The best fitness trackers under £100 in 2024

The best fitness trackers under £100 are an affordable way to keep track of your health and fitness goals. While there are plenty of smartwatches and fitness trackers that cost considerably more, there's still plenty of choice towards the lower end of the price spectrum. And the best part is that spending less doesn’t automatically mean you are missing out on the essential metrics you’d expect to find in one of the best fitness trackers.

Pricier devices, such as one of the best running watches, may offer more overall. However, they’ll often include features that are really aimed at specific goals, such as training for a 10k. A good quality fitness tracker – even at a more affordable price – still offers lots of health and fitness tracking metrics to help you get into shape. They’re perfect for anyone who wants to keep track of fundamentals such as their step count or heart rate, or just to give them an extra nudge towards healthier habits. Whatever your goal, there’s almost certainly a suitable fitness tracker for under £100.

Early fitness trackers struggled to do much more than count your steps. The sub-£100 price bracket now has a wide range of surprisingly sophisticated devices offering plenty to anyone who wants to keep an eye on their spending as well as their fitness.

Whether you want to monitor the basics of step counts and calorie burn, or you need something that can accurately track your runs and bike rides, there’s something to support you on your journey.

The best fitness trackers under £100

Please note: All prices are correct at the time of writing. Prices, stock and deals are subject to change without notice.

Buying guide: the best fitness trackers under £100

The variety of fitness trackers can make it difficult to know which one will be most suitable for your needs. Here are a few factors to consider:

Budget

While we've shortlisted fitness trackers that cost less than £100, there's still plenty of price ranges within that. Some fitness trackers will cost less than £50, while others might be almost double that (and that's without considering any more expensive devices). If you don't want to spend a lot, or if trying a fitness tracker for the first time, then a cheaper device that will let you dip your toe in the water might be more suitable.

Features

One factor that's influenced by your budget is the features available on your fitness tracker. For example, built-in GPS will tend to make a device more expensive compared to a tracker that relies on connected-GPS via your phone. So, if you tend to exercise exclusively at the gym, or at home, that's probably a feature you can live without.

At the same time, some devices will offer features that are exclusive to that brand – Garmin's Body Battery is a good example. It's worth taking time to explore whether those exclusive features matter to you, or not.

Finally, do you just want something that gives you a rough guide to how many steps you’ve taken each day? Or are you looking to monitor your heart, blood oxygen, and running cadence? Knowing what you want to focus on will help to identify the most appropriate fitness tracker for you.

Goals

The features you want will be influenced by the goals you've set yourself. For some, a basic device that counts steps will suffice, while for others, something that can help them set a new personal best on their next Parkrun may be required. In that example, a device with built-in GPS that can also deliver running metrics, will be more useful than a device that lacks those features.

Design

Budget fitness trackers are usually one of two styles: a lozenge, or a square smartwatch-type display. Lozenge devices tend to be smaller and lighter, while watch-style trackers are a bit bulkier and look more like a traditional timepiece. You may prefer one over the other due to your personal tastes or which you find more comfortable.

FAQ: the best fitness trackers under £100

What is the difference between a fitness tracker and a smartwatch?

The main difference between the great fitness trackers and the premium smartwatches lies primarily in their functions and features, although they do have a lot in common.

Fitness trackers are designed first and foremost for health and activity monitoring. They are great for tracking steps, distance, heart rate and sleep patterns, and they're highly focused on providing precise fitness-related information.

Smartwatches, on the other hand, offer a more extensive range of features, because while they can also track fitness metrics, they go beyond that by acting as an extension of your phone. For example, smartwatches offer features like receiving notifications, making calls, sending messages, and even controlling smart home devices. They often have more advanced displays and are designed to help with a broader array of tasks, from productivity to entertainment.

Can a fitness tracker work without a phone?

Yes, a fitness tracker can work without a phone – to a certain extent. While almost all fitness trackers are designed to sync with a smartphone for a more well-rounded tracking experience, they can still function independently.

