I walked 15,000 steps with the Garmin Instinct 3 vs Apple Watch Ultra 3 at Europe’s largegest tech reveal

I’m in Barcelona, Spain, reporting on Mobile World Congress, Europe’s largest consumer technology reveal. With no shortage of ground to cover, for day two of the reveal, I logged my walking efforts wearing two of the best smartwatch models (and personal favorites of mine), the Apple Watch Ultra 3 and Garmin Instinct 3.

With the Garmin on my right wrist and the Apple Watch on my left, I created my way to the convention center from my hotel, a roughly two-mile walk. Intent on maximizing my workout for the day, I opted to not only avoid taxis and public transit on my way to and from the reveal, but also chose the stairs over escalators and solid ground over shifting walkways, every chance I received.

Apple Watch Ultra 3 vs Garmin Instinct 3: MWC day 2 results

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Header Cell – Column 0	Apple Watch Ultra 3	Gamin Instinct 3
Total distance walked	7.82 miles	8.95 miles
Step count total	15,058 steps	15,164 steps
Elevation gain	935 feet	548 feet
Average heart rate	114 bpm	113 bpm
Maximum heart rate	142 bpm	164 bpm
Total calories burned	1,271 calories	1,404 calories
Battery drain	20%	6%

3. Apple’s elevation gain data seems inflated

Close-up of the Apple Watch Ultra 3 revealing the option to track hiking in the Workout app — (Image credit: Dan Bracaglia/Tom’s Guide)

The area of Barcelona I’m currently operating in is relatively flat, which is why I was somewhat surprised to see that my Apple Watch logged 935 total feet of elevation gain. The Garmin Instinct 3, meanwhile, noted a much more reasonable climb metric of 548 feet. So, why is Apple’s ascent data so high? I’m guessing that the handful of times I had no choice but to take an escalator upwards were a factor.

4. Apple and Garmin measured similar average heart rates and calories burned

Both the Apple Watch Ultra 3 and Garmin Instinct 3 logged roughly the same average heart rate for my day out and about covering the latest tech. The smartwatches also recorded a similar amount of calories burned; however, Garmin noted a considerably higher maximum heart rate than Apple, something I’m at a loss to account for.

5. The Instinct 3 utilized far less battery than the Ultra 3

Close-up of the Garmin Instinct 3 revealing the 'Torch' LED flashlight illuminated from the top of the watch case — (Image credit: Dan Bracaglia/Tom’s Guide)

I spent just shy of five hours out at MWC on day 2, with both smartwatches running full-steam, logging my location, heart rate, and more. During that period, the Garmin Instinct 3 drained just 6% of its battery compared to 20% for the Apple Watch Ultra 3.

Ultimately, both smartwatches performed well in tracking my journalistic efforts from a step count standpoint while covering day two of Mobile World Congress. However, with what appears to be more accurate ascent and distance data, and far superior power management, I’m leaning toward sticking with the Garmin to track day 3.