Galaxy Watch 7 vs. Galaxy Watch Ultra: Which Samsung Watch Is Better? (2024)

Samsung has two new smartwatches in 2024, and one is a pretty big departure from the company's usual offerings. On the more standard side, there's the Galaxy Watch 7. On the extreme end, there's the new Galaxy Watch Ultra. The former is a familiar smartwatch with some new fitness tricks compared with the Galaxy Watch 6. The latter is an ultra-rugged smartwatch with a titanium body and a feature set that's more than a little reminiscent of the Apple Watch Ultra. We're in the process of testing both watches now, but here's how they stack up on paper.

Full Specs

Ruggedness

First, let's get the most obvious differences out of the way: The Galaxy Watch 7 is a standard Galaxy Watch. It's sleek, with a smooth aluminum body. It's IP68-rated and 5ATM waterproof, which means it can survive depths in water up to 50 meters or 164 feet for up to 10 minutes. It also has MIL-STD-810H certification and has been tested to function between -4 to 122 degrees Fahrenheit. It's a sturdy watch.

Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra (Credit: Eric Zeman)

The Galaxy Watch Ultra goes further. It has a 10ATM waterproof rating, so you can dive up to 100 meters or 328 feet deep. It also has a titanium body that's much sturdier than aluminum or steel, so it should be able to take a significant beating. The Watch Ultra has MIL-STD-810H certification, just like the Galaxy Watch 7, but apart from sharing the same operational temperature range, Samsung has not clarified any other unique criteria from that certification. Still, Samsung makes it clear that this is the watch designed for ocean swimming, deep diving, and mountain climbing.

Winner: Galaxy Watch Ultra

Price

This is the second most obvious difference between the two Galaxy Watch models, and it's a big one. The Galaxy Watch 7 starts at $299.99. The Galaxy Watch Ultra starts at $649.99. That's more than double the price, but it's a typical jump between a standard smartwatch and an ultra-ruggedized smartwatch. For comparison, the Apple Watch Series 9 starts at $399 and the Apple Watch Ultra starts at $799.

Winner: Galaxy Watch 7

Fitness and Health

If you work out regularly—and that doesn't include diving or mountain climbing—the Galaxy Watch 7 and Galaxy Watch Ultra are pretty much equally well-equipped. They're both loaded with fitness features built around Samsung's BioActive sensor, which rolls together heart rate monitoring, blood oxygen level monitoring, and even body composition and body fat levels through bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA). It also adds advanced glycation end products (AGEs) index tracking to give a more detailed picture of your metabolism. Additionally, Samsung claims the new watches' BioActive sensor is simply more accurate than the one found in previous models.

Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra (Credit: Eric Zeman)

The Galaxy Watch Ultra has all of the same features as the Galaxy Watch 7, with three small additions. First, it has a multi-sports tile for tracking workouts that run through several courses, like training for a triathlon. Second, it can measure your Functional Threshold Power (FTP) when cycling, giving a pedal-specific fitness metric. Finally, it has an 85dB emergency siren if you get lost or into trouble.

Winner: Galaxy Watch Ultra

Connectivity

Both Galaxy Watches are as full of connection options and features as other smartwatches. They both support dual-band Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.3, NFC for mobile payments, and optional LTE connectivity for data. Their GPS features have been significantly improved, with dual-frequency L1+L5 GPS that can track your position much more precisely than the L1-only GPS found on most smartwatches and phones. This puts the two Galaxy Watches on even footing with each other, but it also makes the Galaxy Watch 7 one of the cheapest smartwatches available to have dual-frequency GPS; on Apple's side of the fence, only the Ultra 2 has L5 GPS tracking.

Winner: Tie

Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 (Credit: Eric Zeman)

Size and Weight

Here's no surprise: The regular smartwatch is smaller. The Galaxy Watch 7 is available in 40mm and 44mm versions that weigh 1.02 and 1.19 ounces, respectively. The Galaxy Watch Ultra only comes in a huge 47mm model and is twice as heavy at 2.13 ounces. Titanium weighs more than aluminum, and there's a lot more of it on the Ultra.

Winner: Galaxy Watch 7

Screen

Surprisingly, the Galaxy Watch Ultra's bigger size doesn't translate into a bigger screen. It has a 1.5-inch, 480-by-480 Super AMOLED screen, just like the 44mm Galaxy Watch 7. The 40mm Watch 7 has a smaller 1.3-inch, 432-by-432 screen. The Ultra can get much brighter, though, with a claimed peak brightness of 3,000 nits. Samsung didn't specify the Galaxy Watch 7's peak light output, but it's likely the same 2,000 nits as the Galaxy Watch 6.

Winner: Galaxy Watch Ultra (Barely)

Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 (Credit: Eric Zeman)

Power

The two watches are identical on this front. Both the Galaxy Watch 7 and Galaxy Watch Ultra use a five-core Exynos W1000 processor with 2GB memory and 32GB of storage. They both run Wear OS 5 with Samsung's One UI 6 interface.

Winner: Tie

Battery

Even if you don't dive or climb, the Galaxy Watch Ultra might appeal to you because of its much bigger battery. It has a 590mAh battery, while the 44mm Galaxy Watch 7 has 425mAh, and the 40mm model has a downright puny 300mAh cell. According to Samsung, the Ultra has the longest battery life of any Galaxy Watch yet and can last between 48 and 100 hours in its different power-saving modes. Since all three have the same processor, it will come down to screen brightness and time spent tracking GPS activities that impact battery life the most.

Winner: Galaxy Watch Ultra

Which Watch Is Better?

We will have detailed reviews of both watches soon, but for now, it seems clear that these are two similar watches designed for different use cases. The Galaxy Watch 7 is a much more affordable, general-purpose smartwatch that can handle most workouts and normal day-to-day use. The Galaxy Watch Ultra is a heavy-duty wearable designed for climbers, mountaineers, and divers. It's more rugged and a lot more expensive, so it's specifically appealing if you need that extra toughness from your smartwatch, along with a brighter screen and bigger battery.

Check back soon for our full reviews.