Best Polar Fitness Tracker – With so many good fitness trackers on the market and promising ones on the horizon, it’s hard to contain them all in just one list. We’ve limited our picks here to trackers that have scored four stars or higher, but there are lots of other very good options out there that might be right for you. We update this article often, so make sure to check back for our latest recommendations.
OVERVIEW
ROUND UP
back to menu ↑1.VANTAGE
Features
- ULTRA-LONG BATTERY LIFE : The Polar Vantage M Advanced GPS Running & Multisport Watch lasts for up to 30 hours of training time
- POLAR PRECISION PRIME HEART RATE : Polar’s heart rate monitor watches redefine the gold standard in optical heart rate accuracy by combining the latest in bio-impedance electrodes and optical sensors
- TRAINING LOAD PRO: The Vantage M is the ultimate fitness tracker, separating cardio load, muscle load and perceived load. Polar’s Training Load Pro provides an unparalleled look into how your training affects your body
- SWIM/BIKE/RUN FUNCTIONALITY : As a waterproof watch, long-distance running watch and biking activity tracker combined, you can capture key metrics like swimming stroke and pace. You can even pair with your favorite compatible cycling accessory
- PERSONALIZE WITH YOUR OWN STYLE : With customizable fitness band options, tailor your Vantage M with replaceable wrist bands of multiple colors
- Display resolution 240 x 240. Sizing M/L - wrist circumference 140-210 mm
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2.COROS APEX
Features
- Designed for fast and light mountain athletes with route navigation and checkpoint features supported with 24 days of regular battery life and 25 hours in full GPS mode
- Interval, structured, triathlon and strength training modes with training programs and plans created by COROS athletes and coaches available free on COROS.com
- Built-in running power metrics from the wrist plus native and complete integration with Stryd power meters
- Featuring running, cycling, swimming, cardio, strength, and water sports modes with ongoing support and updates.
- Built with a stainless steel bezel and a sapphire glass screen and includes optical heart rate monitor, barometric altimeter, accelerometer, compass, gyroscope and thermometer with 24/7 heart rate monitoring, sleep, step, and calorie tracking
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3.Garmin
Features
- Vastly extended battery life through solar charging
- Rugged GPS Watch is water-rated to 100 meters and constructed to U.S. military standard 810 for thermal, shock and water resistance
- Built-in 3-axis compass and barometric altimeter plus multiple global navigation satellite systems (GPS, Glonass and Galileo) track in more challenging environments than GPS alone
- Track your activities for running, biking, swimming, strength and more
- Help understand your health and wellness better with all-day health monitoring and Pulse Ox (this is not a medical device and is not intended for use in the diagnosis or monitoring of any medical condition)
- Monitor how your body uses energy by tracking heart rate, stress and sleep estimates with body battery energy monitoring
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4.Fitbit Charge
Features
- Use built-in GPS to see your pace and distance on screen during outdoor runs, rides, hikes and more and see a workout intensity map in the app that shows your heart rate changes along your route
- With Active Zone Minutes, feel a buzz when you reach your target heart rate zones during exercise, and celebrate when you earn extra minutes outside of exercise
- Use 24x7 heart rate to track resting heart rate & better measure calorie burn. Syncing to mobile devices requires Bluetooth LE and internet connection. Syncs with Mac OS X 12.2 and up, iPhone 5S and later, iPad 5 gen. and later, Android 7.0 and later
- See your SpO2 nightly average and range on wrist, and view trends over the past week in the Fitbit app (SpO2 is not available in all markets. The SpO2 feature is not intended to diagnose or treat any medical condition or for any other medical purpose)
- Track your skin temperature each night to see how it varies from your personal baseline (Not available in all markets. Only available in the Fitbit app and only displays variation. Not intended for medical purposes)
- Track workouts in real-time with 20+ goal-based exercise modes. It’s also swimproof and water resistant to 50 Meters, so you can track swims, wear in the shower and more
- Multi-day battery lasts up to 7 days and up to 5 hours when using built-in GPS (varies with use & other factors). Track sleep stages & review your in-app Sleep Score for an easy way to see how well you slept
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5.Apple Watch
Features
- GPS model lets you take calls and reply to texts from your wrist
- Measure your blood oxygen with an all-new sensor and app
- Check your heart rhythm with the ECG app
- The Always-On Retina display is 2.5x brighter outdoors when your wrist is down
- S6 SiP is up to 20% faster than Series 5
- 5GHz Wi-Fi and U1 Ultra Wideband chip
- Track your daily activity on Apple Watch and see your trends in the Fitness app on iPhone
- Measure workouts like running, walking, cycling, yoga, swimming, and dance
- Swimproof design
- Sync your favorite music, podcasts, and audiobooks
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6.Withings HR
Features
- DAY & OVERNIGHT HEART RATE - Enjoy heart rate tracking day & night plus continuous tracking during workouts.
