Forerunner 265 continues to be the mainstay for a midrange Forerunner smartwatch series.
Forerunner 255 is no longer available on the Garmin website. Forerunner 265 is the only 2xx series Forerunner available now.
If you had a Forerunner 255, should you upgrade to the Forerunner 265? Let us have a look at a quick comparison between Forerunner 265 and Forerunner 255 below.
(This comparison has been redone on 17 April 2025. In less than 3 minutes, you can figure out if you need a Forerunner 265 over a Forerunner 255.)
Main differences
A brief list of differences between the Forerunner 265 and Forerunner 255 is shared below. We do discuss these features in detail as well.
- Forerunner 265 has AMOLED display while the Forerunner 255 works with the MIP (memory-in-pixel) screen display.
- Wi-Fi wireless connectivity has been added to the Forerunner 265. Both watches do have ANT+ and Bluetooth wireless connectivity as well.
- Forerunner 265 has a device memory of 8 GB and Forerunner 255 has a device memory of 4 GB.
- Forerunner 255 does not have the ability to store music locally on the watch. In fact, no music capability is possible on the Forerunner 255.
- Ambient light sensor has been added to the Forerunner 265 smartwatch.
- Spectator messaging safety feature has also been added to the Forerunner 265 smartwatch.
Now, we will discuss these important differences in detail. This should help you make a decision about picking the Forerunner 265 or 255 smartwatch.
Display technology
Forerunner 265’s biggest addition has to be the AMOLED display on the watch. AMOLED display improved display clarity and brightness of the watch display.
Due to the AMOLED display, a Forerunner 265 is able to support the Always-on-display or the AOD feature on the watch.
Additionally, the AMOLED display improves the display resolution of the Forerunner 265 significantly.
- Forerunner 265 has a display resolution of 416 x 416 pixels while the Forerunner 255 has a display resolution of 260 x 260 pixels. In percent terms, the display resolution of the Forerunner 265 is almost 60% over the Forerunner 255 smartwatch.
One important difference between the Forerunner 265 and 255 lies in the fact that the Forerunner 265 supports a touchscreen feature while the Forerunner 255 does not have a touchscreen feature.
The Touchscreen feature improves the user experience on the Forerunner 265 to a great extent.
Both watches support color display on the display screen.
Music
The good thing about Forerunner 265 is that it supports full-fledged music features. What this means is that the Forerunner 265 could do each of these music features:
- You can store music files locally on the watch. It has 8 GB device storage to store music files.
- You can control and play music on the watch.
- You can use music streaming apps (for example, Spotify and Deezer) to listen to offline music.
- You can also control music on the paired smartphone.
Forerunner 255 does not have any sort of music functionality. Forerunner 255 Music is a special edition of the Forerunner 255 smartwatch that supports music. So, if you are keen on the Forerunner 255 range and want music, you may go for the Forerunner 255 Music edition watches.
Battery
Forerunner 265 comes with the AMOLED display. AMOLED display consumes more battery than a MIP or memory-in-pixel screen.
However, we find that there is no significant difference between the battery life of Forerunner 265 and Forerunner 255.
The table below compares battery levels for Forerunner 265 and Forerunner 255 in different watch modes.
| Watch mode | Forerunner 265 Battery life | Forerunner 255 Battery life |
|---|---|---|
| Smartwatch | up to 13 days | up to 14 days |
| GPS only mode | up to 20 hours | up to 30 hours |
| All systems GNSS mode | up to 16 hours | up to 25 hours |
| All systems GNSS + Multi-band | up to 14 hours | up to 16 hours |
Clearly, battery capacity is almost equivalent for the Forerunner 265 and Forerunner 255 smartwatches. We feel that battery difference does not become a distinguishing factor between the Forerunner 265 and Forerunner 255 smartwatches.
Safety features
Safety features are an important part of the watch for runners. Forerunner 265 and 255 support:
- Incident detection
- Live Tracking of the wearer of the watch
However, the safety feature of spectator messaging is only available on the Forerunner 265. Spectator messaging is a safety feature that allows your Live Track followers to send you audio and text messages.
Spectator messaging is very useful when you are out in a remote area for a trail run or hiking expedition.
Table of comparison
Apart from the major feature differences stated above, the Forerunner 265 and 255 share most features. We list some important features of the Forerunner 265 and 255 range of smartwatches below.
| Feature | Forerunner 265 | Forerunner 255 |
|---|---|---|
| iOS or iPhone compatibility | Yes | Yes |
| Android compatibility | Yes | Yes |
| Watch size | 46.1 mm x 46.1 mm x 12.9 mm | 46.1 mm x 46.1 mm x 12.9 mm |
| Display diameter | 32.5 mm | 33 mm |
| Display tech | AMOLED | MIP or memory-in-pixel |
| Display resolution | 416 x 416 pixels | 260 x 260 pixels |
| Color display | Yes | Yes |
| Touchscreen | Yes | No |
| Display glass | Corning Gorilla Glass 3 | Corning Gorilla Glass 3 |
| Watch body material | Fiber-enforced polymer | Fiber-enforced polymer |
| Bezel material | Fiber-enforced polymer | Fiber-enforced polymer |
| Weight | 47 g | 49 g |
| Band size | 22 mm | 22 mm |
| Band material | Silicone | Silicone |
| Water rating | 5 ATM | 5 ATM |
| Swim-proof | Yes | Yes |
| Heart Sensor | Garmin Elevate | Garmin Elevate |
| Heart rate monitoring | Yes | Yes |
| Daily Average Heart Rate | Yes | Yes |
| Abnormal Heart rate alerts | Yes | Yes |
| PulseOx Blood oxygenation tracking | Yes | Yes |
| Temperature sensor | Yes | Yes |
| Respiration rate monitoring | Yes | Yes |
| Stress monitoring | Yes | Yes |
| Body Battery score | Yes | Yes |
| Accelerometer | Yes | Yes |
| Gyroscope | Yes | Yes |
| Barometric altimeter | Yes | Yes |
| Thermometer | Yes | Yes |
| Ambient light sensor | Yes | No |
| Compass | Yes | Yes |
| GPS | GPS, GLONASS, Galileo | GPS, GLONASS, Galileo |
| Multi-band GPS | Yes | Yes |
| Wireless connectivity | Bluetooth, ANT+, Wi-Fi | Bluetooth, ANT+ |
| NFC | Garmin Pay | Garmin Pay |
| Swimming profiles | Pool and open water profiles | Pool and open water profiles |
| Cycling profiles | Yes | Yes |
| Running profiles | Yes | Yes |
| Training analysis features | Yes | Yes |
| Outdoor recreation profiles | Yes | Yes |
| Golf support | No | No |
| Gym Profiles | Yes | Yes |
Closing thoughts
The two most significant improvements in Forerunner 265 over the Forerunner 255 are:
- AMOLED display and AOD or Always-on-display is a very useful feature. And, I am willing to spend incremental money to get the AMOLED display on my running watch.
- Music feature of the Forerunner 265 makes it a compelling choice over the Forerunner 255 smartwatch