There are numerous studies showing that the quality of our sleep affects all aspects of our health and well-being.
Moreover, on this site, I’ve always emphasized the importance of getting the right amount and quality of sleep. It has been proven, time and again, that doing so improves our mood and boosts our bodies’ ability to fight off sickness.
Recently, tracking our sleep has become widely popular.
Monitoring how long we sleep and the quality of our slumber has become almost an obsession with many people. This is largely because many wearable fitness trackers have now added sleep-tracking features alongside step counters, heart rate monitors, and food logs.
These monitors come in different forms, including bedside monitors, wearables, and non-wearables (the kind you put under your pillow or mattress).
Today, we are giving you a list of the five best sleep trackers available on the market, which provide information about your sleep cycle and how well you’ve slept during the night.
But first, let's examine the benefits of tracking your sleep, and the different kinds of sleep trackers that are available.
Don't have time to read the entire review?
If you're a busy person who doesn't have time to read this entire review, we've simplified everything. Here is a table that provides you with a quick rating of the best sleep trackers.
| PRODUCT | WINS FOR |
| Fitbit Charge 2 Heart Rate + Fitness Wristband, Black | Best overall for features and quality if money is not an issue. |
| Leeko Fitness Tracker | Best fitness tracker that comes loaded with useful features. |
| Amazfit Band 5 Fitness Tracker | Best value-for-money sleep and fitness tracker if you are on a tight budget |
| Beautyrest Sleeptracker Monitor | Best non-wearable that tracks your sleep quality and provides precise data of your sleep cycle |
| Apirka Fitness Tracker HR | Best for its design and price. |
What Are the Uses of a Sleep Tracker?
On average, adults need seven or more hours of sleep every night. However, many are unable to meet this basic need. About 70 million Americans suffer from a sleep disorder, which is one possible reason why there is an increased interest in fitness trackers that can also monitor your sleep patterns.
Sleep trackers provide you with insight about your sleep patterns so you have a better understanding of whether or not you’re getting the right amount of sleep. If you're not, you may need to modify your pre-bedtime habits to encourage a better quality of sleep, and make sure that you are getting enough shut-eye every night.
Now, you're probably wondering, “How do sleep trackers work?” Sleep trackers work by monitoring how much you move throughout the night while you are in your bed, thereby measuring your sleep quality. Using accelerometers to track your movements, the tracker analyzes whether you’ve had a peaceful or restless slumber.
There are also sleep trackers that can monitor how much time you’re spending in each stage of sleep. These trackers can then use the information to schedule your alarm to go off at a time when they detect you’re in a light stage of sleep and can be woken up more easily.
By analyzing the times you are asleep and awake, you can get information about how much time you spend being asleep, which can alert you to possible sleep-associated issues such as sleep apnea.
Some trackers can even help you create a better environment for sleeping by assessing your surroundings at night. This may include the lighting or the temperature of your room, which can have an impact on your sleep quality.
Now that you know what a sleep tracker can do for you, how do you know which one will work best for your needs? Let's look at some factors you should consider when shopping for a sleep tracker.
Your Guide to Choosing the Best Sleep Tracker
First, you need to know the purpose of monitoring your sleep. Are you using a sleep tracker because you have a difficult time falling asleep? Do you wonder if you spend enough time in the REM stage?
If you’re looking to improve the quality of your sleep based on what your tracker shows you, make sure it offers a detailed view of your night's activities in its companion app, including your sleep duration, quality, stages, and external factors.
Look for sleep trackers that have the ability to analyze your sleep environment so you can check for patterns in the results to pinpoint some possible causes of your sleep issues. It could be that there is too much light or noise around you and those things are keeping you up at night. If it is a simple fix to get more sleep, it is definitely worth knowing the causes of your struggles.
You may also want to choose a less cumbersome design. Since you will literally be going to bed with this device, make sure that the design is not large or heavy, especially if it’s a wearable device.
Even with a non-wearable sleep tracker, there will be some element that is around you, which could make you aware of its presence. You may not be able to fall asleep if you are wearing something that is especially bulky.
