Strava Sues Garmin Over Segments and Heatmap Features

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Two of the biggest names in fitness tracking are beefing: Fitness app Strava has filed a lawsuit against Garmin, demanding that the device manufacturer cease selling effectively all of its fitness watches and cycling computers. The suit claims patent infringement on two core features—segments and heatmaps—and alleges that Garmin violated a decade-old cooperation agreement between the two companies.

But according to Strava’s Chief Product Officer Matt Salazar, the lawsuit is a response to a much more immediate threat: Garmin’s plan to cut off API access unless Strava plasters the Garmin logo across virtually every part of its platform.

What is Strava’s lawsuit about?

At first glance, Strava’s lawsuit centers on two main patent claims. The first involves heatmaps and popularity routing, covered by patents filed in December 2014 and issued in 2016. These patents describe technology for generating maps that show where users work out based on aggregated GPS data from multiple users. This first claim is pretty clear-cut, but before diving into that, know that the second patent focuses on a different signature feature: segments. This patent, filed in March 2011 and granted in August 2015, covers the concept of user-defined route segments where athletes can compete for best times using GPS data.

Backing up a little, it’s worth noting here is how Strava and Garmin’s relationship has been close for over a decade. As trusted fitness tech blogger DC Rainmaker explains, Garmin introduced its own segments feature back in June 2014, before partnering with Strava to implement “Strava Live Segments” on Garmin devices in July 2015 through a Master Cooperation Agreement. Strava now claims that Garmin expanded beyond the scope of that agreement by continuing to develop and deploy its own Garmin-branded segments alongside Strava’s features. Notably, this alleged infringement has been ongoing for approximately 10 years.

For more context, the timing of this suit comes on the heels of recent friction between the companies. In 2024, Strava implemented controversial API changes that disrupted many third-party fitness apps. Around the same time, Garmin began requiring API partners to provide attribution for data sourced from Garmin Connect—a policy Strava reportedly resisted.

Additionally, Garmin launched its Trails+ feature in May 2025 as part of a paid Garmin Connect+ subscription, which Strava may view as encroachment on its subscription-based revenue model. According to DC Rainmaker’s sources, Strava formally notified Garmin of the patent concerns in late June 2025, with a follow-up in July. So, how did we get to today’s suit?

What sparked the lawsuit now?

In a Reddit post addressing the Strava community this afternoon, Salazar revealed that on July 1, Garmin announced new developer guidelines requiring its logo to appear “on every single activity post, screen, graph, image, sharing card etc.” for all API partners, including Strava. The deadline for compliance: November 1. The consequence for refusal: Garmin would cut off API access, preventing all Garmin activities from uploading to Strava.

“We consider this blatant advertising,” Salazar wrote. “These new guidelines actively degrade your user experience on Strava (and the other 150M+ athletes). We already provide attribution for every data partner, but Garmin wants to use Strava and every other partner as an advertising platform—they told us they care more about their marketing than your user experience.”

Salazar emphasized that Strava views this as fundamentally about user data ownership: “If you recorded an activity on your watch, we think that is your data. We believe you should be able to freely transfer or upload that data without requiring logos to be displayed alongside it or have that data be used as an advertisement to sell more watches.”

According to Salazar, Strava spent five months trying to negotiate with Garmin, proposing alternative attribution methods that would be less intrusive, but Garmin refused to compromise. Unable to justify complying with what they view as mandatory advertising requirements, Strava filed the lawsuit.

What this means for you

The good news for athletes: Your devices and data should be fine, at least for now. When asked about user impact, Strava stated that “our lawsuit is between two companies; we do not intend to take any actions that would disrupt the ability of Garmin users to sync their data with Strava.”

Plus, the legal process will likely take months or years to resolve. And Strava faces an uphill battle. Perhaps most damaging to Strava’s case is the timeline issue, particularly regarding heatmaps. According to DC Rainmaker’s research, Garmin actually introduced heatmaps in Garmin Connect in early 2013—more than a year and a half before Strava filed its patent application in December 2014. Multiple other platforms, including third-party developers using Strava’s own API data, had also created heatmap functionality during this period.

“The fact that they got a patent for it is a testament to how messy software patents have been over the years,” DC Rainmaker observes. He suggests that Garmin’s lawyers will “easily argue this patent shouldn’t have been granted and get it invalidated,” drawing parallels to a similar case where Wahoo sued Zwift and quickly dropped the suit after a judge questioned the validity of their patents.

The bottom line

A lot of athletes are feeling like children of divorce right now. Here’s how mom and dad see it:

Garmin’s position, as outlined in their July 2025 API Brand Guidelines, is that data attribution is standard practice across the industry—similar to what Google Maps and other platforms require. The guidelines give developers until the end of 2025 to comply, with Garmin noting flexibility on timelines. From Garmin’s perspective, they’re simply asking for the same attribution treatment that Strava demands from its own API partners.

Strava’s position, articulated by Salazar this afternoon, is that Garmin’s requirements go far beyond reasonable attribution and constitute forced advertising that degrades user experience. Strava points out that Garmin doesn’t provide attribution for third-party devices like heart rate monitors or power meters on its own Garmin Connect app, suggesting a double standard.

For now, users of both platforms can continue using their devices and syncing data as usual. But the lawsuit highlights growing tensions in the fitness tech ecosystem as companies increasingly compete not just for users, but for control over all the data and features that athletes have come to rely on.