Fitbit’s dominance has waned slightly in the face of countless alternatives, but its affordable approach, user-friendly interface, and great styling make it one of the best wearable fitness brands. If you’re looking for a reliable step-counting, sleep-tracking monitor, you’re in for a treat—and thanks to Google’s stewardship, you can now even find a smartwatch with features to rival the competition. Here are my picks of the best Fitbit trackers, whatever your wearable needs are.
For more wearable recommendations, check out our guides to the Best Fitness Trackers, Best Smart Rings, and Best Garmin Watches.
Updated July 2026: I've added the Google Fitbit Air and incorporated pros and cons to all of our recommendations. Product information, links, and prices were also updated.
Best Fitbit Overall
If you don't need another screen competing for your attention, the Google Fitbit Air is the one I'd recommend to most people. At just 12 grams, it's the lightest Fitbit—you'll forget you're wearing it—yet it quietly tracks everything that matters: heart rate, sleep, daily activity, skin temperature variations, and menstrual health (to name a few). And instead of constantly checking stats on your wrist, you'll find all insights in the Google Health app, where your data is presented in an easy-to-understand format.
The Air nails the basics. Battery life stretches to about a week, and a five-minute top-up gets you roughly a day's worth of wear. Automatic workout detection can occasionally mistake one activity for another, and some of the AI guidance can feel generic, but those are minor trade-offs for a wearable that's comfortable enough to wear all day and night. Its $100 price also makes it one of the most affordable ways to get comprehensive health tracking. The biggest downside of the Air is also its biggest strength; there's no screen, so if you prefer having a display, go with the Fitbit Charge 6. But for most people, the Fitbit Air strikes the best balance of price, comfort, and everyday health tracking.
Specs
Dimensions (without band)
34.9 x 17 x 8.3 mm
Materials
Housing is made of recycled polycarbonate and PBT plastics. Band is textile with a stainless steel buckle.
Battery Life
Up to 7 days
Colors
Obsidian Band, Matte Black Buckle; Berry Band, Champagne Gold Buckle; Lavender Band, Silver Buckle; Fog Band, Silver Buckle; Special Edition Stephen Curry Band, Pyrite Buckle
Best Fitbit for Beginners
Launched in 2023, the Charge 6 remains the best fitness tracker for beginners. It's the same slim build as its predecessor (the Fitbit Charge 5), maintaining the bright AMOLED touchscreen, with an optional always-on display, and fortunately bringing back the physical side button. It monitors your heart rate, blood oxygen, and skin temperature, and it offers ECG and electrodermal activity scans to measure irregular heart rhythms and stress level insights. The largest upgrade on the functionality front is the new ability to connect Fitbit's heart rate sensor to particular gym equipment like the NordicTrack treadmill or Peloton bike. In testing, its heart rate sensors held up well against the Oura ring. Battery life is also fantastic, with up to a week per charge.
The built-in GPS support doesn't rival dedicated sports watches for accuracy, but it's useful enough for outdoor activities. Plus, unlike those wearables, Fitbit dishes out detailed sleep data that is both insightful and actionable. Google’s presence has increased on the Charge with the useful additions of Google Maps and Google Wallet. You get all of this and more for less than the cost of Fitbit's smartwatches.
Specs
Case Size
36.73 x 23.09 x 11.20 mm
Case Material
Aluminum
Battery Life
Up to 7 days
Colors
Coral/Champagne Gold Aluminum, Porcelain/Silver Aluminum, Obsidian/Black Aluminum
Most Affordable Fitbit (With Display)
Along with its budget price, the Inspire 3 also offers the longest battery life of the Fitbit lineup. A full charge will last you up to 10 days, depending on how much you use it. It is pretty similar to the Charge 6, except that it lacks a built-in GPS, and it only features 20 exercise modes (as opposed to Charge 6's 40 modes, which I found to be excessive anyway). You also miss out on some of the other premium features, such as Bluetooth compatibility with certain gym equipment, the EDA Scan app for stress management, and NFC technology. If none of those qualities matter to you, I would opt for the Inspire 3, which is just as accurate as the Charge 6.
Specs
Case Size
39.32 x 18.6 x 11.75 mm
Case Material
Plastic
Battery Life
Up to 10 days
Colors
Midnight Zen/Black, Lilac Bliss/Black, Morning Glow/Black (yellow)
Best Fitbit for Kids
The first Fitbit Ace landed in 2018, offering kids ages 8 and above the ability to track their steps and sleep and to be in constant pursuit of virtual badges. The Fitbit Ace LTE ditches the fitness band form for a smartwatch one, instantly giving it more grown-up kids appeal. The Ace LTE is built for ages 7 to 14 and comes with a design perhaps best described as a more child-friendly Versa. There’s a sizable OLED screen with Gorilla Glass 3 to fend off scratches, and unlike the first Ace, it can be submerged in water up to 50 meters deep.
There are some familiar fitness tracker sensors in place, including an optical heart rate monitor and motion sensors to track movement, though Fitbit has ditched the sleep-tracking support that was available on the original Ace. It has LTE connectivity so parents and children can make calls to each other, and it also taps into Google Maps to give it location-tracking smarts. Payments are on the way for the watch, too.
