Approach S50 costs £349.99 / $399.99 and Approach S44 costs £259.99 / $299.99, so the question is what the extra £90, or $100, buys. Both launched on 21 January 2025 with the same 43mm case, the same 1.2 inch 390 by 390 AMOLED touchscreen, the same Gorilla Glass 3 lens and anodised aluminium bezel, 4GB of storage, and the same 10 days of battery and 15 hours of golf. The extra money buys a heart rate sensor, PlaysLike distance without a subscription, and 13g off the wrist, and almost nothing that changes a round of golf.
On the course they are almost the same watch
A round plays the same on either watch, because the golf features are shared:
- 43,000 preloaded courses with automatic CourseView updates
- Yardages to the front, middle, and back of the green, plus layups and doglegs
- Hazards, course targets, custom targets, and PinPointer for blind shots
- Green View with a manual pin position
- Garmin AutoShot, with Approach CT1 and CT10 club tracking through accessories
- Digital scorecard with handicap scoring, and stat tracking for strokes, putts, greens, and fairways
- Swing tempo, a round timer, and Tournament Mode
Neither has the Virtual Caddie, because Garmin keeps club recommendations for the flagship tier, so a golfer who wants them is looking at the S72 or a discounted S70. Everything else that separates the two watches happens away from the course.
The sensor decides what the watch does on the other six days
The S50 offers far more health and fitness tracking than the S44 because it has wrist heart rate and Pulse Ox sensors, which the S44 lacks. Those sensors bring Body Battery, HRV status, sleep tracking with a sleep coach, Morning Report, all-day stress, Health Snapshot, Fitness Age, and VO2 Max, along with Garmin Coach training plans and strength and HIIT workouts with on-screen animations, a muscle map, and automatic rep counting. By comparison, the S44 tracks only steps, calories, distance, and intensity minutes.
The activity list follows the same pattern. The S44 has five profiles, Golfing, Running, Indoor Track Running, Biking, and Indoor Biking, while the S50 adds pool swimming with underwater heart rate, a gym set covering strength, HIIT, cardio, rowing, and yoga, eight racket sports, twelve team sports, four winter sports, and paddleboarding, rowing, and kayaking. A golfer who plays on Saturday and leaves the watch in a drawer for the rest of the week gains nothing from any of that, whereas a golfer who wears it every day is buying a different product.
PlaysLike is the only subscription the S50 removes
Both watches need a Garmin Golf membership for the full vector hole map, touch targeting, and green contours, so the subscription question does not go away by paying more. The one difference is PlaysLike distance, which the S50 includes in the price and the S44 only offers with the membership. PlaysLike is the feature most golfers notice first on a hilly course, because it adjusts the yardage for the slope rather than giving the flat distance, and on the S50 it works from the first round without any further payment.
Neither watch has a barometric altimeter, so both take the elevation from the course data rather than measuring it on the wrist. The Approach S72 and S70 do have a barometer, which is why Garmin describes their version as enhanced.
Weight and fit
The S50 weighs 29g on its ComfortFit nylon band, 13g less than the S44 on silicone, and because that is close to a third of the watch’s weight most owners feel the difference through a swing. The S50 also comes in two band lengths, 127 to 190mm and 145 to 217mm, so it fits a small wrist and a large one properly, whereas the S44 ships with a single strap covering 125 to 202mm. Both take 20mm industry-standard quick release bands, so either can be swapped.
Connections, music, and payments
The S50 connects over Bluetooth, ANT+, Wi-Fi, and NFC, and each of those does a job the S44 cannot. Wi-Fi downloads course updates without the phone, NFC runs Garmin Pay, and the 4GB of storage holds music for Bluetooth headphones, while ANT+ pairs speed and cadence sensors and broadcasts heart rate to a bike computer or a treadmill. The S44 has Bluetooth LE only, so course updates come through the phone and music plays from the phone rather than the watch.
Specifications compared
| Approach S50 | Approach S44 | |
|---|---|---|
| Price at launch | £349.99 / $399.99 | £259.99 / $299.99 |
| Case and screen | 43 x 43 x 11.4mm, 1.2 inch 390 x 390 AMOLED, identical on both | |
| Weight | 29g, ComfortFit nylon | 42g, silicone |
| Band sizes | Two lengths, 127 to 190mm and 145 to 217mm | One strap, 125 to 202mm |
| Heart rate | Garmin Elevate, plus Pulse Ox | None |
| PlaysLike distance | Included | Garmin Golf membership |
| Full vector hole map | Garmin Golf membership | Garmin Golf membership |
| Activity profiles | Gym, running, cycling, swimming, racket, team, and winter sports | Golf, running, and cycling, five in total |
| Connectivity | Bluetooth, ANT+, Wi-Fi, NFC | Bluetooth LE |
| Music and Garmin Pay | Both | Phone music control only |
| Battery | 10 days smartwatch, 15 hours golf, identical on both | |
Which to buy
Buy the S44 if the watch comes out of the bag on the first tee and goes back in at the nineteenth. It gives the same yardages, hole information, and shot tracking as the S50 on the same screen for £90 less, and the only extra cost to plan for is a Garmin Golf membership if your course is hilly enough to want PlaysLike.
