Garmin Swim 3 Release Date? None Yet
No Garmin Swim 3 release date: Garmin has announced none and lists the Swim 2 as a previous model. Forerunner 170, 265 and Instinct 3 compared.
Garmin had not announced a Swim 3 or any release date as of our last source review on October 22, 2026; the Swim 2 is now a previous model that Garmin no longer sells directly in the US. The closest current replacement is the Forerunner 170, with the Forerunner 265 for the CSS test and the Instinct 3 for battery life.
The answer in 30 seconds
The Swim 2 is no longer a current retail model, but its core features did not vanish. The important correction is that the Swim 2 itself supports structured pool workouts and a Critical Swim Speed test. A credible replacement has to be judged against that real baseline.
Is there a Garmin Swim 2 successor?
No. As of October 22, 2026, Garmin has not announced a Swim 3 or named any other watch as the Swim 2’s successor. Garmin’s workout-compatibility list, rechecked on that date, still shows the Swim 2 as the only watch in its Garmin Swim family.
What Garmin did instead is spread the Swim 2’s swim features across its running and outdoor lines. Pool and open-water profiles, structured Pool Swim workouts and, on some models, the Critical Swim Speed test now live in the Forerunner, Instinct and fēnix ranges. That is why this guide compares replacements rather than waiting for a successor that has not been announced.
Garmin Swim 2 at a glance
Still own one? Nothing in Garmin’s documentation has removed what the Swim 2 does. This is the baseline a replacement has to beat.
Keep using it if structured sets and the CSS test are what you need. Replace it when you want Garmin’s newer pool workout features (Forerunner 265), a brighter display or a watch Garmin still sells new. Garmin no longer sells it directly in the US, so remaining stock sits with third-party retailers and the used market; check the return policy and battery condition before buying one second-hand.
All three picks cover pool and open-water swimming and appear in Garmin’s current Pool Swim workout-compatibility list. The real choice is training depth, form factor, and price.
The 3 best Garmin Swim 2 replacements
What about the Forerunner 70 and 165?
Both are reasonable watches, but neither clears the same replacement brief as cleanly as the Forerunner 170. If you are weighing the 170 against the pricier 570 instead, our Forerunner 170 vs 570 swim comparison lists exactly what the extra money buys in the pool.
Using AquaPlan with a compatible Garmin
A watch can only guide a structured set if Garmin supports pool workouts on that model. All three main picks in this guide are in Garmin’s current compatibility list. AquaPlan then gives you two ways to move a session.
Open this 1200m session in the free builder, save it to a free account, then send it to your watch with FIT export to check lengths, rest and stroke recording. One Garmin/FIT export is free to try; Premium gives you unlimited exports. On a compatible watch, the swim, drill and kick steps appear as structured intervals. For a full session on the new watch, the three ready swimming workouts for Garmin cover beginner, intermediate and advanced distances.
Not set on Garmin? Compare Apple Watch vs Garmin for swimming .
Sources and editorial notes
This guide uses first-party Garmin documentation rather than forum rumors. Product status, prices, and compatibility can change, so check the linked product page before buying.
New watch pool check
Check lengths, rest and stroke recording · 1200m total
- 200m Warm-up — GA1 · Rest 20s
- 4 × 100m Steady freestyle — GA1 · Rest 20s between repeats · Rest 30s after the set
- 4 × Drill then swim — Rest 20s between rounds · Rest 30s after the set
- 25m Fingertip drag — TU · Lightly trail your fingertips over the water during recovery.
- 25m Easy freestyle — GA1
- 4 × 50m Easy kick — GA1 · Rest 20s between repeats · Follow your watch's drill-log instructions for kick lengths. · kick
- 200m Cool-down — ReKom
Try it in AquaPlan
Article source
Written and maintained by AquaPlan Team, Swim Training & Product.
The AquaPlan team builds swim-training software for structured pool workouts, Garmin-compatible FIT export, printable workout PDFs, and progress tracking.
Focus areas: Structured swim workout design, Garmin-compatible FIT file export, Pool training plans and workout-library systems, Swim training tools for web, iOS, and Android.
Editorial standard: AquaPlan is built by lifelong swimmers — 20+ years in the water, competitive racing, and countless hours on deck. Our training guides come from that experience, not a content mill.