Make sure your sleep tracker comes with a companion app. This way, you can customize the settings according to your sleep-tracking needs. You will also be able to see a more detailed and extensive explanation of your sleep.
You can view your data and, often, the progress that you are making toward your sleep goals (if your tracker can monitor both). You will usually find other benefits that come with the companion app, such as features to engage with other people using the app so you can keep each other on track, as well as rewards for reaching your goals.
It is also best to have a sleep tracker with syncing capabilities. By having a tracker that can sync with all of your tech gadgets (like your smartphone and tablet), you will be able to have easier access to the data about your sleep habits.
Finally, you will want to consider the price. In addition to knowing your goals, it’s equally as important to know your budget. The majority of sleep trackers range anywhere from $50 to $300, typically increasing in price depending on the number of features that they offer.
If you are looking for a comprehensive tracker that will give you a wide range of advanced features, including automatic sleep detection, a smart alarm, and a heart rate monitor, it will probably be more expensive than some of your more basic trackers.
However, if you want to be able to track your sleep and activity for a long period of time, it may be worth it to spend some extra money to buy a tracker that meets your needs. However, it is important to remember that just because a tracker is expensive doesn't always guarantee that it will have better performance. Likewise, a more affordable product is not always low in quality and features.
Now let's look at some of the best options that are on the market today.
5 Best Sleep Trackers
1. Fitbit Charge 2 Heart Rate + Fitness Wristband, Black
Despite the fact that this product has been on the market for a while, it remains the best overall option because of its various features and high quality—especially if money is not an issue for you. This sleep tracker measures and records the amount of time you spend awake, as well as your light, deep, and REM stages of sleep. Plus, it is one of the most consistent trackers on the market, which is key because you can be sure that the results you see every morning are correct.
This sleep tracker gives you the needed guidance and coaching to get a better night's sleep. It continues to add new insights to keep it up-to-date and competitive with other products on the market. The sleep stages feature provides you with a helpful breakdown of your sleep phases, as well as a benchmark against other users in your demographic.
The Fitbit Charge 2 also comes with a wearable design, which is an added bonus. Its battery life is about five days, which is good compared to other options. It has a black-and-white OLED screen that allows you to adjust the brightness.
You can easily read this screen outdoors if you are using this tracker for fitness purposes as well as sleeping. The display activates when you rotate your wrist to look at it, which conserves its battery life. Because it is not water resistant, you do need to take it off when you get in the shower.
You have three size options for the interchangeable band, so this sleep tracker will fit most users. It has a large display, allowing you to see the information on it easily whenever you glance down.
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2. Leeko Fitness Tracker
The Leeko Fitness Tracker is the best option if you’re looking for a fitness tracker that comes loaded with useful features. It’s your wearable health manager, weather monitor, and activity tracker, all in one.
With this device as part of your health management system, you’ll be able to monitor your heart rate, blood pressure, and daily activities. It also comes with step and calorie counters, as well as a sedentary alert to ensure that you get some physical activity throughout the day.
This device has social media and call and message alert features to keep you connected with your network. An alarm system ensures that you’re always on time for your activities. Furthermore, its IP67 waterproof feature allows you to wear it while swimming and in the shower.
With the built-in weather monitor, you will always be up to date about weather conditions so you can better plan your daily routine.
Finally, the partner app lets you store your health statistics and provides you with reports about your fitness status. This allows you to see if your fitness routine needs any improvement.
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3. Amazfit Band 5 Fitness Tracker
If you’re on a tight budget, this product is a great value-for-money fitness tracker. It has built-in Alexa connectivity, allowing you to stay in the loop and control your home devices while you’re on the go.
There are several essential features that allow you to monitor and understand your health status. The O2 monitor that allows you to measure your blood oxygen saturation, while the heart rate monitor supplies data regarding your heart rate throughout the day and provides a warning whenever your heart rate is high.
With its 11 sports modes, you’ll be able to track your health statistics while performing all your favorite fitness activities. It is capable of withstanding water up to 5 ATM, making it an affordable health monitor for swimming and other water activities.
