The Garmin Forerunner 265 and 965 Are Both on Sale for Prime Day—Here’s How to Pick the Right One
• Two of Garmin’s best-ever running watches — the Forerunner 265 ($349.99) and 965 ($499.99) — are on Prime Day sale after being discontinued, and they’re still absolutely worth buying.
• Both watches share AMOLED displays, dual-band GPS, and a full Garmin training suite; the 965 adds maps, longer battery, and a titanium bezel for serious athletes, while the lighter 265 delivers nearly the same running experience for less.
• “Discontinued” doesn’t mean dead — Garmin watches are built to last for years, and these deals are a rare chance to get elite-level running tech at a serious discount.
Here’s the thing about Garmin watches: they don’t die. They just get replaced. The Forerunner 265 and Forerunner 965 have officially been succeeded by the newer 570 and 970, which means Garmin has moved on—and that means you get to swoop in on Prime Day and grab some of the best running watches ever made at genuinely excellent prices.
Garmin Forerunner 965
Garmin Forerunner 965
The Forerunner 265 is currently $349.99 (down from $449.99). The Forerunner 965 is $499.99 (down from $599.99). These aren’t crappy castoffs. These are the same watches that were at the top of our “best running watch” lists for the past three years, and they will absolutely log your miles, your splits, your heart rate, and your bad decisions for years to come.
I know this personally. I ran my fastest half marathon ever wearing the Forerunner 265 at age 40. The mid-tier one. The “discontinued” one. II used it to train, to track, to monitor my recovery, and it fed me my splits in real time, and did not once make me feel like I was running with anything less than a world-class piece of kit on my wrist.
What They Share (And It’s a Lot)
Both the 265 and 965 launched together in 2023 as Garmin’s first running watches to feature AMOLED touchscreens over the MIP screens and that vibrancy still holds up beautifully. Both have dual-band GPS for best-in-class accuracy in cities and under trees, plus the full Garmin training suite: VO2 max, Training Readiness, Body Battery, sleep tracking, race predictions, running dynamics, and lactate threshold data. Whether you’re in week one of a Couch-to-5K or chasing a Boston qualifier, either watch will meet you exactly where you are.
Feature | Garmin Forerunner 265 | Garmin Forerunner 965 |
|---|---|---|
Prime Day Price | $349.99 | $499.99 |
Display Size | 1.3-inch AMOLED | 1.4-inch AMOLED |
Weight | 47g | 53g |
Bezel Material | Fiber-reinforced polymer | Titanium bezel |
Battery (Smartwatch) | Over a week | Over two weeks |
Battery (GPS) | Up to 20 hours | Up to 31 hours |
Built-In Maps | ❌ No | ✅ Full-color topo maps |
Trail Running Features | Basic navigation | Advanced navigation + mapping |
Heat & Altitude Acclimation | ❌ No | ✅ Yes |
Real-Time Stamina | ❌ No | ✅ Yes |
Training Readiness | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
Dual-Band GPS | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
Running Dynamics | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
Best For | Road runners, half/full marathoners | Trail runners, ultras, triathletes |
Value Verdict | ⭐ Best value | ⭐ Best premium option |
Where They Diverge
The Forerunner 965 is the flagship for a reason. It sports a larger 1.4-inch AMOLED display, a titanium bezel that looks and feels more premium, and battery life that we found can go over two weeks with real use. It also has full topographic color maps plus exclusive features like real-time stamina insights and heat and altitude acclimatization tools. If you’re pushing your training to more demanding environments, the 965 is your watch.
The Forerunner 265 is lighter at 47 grams versus the 965’s 53, runs about 10-12 days in smartwatch mode and around 20 hours in GPS mode, and delivers a running experience that’s virtually identical to its bigger sibling for road athletes. No maps, fewer niche features—but the core training data, GPS accuracy, and health tracking are essentially the same.
Should You Worry About “Discontinued”?
Not really. Garmin has a long, well-documented history of supporting older devices for years. These watches will still sync, still track, still get your data into Garmin Connect without issue. You’re not getting the newest software features going forward, but you’re getting their killer hardware that the running community has trusted across hundreds of thousands of races. The Forerunner 235, for what it’s worth, was still the most popular running watch on Strava nearly eight years after launch. These things have legs (pun intended) which, when you think about it, is kind of the whole point.
The Bottom Line
Get the Forerunner 265 at $349.99 if you’re a road runner who wants elite-level training data without the flagship price tag. It’s the watch I wore to my 1:29 half. It is not playing around.
Get the Forerunner 965 at $499.99 if you need maps, more battery, and that titanium-bezel swagger — especially if you trail run or do multi-sport events where every extra feature earns its keep.
Either way: Prime Day, discontinued models, incredible prices. Your future PRs are waiting.
Buy the Forerunner 265 | Buy the Forerunner 965
Cat Bowen, senior editor of commerce; reviews, is a seasoned runner with more than 20 years of distance running experience, including dozens of marathons, half marathons, and even a few ultra marathons. For over a decade, she has tested parenting, fitness, home, and running gear and written in-depth guides to help readers with their next purchase. Holding multiple advanced degrees and currently studying kinesiology, Cat Bowen brings research-backed insight to all of her guides. Passionate about women’s health and neurodivergent inclusion, she advocates for closing research gaps and helping others—especially AudHD people—find joy in running and fitness.