Confused about what kind of swim goggles to get? Here’s a breakdown of the best swimming goggles for every kind of swimming.

The swim goggle is one of the most critical pieces of swimming gear.

It allows you to properly see the walls, backstroke flags, and other swimmers and also keeps your eyes from getting red and irritated.

Based on 25+ years of experience in the pool, below are my best swimming goggles out there for competitive swimmers.

They are separated into two categories, training and competition, but these are only suggestions based mainly on price, as competition goggles can quickly get pricey.

Additionally, there is a detailed guide at the end that lists all of the major things to look for when choosing the right swim goggles for you.

Let’s dive right in.

Best Smart Swimming Goggles

Technology in the pool has come a long way in the past few years, and nowhere is this most apparent than with the first generation of smart swimming goggles.

The FINIS Smart Goggle is a game-changer for swimmers, with a heads-up display that sits in the corner of your swim goggle that tracks time, intervals, how much rest you have taken, number of laps, splits (per lap and per repetition), and more.

There are a couple of reasons the FINIS Smart Goggle is currently the best type of this swim goggle on the market.

For starters, when the goggles eventually wear out, you only need to replace the goggles (FINIS sells them for $35) and not the HUD unit, which can be detached from your old goggles and plopped into the new set.

The HUD unit attaches to the left inside of the goggle lens.

This is a major benefit compared to its main competitor, the FORM Swim Goggles, which were the first smart goggles to hit the pool and require you to re-buy the whole set (at a cost of around $200).

Additionally—and this is a personal preference—the HUD doesn’t dominate the full goggle lens. Unlike the FORM goggles, which perpetually have a digital display on the goggle lens, with the FINIS Smart Goggles, you simply look to the left with your left eye to catch a glimpse of the digital display.

I like this “choose when to see the info” approach as I can spend more time focusing on my technique than reading numbers.

The FINIS Smart Goggles are certainly not for everyone, especially at a price tag of around $235, but for swimmers who train on their own, want to track their swimming (the app for the goggles is excellent), or who want the added push that comes from seeing your pace, these swim goggles are an awesome long-term investment in your training.

The FINIS Smart Goggle comes in two different tints (blue and smoke), a carry case, charging cable, and six different nose bridges for a custom fit.

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