Garmin Forerunner 165 vs Garmin Instinct 3 Solar
Weight and specs compared for 2026 — and which one to choose.
Sleek GPS sports watch at 1.4oz. Lightweight design with multi-GNSS support.
Rugged GPS smartwatch with solar charging, 28-day battery in smartwatch mode, and unlimited battery in expedition GPS mode. Altimeter, compass included.
Building a pack? Add either one to your HikeLoad list, or drop its weight into the base weight calculator, and see what it does to your total weight.
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Garmin Forerunner 165 vs Garmin Instinct 3 Solar: which should you buy?
If saving weight is your priority, the Garmin Forerunner 165 wins — at 39 g it is 13 g (25%) lighter than the Garmin Instinct 3 Solar (52 g). That said, the heavier option may justify the extra grams with more capacity, durability or comfort, so weigh the trade-off against how you'll use it.
See where both rank against everything else in this category on the lightest navigation page, or browse the full gear weight database.