Are you looking for the best fitness tracker with heart rate monitor in the market? We’ve compiled the ultimate guide to the best fitness bands and activity trackers for every need.
What is a Fitness Tracker?
A fitness band or activity tracker is a wearable device that helps you monitor your everyday activities and health effortlessly.
You can use it to continuously measure your heart rate, monitor the quality of sleep, calculate the number of steps you take and even let it assist your workouts in the gym. In short, it will help you in losing weight faster by improving your daily activities.
We’ll be listing only the best wearable activity trackers in terms of features, price, design and app quality.
Difference between Fitness Tracker & Smartwatch
Most fitness tracker come with some smartwatch functionality, and some Smartwatches come with fitness features, too.
While the fit bands are comfortable to wear for long hours and also while working out or swimming, the Smartwatches are stylish looking but not suitable to wear all the time.
Ultimately, a Smartwatch can never be a dedicated fitness tracker and vice versa. So, it is your ultimate goal that let you decide which one to choose.
Best Fitness Trackers with Heart Rate Monitor in 2020
| Fitness Tracker Bands | Features | Battery Life |
|---|---|---|
| 1.Fitbit Charge 2 (Most Recommended) | Interchangeable bands, Heart Rate Monitor, Sleep Stages, Cardio Fitness Score, Breathing Sessions | 5 Days |
| 2.Garmin Vivosmart HR+ | Water-resistant up to 50m, Inbuilt GPS, HR Monitor, Sleep Tracking, Multi-sport Tracking | 5 Days |
| 3.Fitbit Alta HR | Sleep Stages Tracking, Auto Exercise Recognition, Change Clock Faces, HR Sensor | 7 Days |
| 4.Samsung Gear Fit 2 | In-built GPS, Smartwatch functionality, Water-resistant, heart rate tracking, Dedicated Mp3 player, Multi-sport tracking | 2-3 Days |
| 5.Garmin Vivosmart 3 | Elevate wrist HR technology, Safe for swimming, Automatic rep counting, Sleep tracking | 5 Days |
| 6.Fitbit Charge HR | PurePulse HR Technology, Auto sleep & silent vibrating alarm, Exercise mode | 5 Days |
| 7.Garmin Vivofit 2 | Move Alert, Stopwatch, Sleep Quality and Active Minutes | 1 Year+ |
| 8.Fitbit Zip | Clip-it Design, Water resistant, Replaceable Battery | 6 Months |
| 9.Garmin Vivofit | Safe for Swimming, Monitors sleep, steps, calories, Multi-sport tracking | 1 Year+ |
| 10.Xiaomi Mi Band 2 | IP67 waterproof and dust-proof, Smart notifications, Heart Rate Monitor, Unlocks Mi Phone without a password | 20 Days |
Best Fitness Trackers under $200 with HR Monitor
1.Fitbit Charge 2 (Most Recommended)
The reason why we’re listing the Charge 2 as the best activity tracker is because of its amazing all-round fitness tracking features and the easy to use app functionality.
Pros:
- Interchangeable bands
- Accurate & consistent tracking
- Comfortable to wear
- Large display & clear visibility under direct sunlight
- Cardio fitness score
- Sleep monitoring with stages & insights and vibrating alarm
- Heart rate monitor
- Smartphone notifications (SMS, caller ID, WhatsApp, Facebook etc…)
- Personalized breathing sessions
- Syncs with MyFitnessPal
- 5 days battery life
Cons:
- No inbuilt GPS: Only supports connected GPS (on mobile)
- Gesture recognition is not that perfect
More than the cons, it’s the pros that make it to the top of our list.
2.Garmin Vivosmart HR+ (Best GPS enabled Activity Tracker)
The Vivosmart HR Plus is a rugged and water-resistant smart fitness tracker that packs all the sensors that are useful for a fitness enthusiast.
Pros:
- Rugged design
- Water-resistant up to 50m (you can wear it while swimming)
- Inbuilt GPS & 24/7 Heart rate monitor
- Automatically tracks walking, running, biking, swimming & elliptical training
- GPS enabled activity tracking
- Syncs with MyFitnessPal app
- Five-day battery life
- Smart notifications
Cons:
- App isn’t very intuitive
- Not the prettiest looking band
3.Fitbit Alta HR
The Alta HR comes with sleek and stylish design and supports change of bands as per your mood. It comes with PurePulse Heart Rate monitoring technology that accurately calculates your workout session.
Pros:
- Interchangeable bands
- Stylish & slim design is perfect while working out
- Measures calorie burn using your heart rate zones
- Automatically tracks sleep stages (light, deep & REM)
- Auto exercise recognition
- Tap to see stats, time and notifications (calls, text & calendar, alarm & idle alerts)
- Clock face can be customized
- Reminders to move
- 7 days battery life
Cons:
- Not to wear while swimming; but it is sweat, rain & splash proof
- No GPS
4.Samsung Gear Fit 2
The Gear Fit 2 serves a dual purpose. It is a fitness tracker that also doubles as a smartwatch. It runs on Samsung’s Tizen OS and comes with in-built storage for music, which means you can use the band as a dedicated mp3 player by pairing it with Bluetooth headphones.
