Apple Watch Series 10 vs Apple Watch Series 9: What is the difference?

Apple has updated its hugely successful Watch range for the 2024/2025 season, with the arrival of the 10th generation that it thankfully didn’t call X. To mark the decade, the new devices offer larger sizes, more features, and material upgrades. But, is all this enough to make them a better buy than the Series 9 models they replace? Here’s the Macworld Apple Watch 10 vs Apple Watch 9 comparison so you can find out. 

Design & Build

Apple hasn’t seen the need to reinvent the wheel when it comes to the design of the new Apple Watch 10, but there are some tweaks over the previous generation. The most obvious, when you have the devices side-by-side, is that the Series 10 increases the display dimensions for the two models. This is accompanied by a slight increase in the chassis dimensions too, but the Series 10 models do come in a little lighter and are the thinnest Apple Watches you can buy. 

As with the Series 9 variants, you have a choice of two materials, but where that generation offered aluminum or stainless steel, the Series 10 comes in aluminum and titanium, albeit with a chunk more money needed for the latter. That titanium option used to be reserved for the Apple Watch Ultra.

Here’s how the two sizes of each model compare:

Apple Watch Series 10

• 46mm model (aluminum, GPS) – 46mm x 39mm x 9.7mm; 36.4g
• 46mm model (aluminum, GPS + Cellular) – 46mm x 39mm x 9.7mm; 35.3g
• 46mm model (titanium) – 46mm x 39mm x 9.7mm; 41.7g
• 42mm model (aluminum, GPS) – 42mm x 36mm x 9.7mm; 30g
• 42mm model (aluminum, GPS + Cellular) – 42mm x 36mm x 9.7mm; 29.3g
• 42mm model (titanium) – 42mm x 36mm x 9.7mm; 34.4g

Apple Watch Series 9

• 45mm model (aluminum, GPS) – 45mm x 38mm x 10.7mm; 38.7g
• 45mm model (aluminum, GPS + Cellular) – 45mm x 38mm x 10.7mm; 39g
• 45mm model (stainless steel) – 45mm x 38mm x 10.7mm; 51.5g
• 41mm model (aluminum, GPS) – 41mm x 35mm x 10.7mm; 31.9g
• 41mm model (aluminum, GPS + Cellular) – 41mm x 35mm x 10.7mm; 32.1g
• 41mm model (stainless steel) – 41mm x 35mm x 10.7mm; 42.3g

Read our Apple Watch buying guide where we compare every model.

All models are IP6X dust resistant and can be taken to depths of 50 meters, so they can survive a quick dip, whether intentional or not. 

The Series 10 aluminum models come in jet black, rose gold and silver, while the titanium is available in slate, gold and natural. 

The Series 9 came in midnight, silver, starlight and pink for the aluminum models and graphite, silver and gold on stainless steel.

Once you have selected the color of the case you can choose from a wide range of Apple Watch straps from the cheapest Sport Loop, Sport Band and Solo Loop, to the Braided Solo Loop, Stainless Steel Milanese Loop, Link Bracelet, and the FineWoven, right up to a $899/£899 Hermes option.

Display

As usual, there are two sizes of Apple Watch to choose between. One suits smaller wrists better than the other. The displays on the newer models are each 1mm bigger than their predecessors: the 45mm screen is now 46mm and the 41mm screen is now 42mm.

That’s not the only change to the display. Apple has fitted the Series 10 watches with an upgraded version of the LTPO OLED panels found on the Series 9. This wide-angle OLED (LTPO3) delivers up to 40% more brightness when viewed at an angle, to make glancing at the Series 10 on a sunny day a better experience than on the older model. This also provides a much faster refresh rate and Apple claims it’s more energy efficient, which is always a bonus when it comes to wearables. 

The extra space afforded by the larger panel means the resolutions have also changed slightly between generations:

• Apple Watch Series 10 (46mm) – 416×496 pixels, 1,220 sq mm display area
• Apple Watch Series 10 (42mm) – 374×446 pixels, 989 sq mm display area
• Apple Watch Series 9 (45mm) – 396×484 pixels, 1,143 sq mm display area
• Apple Watch Series 9 (41mm) – 352×430 pixels, 904 sq mm display area

So, you get more room and brighter off-angles on the Series 10, although the Series 9 models still have great displays that don’t feel too cramped. 

