Garmin Venu 2 and Venu 2S smartwatch models focus on offering multisport functionality, alongside health monitoring. Based on the Garmin operating system, the Venu series sits right between the Vivoactive and the Garmin Fenix 6 series smartwatch models. Below, we look at some differences between the Garmin Venu 2 and the Garmin Venu 2S smartwatches.
Venu 2 is the upgraded model compared to a Venu 2S model of Garmin smartwatch. There are not many differences between the two smartwatch models, Venu 2 and Venu 2S.
Content in this post include the following topics:
- Display and Screen Size – Venu 2 vs Venu 2S
- Battery Life – Venu 2 vs Venu 2S
- Appearance and color – Venu 2 vs Venu 2S
- Price difference – Venu 2 vs Venu 2S
- Table of Comparison – Venu 2 vs Venu 2S
- Summary

Display and Screen Size – Venu 2 vs Venu 2S
Garmin Venu 2 has better screen and display specifications than a Garmin Venu 2S. Garmin Venu 2 is a 45 mm smartwatch and a Garmin Venu 2S is a 40 mm smartwatch model.
- Venu 2 has a screen size of 1.3″ and the Venu 2S has a smaller screen size of 1.1″. For smaller wrists, a Venu 2S is an appropriate watch. For most general use case scenarios, a Venu 2 offers a standard size of the smartwatch, neither too big nor too small.
- Venu 2 has a better display resolution of 416 x 416 pixels; a Venu 2S has a display resolution of 360 x 360 pixels. That is almost a 15 percent difference in the display resolution between Venu and Venu 2S. However, this can be explained on account of the smaller size of the Venu 2S smartwatch.

