Whether you’re looking to do more exercise, boost your performance, keep a closer eye on your heart health, or get better quality sleep, investing in a fitness tracker can help you stay on top of your health goals.
However, with a wide range of trackers out there at various price points, choosing the best one for you can be tricky.
Below, we’ll take a look at some of the best fitness trackers on the market right now for any budget. Plus, we’ll explain the different types and what they can do for you.
What are fitness trackers?
A fitness tracker is a device that’s generally worn on your wrist, but there are some varieties that you can wear elsewhere – like on your finger or chest.
They’re equipped with a range of sensors that measure things like heart rate, steps taken, and calories burned – plus how much sleep you’ve had and the distance you’ve covered while doing a certain activity.
Each fitness tracker is typically paired with an app which allows you to set goals, track your data, and even engage in things like mindfulness sessions and guided workouts. Overall, fitness trackers are a great way to stay motivated and better understand your health.
Fitness bands vs smartwatches – which is best?
There are countless fitness trackers out there at different price points – all with different features. However, they generally fall into two camps: fitness bands and smartwatches.
Fitness bands
Fitness bands, compared to smartwatches, are relatively simple devices specifically made to track things like health, exercise, and sleep. They usually connect to your phone via an app, where you can view all of your data. They’re also sleeker, have smaller displays, and are often cheaper.
Smartwatches
Smartwatches are essentially extensions of your smartphone and have far more features than fitness bands. While they can track the same metrics that fitness bands can, they can also perform functions like downloading and using apps, taking calls, answering emails, making contactless payments, and listening to music.
As a result, they tend to be bulkier (with a larger display) and more expensive.
Other key differences to consider when choosing a fitness tracker
Some smartwatches are sports-focused (like Garmin smartwatches). These can be really handy if you’re a serious athlete trying to boost your performance because they come with lots of sport-specific features and provide plenty of data. But they don’t always have as many handy features for non-sporting life, such as the ability to take calls.
So, if you’re a more casual athlete looking for a smartwatch that’s just as useful in the office or at the shops as it is on a trail run, you might be better off choosing a more conventional one, like an Apple Watch.
Another important difference between the two types of fitness trackers is that smartwatches have built-in GPS, so you can track things like running routes and pace (or even listen to music) without the need for your smartphone. Fitness bands tend to have what’s known as ‘connected GPS’, meaning that they can only do this when connected to a nearby mobile device.
Fitness bands vs smartwatches – our conclusion…
The divide between smartwatches and fitness bands isn’t always simple, as there are plenty of devices on the market that straddle the line between the two. For example, some fitness bands now have built-in GPS or the ability to make contactless payments.
The type of fitness tracker that’s best for you will depend on what you need it for. For example, if you’d like something that’s going to be useful in every aspect of life, you might like to consider investing in a smartwatch. On the other hand, if you’re just looking for something small and discreet to tell you how many steps you take each day, a budget fitness band will do the job.
The good news is that whatever fitness tracker you choose, most should be able to monitor your heart rate and sleep, as well as measure things like distance and calories burned.
Below, we’ve listed some of the best fitness trackers for all budgets…
Best fitness trackers
1. Xiaomi Smart Band 9
Price: £36.19
Battery life: 21 days
24/7 heart rate tracking: Yes
Built-in GPS: No
Contactless payment: No
Supported by: Android and iOS
The Xiaomi Smart Band range has long been a top choice for casual athletes looking to track their health, activity, and sleep on a budget – and the Smart Band 9, which hit shelves in September, is no different.
A crowd-pleasing combination of quality and budget-friendly, the Xiaomi Smart Band 9 is a perfect entry point into the world of fitness trackers. As well as basic fitness metrics, this easy-on-the-wallet device allows users to track steps, sleep, calories, and heart rate.
With no built-in GPS, you’ll need to pair it with your phone while out and about if you’d like to track your location – however, this is to be expected considering the price.
Unlike more advanced models, it also doesn’t offer sport-specific tracking, which can be helpful for serious athletes. But for less than £40, you’ll struggle to find much better than the Xiaomi Smart Band 9.
2. Amazfit Bip 5
Price: £69.00
Battery life: 10 days
24/7 heart rate tracking: Yes
Built-in GPS: Yes
Contactless payment: No
Supported by: Android and iOS
If you’re willing to spend a tad more, the Amazfit Bip 5 should be top of your list to consider. This budget smartwatch is jam-packed with useful features you generally won’t find at this low price – for example, reminders, meditation apps, and even voice assistant support.
However, the handiest features are probably the built-in GPS and the ability to store music, which you’d usually expect to pay more for. Combined, these two features make the Amazfit Bip 5 ideal for runners who’d rather leave their phones at home. But with over 120 sport-specific tracking modes – from rollerskating to yoga and even square dancing – it’ll come in handy whatever you’re doing.
