New year, new resolutions, especially losing a few pounds or burning more calories. That’s how we start our year, year after year. But no one wants to guess their efforts and needs a reliable fitness tracker which can log and display their efforts. Wearable fitness trackers are always a good choice as they gravitate towards fitness and health tracking and keep you engaged with your workout. Smartwatches are good too, but they are more of an all-in-one package that can display other data apart from fitness trackers but are slightly more expensive than fitness trackers. Even hybrid options are available now, but they are north of the price spectrum and are not within the reach of many.
If you’ve decided to buy the best fitness tracker 2022, there’s an abundance of choices in the wearables market. We will try to help you narrow down your search to the most reliable ones, and guide you with your new wearable purchase.
Best Fitness Tracker Bands in India: Buyers Guide
Before selecting a fitness tracker for yourself, consider the following factors:
Goals
Choose a product based on your goals. Don’t impulse buy because it has X new feature, and rather focuses on the usability of that feature. For most of us, basic workout modes, heart rate, and SPO2 tracking are enough, but if you practice a certain sport, then you must check if it supports and offers tracking of those specific ones or not.
Budget
Set a budget according to your goals. In 2022, it is very rare to not find a fitness tracker within your budget. Moreover, every major brand has an entry-level fitness tracker range available if you are on a short budget.
Battery Life
Most fitness trackers have exceptional battery life on paper but cannot last even half of that in real-time use. Pick a fitness tracker that can last a few days, unless it has GPS or some other battery-draining feature embedded in it. Always try to pick a fitness tracker that supports fast charging and is ready to go, even if you forget to charge it overnight.
Accuracy
A fitness tracker is useless if it can not monitor your physical activity and the earnest workout efforts you made in a day. You can either check the reviews before making a purchase or test their accuracy with a manual test, post-purchase. It should not vary by a huge margin and if it does, make sure to opt for a replacement.
Best Fitness Tracker 2022 to help you get fit and stay fit
Fitbit Charge 5
The Fitbit Charge 5 is among the best fitness trackers out there. Its new and improved display offers superior brightness to the Fitbit Charge 4 and adding the always-on display feature, makes it easy to view the stats in a single glance. This best fitness tracker packs ECG measuring capabilities, GPS, blood oxygen sensor, and numerous health and fitness tracking features. Fitbit sets the milestone for most accurate sleep tracking and the Fitbit Charge 5 maintains the brand name.
You can measure your daily vitals and can use 20 different workout modes in Fitbit Charge 5. Fitbit app comes with a Daily Readiness Score feature that rates you based on your efforts and even tells you when to call it a day. Fitbit Charge 5 charges additional money for these uber cool features. You have to pay up to 10 USD a month to get daily insights, Readiness scores, and a lot more content from Fitbit. However, the service is free for the first six months which gives you ample time to decide whether it is a good fit for you or not. Fitbit Charge 5 can last over four days on a single charge and is available for as low as 120 dollars during sales. Keep an eye on this best fitness tracker as it’s among the best possible options available now.
Xiaomi Mi Band 6
Xiaomi makes it a habit to disrupt the pricing and launch a cheaper yet competent product. The Xiaomi Mi Band 6 is the latest that the brand offers in the fitness tracker segment. Its features list will blow your mind as there is pretty much everything except the GPS sensor and ECG tracking feature. You get a large AMOLED display and exceptional battery life experience along with an NFC variant best suited for making payments on the go.
Xiaomi Mi Band 6 offers 30 sports modes including yoga, Zumba, pilates, and is very lightweight for a fitness tracker. It can withstand the usual water splashes and is water-resistant to up to 5 ATMs. Apart from that, you get exceptional sleep tracking, SpO2 monitoring, heart rate monitoring, and much more. All of this costs a measly 45 USD, which makes Xiaomi Mi Band 6 one of the most affordable fitness trackers 2022 that you can buy.
Amazfit Band 5
Amazfit Band 5 is among the very few fitness trackers with an inbuilt voice assistant. This best fitness tracker comes in a measly price point of 35 USD and doesn’t lag in tracking daily workouts and movements. There’s a big display, not bright, but visible in daylight. You get all-day heart monitoring, sleep quality monitoring, SpO2 tracking, and more features in this budget fitness tracker from Amazfit.
Moreover, Amazfit Band 5 maintains a battery life of 15 days on moderate use and 6-8 days, even if you enable all the features. The fitness tracker is impervious to water splash and can withstand 5 ATM pressure. It also comes with 11 dedicated sports modes which are slightly less if you compare it with the Xiaomi Mi Band 6. All in all, you get a competent budget fitness tracker that can help you shape your fitness regime and track it effectively using the app. Plus, you can give commands to Alexa to do basic tasks which further automates the whole process.
