, Running, and many other sports modes.
With a 3-rd generation of Optical Heart Rate sensors, accelerometers, compasses, and gyroscopes much other motion and health detection is available in critical analysis. In addition, Apple Watch Ultra is not a heavy smartwatch. It weighs 2.16 ounces/ 61.3g.
With Titanium silver coating, buttons, edges, and the display is easy and satisfying to optimize. Thus, in the presence of water, the button control is easy and quick.
Specification
Battery Life | 36 Hour Without GPS, HR |
Water Resistance | 10 ATM |
Display Type | Always-On LTPO OLED, 2000 nit |
Durability | Titanium, Ml-STD, IP6X |
Sports Mode | Multiple Sports Mode (Including Swimming) |
GPS | L1, L5 GPS |
Health Tracking | ECG: Heart Rate, Spo2, Sleep |
Wireless Compatibility | Smartphone via Bluetooth, Wi-fi |
Weight | 2.16 Ounces |
Pros Ans Cons
Pros | Cons |
Above Enough Water Resistance for open water | Price Is Too High |
Big Display with Bigger Button | Need more color in cases |
Advanced GPS, Health Tracking | |
Multiple-Sports Mode | |
Battery Life better completely Impressive |
Garmin Fenix 6 Pro: Classic, Athletic, Swimming Tracker
Our Verdict: For Athletes Garmin Fenix 6 Pro is one of the most advanced GPS Sportswatch. Plenty of sports tracking benefits, battery life, GPS accuracy, durability, and design suits for outdoor games like Open water swimming, surfing, skiing, hiking, climbing, triathlon, biking, and so on.
The water resistance and battery life, Garmin Fenix 6 pro users get 10-ATM water resistance meaning 100-meter in-depth under seawater. 14 days of battery life without GPS. With GPS and music control, it offers 10 hours and 48 hours with battery-saver mode.

Fenix 6 Pro consists of Stainless steel, Diamond-like Carbon(DLC) Coating. As result, you can have sustainable durability while swimming in the Sea. The overall design is classic, athletic, and sporty in black color. In the display, Fenix 6 Pro users have better visual satisfaction with a 1.3″ LED display, 260 X 260 resolution, and smooth button control.
Wireless connectivity like Bluetooth, ANT+, Wi-fi, and GPS control is quite accurate and flexible. In open-water swimming, GPS tracking is working well. To improve GPS monitoring, Garmin Fenix 6 Pro has used GLONASS, Galileo, GPS, Compass, and Biometric Altimeter.
The Sports mode is fabulous for swimmers and multiple other outdoor sports. This watch sports open water, pool water swimming, hiking, biking, yoga, trail running, etc. During swimming or workout, athletes are able to measure heart rate, Spo2, VO2 Max, pace, location covered, etc. In the Garmin Connect app, you can get complete analytics of your sports performance, body condition, sleep score, and so on.
Other basic wireless advantages like music control, stopwatch, calendar and mobile notification control are available in Garmin Fenix 6 Pro.
Specifications
Battery Life | 14 Days Without GPS, HR |
Water Resistance | 10 ATM |
Display Type | 1.3″ Sun-readable, LED Backlit |
Durability | Stainless Steel, Titanium, or Diamond-Like Carbon Coating |
Sports Mode | Multiple Sports Mode (Including Swimming) |
GPS | Yes with GLONASS |
Health Tracking | Heart Rate, Sleep, SpO2, VO2 Max |
Wireless Compatibility | Smartphone via Bluetooth |
Weight | 1.36 Ounces |
Pros And Cons
Pros | Cons |
Sufficient Water Resistance for open water | Charging Method can be improved |
Big Display | The display is Good but could be better |
Advanced GPS, Health Tracking | |
Multiple-Sports Mode | |
Battery Life is decent |
Garmin fēnix 5: Multi-Sport Swimming Smartwatch
Our Verdict: Garmin Fenix 5 fits swimmers, runners, cyclists, and outdoor adventurous people. It has well-optimized compass, Gyroscope, GPS, GLONASS, 100-meter water resistance, and multiple sportsmodes.
Garmin offers one of the most useful athletic smartwatches. Garmin Fenix 5 is not exceptional. Fenix 5 was launched on 4 January 2017 but still today this is an elite-level Multi-Sport GPS Sportswatch. With GPS, GLONASS, Compass, gyroscope, accelerometer, and barometric altimeter Garmin Fenix 5 becomes a favorite for Swimmers, runners, Golf players, Cyclists, and so on.