Pros:
- Vibrant always-on display with 1.5 inch curved OLED touchscreen
- In-built GPS & Barometer
- Smartwatch functionality
- Water-resistant upto 1.5m for 30 minutes
- Accurate steps & heart rate monitoring
- 4GB in-built storage for mp3 songs
- Can be used as a mp3 player without connecting to your mobile
- Smart notifications
- Multi-sport tracking (running, cycling, strength training, yoga, pilates etc…)
Cons:
- 2-3 days battery life (1 day if using GPS)
- Not possible to track simple workouts (like squats)
5.Fitbit Zip
The Fitbit Zip is a simple activity tracker that can be carried in your pocket or clipped to your shirt or pant. It syncs your stats automatically to your app via Bluetooth.
Pros:
- Simple clip-it design that fits securely onto clothing
- Tracks steps, distance and calories
- Tap to display daily stats & time
- Water resistant
- Wireless syncing
- Clip it to your shoes to track calories burned through cycling
- Replaceable battery that lasts up to 6 months
Cons:
- Not for serious fitness enthusiast since it is just a simple activity tracker
Affordable Fitness Trackers under $100 with Heart Rate Sensor
6.Garmin Vivosmart 3
The Vivosmart 3 is a water-resistant fitness band up to 50m, which makes it ideal for swimming or while having a shower. This budget activity tracker also tracks sleep, stress levels and even guides you with breathing exercises.
Pros:
- 24/7 Heart rate monitoring with Elevate wrist HR technology
- Tracks steps, floors climbed, calories, intensity minutes etc…
- Water-resistant up to 50m; Safe for swimming
- Smartphone notifications
- Automatic rep counting
- Sleep tracking
- All-day stress levels
- 5 day battery life
Cons:
- No GPS (might be a cost-cutting move)
7.Fitbit Charge HR
The Charge HR comes with a small OLED display that shows daily stats & time along with caller ID on your wrist. It is very comfortable to wear even while performing vigorous exercises.
Pros:
- Stylish design & lightweight
- Very comfortable to wear all the day
- All-day activity tracker (steps, calorie, sleep, floors climbed etc…)
- Heart Rate monitor with PurePulse HR Technology
- Auto sleep & silent vibrating alarm
- Smart notification alerts – Text, Caller ID and Calendar alerts
- Option to record workouts using the Exercise mode
Cons:
- Cost a little high for the features it offers. But, if you’re a fan of Fitbit brand, then you know the reason why.
8.Garmin Vivofit 2
The Vivofit 2 is one of the top fitness trackers in this price range that gives you accurate readings and is also water-resistant.
Pros:
- Easy to read back-lit display
- Comfortable to wear round the clock
- Calculates steps, calories, sleep quality and active minutes
- Comes with Move Alert feature to remind you to stay active
- Personalised daily goals
- Stopwatch
- Smart notifications
- Syncs with MyFitnessPal
- Battery lasts up to 1 year
Cons:
- No Heart Rate monitor (should be purchased as a separate accessory that can be attached to the band)
9.Fitbit Flex
The Fitbit Flex is a bracelet style activity tracker that has no display but LEDs that light up to show your progress. The band looks stylish, slim and can be replaced according to your fashion choices.
Pros:
- All-day activity monitor (steps, calories, active minutes etc…)
- Auto sleep and vibrating alarm
- LEDs show you the progress (actual stats can be seen in the app)
- Water-resistant
- Automatic wireless sync
Cons:
- No HR monitor
- 5 day battery life (It should be more considering it has no display and no HR sensor)
- Little overpriced
Best Budget Fitness Trackers under $50
10.Garmin Vivofit
The Vivofit is definitely the budget fitness tracker for swimming. It is water-resistant up to 50 meters and can be paired with heart rate monitor (sold as an extra accessory).
Pros:
- Displays steps, distance, calories
- Monitors sleep
- Water-resistant up to 50m
- Learns your activities and suggests daily goals
- Multi-sport: running, yoga, swimming etc…
- 1 year+ battery life
Cons:
- No Heart Rate monitor (Sold separately as an accessory)
- Looks a little bulky
11.Xiaomi Mi Band 2
This is the cheapest activity tracker with heart rate monitor at the moment from a well-known Chinese brand, Xiaomi.
Pros:
- Stylish and very comfortable to wear for long periods
- OLED display with touch button control
- IP67 waterproof and dust-proof
- Tracks steps, calories, distance, sleep
- Vibrating alarm
- Smart notifications (CallerID, SMS, calendar & app alerts)
- Wrist-based heart rate monitor
- Unlocks Mi Phone without a password
- 20 days battery life
Cons:
- For the price and the features it offer, there is nothing to complain.
That’s the end of the list Friends! We’ve tried several fitness bands in the market but only listed the Best Fitness Trackers with Heart Rate Monitor & GPS in this post to save your time.
If you come across any new fitness activity tracker that is worth reviewing, please feel free to post it in the comments below.