This year was an interesting one for smart rings and smart bands, and we ended up with a few new devices that mark serious improvements on what was available before. With these new developments in mind, here are my picks for the best fitness trackers to consider giving (or asking for) as gifts this year. The Fitbit Air is the best fitness tracker for most peopleI’ll have recommendations below for athletes, runners, and people with higher budgets, but before we get into those, let me present the best fitness tracker for most people: the Fitbit Air.
Google now owns the Fitbit brand, and it spent the past few years making questionable choices about its software and mostly neglecting the brand’s iconic hardware. Then, in a stunning turnaround, Google launched the smallest, lightest, and most comfortable fitness tracker I’ve ever used (not counting rings, but we’ll get to those).
The Fitbit Air tracks your steps, sleep, and workouts without needing much attention from you. Its battery lasts a week, its app reports all the standard information without a subscription, and the price is sensible for such minimalist hardware: $99.99. The only real downside is the overly chatty AI built into the app, which you can disable if it annoys you as much as it did me. The Oura Ring 5 is the best fitness tracker to splurge onIf you have $499 to spare (or $399 for some colors), the tracker to get is the Oura Ring 5. Smart rings have always been pretty clunky, but for the fifth generation, Oura managed to get its ring to a size that blends in with jewelry rings. I’ve been wearing Oura rings since the gen 2, and this is the first one that really feels like you can forget you’re wearing a device. You pay for the privilege, of course: The purchase price, plus a $5.99/month subscription fee. But Oura’s app is one of the nicest and easiest to use of any smart ring I’ve tried. Besides just giving you daily sleep scores, it breaks down your data to show things like how well you’re recovering despite stress, and how regular your bedtimes are. Smart rings aren’t great for detailed workout tracking (or for strength training), but they’re excellent for casually monitoring how much exercise you end up getting throughout your day. For somebody who either doesn’t need workout tracking, or tracks their workouts with another device, an Oura is great for the rest of their day.
