Is The Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 A Great Deal In 2026?

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Buying a smartwatch isn't the easiest decision, but when you see an older generation model being sold at a delectable price — it does a good job of swaying your wallet. For example, the Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 was released in August 2021, and it is still a nice smartwatch due to its sleek design, 3-in-1 BioActive sensor for health tracking, and syncing across the Samsung ecosystem. You can buy it for $200, or $100 more for the Classic version through third-party sellers. By comparison, that's not too expensive when you look at how much the newest Samsung smartwatch costs: the Samsung Galaxy Watch 9 is going for around $400.

The Galaxy Watch 9 is Samsung's latest release, coming out in the summer of 2026. Comparatively, the Galaxy Watch 4 fares poorly due to its age, and therefore is not a great deal in 2026. Although this old smartwatch is functional with its installed Wear OS software, support ended in September 2026; the watch received its last security patch in August 2026 and is on its last One UI update. Put simply, after 2026 your Galaxy Watch 4 will no longer be secure, and it won't receive any more upgrades. That's why, even if the price looks great on paper, you are essentially buying it on clearance, and it's best not to. 

Part of the reason you'd buy a Samsung Galaxy Watch is its unique features and apps that you wouldn't find on a Pixel Watch or any other non-Galaxy watch. For example, Samsung has a health metric for antioxidants, the Antioxidant Index, that reflects your diet. However, that feature came with the Galaxy Watch 8, meaning older devices won't have it. While Samsung sometimes adds new features to older models in updates – as long as they don't depend on hardware architecture — with the Galaxy Watch 4 no longer receiving updates, the chances of it acquiring new features are zero.

If you want a good balance of software but still want a Samsung smartwatch that doesn't break the bank, consider buying one that's slightly older, but not too old, and obsolete. The Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 is the ideal starting point since it can hold out until 2028 for software, and costs about $250 or $280 at regular price; it delivers a similar experience to the Galaxy Watch 4, but is much newer and will stay secure longer. Plus, due to its age, you're likely to find it on sale during a big consumer event like Black Friday.

Just note that unless you do spend up to the newest generation, you'll eventually run into the same software support issue. Typically, manufacturers offer around three or four years of updates for smartwatches, or sometimes slightly more – the Galaxy Watch 9 is promised five. That is usually just enough time for you to consider upgrading before the end of support. However, the longer you wait, the less trade-in value you get.

While Samsung offers a lot of great features in its Galaxy smartwatch lineup, you can still find more affordable options. For example, if you're looking for a simple experience to track your health stats, something that feels lightweight on the wrist, and has decent battery life, the Fitbit Versa 4 is a solid choice. It's priced around $150 to $200, but more importantly, security support is guaranteed until 2028.

If you have an iPhone and are willing to spend a little extra, Apple offers the Apple Watch SE 3 starting at $250. Apple doesn't usually publish the end-of-support date for software updates. Still, the company is generally kind with updates, and since this device has been out since 2025, you can expect Apple to support it for a few more years, maybe until 2030. It offers features like heart rate measurements, sleep tracking, cycle tracking, as well as notifications for high and low heart rate, irregular rhythm, and low cardio fitness. Plus, it has an array of safety tools like Emergency SOS calling and fall detection. Overall, the Apple Watch SE 3 is still a great purchase in 2026.