Best Samsung fitness trackers: What are your options?

Fitness trackers have been around for a long time, but they have really advanced over the past few years (ha!). We’ve seen a surge in popularity from leading brands like Garmin, Fitbit, and even Samsung. A good fitness tracker no longer just counts steps. It can now provide a lot of useful metrics and data, from heart rate to stress levels to blood oxygen saturation and more. Others add smartwatch features to make your money even better. We take a look at some of the best fitness trackers Samsung has to offer.

Fitness trackers vs smartwatches: what’s the difference?

Before we get into that, let’s talk about one important difference: smartwatches and fitness trackers. As for Samsung’s portable portfolio, the only two that fit the profile of a traditional fitness band – with their smaller vertical displays – are the Samsung Galaxy Fit and the Galaxy Fit 2.

Samsung’s range of active wearables blurs the lines between the two. They have big screens and prioritize apps and notifications, but they’re not big or heavy and are designed for the fitness enthusiast. On the other hand, the regular Galaxy Watch and Galaxy Watch 3 are all-out smartwatches with tracking capabilities.

Which Samsung Fitness Tracker is right for me?

Samsung introduced its wearable division back in 2013. A few iterations and name changes have been done since then, and the current selection of fitness trackers and smartwatches are some of the best you can get. Of course, they all have their advantages and disadvantages, which we will get into a little later. Here are some quick recommendations if you’re in a hurry:

• The Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 is the best samsung smartwatch the company has to offer. Although it’s slimmer and less bulky than the Galaxy Watch, it’s still a pretty big watch. It’s ideal for anyone looking for a watch with fitness tracking capabilities rather than the other way around.
• The Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 is the best Samsung fitness tracker You can get it now. It blurs the line between a fitness band and a smartwatch without compromising on either aspect.
• The Samsung Galaxy Watch Active is a cheaper G.alaxy Watch Active 2 alternative. It doesn’t have that many fitness features, but it’s still a decent fitness tracker if you’re on a budget.
• The Samsung Galaxy Fit 2 is that best cheap fitness tracker currently available from the company. It’s not as feature-rich as the Samsung smartwatches on this list, but it’s significantly cheaper than the rest of Samsung’s offerings.

The best Samsung fitness trackers

1. Samsung Galaxy Watch 3
2. Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2
3. Samsung Galaxy Watch Active
4. Samsung Galaxy Fit 2

Editor’s note: We’ll regularly update this list of the best Samsung fitness trackers as new devices hit the market.

Samsung Galaxy Watch 3: The Best Samsung Smartwatch

The Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 is the successor to the 2018 Galaxy Watch and comes with a number of improvements across the board to make it one of the best smartwatches you can get right now. The popular rotating dial is returning to its original physical form, but is more aesthetic. One of the biggest problems with the Galaxy Watch was its clunky design, and the Galaxy Watch 3 goes a long way towards fixing the problem.

Hardware and design aside, the Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 may not be the best wearable to buy in any given category. Garmin and Fitbit watches are more accurate when it comes to fitness and health, and Wear OS has a better app ecosystem. However, the Galaxy Watch 3 is rounded enough to comfortably provide the best overall experience.

However, the Galaxy Watch 3 will set you back a little too. It’s a hundred dollars more expensive than the Galaxy Watch when it launched and ready to take on the Apple Watch 5. If the high starting price doesn’t put you off, the Watch 3 is likely to be the new king of Android smartwatch mounds for a while.

Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2: the best Samsung fitness tracker

The Galaxy Watch Active 2 is Samsung’s newest and best fitness tracker with all the bells and whistles. The elegant design benefits from a beautiful AMOLED display made of curved glass and first-class workmanship. The touch-sensitive bezel, on the other hand, is ideal for quick operation on the go.

The attractive body has a number of great health monitoring features, from heart rate monitoring (that notifies you when it falls within certain ranges) to GPS to some of the best sleep data out there. There’s also a Galaxy Watch Active 2 LTE model for those looking for a watch that is independent of their phone.

It’s not perfect, of course. The two-day battery life isn’t the best, but not bad compared to most Wear OS watches. Thanks to Qi wireless charging, you can charge them with a compatible Galaxy phone. Heart rate monitoring and GPS aren’t the most accurate either. There is a wealth of smart features out there, however, and the Galaxy Watch Active 2 strikes a great balance between a fitness tracker and a smartwatch.

You can find out more about the Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 in our full review.

Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 specifications:

Samsung Galaxy Watch Active: A Cheaper Option

If you like the Galaxy Watch Active 2 but don’t need all of the new features and want to save some money, you’ve come to the right place with the Samsung Galaxy Watch Active. This wearable is a weakened version of the Galaxy Watch. It uses the Tizen operating system and has most of the features of its bigger sibling.

The biggest gap is Samsung’s iconic rotating crown. Without them, you’ll have to navigate the wearable using the 1.1-inch AMOLED touchscreen (there are worse fates). With the Exynos 9110 CPU, 768MB of RAM, and a 230mAh battery under the hood, the Galaxy Watch Active can easily run apps downloaded from the Galaxy App Store for almost two days.

If you have a Galaxy S10 or S20 smartphone, you can also charge the Galaxy Watch Active wirelessly on the back of the handset. Being Qi compatible also means that you should be able to charge the Samsung fitness tracker using any of your existing wireless chargers. Unfortunately, this watch has the same problems as the Galaxy Watch Active 2: the heart rate and GPS monitoring cannot be trusted that much.

Samsung Galaxy Fit 2

Samsung’s newest fitness tracker, the Galaxy Fit 2, is a worthy successor to the Galaxy Fit. There are many major improvements across the board, starting with a higher resolution and a bigger screen. Samsung claims the Fit 2’s battery can last up to three weeks, more than twice as much as its predecessor. It also has

It retains some of the features of the Galaxy Fit, including activity tracking, automatic sleep tracking, 5ATM water resistance, IP68 for dust and water resistance, and more. The biggest gap is active heart rate monitoring. The Fit 2 is also not as durable as the Fit. All said and done, the Galaxy Fit 2 is one of the cheapest fitness trackers out there.

Why should you trust the editor?

Not only does Jimmy Westenberg love wearables, he also loves helping people find the right devices for their needs. He was our resident fitness reviewer at Android Authority since 2016 and has reviewed dozens of fitness products and other wearables during that time.

With his rigorous testing of fitness products and his in-depth knowledge of health devices and services, you can be sure that Jimmy will give you honest recommendations.

The best Samsung alternatives

Didn’t find what you’re looking for in this list? Don’t worry, there are plenty of fantastic fitness trackers to choose from. Here is the full list of the best fitness trackers or a summary.