Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 vs Fitbit Versa 2 [9 Aspects Compared]

Are you confused choosing between the Galaxy Active 2 and the Fitbit Versa 2? To help you pick the right one, I used both the watches for a 317 hours for various factors including sensor accuracy, battery life, technical specifications, etc and here’s an in-depth comparison based on my experience.

Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2  (44mm, GPS, Bluetooth) Smart Watch with Advanced Health monitoring, Fitness Tracking , and Long lasting Battery, Aqua Black  (US Version)

Fitbit Versa 2 Health and Fitness Smartwatch with Heart Rate, Music, Alexa Built-In, Sleep and Swim Tracking, Bordeaux/Copper Rose, One Size (S and L Bands Included)

$219.00

$209.99

Buy on Amazon

Buy on Amazon

Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2  (44mm, GPS, Bluetooth) Smart Watch with Advanced Health monitoring, Fitness Tracking , and Long lasting Battery, Aqua Black  (US Version)

$219.00

Buy on Amazon

Fitbit Versa 2 Health and Fitness Smartwatch with Heart Rate, Music, Alexa Built-In, Sleep and Swim Tracking, Bordeaux/Copper Rose, One Size (S and L Bands Included)

$209.99

Buy on Amazon

Unlike Apple Watch SE (one of the best-rated mid-range smartwatches), which is only compatible with Apple iPhone devices, the Galaxy Active 2 and Versa 2 are compatible with both Android and iOS.

These aren’t the top-tier flagship watches with high-end features and Dexcom G6 compatibility but, they are still 2 of the best-rated intelligent timepieces available in that mid-range price segment.

The Samsung Active 2 is a surprisingly great smartwatch with all the necessary bells and whistles for health monitoring and fitness tracking alongside being the more style aware option coming from Samsung. In fact, many of them actually prefer the Active 2 over the flagship Galaxy Watch 3. That is saying a lot about the usability of the watch. In my opinion, this device is a major trump card from Samsung’s line-up of smart wearables.

Fitbit Versa 2 on the other hand is actually the last-gen model with the Versa 3 being the newest one available. But still, the feature set that the Versa 2 offers, still holds up great. Also, as it is a generation older, so it’ll also cost less while sharing a lot of similarities with the Versa 3. The number of features you get for the money, make the Versa 2 a worthwhile contender.

I do understand that not everyone will be happy with one smartwatch over another. Some will find the Galaxy Watch Active 2 more appealing while others will lean towards the Versa 2. However, if choosing one of the devices over the other is getting confusing for you, I can help. I’ve compared both of the devices side-by-side and tried to point out all the major takeaways from both so you can make an informed purchase decision.

In case you’re curious about exactly what I’m going to cover throughout this article, let me give you a quick overview. In this article, I will be comparing both the watches based on raw hardware, software & ecosystem, available health features, sustained battery life, after-sales support, and more.

To be precise, some users may find Samsung’s ecosystem to be perfect for themselves, and if the features on the Galaxy Watch Active 2, meet their personal requirements, it is more likely that they’d wanna go for that device. However, some other users may like Fitbit’s ecosystem better and want the exceptional community features. Those users would wanna settle for the Versa 2 instead.

These aren’t going to be the only deciding factors but, you get the point here.

Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 vs Fitbit Versa 2 [Side by Side Comparison]

Before I head toward the more detailed head-to-head comparison, here are all the specifications & features side-by-side. In case you want to go into the comparison, well informed about the core differences, I highly recommend going through this chart first.

Design & Build

The design itself is different between the two devices. Both companies have different approaches when it comes to smartwatch cases and they have kept their signature approaches around for these devices as well.

• Galaxy Active 2 has comes with a Circular case while the Versa 2 has a square case with rounded corners (also known as squircle).
• The Active 2 does have a seamless all-screen approach while Versa 2 has kept quite a bit of bezel around.
• There are two buttons on the right side of the Galaxy Watch Active 2 and just a single button on the left side of the Versa 2.
• The build materials are somewhat similar though. The Versa 2 and the GPS variant of the Galaxy Watch Active 2 have an Aluminum frame.

