If you’re hunting for a good activity tracker, the sheer amount of options out there today can quickly cause choice paralysis. Certain wearable devices like Fitbits and Apple Watches have set the standard in this rapidly growing market, but these high-end fitness trackers almost always cost north of $100 and can even set you back more than $200 for the latest models.
Whether you’re not keen on dropping a Benjamin or two on a Fitbit device, you’re not 100 percent sure you need one and want to try out a cheap unit first, or all you want is a super-basic (and super-affordable) activity-tracking smartwatch to keep you on task, we’ve got you covered. These 10 great Fitbit alternatives – including a few from brand-name makers like Garmin and Withings – can help get you moving without breaking the bank.
The Best Cheap Activity Trackers
- Garmin Vivofit — $48 from Walmart
- Toobur Fitness Tracker — $26 from Amazon
- Amazfit Equator — $34 from Amazon
- Omron Alvita Ultimate — $18 from Amazon
- Withings Activite Pop — $80 from Walmart
- Wesoo K1 fitness tracker — $28 from Amazon
- Withings Go — $50 from Amazon
- Wahoo Tickr — $50 from Amazon
- Scosche Rhythm+ — $80 from Amazon
- Garmin Vivoactive HR — $115 from Amazon
Garmin is a big name in the world of fitness tech, and while its devices are certainly considered “name brand,” they’re considerably less expensive than the competition. The Vivofit 3 is a band-style activity tracker that features an impressive one-year battery life – no charging required – and syncs automatically with the Garmin Connect companion app to upload all of the health stats that are fit to track (minus heart rate). It can even auto-detect your current activity to collect the appropriate data. It’s affordable, too, at only $48 on Walmart.
If you’re looking for an alternative for the Fitbit Charge 2 or any other lower-tier Fitbit smart wearable, this handy piece of fitness wrist tech should get the job done.
When it comes to price, size, and features, fitness-tracking bracelets like this one from Toobur hit the sweet spot between simple wristbands and full-fledged smartwatches. Looking at the Toobur, one is instantly reminded of the Fitbit Alta, Flex 2, or the Alta HR with its slim LED display. The Toobur fitness band tracks activity as well as sleep, and it syncs wirelessly to your phone so you can upload your data and receive notifications of incoming calls, texts, and social media updates. Best of all? The Toobur activity tracker will only set you back $26 on Amazon.
If you’re looking for something along the lines of a Fitbit Flex, but don’t want to drop $60 on a wearable, this is a good alternative.
For a no-frills activity tracker, it doesn’t get much better than the sleek Amazfit Equator. This little unit comes with a simple rubber wristband (which can be removed, allowing you to wear it like a necklace if you want) and tracks essential health metrics including steps taken, distance traveled, calories burned, and sleep quality when worn at night. It can sync with both iOS and Android devices, too, for uploading data to the companion app and for receiving call and alarm alerts to your wrist via vibration.
The Amazfit Equator can be yours for $34 from Amazon. This is one of the smallest and lightest Fitbit alternatives you’re going to find on the market.
It doesn’t get much simpler than a classic pedometer – in fact, one could say that these handy devices were the original fitness trackers before smartwatches became a thing. The Omron Alvita is one of the best and most popular pedometers on the market, but it does more than just track your step count: It also calculates calories burned, tracks distance, and even adjusts to your stride length based on your height and weight to provide the most accurate readout.
If you’re looking for a step count-focused wearable with a few extra bells and whistles attached to it, this is a great place to start.
The super-stylish Withings Activite Pop is the watch to get if you want a tracker with classic watch aesthetics. The old-school analog face displays time as well as daily goal progress. Under the hood, the Activite Pop also tracks things like sleep quality, steps taken, and more, and uploads them to your synced device via the Health Mate app. As Withings was recently acquired by Nokia, pre-buyout Withings-branded stock can be had for cheap right now. The Activite Pop – normally $150 – can be yours for a low $80 from Walmart.
For something a little larger, check out the Wesoo K1. Though it looks fairly similar to the Fitbit Flex 2, this fitness tracker boasts similar aesthetics and features to the Fitbit Charge 2, tracking exercise, steps, distance, calories burned, sleep quality, and more. The companion app for iOS and Android makes syncing and uploading your metrics a breeze as well. It features an IPX7 waterproof rating, making the K1 ideal for swimming and water sports. The Wesoo K1 rings in at just $28 from Amazon — much cheaper than the Charge 2 — and comes with a second wristband in blue or purple.
Now part of Nokia, the Withings brand features a number of excellent fitness gadgets, from digital scales to activity trackers. Its watches are no exception: The Withings Go keeps things simple and sleek, tracking data for everything from sleep to swimming. It also displays your stats on an always-on e-ink screen that features an eight-month battery life. With a Bluetooth device, you can also upload your info from the Health Mate app for long-term goal tracking and fitness goals. You can pick up the Withings Go for just $38 from Amazon.
While this fitness watch may closely resemble the Misfit Shine, it’s a quality tracker in its own right. It may not be as powerful or complex as an Apple watch or a Fitbit, but it will get you where you need to go in terms of fitness.
One alternative to fitness watches is a good heart rate monitor that straps onto your body to track one of the most important things when you’re working out — your heartbeat. The Wahoo Tickr does just that, and whereas most basic chest straps require a separate ANT+ smartwatch or phone to work, the Tickr connects to any Bluetooth-capable iOS or Android phone. It can also sync with other GPS-enabled smartwatches and is compatible with a myriad of fitness apps to help with heart rate monitoring. The Wahoo Tickr heart rate monitor comes in at $50 from Amazon.
The Scosche Rhythm+ heart rate monitor and activity tracker straps onto your forearm rather than around your chest to deliver accurate (and more comfortable) real-time heart monitoring. It’s compatible with both Bluetooth and ANT+ devices, too, meaning you can sync it with a wide variety of smartphones, GPS watches, and more. Along with heart rate, the Rhythm+ tracks calories burned, distance, and pace, and works with popular fitness apps. The Scosche Rhythm+ heart rate monitor and fitness tracker is available from Amazon for $80.
Our final Fitbit alternative is also one of our all-time favorite activity trackers: The feature-rich Garmin Vivoactive HR. The Vivoactive combines fitness tracking with a suite of smartwatch features including a high-resolution touch display, customizable watch faces, and downloadable widgets. It boasts built-in GPS and comes preloaded with sports apps designed for everything from swimming and biking to golf. At $116 from Amazon, the Garmin Vivoactive is the closest affordable alternative for the Fitbit Blaze or Samsung Gear we could find on the market.
While the GPS tracker is obviously an important aspect of this swim-proof wearable, there are many other aspects that can draw you in. With multisport tracking, heart rate tracking, and a solid battery life, this Fitbit smartwatch alternative is a pretty sweet deal.
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