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Fitbit; Alyssa Powell/Business Insider
Fitbit's wearables do almost everything. From counting steps and tracking workouts to monitoring sleep patterns and stress levels, the best Fitbit can help improve your well-being. And there are a variety of Fitbit models designed for different types of users.
Our top pick is the Fitbit Sense 2. Although it's an average smartwatch, it's a quality health and fitness tracker offering multi-day battery life, a suite of health-monitoring tools, and comprehensive activity tracking. For a budget pick, we recommend the Fitbit Inspire 3 — an effective entry-level wearable with basic health and fitness tools for less than $100.
We chose our list based on tracking accuracy, fit and comfort, battery life, and ease of use. Although every Fitbit offers similar activity-tracking capabilities, some are better for certain users. Picking the best Fitbit depends on your intended use and the advanced features you need.
Our top picks for the best Fitbit
Best overall: Fitbit Sense 2 - See at Amazon
Best budget: Fitbit Inspire 3 - See at Amazon
Best for style: Fitbit Luxe - See at Amazon
Best for kids: Fitbit Ace 3 - See at Amazon
Best overall
Fitbit's flagship, the Sense 2, nails everything a quality fitness tracker should be. It offers a variety of activity tracking and useful fitness insights, tracks sleep, stress, and menstrual cycles, and has built-in GPS and a battery that lasts around five to six days on a single charge.
It does lack in one major area, however: smarts. Though it's touted as a "smartwatch," it doesn't quite stack up in that department the way an effective smartwatch should. For starters, it doesn't offer third-party app support, which is disappointing, and it doesn't allow access to things like Google Assistant. It also can't store or play music.
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But those drawbacks don't equate to being a dealbreaker. The Sense 2 offers a suite of useful health and wellness insights that put it on par with some of the best in the industry. There's a skin temperature sensor, ECG readings, and a real-time stress tracker.
The stress tracker is especially interesting as it not only charts your body's stress levels but also provides feedback on how to lower it, and can paint a picture of how your body handles stress overall.
It's also an accurate fitness tracker. Its built-in GPS synced well during our tests, and it's compatible with a variety of activities and exercises. Plus, its interface is easy and intuitive to use, making it a great watch for beginners.
Read our full Fitbit Sense 2 review.
Best budget
Fitbit's Inspire line of entry-level activity trackers is the brand's most basic offering. Its latest model, the Inspire 3, features a slim, vertical screen that sits comfortably on your wrist while offering a suite of advanced health and fitness tracking features right at your fingertips. It even has a skin temperature sensor and can track your sleep habits. The original Fitbit has come a long way.
But what makes the Inspire 3 especially attractive is its price, which makes it appealing for beginners or those new to wearing activity trackers. At under $100, it delivers a wearable experience similar to the Sense 2 without the large touchscreen, downloadable apps, or built-in GPS. It's also compatible with a range of the best Inspire 3 bands to change its look slightly.
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That may seem like the Inspire 3 lacks key features, but those are typically hallmarks of a smartwatch, and the Inspire 3 is a bonafide fitness tracker. That is, it offers straightforward health and fitness features in an easy-to-use and intuitive package. It uses the same fitness tracking tech as all of Fitbit's other wearables, tracks heart rate, skin temperature, and sleep patterns, and even offers the brand's new Daily Readiness Score feature.
That's a lot in such a small, budget-friendly package. Advanced athletes may view the lack of built-in GPS as a dealbreaker, but for anyone looking for a basic, straightforward activity tracker, the Inspire 3 is the best Fitbit has.
Read our full Fitbit Inspire 3 review.
Best for style
Although the Fitbit Luxe looks similar to the Inspire 3, it has a few subtle design features that give it some style. There's a stainless steel casing that achieves a nice, clean look for either the office or a night out, a bright AMOLED screen, and the ability to swap out the band for something like a chic mesh or metal option.
As a quality health and fitness wearable, the Fitbit Luxe tracks basics like running and cycling. It offers insights into sleep patterns, stress management, and fitness trends. Some features require a paid subscription to Fitbit Premium (as is the case for several watches in this guide), but even the basic features are highly useful.
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One area where it lags is in the smartwatch department, but it was never designed to be one in the first place. However, it can still display text and phone call notifications, and you can use things like timers and alarms, but that's about the extent of it. It also has a battery that lasts upward of six days.
Read our full Fitbit Luxe review.
Best for kids
Most fitness trackers are inherently designed for adult use. Then, there's the Fitbit Ace 3, an activity tracker designed entirely for kids ages six and up, outfitted with features such as parental controls, a custom kid-friendly stat viewer, and fun customization options.
What makes the Ace 3 great for kids is its whimsical approach. There are band options with Minion-themed designs, as well as colorful custom watch faces. It is also water-resistant up to 50 meters or 164 feet, so kids can wear it in the pool.
Fitbit
One of the Ace 3's best features is its focus on gamification. The wearable offers various challenges and badges that can motivate kids as they achieve a certain step goal or complete an activity.
It's also a great communication tool for parents as it delivers text notifications. What's particularly great about this is that parents can utilize the parental controls to manage exactly what connections are permitted on the watch. These controls are set up via the Fitbit app and require a family account, but they can be customized at any time, with or without the watch nearby.