Battery Life – Venu 2 vs Venu 2S
Venu 2 smartwatch has a slightly better battery life than the Venu 2S. However, the incremental backup is not too significant.
- Venu 2S has a battery life of 10 days, while the Venu 2 has a battery life of 11 days.
- On a similar basis, the Venu 2S has a battery life of 19 hours when the watch uses GPS. Venu 2 has a battery life of 22 hours on GPS use.
- Venu 2S has a battery life of 8 hours on GPS and music mode; Venu 2 has a battery life of 11 hours on GPS and music usage.
- Effectively speaking, the difference in battery charge and life between a Garmin Venu 2 and Venu 2S is of a theoretical nature. For practical considerations, the battery life is not a differentiator factor between a Venu 2 and a Venu 2S smartwatch.
Appearance and color – Venu 2 vs Venu 2S
Garmin Venu 2 has limited color options available. It comes in Graphite blue and Graphite color options. The watch body is made of stainless steel. The watch body is robust and gives the appearance of a strong watch. A Venu 2S has additional color options. A Venu 2S watch is available in four color options:
- Light gold stainless steel body.
- Rose gold stainless steel body.
- Slate stainless steel body.
- Silver stainless steel body.
A Venu 2S is a very sleek watch, with extended battery life and activity tracking. It could be one of the best sport and fitness watches for people with small wrists. For female athletes, the Venu 2S would look like a spectacular watch.
Garmin recommends:
- Venu 2 for wrist circumference size between 130-200 mm. This is a 45 mm smartwatch.
- Venu 2S for wrist circumference size between 115-170 mm. This is a 40 mm smartwatch.
Price difference – Venu 2 vs Venu 2S
There is no price difference between a Venu 2 and Venu 2S smartwatch models. Both watches have a published rate of $399. In terms of the core functionality on both smartwatches, we could find no difference that needs a mention.
At the end of the day, it boils down to the design, appearance, and feel of the watch that you would cherish and would like to acquire. Both the Venu 2 and the Venu 2S watch models are compatible with Android and iOS devices. Garmin smartwatches work flawlessly with an Android phone and an iPhone. The premium feel of the Venu 2 and Venu 2S watch models compare very favorably with the similarly priced smartwatches.
In terms of health and wellness monitoring and reporting, the Venu 2 and Venu 2S watches track blood oxygenation levels, and offer a sleep score. Sleep score rates your sleep quality, based on an algorithm that calculates the deep sleep period, and the total relaxation time during the sleep cycle. Both, Venu 2 and Venu 2S cover the following health features:
- Venu 2 and Venu 2S monitor sleep and score your sleep quality through sleep score.
- Both measure the heart rate and share high and low heartbeat alerts.
- Heartbeat is measured on a perpetual basis, every second of the day.
- Similar outdoor activities and tracking is available on Venu 2 and Venu 2S watches.
- Body battery levels are offered by the Garmin algorithm for Venu and Venu 2S watch wearers.
- Venu 2 and Venu 2S can take temperature through the skin using the ‘tempe’ sensor.
- Venu 2 and Venu 2S can also take perspiration readings. This is very useful for measuring intensity of the workout.
Table of Comparison – Venu 2 vs Venu 2S
If you are in haste, we have the table of features for Venu 2 and Venu 2S smartwatches of Garmin. The details herein should help save your time in picking a feature by feature comparison.
Feature | Venu 2 | Venu 2S |
Display | AMOLED | AMOLED |
Display Lens | Corning Gorilla Glass 3 | Corning Gorilla Glass 3 |
Always on Display | Yes | Yes |
Bezel | Stainless Steel | Stainless Steel |
Display Resolution | 416 x 416 pixels | 360 x 360 pixels |
Physical body | Fiber-enforced Polymer | Fiber-enforced Polymer |
Physical Size | 45.4 x 45.4 x 12.2 mm | 40.4 x 40.4 x 12.1 mm |
Android | Android OS 7 and higher | Android OS 7 and higher |
iOS | iOS version 14 and higher | iOS version 14 and higher |
Garmin Connect | Yes | Yes |
Garmin Express | Yes | Yes |
Water Rating | 5 ATM (Swim Proof) | 5 ATM (Swim Proof) |
Swimming Profile | Pool Swimming | Pool Swimming |
Device Memory | 200 hours activity data | 200 hours activity data |
Battery Life | 11 Days (Smartwatch Mode) | 10 Days (Smartwatch Mode) |
Battery Saver Mode | Yes | Yes |
Sensors for GPS | GPS, Galileo, GLONASS | GPS, Galileo, GLONASS |
Gyroscope | Yes | Yes |
Altimeter | Yes | Yes |
Heart Sensor | Garmin Elevate | Garmin Elevate |
Pulse Oxygenation | Yes | Yes |
Ambient Light Sensor | Yes | Yes |
Wireless Connectivity | ANT+, Wi-FI, Bluetooth | ANT+, Wi-FI, Bluetooth |
Touchscreen | Yes | Yes |
Color Display | Yes | Yes |
Body Battery | Yes | Yes |
Sleep Monitoring | Yes | Yes |
Sleep Score and Insights | Yes | Yes |
Women Health | Yes | Yes |
Hydration | Yes | Yes |
Music | Yes, store up to 650 songs on device | Yes, store up to 650 songs on device |
Garmin Pay | Yes | Yes |
Live Track | Yes | Yes |
Incident Detection | Yes | Yes |
Pedometer | Yes | Yes |
Calories burned | Yes | Yes |
Golf | Yes | Yes |
Running Profiles | Running, Treadmill Running, Indoor Track Running | Running, Treadmill Running, Indoor Track Running |
Cycling Profiles | Biking, Indoor Biking | Biking, Indoor Biking |
Outdoor Recreation Profiles | Hiking, Indoor Climbing, Bouldering, Skiing, Snowboarding, XC Classic Skiing, Stand Up Paddleboarding, Rowing | Hiking, Indoor Climbing, Bouldering, Skiing, Snowboarding, XC Classic Skiing, Stand Up Paddleboarding, Rowing |
Cost | $399.99 | $399.99 |
Summary
In our analysis, the Venu 2 and Venu 2S are similarly priced smartwatch models. Both offer core functionality that remains unchanged between the two watch models. Choose a model that works well with your design goals and wrist size.
You may also like to read more content related to the Garmin Fenix watches:
- Garmin Fenix 6 watch for 2022
- Garmin Fenix Watch 6 Vs Apple Watch 7
- Fenix 6 vs Apple Watch 6
- Does Fenix 6 have fall detection?
- Does Fenix 6 have body battery?
- Does Fenix 6X Pro have music?

Helen Kurt is a geeky nerd who loves to cover the wearables space. She has over 5 years of experience in the smartwatch domain. You can reach her on email at [email protected].