Garmin Forerunner 255 vs Garmin Forerunner 745: Which Should You Choose?

By Linus T.
Updated May 2023

Garmin updated its Forerunner 200 Series with the launch of the new Garmin Forerunner 255 in June 2022, upgrading a fair bit of its internal sensors.

With the Garmin Forerunner 745 as a higher-tier model released two years ago, how does it fare against the new Garmin Forerunner 255?

We compare the two smartwatches in our Garmin Forerunner 255 vs Garmin Forerunner 745 review.

Garmin Forerunner 255

All-new sensors and specs

Equipped with multi-band GNSS and Garmin's new V4 Elevate Heart Rate Sensor

Buy on Amazon

Garmin Forerunner 745

Make your runs count

An advanced running & triathlon smartwatch with detailed training stats, daily workout suggestions, music, and much more

Buy on Amazon

#1 Price

Garmin Forerunner 255

Looking at price points, the Garmin Forerunner 255 and Garmin Forerunner 745 are now rather similarly priced as the Forerunner 745 generally sells at a discount being an older model. That said, depending on the given promotion, the Forerunner 745 will still cost tens of dollars more than the Forerunner 255.

You should also bear in mind that the Forerunner 255 is available in 2 types — a Music and a Non-Music version, which has a price difference of tens of dollars.

#2 Design & Display

Garmin Forerunner 255

The Garmin Forerunner 255 is available in two sizes — the Forerunner 255 and Forerunner 255S (smaller sized). The Forerunner 255 has a screen size of 1.3” and a resolution of 260 x 260 px, while the Forerunner 255S comes with a 1.1” screen size and 218 x 218 px resolution.

Comparatively, the Garmin Forerunner 745 has a 1.2” screen size and 240 x 240 px resolution, falling in between the two Forerunner 255 models.

Both smartwatches also have a round face with 5 buttons around the watch to control all features and settings on the watch. They both do not come built-in with a touchscreen function and both also use a sunlight-visible, transflective memory-in-pixel (MIP) display.

That said, the Forerunner 745 comes with a more premium Corning Gorilla Glass DX screen versus the Corning Gorilla Glass 3 found in the Forerunner 255, which just makes the Forerunner 745 slightly less reflective.

#3 Health & Fitness Features

Garmin Forerunner 745

The Garmin Forerunner 255 comes enhanced with multi-band GNSS SatIQ technology to provide the most accurate location tracking possible. The Forerunner 745 does not come with Multi-Band but generally is still accurate.

It also comes built with Garmin’s new Elevate V4 Heart Rate Sensor, which has a little more light sensor to give greater accuracy for heart rate and blood oxygen measurements. This lets the smartwatch deliver Heart Rate Variability (HRV) data which tracks the difference in time between your heartbeat at night.

Garmin Forerunner 745

Make your runs count

An advanced running & triathlon smartwatch with detailed training stats, daily workout suggestions, music, and much more

Buy on Amazon

The Garmin Forerunner 255 also comes with a few new Sports Modes such as HIIT, eBiking & Mountain Biking, which are not present in the Forerunner 745. On the hand, the Garmin Forerunner 745 comes with Backcountry Skiing, XC Skate Skiing & Kayaking Sports Modes. Though this may not be a dealbreaker for most, if there’s a specific mode you’re looking for then that may sway your decision.

One feature found in the Garmin Forerunner 745 and not in the Forerunner 255 is ClimbPro. The ClimbPro feature is useful when traversing hilly terrain. It helps dissect and divide parts of your climb and inform you of the remaining distance and gradient, which then guides your pacing.

Garmin Forerunner 255

All-new sensors and specs

Equipped with multi-band GNSS and Garmin's new V4 Elevate Heart Rate Sensor

Buy on Amazon

#4 Smartwatch Functions

Garmin Forerunner 745

The Garmin Forerunner 255 and Forerunner 745 both come with similar basic smartwatch functions you need like safety tracking, smart notifications, and everyday utility tools. They both also have built-in NFC to power the Garmin Pay feature.

#5 Battery & Power

Garmin Forerunner 255

The Garmin Forerunner 255 has a much more efficient battery life compared to the Garmin Forerunner 745. In smartwatch mode, the Garmin Forerunner 255 can last you up to 14 days on a full charge while the Forerunner 745 will only last you up to 7 days. On other modes like GPS mode, the Forerunner 255 will also last twice as long as the Forerunner 745.

The Garmin Forerunner 255 definitely beats the Forerunner 745 when it comes to battery life, having almost double the battery life in general. However, you might not find this to be a huge dealbreaker as both smartwatches can last you up to a week without charging.

Compare Garmin Forerunner 255 vs Garmin Forerunner 745

Final Thoughts

When it comes to the Garmin Forerunner 255 vs Garmin Forerunner 745, it seems like the Forerunner 255 is basically the Forerunner 745 with new sensors & features. The only drawback is that the Forerunner 255 does not have the ClimbPro feature found in the Forerunner 745.

With better sensors and newer features, we believe it is a wiser choice to stick with the Garmin Forerunner 255 here. You’ll also save a couple of dollars in the process.

If you like to read more on Garmin smartwatches, check out our other relevant guides here:

Garmin Forerunner 255 vs Garmin Forerunner 245

Garmin Forerunner 255 vs Garmin Venu 2

Garmin Venu Sq 2 vs Garmin Venu 2

Garmin Venu 2 vs Garmin Venu Sq

Garmin Venu 2 vs Garmin Vivoactive 4

Garmin Vivoactive 4 vs Garmin Venu

Explore the full collection for Garmin on Amazon.com or visit the Official Garmin Singapore Store.