VO2 Max: Garmin, Apple, COROS, Suunto, Polar, Pixel, Amazfit or Samsung? (Scientific Review)
In a Nutshell
Preliminary scientific study compares VO2 max estimates from Garmin, COROS, Suunto, Polar, Apple Watch, Samsung Galaxy Watch, Google Pixel Watch, and Amazfit against lab reference tests on two participants (Raphael and Stefan), using standardized running protocols with external HR straps where possible. Samsung leads overall accuracy for both (closest to Raphael's 52.8 and Stefan's 49 running references), followed by Polar and COROS; Garmin performs well for Stefan but underestimates for Raphael; Suunto and Apple lag farthest, often under- or overestimating significantly. Early data highlights device inconsistencies across individuals—treat wearable VO2 max as a personal trend indicator, not absolute truth; full results from 20+ participants expected in 9 months.
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Today we're comparing the VO2 max from eight different wearables to the VO2 max from actual reference testing. This is the start of an ongoing study with equal measurements per device and multiple devices per person. We will specifically look at Garmin, COROS, Suunto, Polar, Apple, Samsung, Google, and Amazfit. This is preliminary data. We've just started and we'll have many more participants; the full data set will probably take at least nine more months to mature. The early results were already super interesting. Data from two colleagues, Raphael and Stefan, who didn't mind being deanonymized for this video. The point is to be very data-driven.
I'm Rob, a post-doctoral scientist specializing in biological data analysis.
VO2 max is a measure of how much oxygen your body can use at maximum effort, usually reported as milliliters of oxygen per kilogram of body weight per minute. In a lab test, it's measured using respiratory gas analysis during an exercise that gets progressively harder.
Wearables don't measure oxygen directly. They infer VO2 max using a mixture of heart rate responses, pace, power proxies, GPS, and proprietary models. The question is: when your wearable gives you a number, how close is it to a reference device and how consistent is it over time?
Each person gets two reference measurements: a running VO2 max reference and a cycling VO2 max reference, all measured at the Sports Medicine Institute in Vienna. For watches, we're looking at running VO2 max since many only measure that. Cycling test added because it might be higher in some people more used to cycling and closer to their true VO2 max. For some comparisons, both are used; for others, just running VO2 max.
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