Sleep is a vital part of a healthy lifestyle. Getting enough quality sleep makes you more productive at work, and gives you the energy to exercise; studies have even linked poor sleep with overeating.
Unfortunately, while you can force yourself to go for a run or eat a salad, you can’t force yourself to sleep soundly. But there are steps you can take to improve your sleep, and buying a sleep tracker is one of them. These devices may not directly send you off to the land of Nod, but they’ll help you work out what makes you sleep better – whether that’s ditching the afternoon coffee or going to bed at the same time every night.
Here’s our guide to what sleep trackers can do for you, along with a round-up of the best trackers on the market.
How to buy the best sleep tracker for you
Ask yourself first of all what sort of tracker you’re looking for. If you’re comfortable sleeping with something on your wrist then you can get an excellent watch-style wearable that also doubles as an everyday activity and sports tracker. Alternatively, you can opt for a tracker that goes next to your bed, or sits under the mattress. Naturally, these devices will only monitor your sleep, but you can expect them to do a terrific job at that.
There are also plenty of sleep-tracking smartphone apps to consider. These aren’t quite as accurate as dedicated devices, but they might be more convenient, and are almost always cheaper.
What key features should I look for?
The most basic sleep trackers just record how long you’ve been asleep for, which is frankly not enough information to be useful. As a minimum you want to see your sleep broken down into periods of light and deep sleep, along with any times when you were awake. Some trackers can also provide a graph of your movement overnight, and give information on conditions in your bedroom, such as how hot, humid or noisy it is.
If your tracker awards sleep-quality scores, that can make it easy to compare one night with another, and to see how your sleep patterns match up to those of other people in a similar demographic. The goal, of course, is to find what helps you sleep: for example, if you sleep better after exercise, or worse after drinking alcohol, the data from your tracker can help you spot that, and take steps to improve your habits.
Another worthwhile feature is a smart morning alarm that wakes you up at the right point in your sleep cycle so you don’t feel groggy. A long battery life is very desirable too: having to charge a tracker every day is a pain.
What else do I want it to track?
Many sleep trackers come built into general-purpose sports watches, which also track everyday activity statistics like steps and calories burned. Some even feature outdoor sports tracking via GPS. If you’re the active type, such designs are well worth a look.
All-day heart-rate tracking is worth considering too, as this can help you keep tabs on your resting pulse rate – a great indicator of your cardiovascular fitness. And if you use one tracker for both sleep and sports, the partner app can pull all that information together to build up a revealing picture of your overall health.
How much do I need to spend?
A smartphone app is a good starting point for sleep-tracking, as it should set you back no more than a few pounds. If you’re looking for dedicated hardware, you can get a basic fitness watch with sleep tracking for £25-50. For a premium model with a heart-rate monitor, you’re looking at around £100, and if you’re tempted by an all-singing, all-dancing sleep tracker with GPS sports tracking, prices are more likely to be in the £150-300 range.
When it comes to dedicated freestanding and under-mattress sleep trackers prices vary greatly, but you can expect to pay £100-250 for the best options.
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The best sleep trackers you can buy in 2018
1. Sleep Cycle: Best sleep-tracker app
Price: Free (in-app purchases)
This app can’t be beaten on price – it’s free for the basic version – and features a superb smart alarm that wakes you when it detects you’re in a light stage of sleep. This alone is worth the download, as it really helps you wake up feeling rested and refreshed in the morning.
Its actual sleep-tracking capabilities are impressive, too. The app uses your phone’s microphone and accelerometer to track your movements in the night, and generates graphs showing when you were in deep and light sleep, along with an overall sleep quality percentage.
What’s more, it can help you sleep better. It notes how certain activities in the day affect your night’s rest, and will come up with a score reflecting how much they either improve or decrease the quality of your sleep. Be aware though that while you can track your sleep for free, you’ll need a premium subscription (£24.99/year) to unlock some of these features.
Get the Sleep Cycle for iPhone from iTunes and for Android from Google Play
Key specs – Battery life: N/A; Heart-rate tracking: No; Sport/activity tracking: No
2. Misfit Ray: The best sleep tracker under £50
Price:£30 | Buy now from Amazon
The Misfit Ray is a pretty simple device: it just gives you a graph each the morning showing the periods you spent in light and deep sleep, along with your total time asleep. But it does have a few clear advantages over its competition.
