A compass watch is a useful companion, especially for someone that has an interest in outdoor activities, such as hiking or camping. It offers an easy method for finding your way around, and reduces the risk of you getting lost in the middle of nowhere. It is convenient and quickly accessible.
Compass watches are an evergreen, always relevant accessory, particularly for outdoor activity enthusiasts. Although practically all smartphones have a form of navigation tool these days, they are not as reliable. You are certain to be stranded if your phone dies on you when you’re out in an unknown area or it fails to pick up a signal.
There are many models of this type of timepiece available on the market. The ideal one will depend on what matters most to you as they do come with various features. Other relevant factors also include price, ruggedness, and the condition of the environment where you will most likely be using the watch.
Making the perfect choice can be rather complicated with so many different models to choose from. We decided to compile this list of best compass watches to make your task a little easier. Budget, design, features, and, most importantly, reliability, are among the characteristics we took into consideration. The list is arranged in no particular order.
Suunto Core SS014279010 All Black Military Watch
This watch is a great model to consider if you need the classic all-black touch while not sacrificing the compass. It pairs nicely with a variety of straps, which are sold separately. Considering the features this watch brings to the table, it is the ultimate choice for class and function.
The Core offers an integrated altimeter that shows you your current elevation – how high you have climbed or how low you have descended. Alongside the digital compass, there is also a digital thermometer, a barometer, and a weather trend indicator. An intelligent Storm Alarm triggers a sound and flashes when there is a sudden drop in air pressure, potentially useful for avoiding unpleasant situations.
You get many other impressive features in this watch, including a backlight, rotating bezel, guided calibration, user-removable logbook files, and declination setting. Apart from English, the Suunto Core works in French, Spanish, and German. The sunrise/sunset function supports more than 400 locations.
Casio PAG240-7CR Pathfinder Stainless Steel Watch
The lightweight timepiece is water resistant to a depth of 330 feet (100m). It features a digital display and uses quartz movement. A full backlight with afterglow ensures that there should be no problem seeing the watch face in a dark place. There’s also a battery power indicator to guard against the watch going dead when you need it the most. A power-saving feature helps to prolong the runtime of the battery.
This triple-sensor watch offers you an altimeter, a barometer, and a thermometer along with compass information. Like the PAG240-1CR, it enjoys low-temperature protection and supports world time (31 time zones and 48 cities). It supplies sunrise and sunset information while also offering a 1/100 second stopwatch, daylight saving function, five daily alarms, and city code display.
Luminox A.8832.MI Recon Analog Display Quartz Watch
Coming in black with silver accents, this compass watch features a robust carbon-reinforced polycarbonate case and carbon reinforced, unidirectional rotating bezel. It rocks a sapphire crystal that helps ensure you do not need to worry much about scratches while engaging in intense outdoor activities.
The A.8832.MI Recon comes with a black silicone strap featuring a tang clasp. It packs a double-security gasket crown and a solid-case rear. The watch boasts water resistance to a depth of 660 feet (200m). From all indications, it seems you’ll have an all-around performer in this one.
It relies on quartz movement and features an analog dial with luminescent hands and markers. The compass is quite convenient, allowing you to remove or embed it to suit whatever activity you’re engaging in. You also get night-vision tubes on this one.
Casio PAG240-1CR Pathfinder Watch
The solar-powered timepiece benefits from the very minimal risk of running out of power while outdoors. It boasts justly every function you may need. It features a digital compass with barometer, altimeter, and thermometer.
It enjoys low-temperature protection with resistance to levels as low as 14 degrees Fahrenheit. The PAG240-1CR also boasts water resistance of up to 330 feet. It features a full auto EL backlight, world time (48 cities), five daily alarms, and a calendar pre-programmed until 2099.
Casio SGW100-1V Watch
The Casio Men’s SGW100-1V shows a reliable build and features a comfy, black resin band. It offers decent water resistance and looks like a dependable companion for outdoor activities. On the front is a large LCD demarcated into three segments and uses mineral glass for scratch protection.
The battery life is fairly impressive at roughly three years. Hikers and athletes will find the 1/100 stopwatch quite useful. The SGW100-1V uses quartz movement. It includes a thermometer, declination correction, world time (29 time zones in 48 cities), four daily alarms, and graphic direction pointer among other useful features.
Timex T2N720 Intelligent Quartz Tide Temp Watch
You can view digital information on its analog dial, thanks to its Intelligent Quartz technology. The digital compass makes for awesome precision and is designed to support a very long battery life. Everything, except the watch itself, may be turned off to preserve power.
