If getting a good night's sleep were as easy as lying down, closing your eyes and reopening them eight hours later, we'd all be much higher-functioning human beings.
Unfortunately, plenty of us are all too familiar with the feeling of spending an entire night tossing and turning. So, many people have now turned to sleep trackers to help optimize their routines. And as a writer who covers many wellness products, I've spent a lot of time testing the latest and greatest sleep trackers and know what to look for. In short, you want something that is comfortable, accurately tracks your data and ultimately helps to improve — not hurt — your sleep routine.
Below, I'm sharing the best sleep trackers that I've tried that fit that bill.
Best sleep trackers, according to an editor
The best affordable sleep tracker:
When compared to other fitness trackers that I've tried, the Fitbit Inspire 3 is my top pick for workout and health tracking, thanks to its affordable price point and range of features. And because of that, it's also a great sleep tracker.
Through more than a month of wear, I found its data to be relatively accurate and easy to comb through. While at times, it did overestimate the time that I spent asleep (it occasionally included some of the time that I simply spent lying in bed), its health metrics, like heart rate and deep sleep time were on par with other trackers that I tried.
With just the device and app itself, you get access to sleep data that includes how much time you spent in light, deep and REM sleep and sleeping heart rate. You also get a sleep score each day, which is calculated based on the above data as well as movement during sleep. However, with a Premium membership (which costs $10 per month), you'll also get a more detailed look at your sleep score as well as a monthly analysis of 10 metrics that is designed to help you improve your sleep quality.
If you choose to pay for that membership, you’ll also get access to content from Calm, Aura Health and Breethe, which range from meditations to sleep stories that can help you wind down before bed.
The device is less bulky than other trackers, so it's more comfortable to wear while you are sleeping.
The battery life is another great feature. Since the easiest time to charge your device is overnight, you want something that is going to last a while, so you're not missing out on any data. And I've found that the Inspire's battery lasts around seven to eight days.
The best total health tracker:
The Whoop is a great option for those who don't just want to see their sleep data, but also understand what it might mean for how their day ahead, as well as track trends and see how their sleep affects their health overall.
Like many other trackers, Whoop monitors your time spent asleep every night, showing you how much time you spent in REM, deep, light sleep or awake. It also gives you a recovery score every day based on how the hours of sleep you got compared to your sleep need, as well as how your sleep consistency, efficiency and high sleep stress levels compare to your 30-day average. I find that the app's estimates of my sleep time are pretty accurate.
There's a lot of data to sort through; at times, it feels like too much for the casually health-focused person. But Whoop has AI tools built into its interface, which takes all of that data and gives you actionable suggestions of things you can do to improve it, as well as potential explanations for what caused your data to look like that. For example, after a recent "red" (aka low) recovery score, it suggested implementing an earlier bedtime and a longer pre-bed wind-down routine.
It also suggests activities for the day based on your recovery score. So on that same day, it recommended I focus on lighter activities that day, like walking or a short elliptical session. You can also chat with the AI to dive deeper into your insights or build a routine for you for the day based on how recovered you are (though it should be noted that it is still being beta tested, so it can be glitchy at times).
There is also a journal feature that lets you keep track of habits. After keeping up with it and logging enough nights of sleep, the app will give you an overview of how these behaviors affect your rest. For example, I’ve found that taking magnesium before bed improves my recovery score by six percent on average, while logging a workout earlier in the day boosts it by four percent. On the other hand, I’ve discovered (unsurprisingly) that drinking alcohol has the biggest negative impact on my recovery and typically lowers my recovery by 14 percent.
The Whoop's simple design means that you're not at risk of accidentally pressing a screen and shining a light on your face in the middle of the night. (You also won't be distracted by any features before bed.) The strap is soft and flexible, so it's pretty comfortable too.
It has so many more features that are geared toward those with intensive health and fitness routines (you can read a little more about them here), so it's a great all-around choice for the person who prioritizes workouts just as much as they do recovery.
The Whoop also has the longest battery life of any tracker that I've tested, and it typically lasts up to 14 days at a time.
When you purchase the device, you'll get a year of membership included. After that, however, you'll have to pay an additional fee. There are three different membership tiers, and they range from $199 per year to $359 per year.
Best smartwatch that tracks sleep:
If you're looking for something that will track your sleep and give you all the bells and whistles of a smart device, the Apple Watch Series 11 is for you.
Apple's sleep features got even better when it released the Series 11 Watch, because it introduced its sleep score (which you can access with other versions of the watch as well, if your software is up to date). The sleep score is generated daily and falls between zero and 100. It is based on three factors: duration, consistency and disruptions, though duration has the most impact on how high the score is. (I find it to be slightly more generous than other trackers.)
