06/20/2026
The new Fitbit Air vs. Whoop 5.0: Which one is better?
In a few short years, Whoop has become the new fitness tracker everyone wants. Its lightweight band where the tracker itself is a small module that can be placed into different straps to accommodate the userās comfort during exercise and sleep is, apparently, what the people craveāaka no screens.
Googleās new Fitbit Air is the first serious competitor to really threaten to make a dent in Whoopās market. The device, that has only been out for a few weeks, comes at a value-level price and with lots of updates. In case you forgot, Google acquired Fitbit in 2021 and has finally made some big updates to the Fitbitās classic features. But are they enough to compete with Whoop? Hereās my verdict.
Iāve been wearing the Fitbit Air for the past two weeks and can tell you which device I prefer, as well as which one I think you should buy based on your needs and preferences.
Hereās what you should be paying attention to. The user interface and app ecosystem, and the design of the device itself. That boils down to two questions: is it comfortable and do you like using the app?
The answer with the Fitbit Air is a resounding yes on both counts. Googleās new wearable is really as lightāas the name suggests. The form factor means you can wear it with a watch and not feel weighed down. Personally, Iāve never found the Whoop to be very comfortable (especially not for sleeping in), but Iāve already found myself dozing off at night forgetting the Fitbit is there. And about the battery life? I havenāt charged mine in a week and I just checkedāIām at 50 percent. Honestly, itās all top-notch, I just really wish it launched with sexier band options. Even my āluxeā one is plastic gussied up with a little stainless steel.
To answer the second question, yes. Even on an iPhone, the revamped Google Health app works well as a simple hub for keeping track of your activity, recovery, and sleep. Itās more straightforward than the Whoop app. You can sync medical records, lab results, and medications, but all of that is more off to the side in the āHealthā tab, while your current dayās status, fitness, and sleep are all fairly light on modules, only highlighting the essential info. For the right person, this will be great. Others may appreciate Whoopās approach more.
The Whoop 5.0 with the Whoop One membership is the lowest tier you can buy in at, and that costs $200 a year. Thatās the same price as getting a Fitbit Air with a year (plus the free months) of Google Premium, but with the Fitbit youāre saving $100 each subsequent year until you get a new device. Technically, you have to pay $360 a year to get all Whoop has to offer in its Life tier (sold with the Medical Grade Whoop MG).
But in turn, the ceiling is much higher. Whoop members get way more out of digging deep. The higher tier features like Advanced Labs and ECG-taking are still on the cutting edge of health monitoring. In short, I donāt see serious athletes switching from a Whoop 5.0 or MG to a Fitbit any time soon.
And then thereās the whole āitās a useless brick without the subscriptionā part of the equation. The Whoop business model is unfortunately upfront enough about it to give folks the ick. On the other hand, the Fitbit Air has a premium subscription Google wants you to buyāitās a lot of the same stuff for the same priceābut they just arenāt as in your face about it. Ultimately, the Fitbit is usable without a subscription, and the Whoop isnāt. That makes a difference.
All this makes the Fitbit Air my preferred screen-free wearable. But I canāt speak for everyone. Hereās how Iād break it down in just one sentence each:
Buy the Fitbit Air if you want something that tracks your steps and sleep in the same comfortable device, or if you are trying to build a workout plan. All without the commitment of an expensive subscription.
Buy the Whoop 5.0 if you want to go deep on metrics or you already have an established training routine you want more data on. And youāre okay with paying for all those great features.
