Garmin vivoactive 5 (Ivory/Cream Gold, 42mm)
By Garmin · Fitness Trackers · Phones & Computers
- 1.2-inch AMOLED 390x390px touchscreen
- 42mm case, 36g weight
- 5 ATM water resistance
- Up to 11 days battery (smartwatch mode)
- GPS/GLONASS/Galileo, no barometric altimeter
Lowest price seen
$149.99
from $149.99 at eBay · Checked Oct 12, 2026
- eBay $149.99View at eBay
- gpsnation $269.99View at gpsnation
- heartratemonitorsusa $299.99View at heartratemonitorsusa
- GarminView at Garmin
- eBay (used) eBay: used, open-box, refurbishedView at eBay (used)
- Best BuyView at Best Buy
- TargetView at Target
- WalmartView at Walmart
- The Home DepotView at The Home Depot
- academyView at academy
- AmazonView at Amazon
Prices are snapshots. Check the current price with the store.
Summary
A fitness-first smartwatch with a bright 1.2-inch AMOLED screen, GPS and health coaching, aimed at people who want long battery life and sleep and recovery tracking rather than a large app store. Check the tracking before you buy: there is no barometric altimeter, so stairs and elevation are estimated from GPS.
Strengths
- Bright, responsive AMOLED display that stays readable outdoors.
- Strong battery life for the class, from 11 days rated to several days with heavy GPS use.
- Accurate heart rate in testing, tracking closely with chest straps and the Apple Watch Ultra 2.
- Sleep, nap, stress, HRV and Body Battery coaching without a subscription.
- Garmin Pay plus offline music from Spotify, Deezer and Amazon Music.
- Wheelchair mode and a wide set of workout profiles.
Weaknesses
- No barometric altimeter, so stairs and elevation gain are not tracked.
- The aluminum bezel feels less premium than the stainless steel on the Vivoactive 4.
- No ECG, speaker, microphone, voice assistant or cycling power meter support.
- Raise-to-wake was hit or miss in PCMag’s testing.
- The 11-day battery claim needs smartwatch mode; mixed use lands nearer 4 to 8 days.
- Garmin Connect splits features across two apps and has a learning curve.
Verified specifications
| Model | Garmin Vivoactive 5, fifth generation, 42mm only. |
|---|---|
| Display | 1.2-inch AMOLED touchscreen, 390 × 390 px. |
| Case | fiber-reinforced polymer with an anodized aluminum bezel; silicone band. |
| Glass | Corning Gorilla Glass 3. |
| Weight | 36 g (1.3 oz) with the band; 23 g (0.8 oz) without. |
| Dimensions | 1.66 × 1.66 × 0.44 in (HWD). |
| Water resistance | 5ATM. |
| Battery | up to 11 days in smartwatch mode; about 5 days with the always-on display; about 8 days in PCMag testing with 2–3 GPS workouts a week; 4 days in CNET testing with always-on, GPS workouts and sleep tracking. |
| GPS | GPS, GLONASS and Galileo; no barometric altimeter, so elevation comes from GPS. |
| Sensors | heart rate, pulse oximeter (SpO2), accelerometer and compass. |
| Workouts | more than 30 preloaded activities, plus wheelchair mode and nap tracking. |
| Music | offline storage via Spotify, Deezer and Amazon Music; 8GB on the watch. |
| Payments | Garmin Pay. |
| Notifications | Android and iOS; replies only on Android. |
| Band | 20mm quick-release. |
| Missing | no ECG, no irregular heart rhythm alerts, no speaker, microphone or voice assistant, and no cycling power meter support. |
Full research notes and sources
Battery life and real-world use
The 11-day figure assumes smartwatch mode, with no always-on display and no GPS workouts. Add always-on and the estimate drops to about 5 days; PCMag saw about 8 days with two or three GPS workouts a week, and CNET got 4 days with always-on, GPS and sleep tracking all running. Temperature, workout frequency, live viewing and battery age all move the number, so treat the headline as a best case.
Health and fitness tracking
PCMag found the optical heart rate roughly on par with an Apple Watch Ultra 2, and CNET rated it highly against a chest strap, with GPS that tracked an iPhone 15 closely. The watch logs sleep and naps automatically, plus stress, HRV and Body Battery, and covers more than 30 activities including a wheelchair mode. The gaps are the ones Garmin left out: no ECG or irregular heart rhythm alerts, no stair or elevation tracking without a barometer, and no cycling power meter support.
Which model this is
This page covers the Garmin Vivoactive 5, fifth generation of the Vivoactive line, released in 2023 in a single 42mm size. The variant here is the Ivory case with Cream Gold bezel, Garmin part 010-02862-11, ASIN B0CG6NBJ61. Do not confuse it with the Vivoactive 4 or 4S, the Venu 3, the Venu Sq 2 or the Lily 2, which share some sensors but use different hardware.
Is it worth it?
At list price of $299.99 the Vivoactive 5 sits between the Venu Sq 2 at $249.99 and the Venu 3 at $449. Street prices have run between $189 and $210 in 2026, with PCMag listing $189 at Walmart and $210 at Best Buy. Below $220 it is strong value for a fitness-first buyer; $220 to $260 is fair; above $280 the Venu 3 earns the extra money if you want a speaker, microphone and ECG.
Sources
Manufacturer:
Independent reviews:
- PCMag: Garmin Vivoactive 5 review
- CNET: Garmin Vivoactive 5 review
- CNET: Vivoactive 5 price during a June 2026 sale
- Tom’s Guide: best Garmin watches
Owner reports:
- No owner threads were collected for this model.