- DAILY ACTIVITY TRACKING - Automatically counts steps, calories and distance.
- AUTOMATIC SLEEP MONITORING - Wake to a Sleep Score based on light & deep sleep cycles, interruptions, depth & regularity.
- MULTISPORT TRACKING - Tracks 30+ sports and maps your session with distance, elevation and pace via connected GPS.
- RECORD BATTERY LIFE - Spend more time moving and less time charging with a rechargeable battery that lasts up to 25 days.
- SMART NOTIFICATIONS - Customize call, text, event & app notifications from your smartphone right on the watch screen.
- WATER RESISTANT TO 50M - Steel HR is a life-friendly hybrid smartwatch that can accompany you to the pool or hit the showers.
- AUTOMATIC DATA SYNC - Steel HR seamlessly syncs with the free Health Mate app via Bluetooth. Works with Alexa, Apple Heath, Google Fit, Strava and 100+ top health & fitness apps.
- SWAPPABLE WRISTBANDS - If you have multiple bands, it's easy to change them in seconds to wear Steel HR your way: leather, silicone or metal.
- Withings products on Amazon must be “ships from and sold by” Amazon or Withings to be eligible for warranty/replacement by Withings.
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7.Wahoo Fitness
Features
- Personalized Heart Rate Training – workout efficiently – track and capture real-time heart rate, training zones and calories burned on your smartphone or tablet with compatible training apps.
- Integrated with Bluetooth and ANT+, TICKR connects to smartphones, tablets, GPS watches and bike computers by Wahoo, Polar, Garmin, Apple and more.
- Works with 50+ Smartphone Apps including Wahoo Fitness, Zwift, Runtastic, Runkeeper, UA Record, Endomondo, Peloton, Map My Run, Komoot and Nike Run Club
- Record workout data with the Wahoo Fitness app and automatically upload data to your favorite training platform like Strava.
- Choice of Champions - Official Heart Rate monitor of Team INEOS, Bora-Hansgrohe, Katusha Alpecin, Ironman World Champion Jan Frodeno, Heather Jackson and American Pro Mountain Biker Sonya Looney
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8.LETSCOM Watch
Features
- Large Stylish Dial Display: 1.3-inch TFT-LCD color touch screen features 4 different customizable displays, making it easier and quicker to view the time, day of the week，date, steps travelled, and calories burned, your message notifications can also be displayed straight to your device screen
- Heart Rate Monitoring & Sleep Tracking: Automatically monitor your daily real-time heart rate, and track your sleep quality status to get a better understanding of your health
- All-day Fitness Tracking: Accurately records your activity data such as: steps taken, distance travelled, calories burned, minutes active and your weekly/monthly accumulative data, you can also see your fitness targets at a glance allowing you to easily control your rhythm of exercise, helping you to adjust and make your exercise as effective as possible
- More Smart Functions: Music control, incoming call notifications with the option to long press to hang up, up to 10 alarm clocks, timer functionality, breathing guides, sedentary alerts, wrist sensor,target settings, all this plus the option to sync your data with Strava
- Great Battery Life: Built with a 210mAh battery that only takes 2.5 hours to charge and can be used for up to 10 days with a standby time of 30-45 days. You can adjust the screen brightness according to your needs
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9.SUUNTO
Features
- Suunto 9 Baro: This durable multisport GPS watch is designed for athletes who demand the best; Featuring over 80 sports modes, a barometer for accurate altitude info, and wrist heart rate monitor
- Built To Last: Made for training, racing and extreme adventures, this GPS watch delivers up to 120 hours of continuous exercise tracking; Water resistant to 100 meters; Great for running, hiking, cycling and more
- Get Connected: Connect to your favorite sports apps and services from the Suunto app to get more from your watch; Share with your sports communities and access specific training analysis and guidance
- Adventure Starts Here: Combining Scandinavian design with ultra durable materials, our watches track your sports, daily activity, and sleep to help you keep life, training and recovery in balance