Much like with other brands, this is just an easy, more digestible way to look at your data and your readiness for the day, but you can also dive into your vitals and various sleep stage metrics as well.
The sleep tracking and guidance might not be as in-depth as some of the other trackers on this list, but the fact that it's a great smartwatch and fitness tracker, it easily integrates with your iPhone and the Apple Health app, and has sleep tracking features on top of all that, makes it an easy inclusion on this list. It's something that can fit into any lifestyle, especially for those who want to stay on top of their sleep as well as every other aspect of their routine.
While it has the shortest battery life of the sleep trackers I've tried, the Series 11 Watch does have a longer battery life than its predecessors, so you can get about 24 hours of use out of it. It also charges pretty quickly — you can get the battery to 100% in about an hour — so you can charge as you get ready in the morning and you won't miss out on sleep data.
Some people, however, may find its many features — which include things like texting and calling — distracting before bed. At times, I've found myself answering messages on my watch even after I put my phone on do-not-disturb mode for the night.
The best discreet sleep tracker:
Oura's rings have become a popular choice for health monitoring in the last few years, and I find that sleep tracking is where the brand really excels.
The small tracker delivers a ton of data in an easy-to-understand way through its three daily scores: Activity, Sleep and Readiness. The last two, of course, are the most relevant when it comes to its sleep tracking abilities.
The sleep score is based on how long you slept, time spent in each sleep stage and how long it took you to fall asleep. Your readiness score, on the other hand, takes into account that sleep data, as well as your activity, heart rate, body temperature and more, to help you plan your activities for the day.
I love how the scores give you an overarching idea of how well-rested you are and how prepared you are for the day ahead. And they're simple to digest, so it becomes really easy to integrate into your routine: You can just wake up, check your scores and within five minutes have a better understanding of how well-rested you are. But if you want to dive deeper, you can click into each one to view more in-depth data about your resting heart rate, blood oxygen, sleep stages and more.
It will also take your data and give you suggestions for how to go about your day based on the quality of your sleep and vitals. If your readiness is low, it may suggest taking time for rest or a nap, like below. Or if your vitals are way off from the norm, it may even tell you that there are “major signs" of something causing strain to your body (which could signal illness), and it will tell you to take it easy for the day.
The brand says you’ll get around eight days of battery life from the device, but I find it’s typically closer to five.
Out of all of the devices, I find Oura’s sleep data to be the most accurate, especially when it comes to the times that I fell asleep, woke up and how many times I woke up during the night.
The Oura ring is super small and discreet, and as someone who already wears my rings to bed, I find it to be the most comfortable to wear.
The ring collects its data via internal, green, red and infrared LEDs that measure blood oxygen, heart rate, heart rate variability and more, as well as a digital sensor that measures temperature. When you take it off, you can see those lights, but when you're wearing the ring, you don't, so there's nothing that will shine in your face or keep you up.
One major thing to note is that you do have to pay a monthly or annual membership fee. It's $6 per month, which is less than your average cup of coffee — at least in New York — so I consider it to be worth it for people who want a more stylish option that also provides in-depth health metrics, though the additional cost may not make it a feasible choice for everyone.
Best overall: Oura Ring 4
While the best sleep tracker for you will depend on your personal preferences, budget and style choices, I consider the Oura Ring 4 to be the best option out of all the sleep trackers I tried. (Though, I will say, the Whoop 5.0 is a close second.) It's small and comfortable, so it doesn't detract from your sleep. And it provides a lot of helpful data and suggestions to help you improve your routine, all in ways that are easy to understand and implement for the average person. It doesn't hurt that it looks pretty stylish, too, during the day.
How I chose the best sleep trackers
I have been wearing various fitness, health and sleep trackers for the last decade, so I know what to look for. As a writer who often covers health and wellness tech, I am often trying the latest gadgets in the space. All of the above sleep trackers I selected because they fit at least a majority of the criteria that I look for in a tracker, which includes affordability, functionality, comfort, battery life, easy usability and/or the inclusion of additional helpful features.
How I tested the best sleep trackers
I wore each device for a minimum of a month, though in many cases I wore them for multiple months. I wore them to bed at night to test their sleep tracking abilities, as well as throughout the day and for various workouts and activities.
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Emma Stessman is a writer for Shop TODAY. She has over a decade of experience in digital media — with nearly half of that time being focused on the health and wellness space. She has owned multiple sleep trackers from top brands over the last decade. At Shop TODAY, she covers a range of topics, from new tech releases to sleep products. She is an avid runner and fitness enthusiast with a personal passion for health.
