It is impossible to say that Polar is a better brand than Garmin or vice-versa. Determining which one is best for you is a matter of figuring out what you want. Garmin watches for athletes include GPS, heart rate monitoring, and a variety of tracking tools. Polar watches also come with on-board GPS and tracking features. However, Polar excels in terms of helping you create a monitoring and workout plan and sticking to it. If you are looking for a watch strictly to aid in your workouts, Polar is probably the better choice. But if you want more than just monitoring for exercise purposes, Garmin packs a lot more technology into the same size package.