However, if you get the variant with cellular connectivity of the Active 2, you’ll get a stainless steel frame instead. The Versa 2 does not have other frame materials to choose from but, I feel like that’s not really an issue in this case.

Both watches come with Corning Gorilla Glass on top. However, Samsung is using the Gorilla Glass DX+ and Fitbit has actually gone with Gorilla Glass 3.

The Galaxy Watch Active 2 comes in 2 case sizes at 44mm and 40mm and the Fitbit only has a single 40mm case size available. So if you have a thick wrist and you want to go with a bigger watch, you do get that option on the Active 2. If you get the Fitbit Versa 2, you’re sadly stuck with one case size which might be too small for some people.

The customization options are there with different watch bands for both of the devices but, the numbers are quite limited. For the Galaxy Watch Active 2, you can get Silicone bands with the Aluminum case and Leather bands with the Stainless Steel case. You have 3 color options to choose from in both cases. The straps are interchangeable and you can also buy them separately as well. On the other hand, Versa 2 comes with a Silicone band by default but you can buy their other bands including Woven (Polyester), Leather & Metal ones separately.

Both devices come with a 5 ATM water resistance rating which means that they can survive under 50 meters of water. This makes them good for Swimming and Surfing but, they won’t survive if you take them skin diving. By the way, the Galaxy Watch Active 2 also has the IP68 rating which is missing on the Versa 2. However, that really doesn’t make a big difference here.

The Display

Both companies have used an OLED panel for the display. Samsung has their fancy Super AMOLED tech while Fitbit has used a regular OLED panel. The main difference is going to be the more saturated colors on the Samsung. Otherwise, there is the same infinite contrast ratio, vibrant colors, and great power efficiency.

The panels also get bright enough to be comfortably used under bright sunlight. Fitbit does mention 1000 nits of brightness on the Versa 2 and although Samsung doesn’t mention a nits rating for the Galaxy Watch Active 2, I expect it to be very similar.

Thanks to the amazing power efficiency of the self-lit pixels, both smartwatches have an Always-on display option. Yes, technically you will save some more battery if you leave that off but, even if you’re using it, the battery shouldn’t be affected too much.

None of the devices support customizable watch faces but you can choose from a huge library of pre-existing watch faces found on the respective app stores for the devices. Both brands have created a variety of useful watch faces with ones with important stat combinations as well as aesthetic focused options.

Activity & Fitness Tracking

Tracking your health and fitness is what you expect your smartwatch to do well and thankfully both of the devices are excellent in this department. Yes, both of them have their ups & downs and as they aren’t flagships, they don’t have every single premium feature included but, still, they do offer a lot for the money.

First, let’s talk about the standout features. The Galaxy Watch Active 2 can take your ECG and monitor your Stress levels while the Versa 2 can check your Blood Oxygen level and check your body temperature. Now, the ECG feature of the Galaxy Watch 2 only works in the US, and on the Versa 2, if you want detailed stats on your Blood Oxygen or check body temperature, you’ll require the Fitbit Premium membership.

Other than that, both devices can monitor your heart rate and track your sleep with great accuracy. Alongside that, they can also track your activities like Swimming, Walking, Running, Biking, Hiking, etc. and they can track various sports activities as well. So, as far as your essential tracking and monitoring features go, you can rely on either of these devices.

So, both smartwatches actually do a great job when it comes to day to day activity and fitness tracking. However, if you need the ECG feature, you have to go with the Galaxy Watch Active 2 and if you need Blood Oxygen (SpO2) monitoring, you have to get the Versa 2. If you want both though, you have to go with one of the flagships instead.

OS and Interface

Samsung’s Tizen is one of the best smartwatch operating systems out there with a user-friendly UI and a large selection of apps & watch faces on the Samsung app store. Fitbit’s operating system is actually pretty good too but, it’s not as well optimized or as Tizen.

