Forerunner 955 vs Forerunner 745 Garmin running watches

Forerunner 955 was released in June 2022. It has been superseded by the Forerunner 965 smartwatch. The Forerunner 745 was launched in 2020.

In this comparison study, we find out more about the Forerunner 955 and Forerunner 745.

(This post was last updated on 2 December 2023)

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Key points

Forerunner 955 supports multi-band GPS while the Forerunner 745 only supports single-band frequency.
Forerunner 955 has almost double the battery backup offered by the Forerunner 745.
Forerunner 955 has a higher device storage or memory storage of 32 GB.
Garmin Forerunner 955 is compatible with the Garmin Golf app.
Garmin Forerunner 955 supports the spectator messaging safety feature.
Forerunner 955 has a touchscreen functionality. Forerunner 745 lacks it.

Size and Display

Forerunner 955 is a slightly broader watch than the Forerunner 745 watch. We list some significant points about the size and display of Forerunner 955 and Forerunner 745 below:

Forerunner 955 and Forerunner 745 have the lens material made of the Corning Gorilla DX glass. The DX anti-reflective coating adds to readability in sunlight.
The body and bezel of Forerunner 955 and Forerunner 745 are made of a fiber-enforced polymer.
Forerunner 955 has a physical size of 46.5 mm and Forerunner 745 has a size of 43.8 mm. The marginal increase in the size of Forerunner 955 has a cascading effect on the display resolution and battery capacity of the Forerunner 955.
Forerunner 955 has a display screen of 33 mm and Forerunner 745 has a display screen of approximately 30 mm.
The display resolution of Forerunner 955 is 260 x 260 pixels and the display resolution of Forerunner 745 is 240 x 240 pixels. The marginal difference can be attributed to the bigger screen of the Forerunner 955 watch.
Forerunner 955 weighs 52 g and Forerunner 745 weighs 47 g.
Both watches have the MIP screen or the memory in pixel screen on the watch.

The important point to note is that the lens material and body of both watches are identical. The difference lies in the size of both watches.

Battery

Battery is one of the strong points of a Forerunner 955.

On the smartwatch mode, Forerunner 955 can last up to 15 days and Forerunner 745 can go up to 7 days.
On the GPS mode, Forerunner 955 can work for up to 42 hours and Forerunner 745 can last for up to 16 hours.
On the UltraTrac mode, Forerunner 955 can work for up to 80 hours and Forerunner 745 can last for up to 21 hours.
Forerunner 955 can also work in a low power battery saver mode. The battery saver mode is unavailable on the Forerunner 745.

For runners, extended battery life is critically significant. Forerunner 955 is a definite upgrade in terms of battery life.

Touchscreen

Forerunner 955 has a touchscreen feature that can be turned on or off at your convenience. The Forerunner 745 does not have touchscreen functionality.

Both watches do have a color screen.

Multi-band Frequency

The multi-frequency positioning sensor is an addition to the Forerunner 955 smartwatch. This sensor allows you to take GPS data from multiple satellites at the same time.

You could call this a multi-band frequency or the dual frequency configuration for the Forerunner 955. The obvious benefit of multi-band frequency is the improvement in GPS accuracy and reliability. Especially, when you are on trail runs or in a city of skyscrapers.

Forerunner 745 does not have a multi-frequency positioning sensor and it does not support multi-band frequency.

Golf

Forerunner 955 comes with Golf support and it can work with the Garmin Golf app. The best part is that the watch comes with 42000 preloaded golf maps or golf course data. Forerunner 955 supports the standard golf features including the Garmin Auto Shot feature.

Forerunner 745 does not support golf. You cannot download any golf course data or the Garmin Golf app on the Forerunner 745 smartwatch.

Device Storage

Forerunner 955 comes with 32 GB internal memory or device storage. The available space can be used for downloading topo or trail maps of multiple regions. You could also download and store personal audio content for offline music listening on the Forerunner 955 watch. Forerunner 955 can store up to 2000 songs on the device storage.

Forerunner 745 can store up to 500 songs. There is no separate mention about the available device storage for the Forerunner 745 watch.

Swimming

Forerunner 955 and Forerunner 745 have a water resistance rating of 5 ATM. This effectively means that both the Forerunners can work at a depth of 50 meters below the water surface level. Both watches can take a depth pressure of 5 atmospheres.

Forerunner 955 and Forerunner 745 support pool water, open water and swim run profiles. In terms of swimming, both watches offer identical features and capabilities.

Spectator Messaging

Forerunner 955 comes with an integrated spectator messaging feature. It is a safety feature that allows your followers to send you text messages.

Spectator messaging is useful in distress situations as you can receive or send text messages through the paired smartphone connection.

Forerunner 955, therefore, improves upon the spectator messaging feature by removing the dependency on the LTE connection on the smartwatch. The paired smartphone is used for all communication between the Forerunner 955 wearer and his live followers.

Forerunner 745 does not have the spectator messaging feature.

Other features

There are feature and function advancements on the Forerunner 955 watches over a Forerunner 745 watch. We will list only the main ones.

Forerunner 955 comes with cycle maps. It also has additional cycling profiles for Gravel Biking, Bike Commuting, Bike Touring, eBiking, eMountain Biking, Road Biking, Cyclocross.
Forerunner 955 has an additional gym profile for bouldering. It can also support the HIIT workouts.
Forerunner 955 has an Ultra running profile.
Forerunner 955 has additional outdoor recreation profiles for Snowshoeing, Mapping, Navigating, Tennis, Pickleball, Padel, Track Me, Project Waypoint.

Costs

Both watches come at a cost of $499.99. So, cost is not a differentiator between the Forerunner 955 and Forerunner 745 smartwatches.

Summary

Forerunner 955 is a vastly improved running watch over the Forerunner 745. The multi-band frequency support and extended battery life are the chief reasons for runners to prefer a Forerunner 955 over the Forerunner 745.

Spectator messaging is a handy feature to have for handling emergency support situations. It may be pertinent to mention that the Forerunner 745 is a 3 year old model of the Forerunner series. Forerunner 955 is a June 2022 smartwatch.

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Helen Kurt

Helen Kurt is a geeky nerd who loves to cover the wearables space. She has over 5 years of experience in the smartwatch domain. You can reach her on email at [email protected].