Getting a good night’s sleep is one of the most important factors in being both healthy and happy. If you’re feeling tired lately or you feel like you’re not getting enough shut eye, a sleep tracker might be exactly what you need. We’ve rounded up the best sleep trackers to help you out.
Buying the right sleep tracker for your needs
Sleep trackers come in different shapes and sizes — from the familiar wearables like smartwatches and fitness trackers, to bed stand gadgets and pads you put under your mattress. Wearables usually track movement and heart rate, while some bed stand sleep trackers use echolocation to detect movement and breathing. Over time, the collected data gives you an insight into how much you sleep, how long you are in deep, light or REM sleep, how many times you wake up a night, and if your breathing and heart rate is normal.
Of course, everyone has different needs, which is why we’ve picked a wide range of devices. Here are some quick links if you’re in a hurry:
- Recent Fitbit devices are some of the best sleep trackers out there, thanks to their Sleep Stages tracking and useful insights in the Fitbit app.
- The Xiaomi Mi Band 4 is the best cheap sleep tracker you can buy thanks to its accurate sleep stages reporting and sub-$50 price tag.
- The Samsung Galaxy Fit is a cheap, comfortable sleep tracker that offers a surprising amount of sleep insights in the Samsung Health app.
- The Oura Ring 2 is a fantastic alternative wearable sleep tracker that provides accurate sleep tracking data.
- The Withings Sleep is the best no-fuss, non-wearable sleep tracker out there.
- The SleepScore Max is a good sleep tracker for sensing environmental factors that could hinder your sleep.
The best sleep trackers
Any recent Fitbit
Fitbit offers affordable products packed full of useful features. This is why we have included a combined category that features multiple Fitbit products. Fitbit’s fitness trackers are also among the best sleep trackers out there.
This is thanks to the Sleep Stages feature found in the Fitbit app. It allows you to see how much time you’ve spent in each sleep stage: light, deep, and REM. Of course, that information might not be terribly beneficial by itself, but thanks to the Sleep Insights feature you can get tips on how to improve your sleep habits. You also receive access to statistics which let you compare your results with people from similar demographics.
Don’t miss: The best Fitbit you can buy | The best Fitbit alternatives
If you want a slim and versatile smart band, you can’t go wrong with the Inspire HR. It is a particularly good choice thanks to its battery life of up to five days and 24-hour heart rate tracking. Heart rate data is saved at one-second intervals when on the move and one-seconds at all other times, making the Inspire HR very accurate.
If you want to go a bit more high tech, on the other hand, the Charge 4 is the brand’s most advanced tracker to date. It’s not much bulkier than the Inspire HR and it offers better battery life, automatic exercise recognition, and onboard GPS. If you want a smartwatch that also doubles as a sleep tracker, the Fitbit Versa 2 is another great choice that won’t break the bank. It offers all the aforementioned features plus storing and playing music during workouts.
- Fitbit Charge 4 review | Check pricing on Amazon
- Fitbit Inspire HR review | Check pricing on Amazon
- Fitbit Versa 2 review | Check pricing on Amazon
Xiaomi Mi Band 4
Xiaomi’s wearables have been gaining a lot of traction as of late, thanks to their low prices and excellent features. The Mi Band 4 is the company’s latest. It’s by far the best sleep tracker in its price range.
It is slim and light enough to fit the bill. Just like the Fitbit Inspire HR, the new Mi Band offers 24/7 heart rate monitoring and gives you a sleep score based on how much time you spend in deep, light, and REM sleep. It also provides a sleep quality analysis, letting you know if you went to bed too late and more. However, its data is a bit more limited.
Also read: Xiaomi Mi Band 4 vs Fitbit Inspire HR: Which should you buy?
The Mi Fit app itself is not perfect either. Your activity history is buried in the multiple menus instead of having a separate tab. However, you have the freedom to use other compatible apps like Google Fit and Sleep as Android.
The Mi Band 4 does have one serious advantage over other fitness trackers; it has a battery life of up to 20 days. It covers all the fitness basics too, including step tracking, calories burned. There’s even connected GPS support.
Learn more about the Xiaomi Mi Band 4 in our full review.