Swimmers need to think about battery life, display, and durability. As Fenix 5 offers 14 days of smartwatch mode battery life and 24 Hours with Bluetooth and Wrist Heart rate tracking. During swimming, swimmers can go Pool and open water as it has 100-meter In-depth water resistance (10-ATM). That is quite friendly for games like Sea swimming, Skiing, Surfing, Bodyboarding, etc. In the case material of Garmin Fenix 5, we get Stainless steel, Fiber reinforced Polymer with a rare bezel.
The display is quite attractive with 240 X 240 resolution, 1.2″ LED-backlit, and Smooth button control. In the bright sunlight and water sprays, you can see the display elements vividly.
Inside the Sports tracking, Athletes get highly beneficial sports analytics in the Garmin Connect App. Where you see data and analytics like Heart rate, Pace, distance covered, and other performance metrics during a workout.
On the other hand, Swimmers choose colorful Silicone straps based on their needs and comfort. Garmin Fenix 5 edition is a quite bulky, classic, and rugged design sports watch. Although, manufacturers say this is a unisex smartwatch still we would say Garmin Fenix 5 suits male wrists because of its bulky, heavy appearance.
Specifications
Battery Life | 14 Days Without GPS, HR; 24 Hr with GPS, HR |
Water Resistance | 10 ATM |
Display Type | 1.2″ button control, LED Backlit |
Durability | Stainless Steel rear case |
Sports Mode | Multiple Sports Mode (Including Swimming) |
GPS | Yes with GLONASS |
Health Tracking | Heart Rate, Sleep |
Wireless Compatibility | Smartphone via Bluetooth |
Weight | 2.32 Ounces |
Pros And Cons
Pros | Cons |
10 ATM Water Resistance | No Touchscreen |
GPS Mode, GLONASS | Weight can be lighter |
Durability | More Health Tracking Needed |
Muti-Sports Mode | |
Decent Battery Life |
Amazfit T-Rex Pro: Military-grade open-water Swimming
Verdict: Amazfit T-Rex Pro is a suitable smartwatch for Open water swimming, Snow sports, and high-speed water gamers. With a Sports watch with 100+ Sports modes including open and Pool water swimming. Military-grade Ultra-durable, with decent battery life, water-resistant, GPS.
Not only for Swimming but also Amazfit T-Rex pro is a competent Military Grade durable, ultra-long battery life, GPS Sports watch for adventurous People. With 18 days of battery life, you can take advantage of listening to music and casual surfing. For heavy usage with GPS, the Battery will work up to 40 hours or 9 days.
In the Durability score of Amazfit T-rex Pro swimmers gets 15 Military Grade Test 1. The smartwatch is capable of working at temperatures -40 C to 70 C. According to the military Grade test1 Amazfit T-Rex Pro is Shock resistance, Ice resistance, 96 Hour Slat Spray Resistance, 240-hour Humidity Resistance, and freezing rain resistance. This level of durability could function well in any high-speed water game of Sea Swimming.
In the Ocean, users get 10-ATM(100 Meters) water resistance under the salty water and huge waves. Here, Model T-rex Pro of Amazfit smoothly passes the open water resistance test.
In the Design and Display section, we have to mention the 1.3″ AMOLED touchscreen, 360 x 360 resolution with an Always-on display. It ensures the swimmer watches the display elements underwater, in between the wave, and scattering splashes. In addition, metal spray testing has proved the textures of the outer bezel of Amazfit T-Rex Pro.

During a workout or swimming, the screen gets locked in default. It helps to avoid unnecessary touches in the water. In the 100+ Sports mode, sports like Swimming (Open water or Pool Water), Snow Sports like Skiing, Snowboarding, Dance, Boxing, Ball sports, leisure sports, equestrianism, and else. Most importantly, after swimming, you can check your heart (Medium, Maximum, Avg), SpO2, Calories burnt, Total duration, and distance traveled in GPS.
In Health Monitoring, Amazfit T-Rex Pro provides All-day Heart Rate Monitoring. Unsal Heart rate, overall heart health, and Body pressure are also part of Health health detection. During play, Swimmers can check whether you are crossing their emergency heart rate alert or not. This heart emergency indicator works well in hard training to enhance Cardio Vascular endurance gradually.
