Put a GPX route on your Garmin watch
You planned a route or downloaded a GPX file, and now it has to get onto the watch. There are three ways: through the phone app, by cable from a Windows PC, or by cable from a Mac with our browser tool. All three end in the same place: a course you can follow on the watch.
Through Garmin Connect (no cable)
- Open Garmin Connect on the web and go to Training & Planning → Courses → Import.
- Upload the GPX file, check the course on the map and save it.
- Choose Send to Device. The watch receives the course at its next sync with the phone.
By cable from Windows
- Connect the watch with its USB cable. It appears in File Explorer as a device.
- Open Internal Storage (or Primary) → GARMIN → NewFiles.
- Copy the .gpx file into NewFiles. FIT course files go to the same folder.
- Unplug the cable. The watch imports the file and turns it into a course.
By cable from a Mac
A Mac cannot open newer Garmin watches over USB: they connect over MTP, which macOS does not support, so the watch never shows up in Finder. Our USB file transfer does it in Chrome or Edge instead: connect the watch, drop the GPX, and it lands in GARMIN/NewFiles with a safe file name. Older models that appear as a USB drive work in Finder directly.
Where the route appears
After the import the route is a course. Start the activity you want to use, for example Hike or Run, open its menu and choose Navigation → Courses, then pick the route and start it. The exact menu names vary a little between models.
Files that cause trouble
A FIT file of a recorded activity is not a route and is not loaded onto the watch. KML or KMZ from map apps must be exported as GPX first. Very long tracks with tens of thousands of points import slowly or get cut; simplify them in your route planner before export.
Questions
Can I load several routes at once?
Yes. Copy several GPX files into GARMIN/NewFiles in one go; the watch imports each one as its own course.
Does a GPX file need waypoints?
No. A track or a route is enough; waypoints are optional and appear as points along the course.
Why is NewFiles empty again after I unplug?
That is normal: the watch moves imported files out of NewFiles and keeps them as courses.