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The Suunto Run 2 is a great-performing running watch that offers strong GPS and heart rate tracking accuracy wrapped up in a colourful, lightweight and compact watch design.
It now comes in two storage options and now packs a brighter display compared to the first Run. It also adds in useful features like free offline maps to make it a better running watch to get lost with.
While those new features and improvements do see a price increase from the Run, the Run 2 continues to compete with more beginner-friendly watches like the Coros Pace 4, the Garmin Forerunner 170 and the Garmin Forerunner 70.
Design & Key Stats
- Price: £265/$349 (4GB) or £299/$399 (64GB)
- Size: 46.5 x 46.5 x 11.66mm

- Weight: 35g
- Display: 1.32in AMOLED
- Case material: Polymer plastic
- Screen material: Gorilla glass
- Water resistance: 5 ATM
- Battery life (watch): 10 days
- Battery life (dual-band GPS): 24 hours (18 hours with AOD)
- Storage: 4GB or 64GB
Suunto Run 2 review
What’s New?
The Suunto Run 2 comes in 4GB and 64GB storage models, offering you more room to store music and maps if you’re willing to spend a bit more money.
Both versions of the watch include brighter AMOLED displays than the first Run going from a screen with 600 nits of peak brightness to one with 2,000 nits. There’s also sensor updates with Suunto adding a new version of its 12-channel heart rate sensor and dual-band GPS sensor to boost GPS and heart rate tracking accuracy.
In the battery department, GPS battery life has increased from 20 hours to 24 hours.
The Run Test: Likes
Testers Kieran, Mike and Nick were all fans of the Run 2’s compact and lightweight design, which is available in a nice range of vibrant colours and includes a very comfortable (and removable) strap.
The AMOLED display is now noticeably brighter than the one featured on the Run, while software runs a lot smoother than the team has experienced on previous Suunto watches.
GPS and heart rate tracking performance impressed across our testing. Suunto’s dual-band GPS performance in general has been strong and it’s nice to see that doesn’t change with the Run 2. Suunto promised improved heart rate tracking accuracy as well and it held up well against a chest strap across a range of runs and paces.
Free offline maps is a big new addition to the latest Run and it’s done free of charge. Those maps are straigthforward to get onto the watch and are well presented on that now brighter screen. They also don’t badly lag when trying to move to different sections of a map.
Battery life improvements have mainly been made when you’re using the GPS, with a few more hours to play with than the last Run. The day-to-day battery life sees a little drop, especially when using with the always-on display mode.
The Run Test: Dislikes
The obvious one is price. While the Suunto Run was well-priced against beginner-friendly running watches like the Coros Pace 3 and the Garmin Forerunner 165, the Run 2’s higher price puts it up against the excellent Coros Pace 4 and the more smartwatch-like Garmin Forerunner 170.
The team still found the general software both on the watch and the Suunto app a bit less slicker than the competition, while Suunto’s approach to training analysis isn’t presented in a massively user-friendly way that makes it easy to take on board.
Verdict And Alternatives
The Suunto Run 2 is a solid-performing running watch that offers some nice upgrades from the Suunto Run. What’s not so nice is the price increase, which means it’s competing with watches that can arguably offer a better all-round package.
The Coros Pace 4 and Garmin Forerunner 170 are the big obvious alternatives to the Suunto Run 2. With the Pace 4, you’re getting a very likeable design, a great set of features, strong battery life and training insights that are presented a lot nicer.
Garmin’s Forerunner 170 offers a better mix of running and smartwatch features including payments, richer music streaming support and slicker watch software. It does lack the dual-band GPS you will find on the Suunto Run 2, though we found the single band GPS support on the 170 still performed really well. You’ll get a little more GPS battery from the Run 2, with the 170 offering similar battery life when using its smartwatch features.