Best Apple Watch bands 2021: Pick up a stylish strap or band

(Pocket-lint) - Regardless of whether you've got an Apple Watch Series 7,  Apple Watch SE oregon a overmuch earlier model, each bands designed for the smartwatch should acceptable crossed each generation. 

You'll inactive request to instrumentality into relationship whether you person the bigger oregon smaller lawsuit size - thing that has changed crossed Apple Watch generations - but the cross-compatibility means there's an implicit wealthiness of prime retired there.

Thankfully for you, we've been wearing assorted Apple Watch models, with a assortment of straps, for years now, truthful we're well-positioned to archer you astir immoderate of the precise champion options disposable close now. 

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Our existent 'Top Pick' is the Apple Sport Loop. Other large options see the Apple Sport Band, Apple Milanese Loop, Nike Sport Band, and Apple Modern Buckle.

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Our Top Pick: Best Apple Watch band

Apple Sport Loop

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For

• Easy to accommodate tightness
• Loads of colours
• Sweat-proof

Against

• Quite informal

Apple's nylon straps are our favourite to really deterioration day-to-day with your Apple Watch. They're truly stylish and disposable successful a wide scope of colours, but each of them acceptable highly comfortably.

Plus, they're suitable for exercise, truthful you don't person to interest astir swapping your set retired if you determine to spell for a tally astatine lunch. There are besides Nike editions for adjacent much options. 

Apple Watch bands we besides recommend

Here is simply a enactment of different Apple Watch straps to consider.

Apple Sport Band

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For

• Also sweatproof
• Colours to prime from

Against

• Informal

If you similar the consciousness of a silicone strap (or arsenic Apple calls its material, fluoroelastomer), the authoritative athletics set is simply a large option.

It's evidently waterproof and truly casual to support clean, and again is disposable successful plentifulness of colours to suit your benignant and outfit. 

AREP Silicone Band

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For

• Looks similar the existent deal
• Really affordable

Against

• Less long-lasting

For those who privation a set that's large for exercise, but don't privation to ammunition retired hugely for it, this third-party enactment is simply a large 1 to cheque out.

You get a set that looks truly akin to Apple's ain ones, but astatine a fraction of the price. It won't past arsenic long, but, astatine this price, you mightiness not person immoderate contented with that astatine all.

Apple Milanese Loop

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For

• Really classy
• Easy to adjust

Against

• Expensive

If you're looking for a much business-appropriate look oregon privation to formal up for an occasion, the Milanese Loop that Apple offers is superb.

It's pricey for a band, but you get that brushed metallic look and it's truly comfortable, too. 

Iiteeology Link band

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For

• Traditional band-style
• Reasonable pricing

Against

• Might not last

If you privation a metallic-style set that doesn't outgo arsenic overmuch arsenic the Apple enactment we've selected above, you could good bask this 1 from Iiteeology.

It's a link-style set that looks truly large and is disposable successful aggregate finishes to springiness you a spot of power implicit however it fits. We similar the achromatic mentation pictured here, but the others look swell too.

Nike Sport Band

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For

• Super-breathable
• Great styles available

Against

• Not 1 for meal parties

Our past sports set from Apple, the Nike tie-in for this set is marked retired by those holes, which marque it adjacent much breathable and cleanable for agelong workouts.

We peculiarly similar this Pride variation of the band, and determination are different bully colours disposable too. 

Apple Modern Buckle

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For

• Lovely leather
• Nice and smart

Against

• Really expensive

This creaseless leather set from Apple is simply a truly bully 1 to look at, and its softness makes it large to wear, too.

You besides get that buckle which looks much similar a emblematic ticker strap, which tin beryllium truly utile for an outfit. Still, it's a beauteous pricey package. 

Fengshunte Elastic Band

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For

• Two successful 1 pack
• Nice colours to take from
• Easy, comfy fit

Against

• Fairly middling quality

There's thing rather similar a bully old-fashioned worth pack, is there? This acceptable of 2 elasticated bands lets you lick the occupation of assortment by chucking successful much than 1 colour to take from.

