Smart rings: the health-tracking jewellery you need to know about
Empowering your wellbeing, this new breed of wearables is sleeker and more technologically advanced than ever
The world of wearable tech is seriously fast-moving, with innovation driven by our desire to track and take control of our health. So, the latest crop of smart rings fit seamlessly into your life – designed to be worn day and night, they provide real-time information about your sleep, activity, levels of readiness, stress and hormones.
It’s easy to see why smart rings have taken the wellbeing world by storm. Discreet and beautiful, the Oura Ring 4 – reviewed by our team – is a true example of function meeting fashion, while the new Samsung Galaxy Ring is your own personal coach (one with AI-powered insights).
If you’ve never bought a piece of smart jewellery before, or you’re looking to upgrade from smartwatch to ring, here’s everything you need to know.
What does a smart ring do?
A more compact version of a smartwatch, a smart ring is worn on one of your fingers to deliver health-tracking data to an app. Designed in different sizes to fit comfortably on any finger, the ring houses tiny sensors inside that monitor everything from sleep and activity to menstrual cycles. As data is captured continuously, one of the benefits of this style of smart jewellery is that it tends to have a longer battery life than a smartwatch – some last more than a week between charges.
Oura Ring 4
The latest evolution from the pioneering brand, the Oura Ring 4 is sleeker and slimmer than previous generations, with an all-titanium design available in black, silver, gold, stealth (a sort of brushed grey) and rose gold. Powered by Oura's Smart Sensing technology, it provides insights into more than 30 biometrics, including sleep, heart health, stress and women’s health. It also promises an impressive eight days of battery life.
Samsung Galaxy Ring
Ultra-light and with a sleek exterior, the Galaxy Ring is the leader in AI-powered wellness. What does that mean? Well, an AI-powered Energy Score tells you when to push it to the limit or when to put your feet up, while Wellness Tips deliver tailored messages throughout the day. It's a bit like having your own personal health advisor.
With a unique concave design, the Galaxy Ring monitors your sleep health, heart rate and hormones. Women can also benefit from the skin-temperature analysis, which can help predict menstrual cycles and fertility windows.
Available in a black, silver or gold finish, it boasts up to seven days of battery life. Plus it’s water-resistant, so even if you’re swimming or sweating at a spin class, the Galaxy Ring can handle it. Just one thing to remember: this piece of tech is only compatible with Android phones (sorry, iPhone fans).
Oura Ring Gen3 Horizon
Available in gold, silver, black, stealth and rose gold, the fashion-forward Oura Ring Gen3 Horizon is so desirable it's worn by half of Hollywood. The aesthetics are backed up by the tech, though, which builds an accurate picture of your overall health by tracking steps, sleep, hormones, activity level, recovery, HRV, stress levels and more. Based on this data, wearers receive personalised recommendations in the app, telling you how much you should aim to move or how much sleep you need on any given day.