Tide tracker, a unique 4th-hand feature, helps to keep track of next high or low tide. You also get more accurate readings with an adjustable declination angle. The Indiglo night-light helps to address visibility issues in environments with poor lighting.
Armitron Sport Men’s 408231TDGY Watch
This watch is made for those who regularly engage in sporting activities. It features a black, round resin case with silver accents, engraved graphics, and a refined metalized chrome top ring. Its compass markings are engraved on the top ring. The strap of the timepiece fastens nicely with a buckle clasp.
A clear LCD makes it easy to read information on the face. The Armitron 408231TDGY enjoys decent mineral crystal protection and uses Japanese quartz movement. It is water resistant up to 330 feet (100 meters) deep, making it a decent choice for snorkelers and swimmers.
This watch also offers chronograph functions. It includes military time, countdown and lap timers, and alarm and hourly chime settings in the mix.
Timex Men’s T49612 Expedition Watch
It comes with a lightweight resin case said to have been designed for durability. It pairs with a snug nylon strap and a buckle closure that helps ensure it stays intact while you get active.
Of the best compass watches we have here, this is arguably the sturdiest. It is shock-resistant to the ISO standards. It is also water resistant to a depth of 200 meters – that’s about 660 feet! This should make a perfect companion for people who are into professional marine activities. But this is not for scuba divers.
And Indiglo night light makes the digital compass easy to view in poorly-lit surroundings.
Casio Ana-Digi SGW500H-2BV Watch
It comes with a resin case and a mineral dial, which one may say can be prone to scratches. But, at this price, you don’t really have much to complain about, if at all. It uses Japanese quartz movement, and a digital display shows time in 12 or 24-hour formats. The digital compass has a needle indicator and enough features to help you get your bearing each time.
The Ana-Digi SGW500H-2BV provides you with world time and supports five daily alarms. There is a thermometer in the package, and it features water resistance of up to 330 feet.
Pyle PSWWM82BK Digital Sports Watch
The timepiece comes with a digital display with an electroluminescent backlight for easy viewing in low-light settings. It shows you the time (in seconds, minutes, and hours), the day of the week, and month. It also provides you with information on altitude changes, temperature changes, and sea level pressure.
The compass mode is perfect for travel and navigation while the barometer mode helps keep tabs on changes in atmospheric pressure. The chronograph feature enables you to use it as a stopwatch for your sporting activities.
With the Pyle PSWWM82BK, you may not need to worry much about missing the weather reports. It comes with four symbols that give you an idea of what the weather may be for the day. The watch offers history data on altitude, temperature, and sea level pressure changes for the past 34 hours.
Casio Pro Trek PRW-2500T-7CR Digital Solar Watch
The solid-looking compass watch comes with a stainless steel case, a black face, and a titanium band. It boasts water resistance of up to 200 meters (660 feet), making it perfect for diverse marine activities. This will come in handy for activities in which you may experience intense water pressure. A tide and moon data feature also make this one especially ideal for people interested in activities such as sea kayaking.
The duplex LCD layout makes it quite easy to view relevant information quickly while attending to other things. The watch provides you with both numerical and graphical data. With an altimeter, barometer, and thermometer also on board, you can easily stay on top of everything happening around you.
The Pro Trek PRW-2500T-7CR uses arrow icons to show you relevant barometric pressure patterns. It uses Japanese quartz movement and has a full auto EL backlight with afterglow. It relies on the sun for power and is rechargeable.
Casio G-Shock GA1000-1A Gravitymaster Watch
The watch is a rugged one, although one may say it doesn’t look overly so. It is shock resistant, as the name somewhat suggests, and enjoys water protection to a depth of 200 m. It parades a digital-analog display featuring black, white, and orange colors. There’s an Auto Neon Illuminator light with afterglow and luminescent hands and markers for seamless visibility. The timepiece pairs with a black resin band.
The G-Shock GA1000-1A is one of the very first models in the G-Aviation series to offer twin sensor capabilities. You are taken to the Digital Compass Mode when you press the 9 o’clock button. It supports magnetic declination, hand indication of the north, and bidirectional calibration.
The Bearing Memory lets you store readings temporarily for later reference when you take further compass readings. You will also be able to take temperature readings in the range -10 to 60 degrees Celsius with the watch. It functions as a stopwatch and provides you world time (31 time zones, 48 cities), four daily alarms, and city code display.