Besides heart rate monitoring, users can check Blood Oxygen Saturation levels during practice sessions. For high-altitude sporty adventures like climbing, or trail running SpO2 monitoring appears a crucial health factor.
High-performer swimmers focus on rest after hard training. In the Sleep tracking of Amazfit T-Rex Pro, you can get all the benefits of sleep tracking like- Light, Rem, and Deep Sleep based on time and duration. In the Health monitoring Mobile App, you can see all required Recovery metrics of sleep, and else. The PAI (Personal Activity Intelligence) algorithm gives all complex health and activity metrics into an easy-to-understand User interface. And Graphical analytics helps us a lot to take decisions in progress. The most Compatible Fitness App for the Amazfit T-Rex Pro smartwatch is ZeppApp.
Specifications
Battery Life | 18 Days (40 Hours) |
Water Resistance | 10 ATM |
Display Type | 1.3″ Touch Screen, Amoled |
Durability | 15 Military Grade Test1 |
Sports Mode | 100+ Modes (Including Swimming) |
GPS | Yes |
Health Tracking | Heart Rate, Sleep, Spo2 |
Wireless Compatibility | Android 5.0 or Above iOS 5.0 or Above |
Weight | 2.12 Ounces |
Pros And Cons
Pros | Cons |
Decent Sea Water Resistance | Size can be Smaller |
Military Grade Durability | Watch Face Collection is limited |
Light Weighted (60 gm) | |
Swimming Metrics With 100+ Sports Mode | |
Good Battery life |
Features To Check In A Open Water Swim Tracker (In the Sea or Ocean)
Open water swim environment is different than Pool water. Similarly, Smartwatches for open water swimming differ from pool water swim trackers. While selecting, swim trackers for swimming in Sea, Ocean, lake, or river swimmer must know the top required sensors or functionalities. In the following sections, let’s take a quick look-
- Difference between open water swim tracker vs pool water swim tracker
- Must-have features of an Open water swim tracker
Only the depth of water is not the differentiator in Open-water vs Pool Water Swimming. If we dive into open-water swimming a distinct difference is visible in swim style, rules in the open-water swim, the goal of swimmers, and materialistic differences in water such as density, pressure, underwater visibility, buoyancy, etc. Therefore, the activity-tracking ability of open-water tracking smartwatches differs.
Before checking the list of “Most Important Open-water Swim Tracking Features” Let’s see, the definite differentiation between Open-water swims tracking vs Pool Water swim tracking.
Open-water swims tracker vs Pool Water swim tracker
Features | Open Water Swim Tracker | Pool Water Swim Tracker |
Sports Tracking | Distance covered, Location Tracking, High-Speed Sports modes are important | Lap count, stroke count, average speed, max speed is important |
Water Resistance | 100-meter (10 ATM) or Above | 50-meter (5 ATM) or Above |
Battery Life | Above 10 days without GPS; Above 12 hours with GPS | Above 7 days without GPS, Above 7-8 |
GPS | Required advanced GPS tracking | Generic GPS is enough |
Display | Need brighter, sharper display (AMOLED) | Display must be bright (LED, OLED enough) |
Durability | durable glass material: Gorilla glass; high temperature, pressure, and chemical resistance are required | Scratchproof, strong case material is sufficient |
Fitness App & Algorithm | Swim performance with location covered, water and body temperature, and other open water swimming metrics are calculated with Basics like Heart rate, sleep, Spo2 etc. | Heart Rate, Sleep, Spo2; Daily / Weekly overall swim performance analytics is required |
Weight & Design | Light-Weighted, Durable, athletic, rugged design is expected | Sporty, Flexible, Casual outlook is favorable |
Must-have features of Open-water swim trackers
Either for Open-water or pool water a smartwatch must-have several mandatory features. A good swim tracker consists of better water resistance, battery life, plenty of useful sports modes especially swim modes, high enough durability, etc. However, the atmosphere in the sea or ocean is thicker and heavier than a pool. Hence, Open-water swim trackers need specific and highly durable features.