First, it’s impressively accurate, so you don’t have to worry about it mistakenly counting you as asleep when you’re actually reading in bed or watching TV. Second, it’s unusually light and comfortable to wear through the night. We’re also fans of the silent alarm feature, which buzzes against your wrist to wake you up gently. And finally, the Ray’s six-month battery life means that you don’t have to worry about continually charging it. A great little tracker for not much money.
Key specs – Battery life: Six months (non-rechargeable); Heart-rate tracking: No; Sport/activity tracking: Yes.
3. Fitbit Alta HR: The best sleep-tracker wristband
Price:£108 | Buy now from Amazon
Fitbit is one of the big names in fitness monitoring – and its wristbands are great for sleep tracking too, with features that both monitor your sleep and suggest ways to improve it.
The first function, Sleep Stages, shows a graph of your sleep each night, breaking it down into light, deep and REM sleep, and gives advice on how much time you should be spending in each for a quality night’s rest. Then, Sleep Insights plots your sleep against others in a similar demographic, and provides tips on how to improve your sleep. The Alta HR isn’t the only Fitbit with these capabilities, but its lightweight design and week-long battery life make it particularly suited to sleep tracking.
Key specs – Battery life: 7 days (rechargeable); Heart-rate tracking: Yes; Sport/activity tracking: Yes.
4. S+ by ResMed: The best freestanding sleep tracker
Price:£100 | Buy now from Amazon
This stylish sleep monitor sits on your bedside table and observes your movements through the night; in the morning, it gives feedback and detailed analysis on your sleep, without ever coming into contact with you or your mattress. It monitors the conditions in your room too, including temperature and light, to help you achieve the perfect sleep environment, and its smart alarm is uncannily good at waking you at the right point in your sleep cycle so you don’t feel groggy.
Unusually, the S+ can even help you drift off at the start of the night, by playing calming sounds through the partner smartphone app, which are cleverly synchronised with your breathing. And it tracks how your daily behaviour affects your sleep, by asking a few simple questions about things like your caffeine intake before you go to bed each night.
Key specs – Battery life: Mains-powered; Heart-rate tracking: No; Sport/activity tracking: No
5. Polar M430: The best sports watch for sleep tracking
Price:£118 | Buy now from Amazon
If you’re a keen runner or cyclist pushing through a tough training plan, it’s vital to get enough rest, so that your body can recover and be ready for your next session. Polar’s Sleep Plus feature breaks down your night’s rest into the usual light and deep sleep categories, and also gives you a score on a scale of 1-5 based on your sleep continuity – because if your sleep is fragmented you won’t feel as rested.
The Polar M430 also serves as an excellent GPS tracker, especially for runners, beaming all its data up to the Polar Flow app and website so you can review your training, daily activity and sleep statistics in one place. It’s great for spotting patterns in how your rest is affecting your exercise, and indeed vice versa.
Key specs – Battery life: 8 hours GPS, 20 hours watch mode; Heart-rate tracking: Yes; Sport/activity tracking: Yes
6. Emfit QS HRV Sleep Monitor: The best under-mattress sleep tracker
Price:£23 | Buy now from Amazon
The Emfit QS is a thin piece of fabric that slides in under your mattress. Once in place, it can measure every aspect of your sleep – and we do mean every aspect. Alongside all the standard sleep tracking stats, the Emfit QS monitors your heart rate, as well as pulse variability – which gives an indication of how stressed you are – breathing rate and the balance of your nervous system. Considering there’s a mattress in the way, it does an amazing job, and while the wealth of data captured can feel a little overwhelming, the website breaks down what’s important, and helps you identify long-term trends in your sleep.
While the QS is suitable for anyone wanting to improve their rest, there are a few features that will particularly appeal to athletes: alongside the usual sleep graphs, you get a measure of how efficiently you’ve recovered from the previous day’s activity, plus a “readiness to train” score. This latter stat is based on your heart rate variability, and can help you decide whether it’s time to take on a tough exercise session, or whether your body would benefit from an easy day.
Key specs – Battery life: Mains-powered; Heart-rate tracking: Yes; Sport/activity tracking: No