Best Wearables To Get Fit in 2026 According to Science!
These notes were generated by AI and may contain inaccuracies.
Scientifically tested dozens of wearables to determine the best one for 2026. Rewrote almost all analysis code for better, more comprehensive results. Overview shows testing over the last two years with best devices on the top right. Focuses on two aspects: heart rate tracking performance during exercise and sleep stage tracking during the night, touching on performance and recovery. Excludes devices that do only one (just sleep or just sports); more on those soon.
Rob is a post-doctoral scientist specializing in biological data analysis.
Horizontal axis: average heart rate correlation with reference during indoor cycling, outdoor cycling, and running (better towards right). Left/vertical axis: average sleep sensitivity (agreement with reference EEG device; better towards top). Top right devices best in both on his body. Note: He's a healthy, normal sleeper; results may differ for sleep issues or heart defects, but represent overall performance.
Focus on heart rate tracking: aim for average correlation of at least 0.9, preferably 0.95+ (above dotted lines). Includes Apple Watch (Series 11, Ultra 3 similar performance), several Pixel devices, cheaper Mi Band 10, Amazfit Helio strap (biceps), several Huawei devices. On edge: Whoop strap MG, Galaxy Watch, some Amazfit devices, some Garmin (e.g., Forerunner 970, Garmin 470).
Sign in to read the full notes
Get access to AI-generated notes, topic timestamps, and more.