Samsung Galaxy Fit
Samsung has a variety of smartwatches and fitness trackers, but your best choice for fitness and sleep tracking is the Samsung Galaxy Fit. It is a slim but powerful band that packs many features with up to seven days of battery life. As with almost any Samsung product, the Galaxy Fit comes with an excellent AMOLED display that will spare your eyes if you wake up in the middle of the night.
In terms of sleep tracking, the Samsung Health app used with the fitness band is packed with features. In the sleep section, you will find the information on how much time you spent in each sleep stage, but also total time awake, total time asleep, calories burned during the night, sleep trends over time, averages, and consistency targets. All this data combined gives you a clear picture of your sleeping habits and helps you improve them.
However, the Galaxy Fit’s optical heart rate sensor is not always accurate. This means its sleep tracking data might have some gaps too. While that is true of many wearables, Samsung definitely has room for improvement compared to the competition. Nevertheless, the Galaxy Fit does a good job and covers more than the fitness basics.
Learn more about the Samsung Galaxy Fit in our full review.
Oura Ring 2
If a fitness tracker is too uncomfortable for you no matter how slim or light it is, a ring might be the best choice. The Oura Ring 2 is a ring tracker that is both small and comfortable. Unlike its bulky Kickstarter predecessor, it offers a multitude of sensors without looking any different than a regular piece of jewelry.
It offers an infrared heart rate monitor, a gyroscope, an accelerometer, and not one, but three temperature sensors. That allows the Oura Ring 2 to measure changes in your skin color, detect when you fall asleep, and of course how much time you spend in each sleep stage. It is one of the most accurate sleep trackers out there, although even the Oura Ring 2 sometimes struggles with daytime naps. However, the information you get on the companion app is plentiful. You not only see how much you’ve slept, but how restorative your rest was, what your resting heart rate was throughout the night, how many times you’ve woken up and more.
The inclusion of a temperature sensor is particularly useful, since it tracks your body temperature during the night. This can help you see if you rest better at lower or higher temperatures and adjust your AC accordingly.
Learn more about the Oura Ring 2 in our full review.
Withings Sleep
Not all sleep trackers come in the form of smart bands or rings. If you want a specialized sleep tracking device that you don’t have to put on your wrist or finger, look no further than Withings Sleep (formerly Nokia Sleep). This smart pad can be placed under your mattress to track your sleeping patterns without sacrificing comfort.
As expected, it collects data throughout the night and displays it on the companion app for you in the morning. The pad tracks all the basics: sleep duration in each phase, interruptions and heart rate. It also offers some extras you won’t find on a wearable sleep tracker. The Withings Sleep has a built-in microphone that can help detect breathing disturbance and identify signs of chronic conditions such as sleep apnea.
The app also gives a lot of detailed information, including a sleep score and tips on how to improve your sleeping habits. But one of the best things about Withings Sleep is that it’s a smart home gadget. It’s compatible with Alexa, allowing to you can set up routines such as turning off the lights and adjusting the thermostat when you go to bed without lifting a finger.
SleepScore Max
If you need more information on the environmental factors that might be disturbing your rest, many sleep trackers won’t do. SleepScore Max is designed exactly for this purpose. This bed stand device uses echolocation to track breathing patterns, providing accurate data without disturbing you in any way.
Using l0w-energy radio waves, it scans your body 16 times per second and detects even the slightest movement. Just like the other trackers on the list, the SleepScore Max also detects sleep stages and provides you with sleep insights and an overall sleep score. But as mentioned, the environmental sensors are the feature that sets it apart.
They can detect noise, light, and room temperature. Combined with the machine learning algorithm in the companion app, you get powerful insights into what may be preventing you from getting enough rest. You can even manually enter additional data such as diet, coffee and alcohol intake for better results.
The SleepScore Max is not without its downsides. It needs to be paired to your smartphone via Bluetooth to function. It doesn’t automatically track sleep either — you need to remember to start it manually via the app. These are minor downsides, considering how accurate the device is.
Honorable mentions
- Any recent Garmin device, including the Venu, Vivoactive 4, Fenix 6 series, or the Vivoactive 4
- Huawei Watch GT 2e
- Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2
Next: The best home fitness streaming services: Bring the gym class to you
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