The app availability is also better in the Galaxy Watch Active 2 but, Fitbit does offer a decent number of apps on the Versa 2. While not official, but with Google’s acquisition there’s a chance that it might be able to run WearOS apps someday.

As I’ve mentioned in the display section, you can also customize the watches from a wide variety of watch faces available on the app stores. The options are enough to get the job done but, you cannot create your own custom watch faces as you can do on the Apple Watches. This, however, is only possible in WatchOS as of now, so I won’t stress on that too much.

Both watches can show you app notifications, call & message alerts, navigation on maps, and more. However, if you have the LTE variant of the Galaxy Watch Active 2, instead of just getting an alert, you can directly take calls on the watch as it also comes with a speaker and mic. You might miss this functionality on the Versa 2 and even on the regular Active 2 (GPS). However, cellular connectivity only works if you have a Samsung smartphone.

Now, voice assistants are a completely different story. Samsung’s Bixby works but, the built-in Amazon Alexa on the Versa 2 just blows it out of the water. You cannot use Google Assistant on the Versa 2 as only the Fitbit Versa 3 and Sense have support for that right now. But still, when it comes to smart voice assistants, Fitbit is way ahead of Samsung.

Hardware & Performance

When it comes to hardware, Samsung is using their in-house Exynos 9110 with 1.5GB of RAM on the LTE model and 768MB RAM on the GPS model. However, the amount of Internal Storage is the same at just 4GB which is not a lot in case you want to store a large number of apps on your watch. Now, Fitbit didn’t actually mention what kind of internals they are using, so I cannot give you any confirmation on that.

Whatever Fitbit is using in the Versa 2, it is not as powerful as the Galaxy Watch Active 2. The Exynos SOC with the high-capacity RAM flies through the day to day workloads with the overall performance being smooth and well optimized. The Fitbit does decently in the performance department but it is not necessarily a smooth experience all the time.

Another thing that has been included in the Galaxy Watch Active 2 is a touch-sensitive bezel area around the display. You can swipe your finger across the bezel just like you would do with the physical rotating bezel on older Samsung watches, to navigate through menus and apps.

Battery Life

The battery life is better on the Fitbit Versa 2. This is not surprising as the Galaxy Watch Active 2 is actually handling more stuff compared to the Versa 2.

The more powerful hardware is using more power, even though the Exynos 9110 is built on the 10nm Process Technology. The slightly bigger and higher resolution display also contributes to that power draw.

Now, Samsung is advertising 60 hours of regular mixed usage which is two and a half days and you should get really close to that. Now of course if you just use the essential features, it can last you up to 131 hours which is slightly more than 5 days which is slightly better but, that’s not gonna be useful for everyone. If you’re using LTE, you can kill the battery in a day.

The Fitbit Versa 2 on the other hand offers slightly more than 6 days of regular mixed usage on a single charge. This measure is also going to be pretty accurate. Even in this case if you’re using essential features only, you can get a few days more but, again that isn’t gonna let you make the most of your smartwatch.

Note: This measure doesn’t count the Always-on display so, in case you’re using that, you’re going to kill the battery faster.

Overall, the battery life gains on the Fitbit Versa 2 is a significant step up compared to the Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2. So, if you want to charge your watch once and then forget about charging for a few days then get the Versa 2.

Also Read: Smartwatches with Long Battery Life

Connectivity Options

Now for connectivity, the base variant of the Galaxy Watch Active 2 and the Fitbit Versa 2 have a very similar setup. Both devices support Bluetooth and 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi for wireless connectivity.

On the Bluetooth side, however, Samsung has gone with the newer Bluetooth 5.0 standard while Fitbit Versa 2 has used the older Bluetooth 4.0 which gives Samsung Galaxy Active 2 a significant edge in this department.

For navigation, there is GPS+GLONASS on the Versa 2 while the Galaxy Watch Active 2 comes with GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, and Galileo. So, overall you can expect a very similar navigation experience from both of the devices.