Processor

As you’d expect from the yearly upgrade cycle, Apple has fitted the Series 10 with the new S10 SiP, replacing the S9 SiP from the previous generation. There doesn’t seem to be a lot of difference between them though, except that the 4nm process used to architect the S10 means that it can fit into a smaller space, allowing for the Series 10 to be thinner than the Series 9.

Both generations offer on-device Siri, support the double-tap feature, have 64-bit dual-core processors, second-generation Ultra Wideband, and the 4-core Neural Engine. 

If performance is your primary goal, both generations behave in a comparable manner. There are a few additional sensors and features available on the newer Apple Wstch though, which we’ll cover in the next section. 

Features

The Apple Watch Series 9 was already feature-packed when it came to health, and it shares almost the same collection of sensors and metrics as its successor. Either generation will give you an ECG that uses Apple’s third-generation optical heart sensor, a blood oxygen app (not available in the US), menstrual cycle tracking, sleep tracking, sleep apnoea notifications, the Vitals app to monitor your overall health, and the mindfulness app for your mental state.

There are also always-on altimeters, international emergency calling, Emergency SOS, high-g accelerometers for crash and fall detection, as well as noise and temperature monitoring. 

In fact, the main upgrade in this area for the Series 10 comes in the form of a water temperature sensor and a depth gauge that you can use down to 20 ft / 6 meters. This seems aimed at snorkelers, so if that’s your bag then the Series 10 has you covered, if you’re like the vast majority of people that don’t snorkel, then the Series 9 still looks pretty damn good. 

Battery Life

Again, there’s little to choose between the two generations when it comes to battery life. Apple states that both should deliver up to 18 hours of use before needing to be popped onto the wireless charger. This can be doubled if you switch to Low-Power mode, but obviously this will reduce the tracking that the device performs. 

Charging has seen some minor improvements though, with the Series 10 now going from 0-80% in about 30 minutes, whereas the Series 9 achieved the same feat in around 45 minutes. 

Price & Availability

With the release of the Apple Watch Series 10, Apple has retired the Series 9 so you can’t buy it directly on the Apple Store anymore. That being said, variants should still be available from third-party retailers as they sell through their stock – you may be able to get a good discount over Black Friday, for example. Take a look at our round-up of the best Apple Watch deals for the best prices right now.

As a guide, here’s how the Apple Watch Series 9 was priced when it launched:

Apple Watch Series 9

Aluminum:

• Apple Watch Series 9 (41mm, GPS) : $399 / £399 
• Apple Watch Series 9 (45mm, GPS) : $429 / £429 
• Apple Watch Series 9 (41mm, GPS + Cellular) : $499 / £499 
• Apple Watch Series 9 (45mm, GPS + Cellular) : $529 / £529 

Stainless Steel:

• Apple Watch Series 9 (41mm, GPS + Cellular) : $699 / £699
• Apple Watch Series 9 (45mm, GPS + Cellular) : $749 / £749

Here’s the latest deals we could find for the Apple Watch Series 9:

The Apple Watch Series 10 is available from Apple and all good tech retailers, with these being the official prices:

Apple Watch Series 10

Aluminum:

• Apple Watch Series 10 (42mm, GPS) – $399 / £399
• Apple Watch Series 10 (46mm, GPS) – $429 / £429
• Apple Watch Series 10 (42mm, GPS + Cellular) – $499 / £499
• Apple Watch Series 10 (46mm, GPS + Cellular) – $529 / £529

Titanium:

• Apple Watch Series 10 (42mm GPS + Cellular) – $699 / £699
• Apple Watch Series 10 (46mm GPS + Cellular) – $749 / £749

Here’s the latest deals we could find for the Apple Watch Series 10:

Should I buy the Apple Watch 10?

If you want to buy an Apple Watch and are choosing between a discounted Apple Watch Series 9 and a new Apple Watch Series 10 we’d recommend taking advantage of the discount on the discontinued Apple Watch. There isn’t enough new features to justify getting the new model. That’s assuming that you can find a good deal on the older Apple Watch. If no deals are to be found on the older model, and you don’t fancy a refurbished model then the Apple Watch Series 10 will be a great purchase.

If you’re looking to move up from an older Apple Watch, then we’d say that anything older than a Series 8 would probably give you the feeling that you got your money’s worth with the Series 10. It’s got that larger display, lighter feel, and fast recharge times, all of which will feel fresh and improved over an Apple Watch Series 7, 6 or earlier. 

If you own an Apple Watch 8 or 9 we’d suggest that you hold off and wait for the next generation to arrive before making the leap. The improvements over those devices are marginal and don’t really warrant the upgrade.