Garmin Connect API access paused for months — what are startups supposed to do?
I first applied to the Garmin Connect Developer Program in September 2025. My application was rejected with specific requirements to address. Fair enough — I made the changes.
I reapplied in April 2026. It is now August, and the response remains:
“Temporarily paused the review and approval of new API access requests.”
There is still no timeline for when processing will resume.
A temporary pause is understandable. But after months, it is difficult to understand how a ~$60B company like Garmin cannot provide developers with a timeline, a queue, or even meaningful guidance beyond the same standard response.
At this point, Garmin's inaction is forcing startups to question whether they can responsibly build around the Garmin ecosystem at all.
This isn't just about delayed API access. Product roadmaps, architecture and investment decisions have to move forward. If developers cannot tell whether access is weeks, six months, or indefinitely away, Garmin is effectively forcing them to evaluate building around other ecosystems instead.
I'm not asking for preferential treatment. I'm asking for basic clarity:
Are existing applications queued? Will applicants be notified when reviews resume? And if Garmin cannot commit to a date, should startups continue planning around Garmin Connect — or assume it is unavailable for the foreseeable future?
For an ecosystem as important as Garmin's, I think developers deserve a definitive answer to that rather than a standard template response.
