Best fitness trackers 2016

Eat, sleep, walk, repeat with these top activity bands

Picking out the best fitness tracker is a mind-bogglingly difficult prospect. It's not just about Fitbit and Jawbone anymore. Now everyone wants a piece of the action.

The right activity tracker for you will be based on your individual needs; whether that's accurate step counting, reliable sleep tracking or 24/7 heart rate tracking. There's definitely something for everyone out there.

Essential reading: Best smartwatch round-up

We've completely reworked our round up of the best fitness trackers and added a new at-a-glance feature list to try and make it easier to spot the right band for you. Got any questions about fitness trackers? Let us know in the comments section below and we'll see if we can lend a helping hand.

Best overall fitness tracker

Fitbit Blaze

The Fitbit Blaze is the company's best looking fitness tracker by a country mile, and while it's not bringing anything groundbreaking to the party, it's proof that Fitbit has not lost touch with what makes a good fitness tracker.

Essential reading: The origins of the fitness tracker

The new colour display is a step up from the Surge's monochrome affair, the software is easy for beginners to get to grips with and it still delivers good all-round activity tracking stats.

Hardcore fitness lovers will be disappointed by the lack of GPS and a heart rate monitor that's up to the rigour of intensive training. If you're looking for this kind of device, look further down our list. However, the Blaze is versatile, good looking and easy to use – and that means a lot.

Feature check: Step tracking, sleep monitoring, 24/7 heart rate monitoring.

Best for running

Garmin Vivosmart HR+

Our Garmin Vivosmart HR+ review broke the record for an all-time high score for fitness trackers, and for good reason. A great mix of activity, heart rate and GPS tracking makes it a no-brainer for those tossing up a Fitbit, but dissatisfied with taking a phone along for a run.

While the band is still a little chunky for some and the screen is no-where near as attractive as the Blaze, it offers up around a week of battery life, is devilishly good when it comes to notifications and it's water resistant to about 50m – although lack of a swimming mode is a bitter disappointment.

Run stats are a little light – if you want more than pace, distance or basic HR data then you'll need to head into proper GPS running watch territory. However, the Vivosmart HR+ nearly claimed our Wareable Top Pick out-right, and for those who run, it's the best fitness tracker out there.

Feature check: Steps, sleep monitoring, 24/7 heart rate monitoring, GPS.

Best clip-on activity tracker

Jawbone UP Move

Not everyone wants to wear a tracker on their wrist, which is where the Jawbone UP Move comes into its own. Steps and sleep are catered for, and a tap of the button will set it into a dedicated tracking mode, which you can later assign to a dizzying list of sports from running to yoga and Zumba.

Feature check: Steps, sleep, basic sports tracking.