Garmin smartwatch users may be green with envy over Coros’ latest free update

Coros has announced a substantial Spring 2026 software update for its watches and app, introducing a suite of new tools designed to help runners plan, execute and analyse their efforts more precisely.

The update marks a clear push into territory long associated with Garmin watches' more advanced training and race planning features.

Pace Strategy is probably the most exciting addition, designed to help runners figure out how fast to run and when.

Not dissimilar to Garmin's PacePro, but simpler and more automated, the feature allows you to build a pacing plan based on either distance or a specific route.

You can select a target distance, such as 5K, 10K or marathon, and set an overall goal time.

The system then generates suggested splits, which can be adjusted to favour even pacing or positive and negative splits.

For trail runners and ultra-distance athletes, Pace Strategy goes further by analysing a route’s elevation profile alongside the user’s current fitness level.

Based on this data, the Coros app generates segment-by-segment target paces that adapt to climbs and descents.

It can also factor in waypoints, such as aid stations, allowing runners to plan expected arrival times throughout an event.

Once synced to a Coros watch, the pacing plan can be followed in real time, with data screens showing whether you’re ahead or behind target pace, alongside estimated finish time and segment progress.

Hill Alerts adds real-time course awareness

Alongside Pace Strategy, Coros is introducing Hill Alerts, a feature designed to provide more context during structured runs.

When following a route in Run or Trail Run modes, the watch can now preview upcoming climbs and descents and deliver alerts as you approach them.

During each segment, users can see key information such as distance, gradient and elevation gain or loss, as well as how much of the climb or descent remains.

Unlike Garmin's ClimbPro, the feature also uses colour-coded difficulty indicators, giving you a clearer sense of how demanding each section of the route will be before you reach it.

Smaller updates round out the experience

Beyond the headline additions, the update includes several smaller improvements aimed at everyday usability.

A new Weekly Distance widget allows users to track their mileage across activities such as running, cycling and swimming directly on the smartwatch.

Coros has also added a Hybrid Fitness activity mode, designed for multi-discipline workouts, with automatic detection when switching between stations.

Other updates include larger font options for notifications, expanded pause controls during activities, passcode protection for added security, and refinements to climbing metrics and statistics.

The update also introduces Zwift integration, allowing workouts created in the Coros app to sync with the platform and completed activities to be sent back to the Coros ecosystem.

A clear move into Garmin territory

The Spring 2026 update positions Coros more directly against Garmin in the race-planning and performance-analysis space.

With Pace Strategy offering route-aware pacing and Hill Alerts providing real-time terrain insights, Coros is moving beyond simple tracking and into guided performance, particularly for trail runners and long-distance athletes.

You can read more about the updates at Coros.