Could You Benefit From a Sleep Tracker? Here's What a Sleep Expert Has to Say.

If you're not down with a wearable sleep tracker, this clever pad from Withings is a great alternative. Just lay it under your mattress, switch it on, and in minutes, you can be tracking all your most pertinent sleep-relevant info. We especially like this option for just how unobtrusive it is. It doesn't require wearing (and potentially remembering to put on and take off) or charging, meaning it's a truly "set it and forget it" piece of tech. And to “set it” you only need about five minutes—I brought this sleep tracking pad on a trip where I moved through three different locations, setting it up on a new bed each time we moved. It was truly as easy as placing it under your mat and plugging it in.

Like most wearable alternatives, this sleep mat tracks your heart rate, respiration, and movements while you sleep. It then returns a sleep score with analytics on your sleep time, interruptions, depth of sleep, and sleep regularity. In our experience, it's accurate, though not quite as good or as granular as a wearable (it lacks an SpO2 sensor, for example). But still, it’s surprisingly accurate for a pad that sits under your mattress.

Our team also loves the price point on this. At typical retail, it's cheaper than almost any other sleep tracking option, but it's an absolute steal when on sale (which is frequently).

Read More: Best Mattresses for Better Sleep

If you want a truly comprehensive sleep tracking set-up, the Eight Sleep Pod 5 is a full bed upgrade. This system uses a temperature-controlled mattress cover embedded with sensors that keep tabs on heart rate, breathing rate, sleep stages, and overall sleep performance. And a huge plus for couples? Its temperature control and tracking works separately for both sides of the bed.

What sets this product apart is the active temperature regulation. The Pod 5 automatically adjusts the surface temperature of your mattress throughout the night based on your sleep stages (separately for both sides), helping you (and your partner) sleep comfortably. The auto adjustments are also based on the environment. For example, in the winter, my bed auto-adjusts one degree higher after the heater kicks off and the bedroom cools overnight. That dynamic cooling and heating can make a noticeable difference, especially for hot sleepers or couples who run at different temperatures—like my husband and me. You can also pre-set temperatures for bedtime, overnight, and morning in the app, if you prefer.

As for sleep data, the app presents nightly sleep scores, recovery metrics, and trends over time, similar to what you’d see from a wearable. It even sends you a text every morning with a summary of your night’s sleep and how it compares to previous nights’ sleep. It’s worth noting that the metrics aren’t as accurate as a wearable, but compared to my Oura Ring metrics, they measured up fairly similarly—overall, I’d say the Pod 5 typically indicates a longer total sleep window than the Oura. But because the sensors are built into the mattress cover, there’s nothing to charge or remember to wear. Like Withings, this is a “set it and forget it” product.

Unlike Withings though, this sleep tracker is no bargain. Between the high-tech hardware and ongoing monthly subscription, this is easily the most expensive option on this list. But if sleep is a top priority—and you want both solid data and more comfortable conditions to sleep in—the Pod 5 delivers a truly next-level sleep experience.

Read More: The Eight Sleep Pod 5 Changed Our Sleep

The Elemind Sleep Headband not only tracks your sleep metrics, but it also works to help you fall asleep quicker, too. The soft fabric band sits around your head and uses built-in sensors to detect your brainwave patterns as you drift off.

Instead of just recording sleep stages, the headband uses gentle audio stimulation designed to guide your brain toward slower, sleep-ready rhythms. In reality, this feels more subtle than an obvious intervention, but it’s meant to shorten the time it takes to fall asleep. And if you’re like me and have anxiety that likes to scream at you close to bedtime, it’s especially helpful at minimizing those racing thoughts.

As for metrics, the companion app tracks sleep duration, stages, and trends over time, presenting the data in an easy-to-read format. While the analytics aren’t quite as comprehensive as those from devices like the Oura Ring or Whoop, the real appeal here is the active sleep-assistance component.

However, wearing a band around your head as you sleep definitely takes some getting used to—even with the soft fabric, it wasn’t immediately comfortable for me to sleep this way. But for people who value the “fall asleep faster” benefits, that extra bulk may be a worthwhile compromise.

If you prefer a band to, say, a ring, Whoop's latest generation Whoop 5.0 is one of our favorite sleep-tracking models of the year. We love that it works as a general wellness tracker by day (nice if you're not interested in or don't currently wear a smartwatch) and keeps tabs on your sleep habits at night. The Whoop's biggest selling point is its simplicity. It analyzes all of your pertinent sleep data and then advises you on ways to improve, like what time to go to bed and when you should plan to wake up.

The Whoop 5.0 uses a combination of optical heart rate sensors and motion detection to track heart rate, heart-rate variability (HRV), blood oxygen, and movement throughout the night. It also adds an accelerometer to the mix to track your motion while you sleep. Bottom line: All of these translated into one of the most accurate sleep trackers we've ever tested.

After weeks of testing, our team found the low-profile design easy and comfortable to wear, especially to bed. The lack of a screen means it feels more like a simple wristband rather than the web-connected piece of tech that it actually is.

Like the Oura Ring, it also works as a full-time fitness tracker, logging workouts, daily strain, and recovery metrics to help you train smarter. Also like the Oura Ring, this is one of the pricier options we've tested, particularly when you factor in the ongoing annual subscription cost. But given its long list of features and dead-simple ease of use, especially for novice sleep trackers, we think it's worth the splurge.

If you already have a smartwatch, it’s quite possible you have the Apple Watch Series 11 and therefore, access to its sleep tracking metrics. Using built-in heart rate and motion sensors, it tracks time asleep, sleep stages, and heart rate, then syncs everything to the Apple Health app.

A big perk here is convenience. If you’re already wearing an Apple Watch during the day, keeping it on throughout the night may feel like an easier lift than getting a brand new device. The data integrates seamlessly with the rest of your Apple health data, including daily workouts and activity levels, as well as trends over time.

Apple’s sleep tracking is actually fairly straightforward. Instead of overwhelming you with deep metrics, it focuses on core ones like total sleep time, REM, light, and deep sleep stages. This is fairly simple compared to other trackers, making it great for casual users who aren’t too invested in deep performance/recovery metrics.

One drawback is the battery life though. You’ll need to charge the watch daily, which means you’ll inevitably leave part of your 24 hours untracked. Typically you can squeeze a quick charge in while you’re getting ready in the morning or showering. But for men who want a single device that tracks it all, the Apple Watch is a practical addition.

If you’re looking for a straightforward sleep tracker that won’t blow your budget, the Fitbit Inspire 3 is one of the best. This product skips the unnecessary bells and whistles to provide only the most essential data. That includes basic sleep tracking via heart rate monitoring and motion sensing, and fitness tracking (step tracking and calories burned). Plus, it connects to your smartphone to provide alerts on your wrist.

The slim, lightweight design is a big part of its appeal. It feels more like a simple fitness band than a full smartwatch, which makes it pretty comfortable to wear overnight (and throughout your day for basic fitness tracking). And despite the lower price, it still tracks heart rate, movement, and sleep stages to generate a nightly score and trend reports in the Fitbit app. For beginners, the app display is intuitive and easy to understand, making it a great entry point into sleep tracking.

The main trade-off is that some of the deeper analytics—like advanced sleep insights and readiness-style metrics—are locked behind the Fitbit Premium subscription. But even without it, the Inspire 3 delivers all the essentials, making it one of the best values in sleep tracking right now.