Best Sleep Trackers: What the Science Says

Summary

When it comes to accurately tracking sleep, most wearables face a trade-off between detecting sleep versus wakefulness, with Garmin and Polar devices tending to over-report sleep and miss awake moments. Fitbit and Whoop show a better balance, but the Aura Ring generation three and the latest Apple Watches appear to be the top performers for healthy sleepers, excelling in both sensitivity and specificity. However, performance dramatically drops for all devices when tested on individuals with sleep disorders, with only the Amazon Halo Rise and Google Pixel Watch showing some promise in that area. For those with a smaller budget, Fitbit is recommended, while for a more dedicated sleep focus with a higher budget, the Aura Ring is suggested. Apple Watches offer strong sleep tracking alongside sports features, but have short battery life and a less interpretable health app. The Whoop strap provides good battery life and sports features but requires a subscription. Chinese manufacturers generally perform the worst, likely due to less investment in algorithm training. Ultimately, sleep tracking is personal, and results can vary, but for most healthy individuals, Aura and Apple are leading the pack.