The followings are the must-have features of Open-water swim trackers:
- Not Less Than 10 ATM Water Resistance
- Open-water sports mode
- Strong and Accurate GPS
- Battery life: At least 12 Hours+ GPS mode
- Highly Durable Glass and Case Material
- Less Chemically Reactive Metal Body
- User-friendly Fitness App and Performance Analytics
Not less than 10 ATM Water Resistance
According to International Organization For Standardization, Less than 10 ATM smartwatches are able to protect extended water submission up to 100 meters. 5 ATM smartwatches are swim-proof but for 50-meter depth and a few minutes of submersion duration. Generally, Pool water swimming is a controllable environment. The duration of immersion of smartwatches could be as less as required. While swimming in Sea, Lake, or ocean, immersion of hands along with the smartwatch is uncontrollable. Therefore, 10 ATM swim trackers suits while swimming in the sea or open water.
Open-water Sports Modes
In open-water swimming, there is no set distance and back, forth motion. Open water swimmers swim a length of distance around a particular location. That is why the goal of open-water swimmers is different as compared to pool-water swimmers. Almost every smartwatches’ have sports modes. Now, for open water swimming areas like sea or ocean sports modes like-
- Snorkeling
- Surfing
- Bodyboarding
- Cliff Jumping
- Kneeboarding
- Skimboarding
If you are from USA, UK, or Australia, enjoy open water swimming sea beaches like San Diego, California, Brighton Marina, Oak Harbor, Washington, Hove Lagoon (Uk), or Bells Beach, VIC in Australia.
Strong and Accurate GPS For Locomotion
Due to long-distance swimming, open-water swimmers require clear and accurate GPS tracking Methods. GPS with GLONASS makes an open-water swim tracker technically more errorless.

Although, in modern GPS tracking, GPS smartwatches(Garmin Forerunner 955, COROS APEX 2 Pro) and advanced GPS tracking like GNSS are used.
Battery life: At least 12 Hours+ With GPS mode
Smartwatch battery life is highly connected to GPS. For almost the complete duration of Sea swimming or open-water swimming GPS mode is required. What is the preferred battery life of a smartwatch for open-water swimming? Ideally, more than 15 Hours with GPS. Therefore open water swims tracker must have a good rechargeable power backup on GPS mode.
Note: Accuracy in smartwatch activity and GPS detection depends on How properly a user uses a smartwatch.

Highly durable Glass Material to resist Atmosphere pressure
The pressure of water in the sea is not as same as in the pool water. According to Physics Van, Sea Water pressure from 0-5 feet depth is 14.7-16.925 psi approximately. Hence you need more durable material like Gorilla glass. It can withstand up to 100,000 psi. Therefore, Swim trackers for swimming in the sea should include durable glass material (Gorilla glass or Sapphire Glass), and strong case material (Titanium, Stainless steel, Diamond-like Carbon- DLC).
Less Chemically Reactive Metal Body
People love aluminum case in smartwatches as it is light. However, the metal body of smartwatches for swimming in the sea must be durable and chemically less reactive such as Titanium, DLC, and Stainless steel. Because the presence of Chlorinated water in the sea reacts with metals. In long run, the reactive metal of the watch can be ionized due to swimming in the Sea water. Therefore, the Open-water swim tracker’s case material must be less chemically reactive.
User-friendly Fitness App and Performance Analytics
Technically, quality smartwatches for swimmers must include- different swim modes including Pool water, and open water swimming. Where smartwatches for swimming in the sea should include sports modes like Kneeboarding, bodyboarding, skiing, wakeboarding, and other high-speed water games. After recording your performance in swimming, you must need the metrics of your performance.
Let’s see, what are the best fitness tracking Apps for open water swimmers? Highly sports-compatible Fitness App like Garmin Connect, Zepp, and Apple Fitness+ provides recorded performance tracking data of swimming activities. Data like Top speed, average speed, body temperature, heart rate, Spo2, Vo2 Max, location, SWOLF Score, etc. while swimming can be analyzed. After wireless Bluetooth syncing the swim tracker with a smartphone, Users can see performance data in graphical representation. Visual stats are highly motivating. It helps to take decisions to improve the quality of athletics. Thanks to PAI Algorithms represent complex activity tracking in a simple format.
Whether open water swimming or other sports, Gyroscopes track the direction of movements, speed, and locomotion. Where GPS states your change in position on the sea surface.
Thanks for reading. Engage in sports like Jet Skiing, White water rafting, kneeboarding, and open-water swimming with your best smartwatch for a sea swim.
Our wish is that swimmers take swimming lessons and do training effectively and joyfully. In Buyers-Value, our objective is to help you in self-analysis and gain growth as an athlete. To gain Massive Growth in swimming & Personal Development follow. Wish you a positively progressive day.
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