How to Upload Apple Watch Workouts to Garmin Connect

By Josep Mampel Marques, updated November 11, 2026

To move Apple Watch workouts to Garmin Connect, export your Apple Health data from the iPhone, convert each workout into a FIT activity file with its GPS route and heart rate, and import those files on the Garmin Connect website using the Import Data option. Importing activity files is the way to add past workouts recorded on another device. FitMigrate builds the FIT files in your browser from the export.zip, one at a time or your whole history in one zip.

Step 1: export your Apple Health data

On the iPhone paired with your watch, open Health, tap Summary, tap your picture or initials, then tap Export All Health Data. Save export.zip to Files or move it to your computer. Details in how to export all Apple Health data.

Step 2: turn the workouts into FIT files

Open FitMigrate on a computer, where importing to Garmin Connect is easiest, and choose your export.zip.
Under Workouts to FIT you see each workout with its date, type, minutes, kilometres and whether it has a GPS route.
Click FIT on a row to download one workout, or Download all workouts as FIT (zip) to get every workout that has a route or heart rate in a file called apple-watch-workouts-fit.zip.
If you downloaded the zip, unzip it. Upload the .fit files themselves, not the zip.

Each file is named with the start time and type, for example 2026-05-03-07-30_Running.fit, so you can pick the ones you want.

Step 3: import the FIT files into Garmin Connect

Sign in to Garmin Connect in a web browser on your computer.
Open the Import Data page. In recent versions of the site it is reached from the upload or plus icon near the top right; the exact icon and menu wording may vary.
Drag your FIT files onto the import area, or browse to them.
Start the import and wait for Garmin Connect to confirm each file.
Open your activity list to check the new activities: map, duration, distance and heart rate.

Garmin's community forum points users with activity files from other devices to this Import Data page of Garmin Connect Web. We could not confirm an equivalent import option in the Garmin Connect phone app, so use the website.

What comes across in each FIT file

Sport, mapped from the Apple workout type: running, walking, hiking, cycling, swimming, rowing, strength training, yoga and others. Types without a match are saved as a generic activity.
GPS route with elevation, when your watch recorded one (outdoor workouts with location on).
Heart rate samples recorded by the watch during the workout.
Distance calculated from the GPS track, or the distance Apple stored when there is no route, plus start time, duration and calories when Apple stored them.

Some details do not come across: each workout becomes a single lap, so splits and intervals are not kept, and running power, cadence and pool swim lengths are not included. Indoor workouts have no map but still get time and heart rate.

The FIT format is Garmin's own protocol for sport and fitness data. FitMigrate's files are standard FIT activity files, checked with Garmin's official FIT SDK decoder in our tests.

Tips for a large history

Start with a few files. Import two or three workouts first and check them before importing years of activities.
Avoid importing twice. Keep the files you have already imported in a separate folder, so you do not end up with duplicates.
Mind other connections. If Garmin Connect shares activities with Strava or other apps, imported workouts may be passed on too, and those apps may already have them.

Alternatives

iPhone apps that read Apple Health directly can also export or sync workouts without the full export. RunGap lists Apple Watch, Apple Health and Garmin among the services it works with, with exports behind a paid subscription. HealthFit exports workouts as FIT and GPX files that you could import the same way. These suit you if you want new workouts to move automatically. FitMigrate is free and handles your whole back catalogue in one go, without an app or account.

Switching watches for good? Read what data comes with you from Apple Watch to Garmin.

FAQ

Can Garmin Connect read my old workouts from Apple Health?

We could not find a Garmin option that does this for past Apple Watch workouts. The reliable route is importing activity files, which is what the FIT files from FitMigrate are for.

Can I import a GPX route instead of a FIT file?

A GPX route from Apple has GPS points but no heart rate, so the activity would have a map without pulse. A FIT file can carry both.

Will Garmin count imported workouts in its training metrics?

That depends on Garmin's own rules for imported activities, which we could not verify. Expect at least the map, time, distance and heart rate to show on the activity.