The best sleep trackers
The best sleep tracker overall
ResMed doesn't just track sleep, it also manufactures medical-grade equipment for sleep disorders, including CPAP masks, machines, and so on. It's safe to say, the company not only has the tech to help people improve their sleep patterns, but ResMed also has the medical experience to give good advice. The company first entered the consumer market with the S+ sleep tracker, which was our previous top pick, but now it has partnered with SleepScore to put its tech into an even better sleep tracking device.
The device is relatively small and stylish, and it allows you to track sleep without the need for a wristband or sensors under your sheets. It sits on your nightstand and tracks your movement through the night, as well as the light level, noise in the room, and more.
At the end of the night, you can check the app to see how long you slept, and how much of your shuteye time was light, deep, or REM sleep. You'll also see your sleep score, which rates you based on all these factors.
Like the S+ before it, the best thing about the SleepScore Max is the app because it's great at helping you set goals and track your sleep patterns. The app even gives you tips on a daily basis to help you sleep better and fall asleep faster.
The SleepScore Max may be our top pick, but it's not totally perfect. The metrics it tracks, for example, aren't as in-depth as some other devices, though for most people that won't be a big deal.
Pros: Excellent app, offers sleep recommendations, well-designed
Cons: Not as in-depth as some, expensive
Buy the SleepScore Max on Williams Sonoma for $149The best sleep tracker for couples
The Eight sleep tracker fits under your fitted sheet and automatically starts tracking when you get into bed, so you can install it, then only check your sleep score and sleep data when you want to find out about it. There's no need to remember to head into the app every night, and no need to worry about whether or not the device is tracking. On top of that, it's an excellent tracker for couples, because you can set it up to track two people.
That's a pretty big deal because many couples sleep in the same bed, but few trackers can monitor both people. There's a good reason for that. Tracking two people poses some pretty serious technological challenges, and Eight's tracker isn't perfect in that respect.
For example, sometimes it mistook one sleeper rolling over toward the middle as them getting out of bed, so if you want to keep continued and accurate tracking, you'll have to ensure that you stay on your side of the bed.
Eight starts tracking as soon as you get into bed and stops as soon as you get out, so if you tend to use your phone or read in bed, it will affect your sleep score. You can manually edit when you got in and out of bed, but there seemed to be bugs in the app where doing that affected parameters during the rest of the night.
Still, those issues aside, the tracker is pretty good at delivering results related to your sleep, and the app is really easy to use. You'll be able to see things like your average heart rate, repertory rate, average bed temperature, average room temperature, and more. The tracker even has a built-in bed warmer, which you can schedule or turn on and off from the app. You can link it with your Google Fit and Apple Health account to manage and track your overall health.
Pros: Can easily track two people, super easy to use, automatically tracks
Cons: Expensive, some tracking bugs
Buy the Eight sleep tracker on Amazon for $199.99 and up depending on your bed sizeThe best budget sleep tracker
The Beautyrest Sleeptracker is so simple and subtle that you'll completely forget that it's there. Why? It uses tracking modules that you can put under your mattress, so you won't feel it at all. It'll also track your sleep every night automatically when it detects that you're in bed, so you don't have to set it up or activate tracking.
The Sleeptracker keeps tabs on your respiration, heart rate, light sleep, deep sleep, REM cycles, body movement, and any interruptions. Based on your data, the Beautyrest Sleeptracker offers advice on how to improve your sleep quality. The app has easy-to-read metrics that make it easy to figure out how well you're sleeping each night and what you can do to sleep better.
We've been testing the Sleeptracker, and it works quite well. We like how simple it is and that sleep tracking is automatic. It's also great that the system comes with two sensors so you can track sleep quality for two people at once.
The Sleeptracker uses the same technology as a few other sleep trackers sold by other mattress companies because the company that makes the tracker licenses its tech other companies like Serta and Tomorrow. Although the branding changes, the tracker itself is the same and so is the app. The only reason we've included the Beautyrest version is because it's the one we've been testing. Presumably, the other versions of the tracker work just as well.
Of course, like everything else, the Beautyrest Sleeptracker isn't perfect. It's the only product in our guide that charges a subscription fee for so-called "Advanced" tracking, which includes extended analysis reports and unlimited sleep data storage. The free plan only stores 12 months of information, which is probably more than enough for most people.
It's not the most detailed tracker, either, but if you simply want to look at your overall trends and get a general idea of how you sleep, it'll do just fine.
Still, in general, we think the Beautyrest Sleeptracker is one of the best budget sleep tracking devices. It works with two people, it's relatively inexpensive, and it even works with Amazon's Alexa.
Pros: Inexpensive, works without user interaction, decent sleep coaching
Cons: Subscription charged for advanced analysis, could work with more smart home systems
Buy the Beautyrest Sleeptracker on Amazon for $159.85 (originally $199.99)The best sleep tracker for athletes
Some of the sleep trackers on this list are a little superficial, but the Emfit QS is anything but. In fact, this is the tracker that offers the most in-depth information, making it perfect for people like athletes, who want to finely tune their sleeping habits and track exactly what their body does when they snooze.
The Emfit QS comes in the form of a non-intrusive strip of sensors that you'll place under your mattress. Those sensors can track an extremely wide range of metrics, including heart rate, heart rate variability (RMSSD), breathing rate, total recovery, integrated recovery, and different classes of sleep. That's pretty impressive, especially for such a basic device. Not only that, but it tracks all this automatically, so there's no need to set it to start at the beginning of the night.
The Emfit QS isn't perfect. We found it to be a little more useful for those who want to see the tracked metrics rather than those who want an overall sleep score. That's because the tracker tended to be very generous in giving a high sleep score. Even on a night when the Eight tracker gave me less than 40, the Emfit QS gave me 100, which is an indicator of a "very good sleep."
Another issue is that the Emfit QS does not offer a mobile app. Instead, it uploads data to the cloud, and you'll then be able to see it from your computer by logging in to a website.
Still, the information on offer here could prove to be invaluable, and while it may take a little learning to figure out what all the information means, it's still nice to have that information in the first place.
Pros: Very in-depth, pretty easy to set up, non-intrusive
Cons: A little expensive, no mobile app
Buy the Emfit QS on Amazon for $279The best sleep tracker for kids
Sleep Number is a respected brand that's well known for using technology to improve the sleeping experience. The company only recently started getting into sleep tracking, but it's come out with a few pretty impressive products since then, including the Sleep Number SleepIQ Kids K2 mattress.
The sleep tracking system has been tweaked to work specifically for kids. You can pair it with your phone to track how well your child is sleeping, and you can even set the app to notify you if they leave the bed.
The app will reward kids for getting a good night's sleep with a gold star, which could prove to be a good incentive for getting kids to sleep. Last but not least, the bed comes equipped with a night light that can be turned on or off through the app.
Of course, while everything works together pretty well, it's not cheap. This is a sleep tracker that's built into a mattress, so you're buying everything together, and it starts at $799. Still, if you're in the market for a new kid's mattress, it may well be worth it for you.
Pros: Good tracking, specifically built for kids, easy-to-use
Cons: Expensive, may not outlast the kids themselves
Buy the Sleep Number SleepIQ K2 Mattress on Sleep Number for $799+ depending on sizeCheck out more great buying guides for bedtime
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