How to change the unit of measurement on your Garmin watch and Garmin Connect

Trying to convert miles to kilometers mentally - or the other way around - during an activity can make things even more taxing, which is why we're glad changing the units of measurement on Garmin is so simple. 

Unlike other watches, Garmin also affords you plenty of control over what appears on your device. This means you can customize and tailor units to your exercise - for example, your running distance can appear as miles while your swimming distance unit is meters.

You can even have units of measurement appear differently and separately on Garmin Connect - though, frankly, we're not sure why you would do that. 

This also means you'll have to pick where you want to see the change to the units of measurement appear; there is no such thing as changing it in the Connect app and syncing the changes over to your watch.

So, with that in mind, skip to the corresponding section below for all the details.

Below, we'll cover both methods to change the units of measurement to your preferred option. 

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Change units on your Garmin watch

Wareable

These steps will vary depending on your Garmin model and the software update you're running. We worked out these steps from our Epix Pro (Gen 2), but they should be relatively replicable no matter your watch.

1. Hold the 'Up/Menu' button until the settings options appear.

2. Scroll down to 'System'.

3. Select 'Format' from the list. 

4. Select 'Units'.

5. You can now edit the specific measurement you want in the following sub-sections: 'Distance', 'Pace/Speed', 'Elevation', 'Depth', 'Weight', 'Height', 'Temperature', 'Pressure' and 'Vert Speed'.

6. Once your preferred unit has been selected, use the 'Down' button to back out - changes are saved automatically.

Change units on the Garmin Connect app

Wareable

Garmin gives you three options for the units in its app - metric, statute, or stature UK (imperial).

Metric will see distances shown in kilometers, weights in kilograms, and heights in meters, while the imperial system is based on miles, feet, and pounds.

The statute (UK) option on Garmin is distinguished by elevation data being displayed in meters, not feet.

First, ensure you have the latest version of the Garmin Connect app before trying these steps. 

1. Open the Garmin Connect app on iOS/Android. 

2. Tap your profile icon in the top-left corner. 

3. When the pop-up appears, select 'Settings'.

4. Choose 'User Settings'.

5. Find 'Measurement Units' under Units and tap.

6. Select between the three units of measurement.

7. Your choice will be saved automatically and appear in Garmin Connect immediately.