These parental controls ultimately make it a better purchase for kids than, say, the Inspire 3. While the Inspire 3 offers a similar tracking experience, the ability to customize and tailor everything from the wearable's settings to the specific activity goals makes the Ace 3 a more family-friendly option.
Models we don't recommend
Our favorite budget Fitbit that's also a smartwatch rather than purely a fitness tracker, the Versa 3, was discontinued to make way for the Versa 4. However, we cannot recommend the Versa 4, unless the budget smartwatch you're looking for has to be a Fitbit. Even then, you should look at the Pixel Watch 2 from Fitbit's parent, Google, which is a terrific fitness tracker and smartwatch, albeit compatible with Android only.
Rick Stella/Business Insider
The Versa 4 offers few or no appreciable upgrades over the Versa 3 and actually omits features that made the Versa 3 a great option for the price, including third-party app support and music playback. The Versa 4's watered-down experience would have been acceptable if it had a lower price than the Versa 3, but it has the exact same price tag.
How we test Fitbits
In addition to testing past iterations of Fitbit trackers and smartwatches when they launched, I tested each on the list below for several days (some weeks, even), wearing them 24/7 in most cases. I wore each during different workouts, from runs and walks to strength sets and yoga. I also wore the trackers to bed and for mindfulness sessions.
Here are the key features I looked for when testing:
Workout tracking
To successfully record stats during a workout and easily check these as you go, it's important that a watch clearly displays numbers, and quickly and continuously connects to the GPS, particularly if it's built into the watch. I judged the trackers and watches on whether I could easily see my current pace, distance, and time, and if I had quick access to metrics like average pace and heart rate.
Rick Stella/Business Insider
Additionally, I ran another fitness tracking app on my phone to test the accuracy of the watch's distance and pace. For every Fitbit featured, the numbers were always relatively close (and within the normal range you'd find if you compared almost any other fitness tracker).
Because Fitbit offers automatic tracking, I did a few workouts without manually pressing the start button to confirm that it picked up my movement, which it almost always did.
Tracking and comfort while sleeping
I wore these watches and trackers to bed to test the automatic sleep tracking. I checked these stats in the morning to make sure they recorded my time in bed and wake-up times throughout the night. I also wore the devices when occasionally taking naps throughout the day, which they also picked up on.
The devices needed to be comfortable enough to wear all night to get those stats, too. While the bands occasionally stuck to my skin if I got sweaty at night, it never disturbed my sleep — I only noticed this after waking up.
Battery life
I tested the battery life of each Fitbit by charging it to 100% battery and wearing it through workouts, nights of sleep, and throughout the day to see how long each would last. They all surprised me, too — the life lasted even after several workouts, including those using the built-in GPS (which typically drains batteries quickly).
App usability
One huge perk of Fitbit is the built-in stress-reducing apps, so how easy these were to use was a key part of testing. I tried Fitbit's mindfulness program, the Relax app, on all devices, and the EDA scan app on the Sense 2, which contributes to stress management numbers. I looked for ease of use, visuals, and the stats provided after recording a mindfulness session, like changes in heart rate.
FAQs
Are Fitbits worth it?
Yes, especially if you want a reliable fitness wearable. A Fitbit can be beneficial for anyone who keeps active each day, even if that activity is walking a few blocks around the neighborhood or lifting weights at home.
They do an excellent job of counting steps, tracking a wide range of activities, and providing other useful health information like sleep insights and calories burned. You don't need to be an avid fitness pro or athlete to get a lot out of a Fitbit, and with so many options in the brand's lineup, finding one that's "worth it" means just picking out the option that best fits your lifestyle.
Plus, Fitbits are device agnostic, so they're compatible with devices running iOS or Android. This versatility places them among the best Android smartwatches and best fitness trackers you can buy.
What is Fitbit Premium?
Fitbit Premium is the brand's monthly membership option that offers access to more in-depth health and fitness features like nutrition insights, advanced sleep tracking, and the Daily Readiness Score.
It also provides access to guided meditations, exclusive video workouts, in-depth goal setting, various unique challenges, and other health insights such as blood oxygen level readings, heart rate variability, and breathing rate.
All Fitbit Premium features are accessible via the Fitbit app and do a lot to elevate the base Fitbit experience, especially for wearables like the Sense 2 or Versa 4. The brand does offer a free trial to new Fitbit users, allowing you to test out the service before committing to its recurring membership fee (which costs $10/month).
Is a Fitbit better than an Apple Watch?
This ultimately comes down to personal preference. The best Apple Watch models are undoubtedly more powerful and full-featured, but if you don't need access to a suite of apps, then a Fitbit will suffice. Both watches offer deep tracking capability for activities like running, cycling, and lifting weights, and each comes standard with a user-friendly interface.
One area where Apple outdoes Fitbit is in terms of its ecosystem. Anyone using an iPhone can get more out of an Apple Watch than a Fitbit (but as mentioned below, it's not always enough to be considered a dealbreaker).
And although the Apple Watch now offers a deep well of fitness and activity tracking capability, it still leans more heavily toward being a smartwatch (similar to Fitbit's Versa line), so if it's basic fitness tracking you're after without the frills, something like Fitbit's Charge would be more your speed.