To understand your overall fitness status, the Amazfit Band 5 gives you a health score based on your daily recorded heart rate and other health statistics. This way, you’ll be able to see if you’re on track with your fitness goals or if you need to take steps to improve your health.
The sleep tracker provides all the information you need about the quality of your slumber, including the percentages of different sleep levels and the duration of each sleep stage.
Unique to this device is its female health tracking feature that allows users to track ovulation and menstrual cycles.
Finally, with its two-week battery life and watch face displays that are customizable through a companion app, this fitness tracker is the best value-for-money purchase for all members of the family.
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4. Beautyrest Sleeptracker Monitor
This option is the best non-wearable product that tracks your sleep quality and provides precise data from your sleep cycle. The company behind this product promises to provide you with the tools you need to understand the quality of your sleep every night, and how you can improve it.
The Beautyrest Sleeptracker has three parts to it: a central processing unit that plugs in and remains near your bed, two movement sensors that you put between your mattress and your box spring that plugs into the CPU, and an app for your smartphone.
The movement sensors are about a quarter inch thick, and they are surrounded in high-density foam, making them undetectable when you are asleep. As long as your mattress is at least a queen size, these will track the sleeping patterns of two sleepers, and they can tell the difference between the two people, so you don't have to worry about your movements interfering with your partner’s.
It is quick and easy to set this sleep tracker up, and, once it is installed, it is essentially invisible. The sensors have adhesive backings, ensuring that they stay in place. The CPU connects to your Wi-Fi to upload each night’s data to its servers, which then generate reports that you can see in the app and also have emailed to you.
This tracker gives you an accurate sense of the quality of sleep you got the night before in terms of the three main types of sleep: light, deep, and REM. Each morning, within one hour of the last person getting out of bed, you can view your sleep report, which will tell you your sleep score out of 100.
This score is found by combining your total sleep time with the amount of time you spent in each stage of sleep, in addition to factors such as the number of times you woke up during the night. While getting a perfect score of 100 would be great, scoring 80 or higher means that you got very good quality sleep that night.
The app even asks you questions such as how stressful your day was, if you exercised, or if you consumed alcohol or caffeine, which are all factors that can impact the quality of your sleep. After gathering this information over a period of time, the app can make connections between your daily habits and the quality of sleep you are able to get.
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5. Apirka Fitness Tracker HR
This is the best option for its design and price. It comes equipped with the latest HR sensor to ensure accurate heart rate monitoring. It also offers a multi-sports mode, so you can get accurate results if you use this tracker when you exercise.
You can automatically track your sleep quality with this device, as it detects your sleep and analyzes your sleep quality from 9:00 pm to 8:00 am. It can detect when you are in a deep sleep and a light sleep, or if you are awake. It also allows you to set an alarm to wake you up using silent vibration, which is smooth and comfortable.
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Final Thoughts on Best Sleep Trackers
Before wrapping this up, we have to mention that there are no consumer sleep tracking devices on the market that can measure your quality of sleep as accurately as polysomnography, which is what doctors rely on to diagnose serious health conditions that are related to sleep, such as sleep apnea.
Polysomnography is performed in a sleep lab, under highly controlled conditions. It requires users to have sensors attached all over their bodies. While it is uncomfortable, it is still the gold standard for measuring sleep on a medical level.
If you suspect that you might be suffering from a serious sleep disorder, you should not rely on a consumer-grade device. Rather, you should seek professional medical advice.
However, there is a huge gap between achieving high-quality sleep and suffering from a serious condition such as sleep apnea—and most of us fall somewhere in the middle.
We wake up in the morning still feeling groggy and tired, but we can still drag ourselves out of bed. It’s this need that these products fill, by offering you a snapshot of how you slept so you can experiment with some modifications to your lifestyle, such as going to bed earlier, avoiding caffeine after lunch time, or getting more exercise.
That said, all of the sleep trackers reviewed today are top performers in their categories and can offer you a wealth of information that can improve your sleep and overall quality of life. However, the standout product in today’s review is the Fitbit Charge 2 Heart Rate + Fitness Wristband for its features and quality.