The Galaxy Watch Active 2 also has a cellular model that supports 4G LTE though eSim. The modem supports up to 150 Mbps download speeds and 75 Mbps upload speeds which is more than what you need for a stable 4G connection. Also, if you want to take calls directly on your watch and leave your phone at home during morning workouts, you can do that on the Active 2.

Extra Features

Warranty

The Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 and the Fitbit Versa 2 come with a limited 1-year warranty. This is a domestic type warranty, so it won’t work if you’re traveling to some other country. Now, none of these warranties will cover accidental damage so, if you break the glass on top of your watch, you’ll have to pay for it. Anyway, both companies have good after-sales support, so claiming your warranty or getting your broken watch fixed, shouldn’t be a concern.

Now, Fitbit does offer a $34.99 protection plan that extends the warranty to 2-years and also covers accidental damage. So, if you think that is something you might need, you may want to invest the extra money and get that plan.

Galaxy Watch Active 2: The Pros & Cons

Fitbit Versa 2: The Pros & Cons

Value & Price

Finally, it is time to talk about the pricing & value prospects of these smartwatches. Both of the devices come at attractive prices. However, the Fitbit Versa 2 is cheaper compared to the Galaxy Watch Active 2. That does give Fitbit a slight upper hand but, as far as value goes, things are slightly more complicated.

The Galaxy Watch Active 2 starts at $249.00 for the 40mm GPS model and if you want cellular connectivity you’ll have to pay $379.00. The 44mm model costs $20 more, so $269.00 for the GPS model and $399.00 for the cellular model.

The Fitbit Versa 2 on the other hand costs $179.95. That’s quite a bit lower than the GPS variant of the Galaxy Watch Active 2 and as both of the cases are also made out of Aluminum, the Versa seems to be the immediate better value in this case. However, if you live in the US and you want that ECG feature, spending the extra cash should be worth it.

Now, although Fitbit has a lower price and Blood Oxygen Monitoring, Samsung does give you a better display, powerful hardware, ECG, Bluetooth 5.0, and a better UI. Now, if these are things that you care about, the Galaxy Watch Active 2 is a better value for you. I personally feel that these features are important and so, the higher pricing on the Samsung is indeed justified.

Who Should Buy What?

Each user has different needs and they’ll require a very specific & rather personal set of features on their smartwatch. The contenders in our comparison offer a remarkable smartwatch experience and if you’re having difficulty choosing one over another, I can make the decision-making process easier for you. Check out the list below containing the specific user types who will find these watches to be really useful.

These are the major user types suited for the Galaxy Watch Active 2 and/or the Fitbit Versa 2. If you can see yourself fitting into these categories, then you already know which one to pick. However, in case you don’t fit in any of them, maybe look for a different smartwatch.

Frequently Asked Questions

Verdict

So, I’m done with the comparison part and it is finally time for the verdict. So, what are the major takeaways that we discovered while putting the Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 against the Fitbit Versa 2? Well, I’ve listed them below:

• If you want a fast and smooth smartwatch experience, the Galaxy Watch 2 is a better option than the Versa 2.
• The Fitbit Versa 2 goes really close to the new Versa 3 while still having a Physical button that it’s younger sibling has ditched, for sensors.
• If you don’t need ECG, you can get the Versa 2 and save extra money.
• It doesn’t matter if you get the Cellular model of the Galaxy Watch Active 2 if you don’t have a Samsung phone.
• A lot of Fitbit stats and the Body Temperature checking feature won’t be accessible until you subscribe to Fitbit Premium.
• If you use a lot of voice commands, Amazon Alexa on the Fitbit is better than Samsung’s Bixby.

That marks the end of this article. Now, all that is left to do is double check your preferences and decide exactly what features are you looking for in your next smartwatch and how many of these pointers matter to you. Based on that, you can pick up the right smartwatch for you without making a mistake.

Recommended Reads for You:

• Samsung Galaxy Active 2 vs Apple Watch 5
• Fitbit Versa 2 vs Apple Watch 6
• Fitbit Sense vs Apple Watch 6
• Apple Watch SE vs Fitbit Versa 3