Suunto Race 3S launches today at £435 / $599. It records 45 hours of dual-band GPS, has a bright 2,000-nit AMOLED display behind sapphire glass, and weighs just 56g with its strap. It supports Suunto AI Coach, a paid conversational coaching service in the Suunto app, and buyers get three months free.
Race 3S replaces the ageing Suunto Race S, which launched in June 2024. Interestingly, Suunto skipped the 2S name, and it hasn’t announced a full-size Race 3. At least, not yet.
Price and availability
| Region | Price | On sale |
|---|---|---|
| UK | £435 | 15 October 2026 |
| Europe | €499 | 15 October 2026 |
| United States and Canada | $599 | 29 October 2026 |
| Asia-Pacific | Local pricing | 29 October 2026 (China: 15 October) |
There are three colours: Orchid, Feather and Black, all at the same price. Suunto sells the watch directly and through outdoor and running retailers, including Amazon.
Suunto Race 3S
Titanium bezel, sapphire glass, 1.32" AMOLED (2,000 nits), 45h dual-band GPS.
What’s new
An all-new outside sits alongside a powerful inside, excellent battery performance and a modest number of new features.
Battery
Race 3S records up to 45 hours with every satellite system and dual-band reception switched on. Race S managed 30 hours in the same mode. The always-on display cuts that to 40 hours, and single-band recording stretches it to 55. All those battery performance claims are excellent.
Suunto credits a silicon-carbon anode battery for the gain. A 100-mile mountain race now fits on a single charge at full accuracy, whereas Race S owners had to drop to a lower GPS mode or carry a power bank.
| Mode | Battery life |
|---|---|
| All systems, dual-band | Up to 45 hours (40 with always-on display) |
| All systems, single-band | Up to 55 hours (50 with always-on display) |
| Power-saving GPS modes | Up to 150 hours |
| Daily use | Up to 12 days |
Display, lens and case
The 1.32-inch AMOLED panel now peaks at 2,000 nits, more than three times Race S’s 600 nits, at the same 466 x 466 resolution. A top-end sapphire crystal replaces Gorilla Glass, and every version has a titanium bezel, so you get quality materials that shouldn’t scratch in normal use. Race S buyers had to pay extra for titanium.
The case measures 46 x 46 x 11.4mm. The watch head weighs 38g and the complete watch 56g. Suunto’s strap fits wrists from 125 to 175mm, a smaller range than Suunto Run 2 covers, so athletes with larger wrists should check the fit before buying.
Processor, heart rate and GPS
Race 3S uses the Ambiq Apollo 510 processor (now you know!) already found in Race 2 (2025), which makes map panning and menus quicker than on Race S. The optical heart rate module has six LEDs and four photodetectors behind curved 2.5D glass. Race 2 has the same LED and photodetector count, and my testing showed its sensor underreported during hard efforts, so the revised module has something to prove.
Positioning uses five satellite systems and tracks up to 32 satellites at any one time. Dual-frequency accuracy from the L1 and L5 bands supports Suunto’s claims of better performance in forests, canyons and switchbacks. The satellite figures on Suunto’s spec sheet match those of Run 2, which scored 90% in my standard GPS accuracy test, one of the best scores ever and well ahead of Race S at 75%.
Race 3S accuracy and heart rate are both pending testing here in October.
Maps and trail tools
Free worldwide offline maps take up 64GB of memory, double Race S’s capacity and those maps show contour lines and place names, which Race S also gained in April 2026. Race S missed Suunto’s July update, which raised route storage from 15 to 200 and added map layers and tides. Also noteworthy are these
- Climb Guidance shows the next climb or descent on a loaded route and updates as the athlete moves.
- ZoneSense reads intensity from heart rate variability when the watch is paired with a chest strap such as Suunto Smart Heart Rate Belt 2.
- Race 3S also runs the full SuuntoPlus catalogue of sport apps and has more than 100 sport modes.
Suunto AI Coach
AI Coach is a chat-based coach inside the Suunto app. It answers questions about an athlete’s training with charts, tables, and maps, and it builds structured workouts, training plans, and routes. Workouts and routes save to the app and sync to the watch.
“People have more performance data at their fingertips than ever, but turning all that information into something useful can be a challenge,” said Daniel Das Bhowmik, VP Product at Suunto. “We built Race 3S to carry flagship battery life in a case compact and light enough to forget, and we’re launching it alongside Suunto AI Coach to make things simple again: turning questions and personal data into clear, actionable answers.”