- Authentic Heritage: Founded in 1936, Suunto brings over 80 years of high quality heritage craftsmanship, relentless accuracy, and pioneering innovation to our watches, compasses, and dive products
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10.POLAR M200
Features
- Optical Heart Rate - Continuous, accurate heart rate without a chest strap. FlowSync compatible with computer running Mac OS X 10.6 or later and Windows XP, 7, 8, 10
- Integrated GPS - Speed, distance and route tracking
- Activity Monitoring - Follow your daily activity and sleep 24/7
- Mobile Connectivity - Seamless communication via Bluetooth Smart to Polar Flow app on mobile devices
- Running Program - Free running plan made just for you and your needs. NOTE: Refer start-up guide and user manual before use
- Water Resistance: Waterproof (suitable for swimming). Thickness 1.2 centimeters
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Best Polar Fitness Tracker – BUYER’S GUIDE
back to menu ↑Go Sport-Specific
Swimmers will want a waterproof tracker, but keep in mind that not all water-safe trackers actually track swimming. Runners will probably want a watch that shows time, distance, pace, and lap time, at the very least. If you want good accuracy for those metrics without having to carry a smartphone, you need a runner’s watch with built-in GPS—see our picks for The Best Fitness Trackers for Running.
Also consider the display. If you want to see your stats at all times, or simply use your tracker as a wristwatch, look for one with an always-on display. How you control the tracker is also important. If you like to run in the cold while wearing gloves, you may want to steer clear of devices that only have touch-enabled displays.
Cyclists have even more considerations. There’s a difference between tracking how many miles you pedal and calories you burn versus monitoring your power and cadence. If all you want is the former, you can find a few fitness trackers that supports bicycling as an activity. More serious cyclists will want a device that can pair with additional bike equipment, like a cadence sensor, and should look at devices from sport-specific companies, like Garmin and Polar.
back to menu ↑The Fitness App Experience
A fitness tracker’s app matters. Whether on your phone or on the web, the app is absolutely vital because it is where you make sense of the information the tracker collects. Fitbit has one of the best apps and websites we’ve tested. It lets you record all kinds of data that many other companies don’t, such as calories consumed, allergy severity, and stress level.
If you want total body analysis, look for a system that incorporates a smart bathroom scale. Fitbit, Polar, Withings, and Wyze do. Check out the Fitbit Aria 2, Polar Balance, Withings Body Cardio, and Wyze Scale. These send your weight directly to your account, so you can’t cheat the system by entering a lower number. The QardioBase 2 is another top choice, especially for pregnant women.
back to menu ↑Smartwatch vs. Fitness Tracker
Several fitness trackers have some smartwatch functionality, and some smartwatches have fitness features, too. The Fitbit Versa 3 comes close to blending both worlds, but at the moment it still lags far behind the Apple Watch in terms of third-party app support.
back to menu ↑Frequently Asked Questions
back to menu ↑Will You Track Sleep?
Many fitness trackers record your sleep. When they do, they generally watch for movement using a three-axis accelerometer to a more sensitive degree than they do during the day. Some devices report graphs showing the times when you were in light sleep and deep sleep based on motion.
back to menu ↑Do You Want Heart Rate Monitoring?
Heart rate monitoring sounds like the best feature ever, but there are different kinds of heart rate monitors, and frankly, some people don’t need it at all. A built-in heart rate monitor can drive up the price.
back to menu ↑WRAP UP
When you’re training to reach a specific fitness goal, fitness trackers and sports watches can be a huge help. A workout tracker will make all your hard work visible – you’ll always know how demanding your workout was and how many calories you burned. Polar fitness trackers guide you through your workouts and help you follow your progress on your way towards your goals.
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