Garmin Connect Isn't Terrible. Here's How to Make It Clean

The Garmin Connect app isn't terrible. It's built for everyone

Everyone says the Garmin Connect app is a mess. I don't think it's badly designed. The problem is that it's built for everyone.

The same app has to support every Garmin watch, every Edge bike computer and every scale, and it has to work for diving, golf, outdoor adventures, running, cycling and general health. So out of the box, your Home screen is packed with cards for things you might not do or own.

Compare that with Whoop. Its app only has to show health data from one device, which is exactly why it looks so clean. Garmin doesn't have that luxury, but you can give yourself the same result in about a minute.

Start with Essentials: the most Whoop-like part

Since Garmin Connect 5.27 (July 2026), the Home screen can open with Essentials: a row of up to four big cards at the very top. It's the closest Garmin gets to Whoop's front screen, and it's available to every Connect user.

1. Tap More (bottom right), then Settings
2. Open Home Settings and switch on Essentials
3. Tap Edit Essentials to choose your four stats and put them in order

The four I'd pick, and how they map to Whoop:

• Sleep Score: Garmin's version of Whoop's sleep percentage
• Training Readiness: the closest thing to Whoop's Recovery, your go-or-hold number for today
• Body Battery: your energy through the day, the nearest all-day read to Whoop's Strain
• HRV Status: the trend behind your recovery

Health Status and Steps are also on the list if you'd rather have those. Which metrics you can choose depends on what your watch measures, and the update rolls out gradually, so if the toggle isn't there yet, update the app.

Then clean up the rest with Edit Home

1. On the Home screen, scroll all the way down and tap Edit Home
2. Add the cards you actually look at
3. Hide everything you don't need, and drag the rest into the order you want

Already looks way better, right?

How the Home screen is laid out

• Essentials: the row of up to four cards at the top, for the numbers you check every morning
• In Focus: large cards below it, room for up to 6
• At a Glance: smaller cards for everything you like to see but don't need big

What I'd keep below Essentials

With your recovery numbers already at the top, the rest of the screen can focus on training and daily activity:

• In Focus: Training Status, VO2 max and intensity minutes
• At a Glance: steps, resting heart rate and stress
• Hide: anything for gear or sports you don't use. No golf, no diving, no Garmin scale? Those cards can go

Hiding a card doesn't delete any data. It's all still in Garmin Connect, and you can add a card back from the same Edit Home screen whenever you want. The exact labels can shift a little between app versions.