Apple Watch SE 3 vs Apple Watch Series 12
The Apple Watch SE 3 is available from €269/$249, and the Apple Watch Series 12 from €449/$399. For the price difference of €180/$150, you get a more advanced health monitoring system, a larger display, longer battery life, and more options for tracking workouts and recovery.
The Apple Watch SE 3 and the Apple Watch Series 12 continue to offer many shared features, including an always-on display, wrist-based temperature measurement, sleep apnea notifications, retrospective ovulation tracking, 5G connectivity on the cellular models, media playback, and 64GB of storage. Our guide will help you decide which of the two Apple Watch models is best for you. The differences between the Apple Watch SE 3 and the Apple Watch Series 12 are as follows:
Apple Watch SE 3 vs Apple Watch Series 12
| Apple Watch SE 3 | Apple Watch Series 12 |
| Same design as Apple Watch Series 4, 5 and 6 | Refined design with a thinner chassis, display with rounded edges and a wider aspect ratio, and front glass that extends further beyond the sides for a higher screen-to-body ratio. |
| 40 mm or 44 mm housing | 42 mm or 46 mm housing |
| Aluminum housing | Case made of aluminum, titanium or ceramic |
| 40mm: 40 × 34 × 10.7mm44mm: 44 × 38 × 10.7mm | 42 mm Aluminum/Titanium: 42 × 37 × 9.7 mm 46 mm Aluminum/Titanium: 46 × 40 × 9.7 mm 42 mm Ceramic: 43 × 37 × 9.85 mm 46 mm Ceramic: 47 × 41 × 9.85 mm |
| Weight of the aluminum GPS housing: 26.3 grams (40 mm) or 32.9 grams (44 mm) | Weight of the aluminum GPS device: 32.2 grams (42 mm) or 39.5 grams (46 mm) |
| Ion-X front glass | Ceramic Shield 2 front on aluminum models; sapphire crystal front on titanium and ceramic models. |
| No published IP6X certification | IP6X dust protection |
| LTPO OLED display | LTPO3 display with a permanent refresh rate of 1 Hz, enabling a real-time ticking second hand on supported watch faces. |
| OLED display | OLED display with wide viewing angle |
| 40mm: 324 × 394 pixels44mm: 368 × 448 pixels | 42mm: 374 × 446 pixels46mm: 416 × 496 pixels |
| 40 mm: 759 mm² display area 44 mm: 977 mm² display area | 42 mm: 970 mm² display area 46 mm: 1,196 mm² display area |
| Up to 1,000 nits brightness | Up to 2,000 nits brightness |
| Minimum brightness of 2 nits | Minimum brightness of 1 nit |
| Back made of nylon composite material and sapphire crystal | Backing made of aluminum or titanium and zirconium oxide; backing made of ceramic and zirconium oxide for ceramic models. |
| S10 chip (2024) | S11 chip (2026) |
| 2 GB RAM | 4 GB RAM |
| Second generation optical heart sensor | Optical heart sensor that is permanently active |
| Standard heart rate measurement in the background | Background heart rate measurements every five seconds |
| Heart rate variability tracking | Recovery of HRV and more frequent HRV measurements overall |
| Vital signs app with heart rate, respiratory rate, wrist temperature and sleep duration | Vital signs app with heart rate, respiratory rate, wrist temperature, sleep duration, heart rate variability and daily view |
| On-call app | |
| Electric heart sensor and ECG app | |
| Blood oxygen sensor and blood oxygen app | |
| High blood pressure notifications | |
| Standard step counting | Improved step counting |
| Real-time heart rate and pedometer dial complications | |
| Water temperature sensor | |
| Depth gauge up to 6 meters and depth app | |
| The Oceanic+ app for snorkeling up to 6 meters deep is available in the App Store. | |
| Audio intelligence features such as Siri summary, noise recognition, and Shazam | |
| Live Rewind and Siri Recap, beta versions expected by the end of 2026 | |
| microphone | Microphone with voice isolation |
| Individual, elongated speaker openings | Individual speaker openings |
| 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi 4 | 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz Wi-Fi 4 |
| L1 GPS | Precision L1 GPS |
| Second-generation ultra-wideband chip | |
| Find iPhone | Precise location tracking for iPhone with distance and direction display |
| HomePod playback control | HomePod playback control and location-based media suggestions with a compatible Ultra Wideband HomePod |
| Up to 18 hours of normal use | Up to 24 hours of normal use |
| Up to 32 hours in energy saving mode | Up to 38 hours in energy saving mode |
| Up to 7 hours of training recording | Up to 10 hours of training recording |
| Charges from 0 to 80% in approximately 45 minutes. | Charges from 0 to 80% in approximately 30 minutes. |
| 15 minutes charging time for up to 8 hours of normal use | 15 minutes charging time for up to 12 hours of normal use |
| 8 minutes charging time for up to 8 hours of sleep monitoring | 5 minutes charging time for up to 10 hours of sleep monitoring |
| Aluminum surfaces in the colors Midnight and Starlight | Aluminum finishes in dark bronze, light gold, black and space gray |
| Surfaces in radiant gold and natural titanium | |
| Pearl white and midnight blue ceramic surfaces | |
| Hermès models in titanium, silver and radiant gold | |
| 40mm: €269/$249 with GPS or €319/$299 with GPS + cellular; 44mm: €299/$279 with GPS or €349/$329 with GPS + cellular | Aluminum 42 mm: €449/$399 GPS or €569/$499 GPS + cellular Aluminum 46 mm: €499/$449 GPS or €619/$549 GPS + cellular |
| Prices for titanium models start at €799/US$699; prices for ceramic models start at €1,049/US$899. |
Apple Watch SE 3
If you primarily need a smartwatch for notifications, standard workout and sleep tracking, and an always-on display, the Apple Watch SE 3 still offers better value. Although it’s a year old, at €269/$249 it still offers excellent value and most of the core Apple Watch features for €180/$150 less than the entry-level Apple Watch Series 12.
Apple Watch Series 12
The Apple Watch Series 12 offers significantly more benefits for those who track their health and recovery trends with their watch. Its new health sensor system enables frequent heart rate measurements, recovery HRV analysis, and a readiness score that considers current activity, training load, vital signs, and sleep. ECG, blood oxygen measurement, and hypertension alerts provide additional features not offered by the Apple Watch SE 3.
Battery life could be a decisive factor. The Apple Watch Series 12 offers six hours more battery life with normal use and three hours more when tracking outdoor workouts. It also charges faster, which is especially useful if you wear your watch at night for sleep monitoring.
The Apple Watch Series 12 also offers a larger and brighter display, which makes a noticeable difference in everyday use, as well as 5 GHz Wi-Fi, precision find for a misplaced iPhone, and premium case options in titanium and ceramic. Intelligent audio features include Siri Summary, noise detection, and the always-on Shazam function.
If you prefer the enhanced health features, longer battery life, improved display, or more premium case options of the Apple Watch Series 12, the higher price is justified. However, if these features are unlikely to change how you use or value your watch, the Apple Watch SE 3 is the more affordable choice.