Most fitness trackers have built-in sensors for monitoring steps, distance, heart rate and sleep patterns, and they will store this data for a certain period of time (probably a few days). You can view your fitness metrics directly on the tracker itself, and some even offer basic on-device controls for activities like workouts or music playback.

Saying that, for more advanced features like GPS, receiving notifications and a deeper look into your fitness data, a connection to a phone is required.

In short, while a fitness tracker can operate as a standalone device, its functionality is often enhanced when paired with a smartphone or iPhone. Indeed, there are a range of fitness trackers perfect for iPhones.

What are the benefits of the best fitness trackers under £100?

Fitness trackers offer a wide range of benefits for individuals looking to improve their overall health and wellness. These are just a few advantages of using a fitness tracker.

Activity monitoring: Fitness trackers can count your steps, track your distance and provide an overview of your daily physical activity. A fitness tracker will also often send you a notification when you haven't been active in a little while, which can come in super handy, particularly if you have a desk job or one that requires you sitting down for a while.

Heart rate monitoring: Many fitness trackers feature built-in heart rate monitors, allowing you to track your heart rate during exercise and generally throughout the day. This information can help you assess your cardiovascular health.

Calorie tracking: These clever little devices estimate the number of calories burned during exercise and daily activities, helping you manage your overall health, weight and nutrition.

Community engagement: Many fitness trackers have social features that allow you to connect with friends or participate in challenges and competitions, fostering a sense of community and friendly competition.

Improved accountability and motivation: Having a fitness tracker means being accountable to yourself, making it more likely that you'll stick to your fitness and health goals. It can also be motivating to see that you have almost hit your step goal, or exercise target, as well as being able to spot improvements in your fitness over time.

Goal setting: You can set specific fitness goals, such as steps per day, active minutes or weight loss targets, and with this, you can track your progress over time.

In essence, fitness trackers can serve as valuable tools for enhancing your physical and mental wellbeing, providing motivation and data-driven insights that can help lead to a healthier lifestyle.

Summary: the best fitness trackers under £100

Compared with the best fitness trackers under £50, increasing your budget to £100 means lots more devices become available to you. Many (though not all) of these will have more features, or better sensors than their cheaper counterparts. And it’s worth pointing out that many of the best fitness trackers – we're thinking of the Fitbit Charge 6 and the Garmin Vivosmart 5 as a couple of examples – will still generally cost more than £100 (although you may sometimes find them available at a discount).

That being said, a fitness tracker under £100 will generally give you lots of health and fitness tracking tools, to help keep you on track for hitting your health and fitness goals. Built-in GPS is still relatively rare, so you may need to use your phone to track your outdoor runs and bike rides (depending on which device you choose). But if you want the basics, such as heart rate, sleep, blood oxygen and stress monitoring, these fitness trackers will provide all that - and plenty more – in a sleek and stylish package. We've plumped for the Fitbit Inspire 3 as our top pick in this price range, as it offers a plenty of features and is very user-friendly. But if built-in GPS is a must-have for you, then the Xiaomi Smart Band 8 Pro or Huawei Watch Fit SE are both great options.

How we chose:

When choosing the best fitness trackers under £100, we looked for devices from brands that have a strong reputation in the fitness tracker space – no mystery brands that we’ve never heard of before. We ruled out any devices that cost more than £100 - so some great fitness trackers like the Fitbit Charge 5 (RRP £129.99) were ruled out.

Once we’d identified devices within this price range, we considered design, features, performance, and value for money. Do they look good? What materials are they made from? What features do they have? Is anything missing, or is there something extra they offer which we wouldn’t normally expect at this price point? How good is the battery life? And what is the supporting app like? Once we'd considered all these factors, we were able to put together our guide to the best fitness trackers under £100.

Steven Shaw is a Senior Tech Writer and Reviewer for What’s the Best. Steven writes how-to guides, explainers, reviews and best-of listicles covering a wide range of topics. He has several years of experience writing about fitness tech, mobile phones, and gaming.

When Steven isn’t writing, he’s probably testing a new smartwatch or fitness tracker, putting it through its paces with a variety of strength training, HIIT, or yoga. He also loves putting on a podcast and going for a long walk.

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