This lets you instantly get acceptable for antithetic outfits oregon occasions. They're comfy to deterioration and look great, truthful the information they're not arsenic well-made arsenic Apple's bands shouldn't substance excessively much.

Other products we considered

The Pocket-lint editorial squad spends hours investigating and researching hundreds of products earlier recommending our champion picks for you. We see a scope of factors erstwhile it comes to putting unneurotic our champion guides including physically investigating the products ourselves, user reviews, marque quality, and value. Many of the devices we see don’t marque our last champion guides.

These are the products we considered that yet didn't marque our apical 5:

• Apple Leather Loop
• Hermès Noir Swift Leather Single Tour

How to take an Apple Watch band

Choosing the strap for your Apple Watch tin consciousness conscionable arsenic important arsenic choosing your ticker exemplary and size, since it plays a immense relation successful determining however your ticker looks. Here are immoderate questions to inquire yourself arsenic you browse.

Will you beryllium exercising utilizing your watch?

This is simply a large 1 - Apple Watches are superb ways to support connected way of your wellness and fittingness acknowledgment to the array of sensors and tracking they offer. However, if you brace your ticker with a beauteous leather set and past spell for a run, you mightiness tally into immoderate issues with the sweat that entails.

Simply put, if you're going to workout successful your Apple Watch (and particularly if that means immoderate benignant of swimming), get a waterproof oregon sweatproof band!

Do you privation a ceremonial band?

The biggest downside to the galore sweatproof options retired determination for your Apple Watch set is that astir of them look a small jazzy - a small informal. So, if you're rocking up to a astute meal oregon immoderate different juncture wherever you privation to formal to impress, it mightiness beryllium worthy besides picking retired an enactment that's a small much formal.

How adjustable bash you request it?

One large adaptable betwixt antithetic straps, successful our experience, is successful presumption of however casual it is to set them. If you cognize that you similar swapping betwixt antithetic tightnesses depending connected the situation, you mightiness privation to marque definite you get a strap that you tin adjust, portion options similar the Sports Loop fto you bash this successful immoderate increments you like.

Do you similar definite materials?

A accepted ticker strap is mostly leather, it's just to say, but determination are loads of materials you mightiness person tried implicit the years, from canvas to integrative and loads successful between, truthful if you've ever peculiarly liked a benignant of ticker strap, carnivore that successful mind! While Apple's ain database of options doesn't span that galore types, determination are countless third-party providers who could oblige.

More astir this story

Every merchandise successful this database has been tested successful real-life situations, conscionable arsenic you would usage it successful your day-to-day life.

An Apple Watch is astir apt going to beryllium connected your wrist each day, each day, and for our wealth that makes picking the close strap for it perfectly key. It'll alteration your full look. Since Apple makes it truthful casual to swap your straps, too, we deliberation it's a sensible determination to prime much than 1 truthful that you tin swap them retired erstwhile you request to.

We've utilized the straps connected this list, wearing them to spot however comfy and adjustable they are, and moving retired which ones enactment good and which ones, well, don't. Pricing is besides important, since Apple's ain bands are, without exception, much costly than we'd each like.

We aren’t funny successful pointless fig crunching oregon extraneous details - we conscionable privation to supply an casual to recognize reappraisal that gives you an thought of what it's going to beryllium similar to use. And don’t for a 2nd deliberation that the products aren't tested afloat due to the fact that the reviews are concise.

We’ve been covering tech since 2003, and, successful galore cases, person not lone reviewed the merchandise successful question, but the erstwhile generations, excessively - close backmost to the archetypal exemplary connected the market. There is besides plentifulness of models we've considered that didn't marque the chopped successful each of our buyer's guides.

Writing by Max Freeman-Mills. Editing by Conor Allison. Originally published connected 18 February 2015.