Our take: The Whoop 5.0 sleep tracker is designed for individuals who want to track their sleep and exercise to enhance performance. It features an integrated coach that provides personalized recommendations, such as when to go to bed or mindful breathing techniques, based on your sleep data. Whoop is also for those who don’t want a screen to distract them at night.
If you struggle to fall asleep, stay asleep or wake up the next day feeling exhausted, it can be difficult to figure out both the cause and solution to your sleep troubles. A helpful place to start is wearing a sleep tracker to bed so it can monitor your sleep and reveal why you’re having trouble getting enough quality shut-eye. To find the best sleep tracker, CNET’s sleep experts considered accuracy, comfort, price, special features, battery life and more to identify the best sleep-tracking watches, smart rings and more that can help you have sweet dreams.
Editors’ choice
Our take: The Whoop 5.0 sleep tracker is designed for individuals who want to track their sleep and exercise to enhance performance. It features an integrated coach that provides personalized recommendations, such as when to go to bed or mindful breathing techniques, based on your sleep data. Whoop is also for those who don’t want a screen to distract them at night.
The review: “I love how intuitive the interface is and how detailed the stats are. The AI Coach makes it easy to analyze my sleep data,” said CNET Managing Editor Nasha Addarich Martínez. With Whoop’s advanced AI-powered technology and comprehensive data analysis, it is the ultimate sleep tracker. Whoop provides excellent insights and monitors key sleep metrics, including sleep stages, heart-rate variability, respiratory rate, and hours of sleep and restorative sleep, helping you better understand your sleep patterns. It’s one of the most accurate we’ve tested and the battery lasts up to two weeks on a single charge with the Peak and Life models. The app is more in-depth than just about any of the trackers I tested. If you’re interested in the nitty-gritty of how your body sleeps and responds to stress, I highly recommend the Whoop.
The main difference between the 5.0 and the 4.0 is the tiered membership plan with the newest model. Now, you can choose how much insight you want to get:
Whoop one (entry tier)
Features:
Price: $199 per year
Whoop Peak (mid tier)
Features:
Price: $239 per year
Whoop Life (top tier)
Features:
Price: $359 per year
Pros:
Cons:
Additional details:
Editors’ choice
Price $$$$$+Subscription $17 per month (Standard), $25 per month (Enhanced)Warranty Two-year warranty (Standard) or five-year warranty (Enhanced)Metrics measured HRV, heart rate, respiratory rate, snoring and sleep quality and sleep performanceWearable YesTrial 30 nights
The sleep tracker market has a lot of variety to choose from — which can be overwhelming if you aren’t sure where to start. Before you begin shopping for a sleep tracker, keep these features in mind.
Before shopping, decide which type of sleep tracker is most appealing. There are a lot of sleep tracker watches, but some may find them too uncomfortable to sleep with. There are also smart rings, smart mattress covers and mats that go under your bed.
Determining what you expect from your sleep tracker will help you narrow down your options; maybe you want a device with a screen that alerts you to your texts, or you want one that fits into your wardrobe. If you want a sleep tracker that also tracks your fitness and activity, choose something like the Oura Ring or Fitbit Inspire. If you’re a runner who needs a GPS to track your miles, then the Garmin Forerunner 165 is a great option.
If you are interested in a device that tracks other health vitals and metrics in addition to its sleep-tracking features, look for a wearable that measures blood oxygen levels, heart rate, HRV, respiratory rate, temperature and other valuable health data.
Another crucial factor when choosing a sleep tracker is its accuracy. No current device on the market is as accurate as an in-office sleep study with a doctor (a test that measures brain activity and wave patterns). Trackers with heart rate and blood-oxygen level sensors are the most reliable.
The price range for sleep tracker devices varies so determining your budget first will help you narrow down your best options. It’s also important to factor in the monthly or yearly subscriptions that some sleep tracker devices require. Oura has the lowest at $6 per month but Withings and Fitbit do not require subscriptions. Eight Sleep is already extremely pricey and requires a $17 or $25 subscription per month, depending on your membership.
Battery life and charging are other factors you should consider. A sleep-tracking product that requires being charged daily or nightly can be unmanageable or unrealistic for some people. If you need a sleep tracker with a long battery life, the Withings Scan Watch 2 can go for about 30 days between charges. If you’re looking at a sleep tracker that requires an outlet, such as the Withings Sleep Tracking Mat or the Eight Sleep Pod 3 Cover, that’s something to consider if you don’t have one easily accessible near your bed.
I found that wearable sleep trackers are more accurate than trackers that go over or under the bed. I attribute this to the fact that wearables have better contact with your skin to measure heart rate and breathing rate. Bed trackers like Eight Sleep or the Withings Sleep Mat sometimes picked up my dogs sleeping on my bed rather than just me. I found that top sleep trackers like Whoop, Fitbit and Oura Ring are a tad more accurate.
Yes, sleep trackers can be worth it if you want to look into your sleep quality, performance and habits. Based on your budget and preference, you can find a sleep tracker that works for you. The best sleep trackers include watches, rings and those that go over or under your mattress.
If you want to track your sleep without worrying about wearing a watch or ring, the is the best nonwearable sleep tracker. The thin mat goes under your mattress and uses pneumatic and sound sensors to measure your heart rate, movements and other tracking metrics.
Supported models such as Apple Watch Series 9, Series 10 and Ultra 2 can be worn to bed to track breathing disturbances during sleep. This data is analyzed using an algorithm to detect signs of moderate to severe sleep apnea. If elevated disturbances are detected frequently during a 30-day period, the Apple Watch will send you a notification suggesting possible sleep apnea.
Yes, the Oura Ring has a monthly subscription fee that will run you $6 to access the full range of features and data insights.
