Garmin Venu 2 vs Venu 3: What’s the difference and should you upgrade?

The highly-anticipated Garmin Venu 3 (and the smaller but otherwise identical Venu 3S) has officially made its way to wrists, and the series packs a lot of impressive new features. In particular, for active shoppers looking for a smartwatch experience, the Venu 3 delivers all the basics, plus in-depth, accurate health and fitness tracking. It incorporates all the best tools of the Venu 2 (and Venu 2 Plus!) and sprinkles in a few extras. To learn more about what the new watch offers compared to its older sibling, we’ve compiled a Garmin Venu 2 vs Venu 3 comparison. Read on to learn what differentiates the two generations in terms of design, features, prices, and specs.

Garmin Venu 2 vs Garmin Venu 3: Specs

	Garmin Venu 3 and 3S	Garmin Venu 2 and 2S
Display	Venu 3: 1.4-inch AMOLED, optional always-on 454 x 454 resolution Venu 3S: 1.2-inch AMOLED, optional always-on 390 x 390 resolution Corning Gorilla Glass 3	Venu 2: 1.3-inch AMOLED 416 x 416 resolution Venu 2S: 1.1-inch AMOLED 360 x 360 resolution Corning Gorilla Glass 3
Dimensions and weight	Venu 3: 45 x 45 x 12mm 22mm band 47g Venu 3S: 41 x 41 x 12mm 22mm band 40g	Venu 2: 45.4 x 45.4 x 12.2mm 22mm band 49g Venu 2S: 40.4 x 40.4 x 12.1mm 18mm band 38.2g
Build materials	Stainless steel bezel Fiber-reinforced polymer case Silicone band	Stainless steel bezel Fiber-reinforced polymer case Silicone band
Battery	Venu 3: Up to 14 days in smartwatch mode (5 days with always-on display enabled) Up to 11 hours in all-Systems GNSS mode + music Venu 3S: Up to 10 days in smartwatch mode (5 days with always-on display enabled) Up to 8 hours in all-Systems GNSS mode + music	Venu 2: Up to 11 days in smartwatch mode Up to 8 hours in GPS mode + music Venu 2S: Up to 10 days in smartwatch mode Up to 7 hours in GPS mode + music
IP rating	5ATM	5ATM
Sensors	Garmin Gen 5 Elevate heart rate sensor GPS GLONASS Galileo Barometric altimeter Compass Gyroscope Accelerometer Thermometer Ambient light sensor Pulse ox blood oxygen saturation monitor	Garmin Gen 4 Elevate heart rate sensor GPS GLONASS Galileo Barometric altimeter Compass Gyroscope Accelerometer Thermometer Ambient light sensor Pulse ox blood oxygen saturation monitor
Connectivity	Bluetooth ANT+ Wi-Fi	Bluetooth ANT+ Wi-Fi
Compatibility	Android, iOS	Android, iOS
Garmin Pay	Yes	Yes
Smartwatch features	Make and receive phone calls Google Assistant, Samsung Bixby, and Siri support Connect IQ-compatible Smartphone notifications Text response/reject phone call with text (Android only) Controls smartphone music Plays and controls smartwatch music Find my phone/find my watch Incident Detection LiveTrack	Connect IQ-compatible Smartphone notifications Text response/reject phone call with text (Android only) Controls smartphone music Plays and controls smartwatch music Find my phone/find my watch Incident Detection LiveTrack
Colors	Venu 3: Silver bezel with Whitestone case Slate bezel with Black case Venu 3S: Soft Gold bezel with French Gray, Dust Rose, or Ivory case Silver bezel with Sage Gray case Slate bezel with Pebble Gray case	Venu 2: Silver bezel with Granite Blue case, Slate bezel with Black case Venu 2S: Slate bezel with Graphite case, Light Gold bezel with Light Sand case, Silver bezel with Mist Grey case, Rose Gold bezel with White case

Garmin Venu 2 vs Garmin Venu 3: Design

Compared to Garmin’s fitness-focused wearables, the Venu moniker represents the company’s more approachable, everyday smartwatch. This is reflected in the watches’ clean, minimalist aesthetics, and beautiful AMOLED displays. When comparing the Garmin Venu 2 vs Venu 3, the two generations share nearly identical overall designs and dimensions.