Do You Really Need a GPS Watch for Day Hikes? My Honest Take

Somewhere on the Tour du Mont Blanc — day three or four, between a brutal climb and a descent my knees hadn't forgiven me for yet — I looked around at my group and realized I was the only one without a GPS watch. Everyone else had a Garmin or Apple Watch strapped to their wrist, glancing at stats and comparing elevation.

What I had was my iPhone with the Strava app installed. And you know what? It was fine. I finished the TMB without a GPS watch and kept up with the group. 

I didn't buy a watch until about two to three years later. And when I did, it was mostly because I started running (and purchased a Garmin Forerunner 955), not because of hiking. But I do use it on trails now, and I don't regret it.

In this article, you’ll find my actual, honest take on whether you need one for your day hikes.

What a GPS watch actually does

A GPS watch tracks your position using satellites, records your route, shows your elevation in real time, and, depending on the model, monitors your heart rate, pace, and estimated time to destination. Some also offer breadcrumb navigation, which lets you retrace your steps if you get turned around.

What it doesn't do is make decisions for you. It won't tell you the trail is washed out ahead. It won't warn you that the easy path on the map is actually a scramble over loose rock. And it won't replace knowing how to read the landscape around you.

A lot of people buy GPS watches thinking they're buying safety. What they're actually buying is data. That's not a bad thing, but it's worth understanding the difference before you spend €300–600 on this device.

Photo by Deyan Georgiev: https://www.pexels.com/photo/close-up-shot-of-a-black-watch-11136243/

When does buying a GPS watch for hiking make sense?

There are real situations when a GPS watch earns its place on your wrist. 

1. You're hiking solo with no signal

On popular trails in Portugal or the Canaries, you'll usually have some phone coverage. But go off the beaten path or higher in the mountains, and your signal might disappear. A GPS watch works independently of mobile networks. That matters when you're alone.

2. The trail signage is unreliable

Some of the most beautiful hikes may have terrible markers. Faded paint on rocks, missing signs at forks, paths that branch in three directions with no indication of which one continues. A watch showing your position on a preloaded map is genuinely useful here.

3. You want accurate elevation data

Phone apps estimate elevation using GPS, which can be inconsistent. Hiking watches with altimeter are significantly more accurate, which is important if you're planning a serious ascent and want to know how much climb is left.

4. You're training, not just hiking

If you also do fitness or run, a GPS watch starts to make a lot of sense. Tracking heart rate, effort, and comparing sessions over time is what these watches are built for. Your phone can do some of it, but glancing at your wrist mid-climb is a lot easier than pulling out your phone.

5. You're doing a multi-day trek

On something like the TMB, you cover serious distance day after day. A GPS watch logs everything automatically without draining your phone battery. At the end of each day, you can see exactly what you put your body through without worrying that your phone’s battery is out.

When your phone is honestly enough for day hikes

For the vast majority of day hikes, your phone with an offline map app is completely sufficient. I'd even say it's better in some ways, because the screen is larger, easier to read, and the maps are often more detailed.

Photo by Los Muertos Crew: https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-in-blue-denim-jeans-sitting-on-a-rock-6838939/

The apps worth knowing:

• AllTrails: the most popular one. Choose a trail, follow the green line, done. The free version covers most needs; Pro unlocks offline maps and more details.
• Wikiloc: you'll find community-uploaded routes for trails that don't appear anywhere else. Incredibly useful for regional hiking.
• Komoot: great for planning and navigation, particularly if you want to build your own route and follow it turn by turn.

The real cost of a GPS watch for hiking nobody mentions

Let's talk about what a GPS watch actually costs — and I don't just mean the price tag.

The good entry-level options (Garmin Instinct, Coros Pace) start around €250–300. Mid-range watches with full mapping hit €400–500. The premium stuff goes well beyond that. That's a meaningful spend.

But there's also the time cost. Learning the interface, syncing it with your phone, remembering to charge it every few days (Apple Watch, for example, requires charging every 3-4 days), updating the maps, and figuring out why it didn't record the last 20 minutes of your hike. These are small things, but they add up, especially if you're already managing many devices and cables related to your remote work setup.

There's also the mental overhead of wearing something on your wrist that's constantly measuring you. Some people love that (and I'm totally fine with it too). Some people find it stressful. Know which one you are before you buy.

Do I need a GPS watch for hiking? My honest verdict

I bought a GPS watch. I use it and don't regret it. However, I also don't think it was necessary for at least half the hikes I was doing before I got it.

A GPS watch is a tool that rewards people who push into harder, more remote, less forgiving terrain. If that's where you're headed, it's worth every cent. If you're doing beautiful but accessible trails, your phone, fully charged, with AllTrails downloaded, will serve you just as well.

Don't let the gear be the adventure. Get outside first. Upgrade when you actually need this.

Planning your next hike? Check out our guides on hiking Mount Teide at night and how to book Madeira's trails through Simplifica. And if you're still sorting out footwear, we rounded up the top 5 hiking shoes worth buying in 2026.