The best sleep trackers of 2025: Expert tested and reviewed

Feb 8, 2025 - 06:00
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The best sleep trackers of 2025: Expert tested and reviewed

A sleep tracker might not help you fall asleep faster, make your slumber longer, or keep you asleep all night, but it can help you understand your sleep better. Once you can see how well (or poorly) you slept, you can set goals to improve it, adjust aspects of your routine or diet, and perhaps get enough exercise during the day to feel tired enough to fall asleep before midnight -- talk about a dream.

Experts recommend that adults get at least seven hours of sleep each night (though everyone is different). Even with seven hours of sleep, there's no guarantee of waking up well-rested. To determine how you've actually slept throughout the night, sleep trackers and wearables can be helpful. While not perfect, sleep trackers can measure heart rate, skin temperature, and time spent in each sleep phase. The ZDNET team has thoroughly tested sleep trackers to find the best options based on features, affordability, and availability.

We found that the Oura Ring 4 is the best sleep tracker on the market for its comfortable, lightweight fit, impressive battery life, and discreet build, which makes it ideal for sleeping. Plus, it provides a wealth of sleep data through the app. However, the Oura Ring isn't the only sleep tracker worth considering. Here, we explore the most popular options, as well as some lesser-known choices, to help you find the best sleep tracker for a better night's sleep.

The Oura Ring 4 is a competitive sleep tracker, with insights into sleep efficiency, restfulness, readiness, latency, and more. I've been using the Oura Ring for a while now, and it has not only given me deeper insight into my sleep but also supplements those data points with explanations behind the numbers. Oura claims to accurately track sleep cycles, total sleep time, resting heart rate, heart rate variability, and movement.

These features have been enhanced with the rollout of the fourth-generation Oura Ring, which hit the market in October. The Oura Ring 4 has smart sensors that allow more accurate and continuous data capture. It's also more comfortable than the Oura Ring 3 and has flattened sensors that make it easier to wear over time.

Also: I tested the Oura Ring 4 for weeks. Here's why it's the best health tracker right now

Every morning, I get a sleep score for last night's sleep and view my heart rate, sleep efficiency, and suggested bedtime range for the day. The sleep score helps me understand my energy levels for the day and my activity bandwidth, like whether I should exercise or rest. The Oura Ring can also detect the shortest of naps and factor those into the sleep score for the day. Plus, the sleep tab on the app offers information on sleep efficiency, restfulness, REM, deep sleep, latency, and timing, so you can dig deep and go beyond viewing just a sleep score and your time spent in bed.

As if there aren't enough sleep-friendly features in the Oura Ring, Oura also unveiled a body clock feature that teaches users more about circadian rhythms and the body clock. The feature measures sleep chronotype, calculated by body temperature, sleep-wake cycle, and physical activity. Through this data, I learned that I'm most productive during the late morning.

Also: The best smart rings

The battery life is excellent. It charges quickly and stays charged for around five to six days. Oura says the new generation's battery life lasts eight days, but I haven't found that to be the case in my testing. The one downside to the ring is the extra $72 you spend on the Oura subscription each year, on top of the $350 you spend on the ring itself.

Redditors also agree that the Oura Ring, as a sleep tracker, is worth it. "If you struggle with sleep quality, overtraining, or anything else that affects recovery, I'd say it's worth it," one user wrote in a thread. However, one Best Buy reviewer noted that the ring doesn't offer half sizes, which could be an issue if your fingers swell.

Oura Ring Gen 4 specs: Up to 8 days battery life | Sleep cycles | Bluetooth | Up to 100m water resistant | Blood oxygen, skin temperature sensor, heart rate monitoring | iOS and Android compatible

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