Best Buy’s Black Friday watch deals: the Ultra 3 is back at $549 and the Venu 4 just dropped to $499.99

By Merry

Best Buy moved on watches today, and for once the moves are worth acting on rather than watching. The Apple Watch Ultra 3 is back at $549, down $100 from the $649 it cost yesterday, and the Garmin Venu 4 dropped to $499.99, down $50 from $549.99. Both are first-party Best Buy prices, both in stock, both checked today, 13 November. Between them they cover almost everyone shopping for a serious watch this month — but they do not cover the same person, and buying the wrong one at a good price is still buying the wrong one.

Take the Ultra 3 first, because its price has done the most travelling. It launched at $799. Best Buy had it at $549 as a Doorbuster on 6 November, then raised it to $649, and today it is back at $549 as a Black Friday Deal — $250 off the list price. That is the lowest price we have tracked for it, and the pattern matters: this is the second time in a week it has hit $549, which tells you $549 is the price Best Buy is willing to sell it at, not a one-day mistake. If you want one, waiting for it to go lower is a gamble with poor odds; the next move is more likely to be back up to $649, as it was yesterday.

What $549 buys is the most capable Apple Watch ever made, and the most dependent one. The 49mm titanium case, GPS and cellular built in, an LTPO3 OLED display that reaches 3,000 nits, the S10 chip and 64GB of storage. It takes calls and streams music without your phone nearby, which is the whole point of it. The cost is the battery: up to 42 hours of normal use by Apple’s figures, or 72 hours in Low Power Mode. That is a day or two between charges, every week, for as long as you own it. It also only works with an iPhone. Android owners cannot use it at any price, and that is not a detail — it is the entire buying decision for half the market.

The Venu 4 is the opposite bet, and today’s drop makes it the cheaper of the two for the first time. At $499.99 it is $49.01 less than the Ultra 3, $100 off its $599.99 list price, and the lowest price we have tracked for it. What it sells is stamina and freedom from Apple’s ecosystem: up to 12 days in smartwatch mode for the 45mm model, 4 days with the always-on display on, a built-in LED flashlight, multi-band GPS, an ECG app, and Garmin Connect free with no subscription. It works with iPhone and Android alike. What it does not sell is independence from your phone — there is no cellular, so leave the phone behind and it stops being a phone on your wrist — and its app store is narrower than Apple’s by a wide margin.

So which one, at these prices? The decision is not the $49.01. It is the phone in your pocket and the charger on your nightstand. If you own an Android phone, there is no decision: the Ultra 3 is not an option, and the Venu 4 at $499.99 is the best serious watch in this price range we track. If you own an iPhone and you run, swim or train with your phone left behind, the Ultra 3 at $549 is worth the extra $49.01 — cellular is the feature you will miss every single run. If you own an iPhone, keep the phone with you, and resent charging a watch every night, the Venu 4 is the better buy despite the smaller screen and the narrower apps. Twelve days against two is not a specification; it is the difference between a watch that is always on your wrist and one that is sometimes on its charger.

There is a third option in the same store, and it is the one to skip for most people right now. The Apple Watch Series 12 is $549 at Best Buy — the same price as the Ultra 3, for a smaller watch with a shorter battery life and no titanium case. It is not a bad watch. It is a bad buy at this exact moment, because the Ultra 3 costs the same money today and gives you more watch. The Series 12 only makes sense if the Ultra 3’s 49mm case is simply too big for your wrist, in which case try it on before you buy. Note the size, too: Best Buy’s listing is for the 46mm model, not the 45mm our catalogue lists — the price is the same, but check the size on the listing before you order.

A word on timing, because that is the real question behind any Black Friday deal. Both of today’s prices are genuine: the Ultra 3 has been at $549 twice in a week, and the Venu 4’s $499.99 is a new low. Neither looks like a price that will be beaten by much before Christmas — the Ultra 3’s floor is now visible, and the Venu 4’s drop is fresh. If you need a watch, buy now. If you do not need one, neither price is a reason to invent a need. The best deal is still the watch you will actually wear, charged and on your wrist, and both of these qualify — for different people.

Sources

• Best Buy US listing, Apple Watch Ultra 3 — price $549.00, Black Friday Deal, Save $250 vs $799.00, checked 13 November 2026.
• Best Buy US listing, Garmin Venu 4 GPS Smartwatch 45mm, Slate — price $499.99, checked 13 November 2026.
• Best Buy US listing, Apple Watch Series 12 (GPS + Cellular) 46mm — price $549.00, 46mm, checked 13 November 2026.
• Apple: Watch Ultra 3 specifications (49mm titanium, S10, 64GB, LTPO3 OLED up to 3,000 nits, up to 42 hours normal use / 72 hours Low Power).
• Garmin: Venu 4 specifications (45mm, up to 12 days smartwatch mode, 4 days always-on, LED flashlight, multi-band GPS, 5 ATM).

All prices checked 13 November 2026.

Last updated: 13 November 2026