The best fitness trackers (January 2021)

Fitness trackers have come an extremely long way over the years. No longer are they glorified pedometers; most standard fitness trackers nowadays can track your steps taken, distance traveled, caloric burn, and even your sleeping patterns. They’re handy little devices if you want a better look at how active you are throughout the day, and there are plenty to choose from. It can be a little daunting trying to choose the best fitness tracker to suits your needs, so we’ve compiled a list of the best fitness trackers you can buy in 2020.

Buying the right fitness tracker for your needs

Everybody needs something different out of their fitness trackers, so we listed each model in a different category to help you choose the right device for your needs. If you’re buying a wearable for running, we’d recommend looking into a device with built-in GPS or connected GPS functionality. If you’re looking for a great smartwatch experience above all else, you should look into something with a bigger display. Or, if you just want something to track your activity and you don’t care about the extra features, a smaller fitness tracker will do the trick.

Here are some quick links if you’re in a hurry:

• The Fitbit Charge 4 is the best fitness tracker you can buy. It’s a great option for runners and those who need contactless payment support on their wrist.
• The Garmin Vivosmart 4 is the one to buy if you don’t need GPS. It’s slim and one of the most comfortable fitness trackers on this list.
• The Garmin Vivoactive 4 is the best fitness tracking smartwatch you can buy. It’s constantly on sale and is one of the most well-rounded products we’ve ever tested.
• The Apple Watch Series 6 is the best fitness tracking smartwatch for iPhone users. It’s the best smartwatch you can buy, and it has a solid fitness tracking feature set.
• The Fitbit Sense is another solid fitness tracking smartwatch. It’s expensive, but not quite as pricey as some of its Garmin competitors.
• The Xiaomi Mi Band 5 is the best cheap fitness tracker you can buy thanks to its extremely low price point and solid fitness tracking.
• The Fitbit Inspire 2 is another great inexpensive offering. It’s not the flashiest piece of tech, but it integrates with Fitbit’s fantastic app.
• The Xiaomi Mi Watch Lite is a cheap smartwatch that’s great for basic fitness tracking.

Let’s talk lingo: Fitness trackers vs smartwatches

Before we get into it, let’s talk about an important distinction — smartwatches vs fitness trackers. For the sake of this article, we are referring to devices with big displays that prioritize apps and notifications as smartwatches. For devices that have smaller displays and look more like a traditional fitness band, we’ll refer to those as fitness trackers.

Editor’s note: We will update this best fitness trackers list as more devices come to market.

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Fitbit Charge 4: The best fitness tracker

The Fitbit Charge 4 is the best fitness tracker you can buy, period. Fitbit didn’t need to do much to achieve this title again, but it managed to fix all our gripes with the Charge 3 and keep it at the same price point. The built-in GPS is welcome, as is Fitbit Pay being standard across all models.

The only reason you should consider buying another wearable at this price point is if you want a more smartwatch-y experience. Then, I’d recommend you go for the Fitbit Versa 3.

Check out our full review to learn more about the Fitbit Charge 4.

Fitbit Charge 4 specs

Garmin Vivosmart 4: The best if you don’t want a Fitbit

The Garmin Vivosmart 4 is the best fitness tracker you can buy if you aren’t interested in the Fitbit Charge 4.

It’s a wonderful fitness tracker that excels at many of the things it attempts to do. If you don’t need a GPS and can get past the narrow display, this is one of your best options for a feature-packed, reliable fitness tracker. Plus, Garmin recently updated the device to include connected GPS functionality.

Garmin Vivosmart 4 specs

Garmin Vivoactive 4: The best fitness smartwatch for Android users

Garmin Vivoactive 4

The Garmin Vivoactive 4 is the best fitness tracking smartwatch you can buy if you’re on Android.

Everything you loved about the Vivoactive 3 and 3 Music is here, along with about 3.5GB of onboard storage for music. You can load up your favorite songs, or download playlists from Spotify, Deezer, and iHeartRadio.

The Garmin Vivoactive 4 is a solid upgrade to the Vivoactive 3 and 3 Music, and will certainly please those in need of a midrange multisport watch. It’s not as flashy as the new Garmin Venu, but that might be a good thing: It has a more readable display and longer battery life. If you’re interested, you won’t be disappointed… just be prepared to pay up.

Check out our full review to learn more about the Garmin Vivoactive 4.

