Garmin Forerunner 265 vs COROS Pace 3: Which GPS Watch Wins?

Overview

The Garmin Forerunner 265 and COROS Pace 3 both offer multi-band GPS accuracy, but they target different priorities. The 265 is a feature-rich training and lifestyle watch with an AMOLED display, deep health metrics, and Garmin's ecosystem at $449. The Pace 3 is a stripped-down endurance tool at roughly half the price, built around long battery life and a weight that serious ultrarunners will notice on the wrist.

If you want a capable daily watch that looks good off the trail, the 265 is the pick. If you want the lightest, longest-lasting multi-band watch for racing and training, the Pace 3 is hard to beat at its price.

Specs at a glance

Price: Forerunner 265 ~$449 vs COROS Pace 3 ~$199 (EU ~€199)
GPS battery: 265 gets 13h multi-band / 20h standard; Pace 3 gets 20h multi-band / 38h standard GPS
Smartwatch battery: 265 ~13 days; Pace 3 ~30 days
Weight: 265 at 47g (265S: 39g) vs Pace 3 at 30g
Display: 265 uses a 1.3-inch AMOLED touchscreen; Pace 3 uses a MIP transflective always-on display
Controls: 265 has touchscreen plus buttons; Pace 3 is buttons only
Skin temperature sensor: 265 includes it; Pace 3 does not
GPS chipset: Both use multi-band GNSS with dual-frequency support across GPS, GLONASS, Galileo; Pace 3 also adds BeiDou

GPS and tracking accuracy

Both watches use multi-band dual-frequency GNSS, and real-world accuracy is close. In urban canyons and forested trails where single-band watches drift by 5 to 10 percent on distance, both the 265 and Pace 3 hold a clean line. Head-to-head on tight trail loops, recorded routes from both show tight track-following with minimal arc-drawing through trees.

The main difference is post-processing style. Garmin applies more aggressive data smoothing and map matching, which produces cleaner-looking routes but can obscure raw positional data. COROS is less interventionist, which some athletes prefer for honest split data. Neither approach is wrong, but high-precision trail racers may prefer the Pace 3's less filtered output.

Battery life

This is where the Pace 3 wins clearly. In multi-band GPS mode the Pace 3 lasts 20 hours versus the 265's 13 hours. Drop to standard GPS and the gap widens further: 38 hours on the Pace 3 versus 20 hours on the 265. For smartwatch use, the Pace 3 reaches 30 days versus 13 days on the 265.

In practical terms, the 265 covers a marathon, a long trail day, or an Olympic triathlon without stress. The Pace 3 covers 100-mile ultras, multi-day fastpacking trips, and back-to-back training weeks without a charger. If your longest effort is under 12 hours, the difference rarely matters. If you race ultras or travel without reliable charging access, the Pace 3's battery is a real advantage.

For athletes: who wins?

Road running: Tie. GPS accuracy is equivalent. The 265 gives you a better display for glancing at pace in daylight or dark. The Pace 3 costs half as much and weighs 17g less.
Trail and ultramarathon: COROS Pace 3. The 30g weight, 38-hour GPS battery, and always-on sunlight-readable MIP display make it the better tool for long efforts in the mountains. The 265's AMOLED screen washes out in direct sunlight.
Triathlon and multisport: Garmin Forerunner 265. Garmin's multisport mode, transition support, and deeper training load analytics give it an edge. The 265 also integrates cleanly with Garmin's broader ecosystem including power meters and cycling dynamics.
Recovery tracking: Garmin Forerunner 265, with caveats. The 265 includes skin temperature sensing and Garmin's Body Battery metric. However, independent testing found its wrist optical PPG-derived HRV data unsuitable for serious athlete monitoring. The Pace 3 offers HRV tracking too, but neither watch replaces a dedicated HRV tool or chest strap for precision recovery data. The 265 edges ahead on the volume of metrics, not necessarily their research-grade reliability.

Verdict

For most serious runners, the COROS Pace 3 is the better buy. It costs $250 less, weighs 17g less, lasts nearly three times as long in GPS mode, and matches the 265 on the metric that matters most: positioning accuracy. The MIP display is less pretty than the 265's AMOLED screen, but it stays readable in full sun and never needs brightness management during a race.

Buy the Garmin Forerunner 265 if you want Garmin's full ecosystem, use multisport or triathlon modes regularly, train primarily indoors or in low-light conditions where the AMOLED display earns its keep, or simply want a watch that functions well as a daily smartwatch. Buy the COROS Pace 3 if you race trails, run ultras, travel light, or want serious multi-band GPS accuracy without the premium price tag.