There are also games to play, including a very Fitbit take on a Tamagotchi that’s sure to appeal. There is the matter of a $10 per month subscription fee to get the complete Ace experience; it isn’t a cheap kids’ smartwatch either. But it’s easy to use, and it gets the balance of fun and fitness just right to make it a good fit for kids. —Michael Sawh
Specs
Case Size
41.04 x 44.89 x 13.35 mm
Case Material
Plastic, stainless steel, glass, and recycled materials
Battery Life
Up to 16 hours
Colors
Spicy Pebble/Moovin’ Band, Mild Pebble/Strange Arcade Band
Best Fitbit Smartwatch
Now that the Google Pixel Watch 4 actually exists, the fate of Fitbit’s own smartwatches feels up in the air. But if the idea of owning a Pixel Watch doesn’t appeal and you’re interested in a more Fitbit-centric experience with better battery life, the Versa 4 is the one to go for. You get a smartwatch with a gently curved design; it’s almost identical to the original Versa, but with the welcome return of a physical button. There’s a large, vibrant, 1.5-inch AMOLED display touchscreen and a battery performance that can really stretch over the promised six days if you don’t leave the screen on 24/7.
As for sports, the Versa 4 is designed with a built-in GPS to track outdoor runs and rides and motion sensors to track indoor swims, though not with sports-watch-rivaling accuracy. Fitbit’s PurePulse heart rate sensor is a better fit for day-to-day heart rate stats than it is for a CrossFit class. And third-party app support has been replaced by native Google apps, like Maps, with Google Assistant joining Amazon’s Alexa. As a device that lets you check your phone notifications, keep an eye on step counts and sleep, and forget about constantly charging it, the Versa 4 has plenty to like. —Michael Sawh
Specs
Case Size
40.5 x 40.5 x 11.2 mm
Case Material
Aluminum
Battery Life
Up to 6 days
Colors
Black/Graphite Aluminum, Waterfall Blue/Platinum Aluminum, Pink Sand/Copper Rose Aluminum, Beet Juice/Copper Rose Aluminum
Best Fitbit for Health Tracking
The Fitbit Sense 2 was meant to attract the kind of people who were looking at the Apple Watch. It's designed with an electrocardiogram (ECG) sensor that’s been approved in the US to help wearers detect potential signs of atrial fibrillation. A skin temperature sensor can monitor temperature changes during the night to spot any trends, and a SpO2 sensor goes to work when you’re sleeping to detect breathing disturbances. While it’s not a regulatory-approved feature, it can detect potential warning signs of a sleep disorder, like sleep apnea.
An electrical cEDA sensor captures on-the-spot and continuous measurements of galvanic skin response that Fitbit uses as a marker of stress. Fitbit needs to work on delivering information on potential stressors in a useful way, but it’s a start. The Sense 2 also grabs all of the cheaper Versa’s fitness-tracking and sports-tracking features, including built-in GPS, and uses a PurePulse heart rate sensor to keep track of your Active ZoneMinutes when you’re upping the intensity. You do need Fitbit Premium ($10 per month) to unlock the most valuable health insights.
Specs
Case Size
40.5 x 40.5 x 11.2 mm
Case Material
Aluminum
Battery Life
Up to 6 days
Colors
Shadow Grey/Graphite Aluminum, Lunar White/Platinum Aluminum, Blue Mist/Soft Gold Aluminum
Product
WIRED
TIRED
Water and Dust Resistance
Battery Life
Price
Fitbit Air
Lightest, most comfortable Fitbit yet. Full suite of wellness metrics across fitness, sleep, and health. Customizable and user-controlled app experience. AI Health Coach adds motivational value.
Automatic activity detection can misclassify workouts. AI Health Coach sometimes defaults to shallow prompts. Overemphasis on proprietary Google scores.
5 ATM, IP68
Up to 7 days
$100
Fitbit Charge 6
Long battery life. Full suite of health features. ECG app. Built-in GPS. Google integrations. YouTube Music controls.
No fall detection. Bluetooth connection frequently glitched. Doesn't always automatically recognize exercise activities.
5 ATM
Up to 7 days
$160
Fitbit Inspire 3
Longest battery life. Lightweight. Most affordable.
No Google integrations or YouTube Music controls. No ECG app.
5 ATM
Up to 10 days
$100
Fitbit Ace LTE
Entertaining for children. Don’t have to add a line to your phone plan. Games are time- and step-limited. App is easy to use. Most secure kid smartwatch yet.
Might not appeal to older kids. Short battery life.
5 ATM
Up to 16 hours
$180
Fitbit Versa 4
Best Fitbit smartwatch. Built-in GPS. Google integrations.
No YouTube Music controls. No ECG app.
5 ATM
Up to 6 days
$200
Fitbit Sense 2
Most advanced health and fitness insights. ECG app. Built-in GPS. Google integrations.
No YouTube Music controls. Priciest.
5 ATM
Up to 6 days
$250
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