Garmin Vivoactive 4 specs

Also read: The best smartwatch deals we could find

Apple Watch Series 6: The best fitness smartwatch for Apple users

Credit: Jimmy Westenberg / Android Authority

The Apple Watch Series 6 is the best smartwatch you can buy, and it’s one heck of a fitness tracker. Heart rate monitoring is unmatched compared to other wrist-based heart rate sensors, and GPS performance is solid too. We do think Apple’s new sleep tracking metrics are too basic, but you can always download a third-party sleep tracking app if you need.

Check out our full review to learn more about the Apple Watch Series 6.

Apple Watch Series 6 specs

Fitbit Sense: Fitbit’s most premium offering

Credit: Jimmy Westenberg / Android Authority

For as much complaining as we’ve done about the Fitbit Sense, it does get a lot right. The basics are all here: accurate heart rate monitoring with Fitbit’s new PurePulse 2.0 heart rate sensor, onboard GPS that’s quite accurate, fantastic sleep tracking (as always), and a much-improved design.

It’s still missing a handful of features, though, which is why it’s further down on our list. The new EDA and SpO2 sensors aren’t that well implemented and don’t do a very good job at explaining the data they collect and how it affects users’ health. If you don’t need the latest-and-greatest sensors out there, we’d recommend also checking out the cheaper Fitbit Versa 3.

Check out our full review to learn more about the Fitbit Sense.

Fitbit Sense specs

Don’t miss: Fitbit Premium: Is it worth it?

Xiaomi Mi Band 5: The best cheap fitness tracker

Credit: Jimmy Westenberg / Android Authority

Xiaomi’s fitness trackers are popular because they’re good and cheap. Really good and really cheap. In terms of fitness features and accuracy, the ~$40 Xiaomi Mi Band 5 rivals the likes of the more expensive Fitbit Inspire HR and Samsung Galaxy Fit (below on our list). It’ll track most of the same activity metrics as the other devices and even has two-week battery life.

If we had a few gripes, we wish Xiaomi would beef up the Mi Fit app. It’s okay, but a little buggy and lacking in features.

You can buy the Mi Band 5 at the link below. If you’re looking for the best bang for your buck in fitness trackers, the Mi Band 5 is it.

Check out our full review to learn more about the Xiaomi Mi Band 5.

Xiaomi Mi Band 5 specs

Fitbit Inspire 2: Fitbit on a budget

Credit: Jimmy Westenberg / Android Authority

The Fitbit Inspire 2 is a great fitness tracker, health tracker, and sleep tracker. It’s just $100, too!

It’s small and lightweight, supports interchangeable straps, and offers smartphone notifications on your wrist. It might be small, but it doesn’t skimp on the features. The Fitbit Inspire 2 offers connected GPS, a heart rate sensor, as well as 10-day battery life.

Think of the Fitbit Inspire 2 as the “Fitbit Charge 4 Lite.� It removes a few notable features like notification history, an altimeter, and a bigger display in order to reach that $100 price point. If you don’t need those things though, the Inspire HR is a fantastic option. Plus, it comes with a full year of Fitbit Premium.

Check out our full review to learn more about the Fitbit Inspire 2.

Fitbit Inspire and Inspire HR specs

Xiaomi Mi Watch Lite: A cheap and basic fitness tracking smartwatch

Credit: Jimmy Westenberg / Android Authority

The Xiaomi Mi Watch Lite surprised us. Not that we didn’t expect Xiaomi to deliver on basic fitness tracking (Xiaomi does make Mi Bands, after all), but we didn’t expect the Mi Watch Lite to offer as many fitness features as it does. You get onboard GPS, an accurate heart rate sensor, post-workout analysis powered by Firstbeat, and nine-day battery life.

The on-device software isn’t great, and the Xiaomi Wear app needs a ton of work. If you can get past those two caveats, the Xiaomi Mi Watch Lite is a fantastic fitness tracker for well under $100.

Check out our full review to learn more about the Xiaomi Mi Watch Lite.

Xiaomi Mi Watch Lite specs

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Why you should trust the editor

Not only does Jimmy Westenberg love wearables, he loves helping people find the right devices to suit their needs. He’s been our resident fitness reviewer at Android Authority since 2016, and in that time has reviewed dozens of fitness products and other wearables.

Through his rigorous testing of fitness products and deep knowledge of health devices and services, you can rest assured knowing Jimmy will give you honest recommendations. Looking for more brand-specific recommendations? Check out the following guides:

• The best Garmin watches
• Buying the best Fitbit for your needs
• The most common Fitbit problems and how to fix them