Can You Use Fitbit Without Premium Membership?

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I’ve been using the Fitbit Versa 3 for well over 6 months now, and it is super useful to keep track of my fitness activities. It is my primary device when I’m at the gym, or when I’m simply strolling for a morning walk. Fitbit also offers a premium subscription that includes advanced features and insights, but is it necessary in order to use Fitbit? In today’s piece, we’ll see whether you can use a Fitbit watch without a premium membership or not. 

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Quick Takeaway
You can use your Fitbit smartwatch or tracker without purchasing a Fitbit Premium membership. However, you will be missing out on these features – Sleep Score, Snore and Noise Detect, Wellness Report, Daily Readiness Score, Restful Sleep Sounds, Stress Management Score, Video Recipes and Video Workouts.

Can You Use Fitbit Without Fitbit Premium?

Note: The following features are from the Fitbit Versa 3. Features may vary as per different Fitbit variants.

Yes, Fitbit is perfectly usable without Fitbit Premium. In fact, you’ll get most of the essential benefits without paying a penny for the membership. Here are all the features that you get without Fitbit Premium.

Swiping up from the watch face will take you to Core Stats, which are as follows:

Steps

This section will show you the following data:

Daily stats

It shows you the best hour (along with the number of steps and distance walked) and the number of steps walked every hour.

Weekly stats

Here you can see your best day, the number of steps walked in each day, and the average number of steps.

can you use fitbit without premium

Floors

Fitbit tracks and shows similar data in the Floors section as in steps using an altimeter sensor. The only difference is along with the best hour for the day, it shows the calories burnt with the number of floors climbed.

In case your Fitbit is not counting floors correctly then you can check this guide on how to fix the Fitbit not counting floors issue.

floors on fitbit

Distance

You can track distance stats on both a daily and weekly basis.

can you use fitbit without premium membership?

Calories Burned

You can view the amount of calories burnt with daily and weekly stats.

calories burnt on fitbit

Active Zone Minutes

This is a Fitbit-exclusive feature that helps you make the best out of your exercise regime. Essentially, what Fitbit does is that it tracks your heart rate and credits Active Zone Minutes for three zones: Fat Burn, Cardio, and Peak.
 
active zone min

You can always view more data for the above stats through the Fitbit mobile app on Android or iOS.

Besides the Core Stats, a Fitbit smartwatch shows weather metrics, which include temperature, humidity, sunset, and sunrise for the day, and forecasts for the next four hours and the next two days.

Fitbit Free Vs Premium Comparison

While Fitbit smartwatches and trackers are functional without a premium subscription, buying one has its benefits that can improve your overall health.

Here is a comparison chart that will help you understand the difference between the two:

Feature

Fitbit Free

Fitbit Premium

Daily Readiness Score 

N/A

Available

Stress Management Score Breakdown

N/A

Available

Statistical data for health and fitness

Available

Available

90 days trends regarding health metrics

Available

Available

 Core Stats (incl. steps, floors, heart rate, calories burned, distance, and Active Zone Minutes)

Available

Available

Wellness Report         

N/A

Available

Advanced skin temperature details (Sense only) 

N/A

Available

Workouts

N/A

Available

Sessions for mindfulness activities like meditation

N/A

Available

Sleep Score Breakdown   

N/A

Available

What Is The Difference Between Fitbit Free And Premium Membership?

When you use a Fitbit without Fitbit Premium, here are the features that you will get:

  1. Health Metrics include resting heart rate, heart rate variability, breathing rate, skin temperature, and oxygen saturation level (SpO2).
  2. Basic Insights include steps, floors, distance covered, weight, and calories burnt.
  3. Messages to chat with fellow Fitbit friends and family members.
  4. Stress Management, where you can reflect and keep track of your mood.
  5. Exercises that include Pilates, Walk, Bike, Bootcamp, and 17 more exercises.

Apart from the aforementioned features, Fitbit Premium brings the following to the table:

  1. Daily Readiness Score: Fitbit will take your activity, sleep, and HRV data into account and provide personalized recommendations, such as the required rest period and exercises for active recovery from your exercise regime.
  2. Sleep Tools: You’ll get a sleep score with a detailed breakdown that will help you assess your sleep quality. In addition, a Premium subscription enables your Fitbit to detect whether you’re snoring and generating noise when sleeping.
  3. Restful Sleep Sounds: This feature offers a variety of sounds that will help you reduce stress and sleep restfully as well.
  4. Advanced Insights: Fitbit will use your activity, sleep, and heart rate to assess how they relate to each other, and create a Wellness Report for the past 30 days and the past year. This report carries health trends for the mentioned period.
  5. Video recipes: Healthy foods that you can watch and learn to prepare for your dietary needs.
  6. Video workouts: There are more than 150 video workouts for you to learn and add to your routine.

Suggested Fitbit Articles For You

Is Fitbit Premium Worth It?

While there are some advanced features in the Premium package, I feel that they are aimed at Pro users who want to take their fitness to the next level. New Fitbit users can try the Premium membership and see if it benefits them in any way. Otherwise, the free tier is enough for most people out there, and they would be content with it.

Please note that Fitbit is intended to monitor and stay updated with information to enhance your well-being, and is not a substitute for medical advice. For major and critical health concerns, please contact a health professional.

FAQs

Can I get Fitbit Premium for Free?

While Fitbit Premium is a paid service, new buyers of a Fitbit smartwatch or tracker can avail of a 6-month trial after purchase.

Can you use Fitbit Inspire 2 without Premium?

Yes, you can use Fitbit Inspire 2 without Premium.

Can you use Fitbit Sense without Premium?

Yes, you can use Fitbit Sense without the FitbitPremium membership.

Can you use Fitbit Charge 5 without Premium?

Yes, you can use Fitbit Charge 5 without the Premium subscription.

Hemant Mendiratta

Hemant's love for watches started when his grandfather gifted him his Rolex watch when he turned 18! Being a teenager it was a big deal for him. Later when he got his first job he bought Fossil Palm Pilot back in 2003 which was a smartwatch. Since then smartwatches have come a long way and so is Hemant's love for them. His experience with watches inspired him to start Wearholic and share his knowledge of wearables including watches, smartwatches, smart glasses, & smart clothing.

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