Buyers who pair Race 3S and activate it in the Suunto app by 31 December 2026 get three months free. Suunto has not yet published the price that applies after that. The Suunto AI Coach explainer covers what is known so far.
What arrives after launch
Three features are missing on day one.
- Race Planner builds a pacing plan from the route, weather forecast, and goal time, then guides pace during the race. Suunto says it will arrive in a later app and firmware update and gives no date.
- Offline music will arrive in a post-launch software update. Suunto has not confirmed any streaming service.
- NFC is also due after launch – confirmed in a media event but otherwise absent from the promises at launch.
Buyers who need any of the three on race day should wait for Suunto to ship them.
How it compares
Garmin sets the standard for training guidance, sensor support and smart features, and Race 3S sits between two Garmins on price. Forerunner 570 costs £459.99 / $549.99 and includes Garmin’s daily training guidance, music services, Garmin Pay and live tracking. It has no maps and records 14 hours of multi-band GPS. Forerunner 970 adds maps, ClimbPro and the deepest training tools of any watch, and it costs £649.99 / $749.99 and records for 21 hours in multi-band mode. Race 3S vs Forerunner 570 and 970 has the full comparison, including how the two companies differ on warranty, battery service and subscriptions.
COROS Apex 4 is the closest rival at £429 / $479. It offers 41 hours of dual-frequency recording and lasts 24 days in daily use, twice as long as Race 3S. It includes the full EvoLab training platform, spoken turn directions and offline music today, and COROS keeps adding features to watches that are several years old. It has no third-party app store, and its memory-in-pixel screen is always on but far dimmer than Suunto’s AMOLED. Race 3S vs Apex 4 covers the detail.
Within the Suunto range, the Run 2 with 64GB costs £299 / $399 and has the same maps and core Suunto software. The extra £136 / $200 for the Race 3S buys Climb Guidance, SuuntoPlus sport apps, TrainingPeaks workouts, and more than 100 sport modes, plus almost double the dual-band battery life. Race 3S vs Race 2 vs Run 2 sets out which Suunto suits which athlete.
Full figures are on the Suunto Race 3S specifications page, and Race 3S vs Race S lists every change from the old watch.
First thoughts
Race S was a strong watch, but inconsistent heart rate and middling GPS scores let it down in my testing. Race 3S launches with both those components updated, and Run 2 has already shown that Suunto’s 2026 hardware can deliver accurate results. If the Race 3S sensors perform to the Run 2 standard, this is Suunto’s best small trail watch.
The price is the harder question. Race S launched at £299 / $349, and Race 3S costs £136 / $250 more. Sapphire, titanium, 64GB, and 15 more hours of battery explain much of that, but Race 2, with its larger 1.5-inch screen and 55-hour battery, starts at £429 / $499. Athletes who can carry the bigger watch get more for slightly less.
Suunto Race 3S
Titanium bezel, sapphire glass, 1.32" AMOLED (2,000 nits), 45h dual-band GPS.
Quick answers
How much does Suunto Race 3S cost?
Suunto Race 3S costs £435 in the UK, €499 in Europe and $599 in the United States. All three colours cost the same.
When is Suunto Race 3S released?
It goes on sale on 15 October 2026 in the UK, Europe and China, and on 29 October 2026 in North America and Asia-Pacific.
How long does the Suunto Race 3S battery last?
Suunto rates it at up to 45 hours of dual-band GPS recording, 55 hours in single-band mode, 150 hours in power-saving GPS modes and 12 days of daily use.
Does Suunto Race 3S have offline maps?
Yes. You can download free worldwide offline maps with contour lines and place names to the watch, which has 64GB of storage. Suunto charges no subscription for them.
Does Suunto Race 3S have music and NFC?
Both arrive after launch. Suunto says offline music will come in a software update, and NFC is also due later. Neither works on day one.
Is Suunto AI Coach free with Race 3S?
Race 3S buyers get three months free if they pair and activate the watch in the Suunto app by 31 December 2026. After that, AI Coach is a paid service, and Suunto has not yet published the price.
Is there a Suunto Race 3?
Suunto has announced only Race 3S. Suunto has not confirmed a full-size Race 3, and Race 2 remains the larger watch in the range.
Last Updated on 15 October 2026 by tfk the5krunner
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tfk is the founder and author of the5krunner, an independent endurance sports technology publication. With 20 years of hands-on testing of GPS watches and wearables, and competing in triathlons at an international age-group level, tfk provides in-depth expert analysis of fitness technology for serious athletes and endurance sport competitors. ID