While the sleep tracking isn’t the best, the Amazfit Bip 5 has been described as “a complete game-changer on the budget fitness tracker and fitness tracker market” by Tom’s Guide.
3. Garmin Vivosmart 5
Price: £114.09
Battery: Up to 7 days
24/7 heart rate: Yes
Built-in GPS: No
Contactless payment: No
Supported by: Android and iOS
You wouldn’t exactly call the Garmin Vivosmart 5 flashy. It has a monochrome OLED display and you can’t swap out the band if you feel like mixing things up later down the line, so it can feel quite simple at times, especially considering the price tag. But more serious athletes might like to consider this fitness band over budget options because of the incredibly detailed data it provides.
Unlike other companion apps (like Fitbit’s), which hides all its good features (like in-depth sleep analysis and workout guides) behind a paid subscription, Garmin gives you everything free of charge in a clear and easy-to-understand format. With the Vivosmart 5, you can also view graphs and charts to show trends from the device itself. On something this size, you’d usually have to log in to the app to see this.
Another great feature of the Garmin Vivosmart 5 is incident detection. This will alert emergency contacts to your location if it senses something like a fall or a crash. It’s a nice touch that Fitbit alternatives (which we’ll talk about next) don’t have, and provides wearers with extra peace of mind.
The major downside of this device is its lack of built-in GPS, which you might expect at this price point.
4. Fitbit Charge 5
Price: £89.60
Battery: 7 days
24/7 heart rate: Yes
Built-in GPS: Yes
Contactless payment: Yes
Supported by: Android and iOS
Since its release in 2021, the Fitbit Charge 5 has dropped rapidly in price. Once standing at £169.99, you can now find it on Amazon for just under £90. For this price, you’ll get features like a built-in GPS and contactless payment – plus, excellent heart rate monitoring.
However, while it’s perfectly fine for providing a general idea of your pace and distance, some reviewers have reported that the Fitbit Charge 5’s GPS tracking can be a bit off compared to phones and more premium devices. With this in mind, if you’re training for a race or event and need to rely on pinpoint accurate readings, it might be worth splashing at a little more on something from Garmin’s Forerunner range, for example.
The lack of music control, which its predecessor the Charge 4 had, is also a bit of a letdown. But, if controlling music on the go isn’t a priority, the Fitbit Charge 5 is a decent mid-range device for regular exercisers looking to stay on top of their goals.
5. Garmin Venu 3
Price: £365.00
Battery: Up to 14 days
24/7 heart rate: Yes
Built-in GPS: Yes
Contactless payment: Yes
Supported by: Android and iOS
If you’re looking for a seriously sporty smartwatch with all the bells and whistles, you might like to consider the Garmin Venu 3.
While it’s a big step up in price from the previous entry, this device is more than just a fitness tracker. It boasts a crisp 1.4-inch AMOLED display with speakers and a microphone for taking calls – plus very in-depth tracking. Expect stress scores, respiratory tracking, deep sleep tracking and guidance, and much more. Users can even access their Ring cameras (if they have one) and chat with people at their front door through the watch.
The Garmin Venu 3 also has tracking specifically tailored to wheelchair users (for example, it logs pushes instead of steps) and a unique catalogue of meditation content. While it doesn’t have some of the advanced running features that Garmin’s Forerunner range has – so it’s not ideal for serious runners – it’s a great fitness smartwatch for other kinds of athletes.
6. Apple Watch Series 10
Price: £379.00
Battery life: 18 hours
24/7 heart rate tracking: Yes
Built-in GPS: Yes
Contactless payment: Yes
Supported by: iOS
If you’re in the market for a premium fitness tracker, you could consider a high-end smartwatch like the Apple Watch Series 10. It has all the usual health and fitness tracking capabilities, all while basically being a smartphone on your wrist. Wired has gone as far as to say it’s “far and away the best fitness tracker if you have an iPhone.”
With the Apple Watch Series 10, there are some more advanced health measurements – for example, it can track body temperature and give you sleep apnea notifications. It also boasts some detailed data for runners, including stride length and ground contact time. There’s even a water temperature sensor, which can help open-water swimmers stay safe.
One of the main drawbacks of the Apple Watch, when you compare it to other, dedicated trackers and sports watches, is that the battery life is only up to 18 hours. Being an Apple product, it’s also unavailable for Android users. But if you’re an iPhone user looking for a smartwatch that transitions seamlessly from the gym to the office to the pool, this could be a perfect choice.
Final thoughts…
From fitness bands under £50 to top-of-the-range smartwatches, there are loads of different fitness trackers out there.
We’ve just covered the wrist-worn types in this article, but if you’d like to explore other options, there are plenty of alternatives – for example, Oura Rings are worn on your finger.
For more content that’ll help you live happier and healthier, check our health section. And if you enjoyed this tech round-up, you might like to read our lists of the best headphones and air fryers.
Are you thinking about investing in a fitness band? If so, which one has piqued your interest? We’d love to hear from you in the comments below.
