Apple Watch SE vs. Apple Watch Series 10 Buyer's Guide

The Apple Watch SE starts at $249, providing an accessible, low-cost option for those interested in owning an Apple smartwatch. The company also now offers the Apple Watch Series 10, which starts at $399, so what exactly do you get by spending an additional $150 and is it worth it? Our comparison helps to answer the question of which of these two Apple Watch models is best for you.


Apple announced the second-generation ‌Apple Watch SE‌ in 2022 alongside the now-discontinued Apple Watch Series 8. The Apple Watch Series 10 launched two years later in 2024. The ‌Apple Watch SE‌ is designed to be a low-cost option that still offers many of the Apple Watch features that have made the device so popular over the years, while the Apple Watch Series 10 offers a more feature-rich experience with additional health monitoring capabilities.

Both the ‌Apple Watch SE‌ and the Apple Watch Series 10 feature Crash Detection, water resistance, an optical heart sensor, up to 18 hours of battery life, and more, but there are significant differences between the two devices. Our comparison helps to answer the question of which of these two Apple Watch models is best for you.



‌Apple Watch SE‌ (second-generation)
Apple Watch Series 10

Same design as Apple Watch Series 4, 5, and 6	Refined design with a thinner casing, display with more rounded edges and a wider aspect ratio, and front glass that extends further over the sides for a higher screen-to-body ratio
Aluminum casing	Aluminum or titanium casing
Ion-X glass front	Ion-X glass (aluminum) or sapphire crystal (titanium) front
Color-matched nylon composite back case	Metal back with larger charging coil and integrated antenna
40mm or 44mm case size	42mm or 46mm case size with edge-to-edge display
40mm: 1.57-inch display 44mm: 1.78-inch display	42mm: 1.89-inch display 46mm: 2.04-inch display
Retina display	LTPO3 OLED Always-On Retina display (faster refresh rate in always-on mode, enabling a live ticking seconds hand on select watch faces)
	Wide-angle OLED (up to 40% brighter when viewed at an angle)
40mm: 324 by 394 pixels with 759 sq mm display area 44mm: 368 by 448 pixels with 977 sq mm display area	41mm: 374x446 pixels 989 sq mm display area 46mm: 416x496 pixels 1,220 sq mm display area
Up to 1,000 nits of brightness	Up to 2,000 nits of brightness
	Display can get dimmer in dark rooms and at night (down to 1 nit of brightness)
S8 chip (based on A13 Bionic chip)	S10 chip (based on A15 Bionic chip: 60% more transistors, 30% faster)
Neural Engine	4-core Neural Engine (up to twice as fast)
Siri processed in the cloud via internet connection	‌Siri‌ processed on-device for requests that do not need information from the internet, resulting in quicker and more reliable responses
Dictation	25% more accurate dictation
	‌Siri‌ can access health and fitness data
Second-generation optical heart sensor	Third-generation optical heart sensor
	Blood oxygen sensor and Blood Oxygen app
	Sleep apnea notifications
	Electrical heart sensor and ECG app
	Body and water temperature sensor
	Depth gauge to 6m
	Depth app
	Oceanic+ app for snorkelling (available on the App Store)
Microphone	Microphone with voice isolation
Single, elongated speaker hole	Redesigned speaker with individual holes
Speaker	Speaker with media playback
Cycle tracking	Cycle tracking with retrospective ovulation estimates
	Second-generation Ultra Wideband chip
	Precision Finding for iPhone 15 and iPhone 16 models, providing distance and direction, as well as visual, haptic, and audio guidance to a misplaced iPhone
	HomePod integration (when a user gets within four meters of a playing ‌HomePod‌, the Apple Watch launches Now Playing to control playback. If nothing is playing, media suggestions appear at the top of the Smart Stack.)
	Fast charging (0–80% in about 30 minutes)
	Double Tap gesture to stop a timer, play and pause music, snooze an alarm, answer and end a phone call, take a photo with the Camera Remote, open the Smart Stack, and scroll through widgets in the stack, all without touching the display
32GB storage	64GB storage
Available in anodized Silver, Starlight, Midnight finishes	Aluminum: Available in anodized Silver and Rose Gold, and polished Jet Black finishes Titanium: Available in polished Silver (matches previous stainless steel casing, Apple Watch Hermès only), Gold, Slate, and Natural finishes
Starts at $249	Starts at $399 (aluminum) or $699 (titanium)

The Apple Watch Series 10 is a relatively minor improvement over the previous Series 9 model, offering a thinner design and an improved display. Yet compared to the ‌Apple Watch SE‌, the Apple Watch Series 10 is a considerably more feature-rich device with advanced capabilities.

With its larger display, additional health monitoring features, and range of colors and finishes, the Apple Watch Series 10 will be the model of choice for those who want more out of their smartwatch. If you feel that the always-on display, added health monitoring features (such as ECG and sleep apnea notifications), or fast charging would be particularly useful to you, or simply like a specific casing and color combination not available with the ‌Apple Watch SE‌, the Apple Watch Series 10 will be the best model for you. It's also worth noting that the ‌Apple Watch SE‌ is now over two years old, while the Series 10 has only just come out, so the latter is likely to be more future proof.

If you are on a budget and are not particularly attracted to the additional features of the Series 10, the ‌Apple Watch SE‌ is still a compelling option. As it shares many key features with the Apple Watch Series 10, many customers will be happy choosing the more inexpensive model, unless you particularly value features such as the larger, always-on display or advanced health monitoring and can justify the added cost.

The ‌Apple Watch SE‌ is an ideal device for kids and senior citizens who do not have an ‌iPhone‌ thanks to Family Setup, but it is also the go-to model for most customers who are new to the Apple Watch and those who are upgrading from a Series 4 or older due to its competitive pricing and generous feature set, allowing users to get a balanced Apple Watch experience at a low price.
This article, "Apple Watch SE vs. Apple Watch Series 10 Buyer's Guide" first appeared on MacRumors.com

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