Introduction

The Garmin HRM-200 is a heart rate monitor that promises to track heart rate accurately from your chest for less than most of Garmin’s newest heart rate monitors, including the HRM-Pro and Pro Plus.

Effectively replacing Garmin’s HRM Dual, which launched in 2019, the HRM-200 promises a refined design, a year of tracking your heart rate, and a new data encryption feature for those who want to share heart rate data in a safer manner.

It’s considerably cheaper than Garmin’s HRM Pro Plus and HRM-Fit monitors and offers better competition for rival monitors like the Polar H9 and the Wahoo Trackr Heart Rate monitors, providing a more affordable route to tracking your heart during workouts.

Design and comfort

• Available in two strap sizes

• Includes LED light indicator
• Waterproof up to 30 metres

The HRM-200 is a pretty typical-looking chest strap-style heart rate monitor. It’s all black and comes with a clippable module up front and a strap that hooks into the other end to keep it in place on your chest.

Garmin provides that strap in either extra small to small or medium to extra large sizes. I had the latter, which I was concerned might be a bit on the big side, but it did wrap around my torso in a secure fashion and did not budge.

One difference from other Garmin heart rate monitors is that the detachable module that transmits your heart rate data to other devices includes a button and an LED light indicator. 

Pressing the button wakes up the monitor, while pressing it down gets it ready for pairing. Then it’s over to that LED light, which flashes amber when prepped to pair and green when connected and transmitting data. Pairing distance is a maximum of 3 metres (10ft), which is pretty typical of most monitors.

In terms of durability, you’re getting a setup that’s waterproof up to 30 metres, and the strap can be chucked in with your washing. Garmin suggests that you should rinse it after every session and properly wash it after seven sweaty workouts.

Like many chest straps, the HRM-200 is powered by the coin-cell battery used by many traditional watches. It’s held inside a compartment behind the module, and Garmin usefully lets you use the metal clasp on the end of the strap to unlock the compartment when you need to replace the battery.

Features and performance 

• Solid heart rate tracking across a range of activities
• Good connectivity across a range of devices
• No onboard storage

Like any other heart rate monitor, the HRM-200 is first and foremost built to offer accurate data and do it more reliably across a range of activities and workouts compared to smartwatches and sports watches, particularly for high-intensity interval-style workouts.

There’s an ECG sensor to take those continuous heart rate and heart rate variability measurements. There’s no storage on the monitor itself, so you’ll need to use Bluetooth or ANT+ to transmit to another device like a watch or connected gym equipment that supports pairing.

If you’re using the Bluetooth connectivity method, you can pair up to three devices. For ANT+, it’s technically unlimited, but most, likely, will be using the Bluetooth method.

I’ve managed to connect the HRM-200 with a range of Garmin watches, an Apple Watch, and connected treadmills and rowers with no issue.

One thing that has changed from other Garmin heart rate monitors is that you now have some control over how that data is shared with devices. The open data connection option is designed for sharing data with Garmin and non-Garmin devices, including smartwatches that support pairing. The secure connection method is designed to share data with other Garmin devices.

Whether you’re open to sharing that data or encrypting it, the core heart rate tracking is solid overall. I’ve used it for runs, racing, indoor workouts, and stationary workouts like cycling at a range of intensities. I wore a Polar H9 heart rate monitor to compare data, and the data was pretty much always in line. 

I haven’t seen anything in my testing that suggests this will be a heart rate monitor chest strap that doesn’t excel at its primary function: delivering accurate heart rate across a range of activities.

As Garmin opts for a CR 2032 battery setup, you can technically get up to a year of battery life. That depends on how regularly you use it. I’ve only been testing for a few weeks, so the battery has remained pretty much the same.

Viewing battery status can depend on whether your device can display the information. Pairing with some Garmin watches will let you explore battery status from the watch, but it’s going to be trickier if you don’t own a Garmin.

Should you buy it?

FAQs