With winter in the rear view, it’s time to get outside and start moving again. Build new habits, get active again, and maybe slim down a bit just in time for beach season. A fitness tracker can help you reach your health goals, but there’s nothing worse than investing hundreds of dollars into a top-of-the-line Fitbit or fitness smartwatch only to wear it for a few weeks and then leave it to collect dust in a drawer. Fortunately, there’s a good variety of options available under $100 that all address active lifestyles of different sorts.
Compete against your friends
Fitbit Inspire
Staff pick
The Fitbit Inspire blends the best features from the design and functionality of the Alta and Flex product lines. It’s a sleek and swim-proof wrist accessory that checks all the boxes — activity and sleep tracking, notifications for calls/texts/calendar alerts, up to 5 days of battery life on a single charge, and built on Fitbit’s excellent app for connecting, competing, and cheering on your friends. Pay a bit more for the Inspire HR and also get 24/7 heart rate monitoring for more accurate calorie counts and hitting heart rate zones during workouts.
From $70 at Amazon
Best value
Xiaomi Mi Band 3
The Xiaomi Mi Band 3 is the latest fitness tracker from the Chinese company which is known for delivering quality products at lower prices. This tracker is packed with premium features: it’s water resistant (IP67) enough to swim with, offers 20-day battery life and will track your daily exercise and sleep, give you message and call notifications on its OLED display, and also includes an ADI photoelectric heart rate sensor.
$34 at Amazon
No display, no problem
Misfit Flash
The Misfit Flash includes all the tracking abilities you’d expect from a fitness tracker: sleep, steps, and calories. It’s also IPX7 water resistant — not quite enough to guarantee it for swimming, but certainly able to survive a rainstorm. If you hate the idea of charging your fitness tracker each night, you’ll be happy to know the Flash features outstanding battery life; it can last roughly six months on a single watch battery. It wirelessly syncs to your smartphone and transmits its data via the Misfit app.
From $42 at Amazon
A coach on your wrist
Moov Now
The Moov Now fitness tracker is different, in that it’s more of a coaching tool than a fitness tracker. When you wear it on your wrist, it tracks your daily activity via the Moov Now app. And unlike most other fitness trackers there’s no distracting screen, no need to charge it nightly, and it’s waterproof enough for tracking swims.
From $40 at Amazon
No need to charge it
Garmin vivofit 3
Garmin’s vivofit 3 is priced well for a fitness tracker that you never need to charge. The included batteries are rated to last up to one year, at which point you can find replacement batteries for under $10. The tracker itself is wearable all day long and it’s also waterproof for swimming.
$57 at Amazon
Simple and clean
Avatar Controls Fitness Tracker
Avatar Controls looks surprisingly great for a cheap fitness tracker — and it only gets better when you dive into the features. You get the expected step counter and stand up reminders, but also heart rate and sleep monitoring along with IP68 water resistance for daily showering and casual swimming. That’s pretty stacked for a price this low.
$36 at Amazon
I’m most excited to try out the new Fitbit Inspire as I really miss the social aspect of comparing step counts with my friends and family. I’ve also used and loved the Moov Now for it’s coaching while on a run or doing the included workout circuits. Ultimately, the fitness tracker you get is going to be the one that best suits your training needs, so choose wisely.