Buy the S50 if the watch stays on your wrist. The heart rate sensor makes it a daily training and health device as well as a golf watch, 29g is light enough to sleep in, and the two band lengths matter if your wrist is at either end of the range. It is also the only one of the two that can record a swim, a gym session, or a game of tennis.
Garmin Approach S50
Golf yardages plus heart rate, sleep and training tracking in a 29g watch you can wear all week.
Garmin Approach S44
Essential course yardages on a bright AMOLED screen for golfers who want the numbers and nothing else.
RRP $299.99
£259.00, €278.49
- use code:
Get it nowOrder now – Garmin Approach S44 Also sold direct byThe Garmin Approach upgrade guide covers the full range if you are coming from an older Approach, and the Garmin watch specifications database has the complete figures for both. Garmin lists them on its Approach S50 product page.
Quick answers
Is the Approach S50 worth $100 more than the S44?
It is if you wear the watch off the course. The S50 adds a heart rate sensor, and with it sleep tracking, Body Battery, HRV status, VO2 Max, training plans, and more than twenty extra sports. On the course, the two watches are nearly identical.
Does the Approach S44 have a heart rate sensor?
No. The S44 counts steps, calories, distance, and intensity minutes, and has no wrist heart rate or Pulse Ox sensor. The S50 has both.
Do the Approach S50 and S44 need a Garmin Golf membership?
Both need it for the full vector hole map, touch targeting, and green contours. The S44 also needs it for PlaysLike distance, which the S50 includes.
Which Approach watch is lighter, the S50 or the S44?
The S50 at 29g, against 42g for the S44. The S50 also comes in two band lengths where the S44 has one.
Last Updated on 30 October 2026 by tfk the5krunner
Small things I always use
- Garmin 90-degree charging adapter: Charges your Garmin from any USB-C cable. Essential when travelling. I use one.
- Body Glide: The blue anti-chafe stick swimmers and runners carry. I use it.
- Speedo earplugs: Fewer ear infections and no cold-water dizziness. I use them.
- Dryrobe Advance: My winter changing robe for open-water swims. I use one. A cheaper option is the AONYIYI changing robe.
- Maurten: Race fuel that stays easy on the stomach. I use them.
- Beet It Sport nitrate shots: Beetroot shots I take in the days before a race. I use them.
- Garmin charging puck: The quickest way to top up before a session. I use one.
- Injinji: Toe socks that stop rubbing, so you run more. I use them.
- Ultimate toe protectors: Stop black toenails on long runs. They work. I use them.
- Compressport R2 v2 calf sleeves: My calf sleeves of choice. I use them.
- Cellucor C4: My pre-workout before hard sessions.
- TPU tubes: Schwalbe Aerothan, Tubolito and Pirelli SmarTube. Light, tiny spares. I use all three.
- G8 insoles: Adjustable insoles that are good. I use them.
- Cycplus Cube: A 97g electric pump that gets a road tyre rideable in two minutes. I carry one. 5% off with code THE5KRUNNER.
Watches and sensors
- Polar H10: My daily driver for waking HRV.
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- Nomad bedside charger: Charges my iPhone and Apple Watch overnight. I use it, and many of their bands.
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- Apple Watch Ultra 4: My daily smartwatch. No phone needed on rides.
- Garmin Fenix 9 Pro: I’ve just bought one.
On the bike
- Continental GP5000 for everyday riding, and Aero 111 on the front for special occasions.
- Helmets: Specialized S-Works Evade 3 for road riding, and Rudy Project Wing for TT-style races. I use both.
- Ravemen FR300: A front light that mounts under your Garmin or Wahoo. I use one.
- Wahoo TRACKR Radar: I use it on one bike and Varia on the other. They perform the same.
- Garmin Varia RTL515: Radar that warns you of cars from behind. I use this model.
- Wahoo ELEMNT Roam 3: The bike computer that’s easy to use. I use mine on most rides.
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Home and indoor training
- NPE Runn: Makes my basic treadmill smart, sending more accurate speed and distance to my watch and Zwift. I use it.
- Google Wifi: Keeps Zwift connected in my pain cave. I use it.
- Apple TV 4K: Zwift on the big screen. I use two.
- Google Nest Doorbell (wired, 2nd gen): My video doorbell, running in both Google Home and Apple Home. I use it.
Health, recovery and sleep
- FreeStyle Libre 3 Plus: Shows how my blood sugar responds to diet.
- hDrop: Measures my sweat loss in summer and indoors.
- Fourth Frontier Zone: Checks my heart under load in hard sessions.
- Oura Ring 5: My partner’s recovery tracker of choice.
- Eight Sleep: A cooling mattress cover my partner and I use nightly.
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tfk is the founder and author of the5krunner, an independent endurance sports technology publication. With 20 years of hands-on testing of GPS watches and wearables, and competing in triathlons at an international age-group level, tfk provides in-depth expert analysis of fitness technology for serious athletes and endurance sport competitors. See the gear tfk uses. ID
