Most fitness trackers are splash-resistant, but not all are safe to wear in the pool. If you’re looking for an activity tracker that counts your daily steps, helps you estimate your calorie burns, and that you can leave on your wrists when you go for a dip, the list below will point you to several great options. Next to each product, you’ll see a price and star rating based on our in-house testing.
For more shopping advice, see my list of the best activity trackers for fitness, as well as some tips on how to choose a fitness tracker that’s right for you.
FEATURED IN THIS ROUNDUP
Basis Peak
$199.99
The Basis Peak, our Editors’ Choice among fitness trackers, is an updated version of the Basis Carbon Steel Edition. It’s a wristwatch style band that includes a built-in heart rate monitor and other sensors for collecting physiological data, such as skin temperature. The new Peak is fully safe for swimming at depths of up to 50 meters (5ATM water resistant). Read the full review ››
Garmin Vivosmart
$169.99
Garmin’s Vivosmart activity tracker counts steps, measures sleep, reminds you to move, and sends notifications (iOS only), including text messages, to your wrist. Its midrange price point makes it an attractive option. Swimmers will be happy to hear it has a water resistant rating of 5ATM. It’s elegant, unobtrusive, and has some great functionality. Read the full review ››
Runtastic Orbit
$119.99
This waterproof activity tracker from fitness app and device maker Runtastic reminds me a lot of the Fitbit Force, which was an excellent activity tracker, except that it was recalled earlier this year (and the Force wasn’t swim-safe). The Orbit, however, is fully waterproof up to 100 meters, meaning you can both swim and shower with it. The price is great for anyone looking for an entry-level product. Read the full review ››
Garmin Vivofit
$129.99; $169.99 bundled with heart rate monitor
The wrist-worn Garmin Vivofit is a well-thought-out device, balancing features and design with price and value, and it’s safe to wear it in the water. It’s water resistant up to 50 meters. Vivofit uses a coin-cell battery that lasts about a year, and the display is not always on, which helps preserve the battery. Read the full review ››
Misfit Flash
$49.95
At $49, Misfit Flash is the best entry-level activity tracker you can buy for less than $99. Self-quantification enthusiasts will be disappointed in the lack of features that are part and parcel of more expensive trackers, but first-timers and swimmers will find a lot to love in this elegant and inexpensive waterproof device. Read the full review ››
Misfit Shine
$99.99
The sleek and subtle Misfit Shine, available in nine colors, isn’t the easiest fitness tracker to use (its display is a circle of lights that you have to learn to read). But it can go in the pool without a problem. It comes with a wrist strap and a magnetic clip, letting you choose between wearing it like a watch and snapping it to your swimsuit. Misfit will have a new, less expensive waterproof tracker soon called the Misfit Flash—see below.Read the full review ››
TomTom Multi-Sport GPS Watch
$199.99
My personal favorite swim-safe tracker is the TomTom Multi-Sport GPS Watch, in part because it actually has a specific swim mode, which most other activity trackers do not. But it’s more of a runner’s watch (or triathlete’s watch, really) than your average, entry-level activity tracker. The TomTom Multi-Sport tracks running, swimming, and bicycling, both indoors and out. Since TomTom made the device, you can be sure the GPS functionality is solid, but it isn’t actually used when swimming is selected as an activity. Instead, it uses a motion sensor to count your strokes, and it calculates your SWOLF score. You can also adjust the length of the pool in the settings before you start your swim. TomTom tracks a lot of data, too—so much that there’s a 30-page user’s guide to wade through if you want to learn to use all the features. Read the full review ››
LifeTrak Move C300
$59.99
The selling point of the LifeTrak Move C300, a watch-style activity tracker, is its remarkably low price. For $60, it offers quite a lot, including a built-in heart rate monitor. Instead of having a rechargeable battery, the LifeTrak Move C300 uses a coin cell battery, like most traditional watches do, which you’ll have to replace every so often. It’s waterproof up to 30 meters. Read the full review ››
Jaybird Reign
$199.95
The Jaybird Reign is a waterproof wristband activity tracker with some neat features for not only keeping tabs on how much exercise you get, but also prompting you to improve your habits. It can tell you, for example, how much sleep you got last night plus how much sleep you should get tonight. Another interesting feature is that it reads heart rate variability (HRV), which is an indicator of whether your body can handle the stress of a workout today or if you need a of rest. While those features are interesting, the Jaybird Reign is missing several basic features found in similarly priced competing fitness trackers. Read the full review ››
Wellograph
$349
We didn’t rate the Wellograph highly overall, but we’re including it in this particular roundup anyway, as it has a 5ATM water resistance rating (up to 50 meters), and it’s also one of the best looking activity-tracking watches you’ll find. You won’t want to jump right in the pool with the Wellograph, though, because you don’t want to get its leather band wet. Luckily, you can swap out the band, but that will drive up the cost even more, and it’s already pretty expensive. And while you can wear it in the pool, it doesn’t actually track your laps—only swimming as an activity, which is the case with many fitness trackers. Read the full review ››
COMING SOON
Mio Fuse
$149
Mio Fuse, which will be shipping this month, is a sleek all-in-one performance wristband that’s water-resistant up to 30 meters (3ATM rating). Mio is known for making wrist-worn heart rate monitors (check out the MIO Link), and the Fuse has one built-in, too. Fuse is like a combination sports watch and activity tracker that will track heart rate, distance, pace (for running), steps, calories burned, and progress toward meeting your daily goal. A red dot-matrix display shows your key information right on the device, which is also touch capacitive (meaning you can touch it to cycle through the display, even though it doesn’t have a glass screen). All the data syncs to the Mio GO app via Bluetooth, but the Fuse also supports ANT+, opening it up to compatibility with other apps and devices you might use while working out.