Whoop 4.0
The Whoop 4.0 isn’t your normal-looking fitness tracker. Instead, it is designed as a product that will surely transform your fitness lifestyle and help you accomplish your goals without fail. We mention that it isn’t like any other fitness tracker because it doesn’t have a display at all. It is just a wearable device packed with five sensors that can record and store your fitness data and give you personalized recommendations and training guides accordingly. Whoop 4.0 is the living dream of every fitness instructor who needs data about their athletes and finds pain points to improve their performance.
Whoop 4.0 comes with a monthly, yearly subscription program that gives you access to AI coaching and deep insights like never before. It is 33 percent smaller than the previous generation Whoop and charges using a battery pack that straps onto the Whoop 4.0 fitness tracker. The body of the tracker is ip68 waterproof and the battery is also ip68 rated for a little less depth and pressure. Whoop 4.0 is strictly for dedicated athletes or individuals with great resolve as the product doesn’t display anything. You will need the subscription to continue your fitness journey and if you are committed to that, then Whoop 4.0 isn’t a bad fitness tracker at all.
Fitbit Versa 3
The Fitbit Versa 3 was released a while back but don’t let that fool you into believing that it is a subpar fitness tracker. On the contrary, it is one the best premium smartwatch/fitness tracker that you can buy and get access to decent hardware and top-tier health and fitness tracking insights. Fitbit Versa 3 tracks blood oxygen saturation, heart rate, steps, and supports both Alexa and Google voice assistant. Voice assistant integration makes it convenient to navigate the smartwatch features while working out. E.g., you could pick or decline a call, ask it to read the incoming notifications and messages and perform a lot of other tasks.
Fitbit Versa 3 is swim-proof and can be taken in the pool and other water-related activities without any fear. Do remember that, it can only bear 5 ATM pressure for up to 30 minutes and no more. There’s no flaw in Fitbit Versa 3 other than its average battery life and the subscription plan module which needs monthly payments. A new user gets 90-days access when they purchase a new Fitbit Versa 3.
Garmin Forerunner 245
The Garmin Forerunner 245 is made for runners, who love to keep records of each running cycle and need GPS tracking to plan routes. The new Forerunner has an exceptional display quality for an outdoors smartwatch, and can also be up to eleven hours with all the features enabled including GPS. Additionally, you get the option of onboard music storage to make your running workouts a lot of fun. Both Spotify and Deezer support is inbuilt, so you can save songs on your watch and use them for offline playback on a run.
One distinct thing about the Garmin Forerunner 245 is that it doesn’t have a touch screen display. It is navigable using the five buttons which takes some time, in getting used to the navigation style. It is a good choice by the makers as the touch displays are next to impossible to operate with sweaty fingers and the buttons make it more accessible. Overall, if you need a fitness tracker that is robust and packs onboard storage for music playback with a detailed fitness tracker, the Garmin Forerunner 245 is among the best that the industry has to offer.
Buy Garmin Forerunner 245 on Amazon
Coros Vertix 2
Coros Vertix 2 is a mammoth in fitness and health tracking which is built like a tank. It’s tough, durable, and designed for athletes specifically who love adventure sports. It is not lightweight like the fitness trackers mentioned above but you have to compromise sleek aesthetics for ruggedness. There’s a new and improved display that is larger and navigable using the crown and the touch input. You can even interchange the digital crown, and wear it on the wrist of your preference.
Coros Vertix 2 arrives in a carrying case and even comes with necessary accessories including a carabiner and lots of strap options. It uses a dual GPS sensor and can connect to five major satellites for truly accurate location mapping. Moreover, the battery life of the Coros Vertix 2 is 60 days if you use the bare minimum features which makes it unexpectedly long-lasting and a good fit for outdoor hikes. It is super expensive too and retails at 700 USD, which makes you wonder if you need all those features.
Apple Watch SE
Apple Watch SE is a pure gem that will compel you to take action and avoid a sedentary lifestyle. The smartwatch uses an activity-tracking mechanism that helps you cover the bare minimum physical activity, while also counting the basic movements and workouts. It has three goals: Move, Stand, and Exercise. Like the names, the tracking mechanism monitors and ensures that you move, stand, and work out as per the WHO recommendations and lead a fitter lifestyle. The best part is that it is all automated and is not very harsh on the users. These small challenges slowly build a habit of walking, body movement, and avoiding sitting long hours on the office chair.
Apart from the Activity ring system, you get a crisp and bright display with detailed metrics both on and off the smartwatch. Apple Watch SE is an ecosystem-only product, which means Android users cannot use it unless they switch to an iPhone. Overall, Apple Watch SE is among the few fitness trackers that can help you get moving, and bring a much-needed change in your lifestyle.
Conclusion
These were our recommendations for the best fitness trackers of 2022 that you can go for. Not all of them are cheap, but always prefer accuracy over a cheap gimmick fitness tracker that doesn’t do a good job in tracking your efforts. If we missed out on any important ones, please drop your suggestions in the comment section below.