If you’re seeking a health tracker, odds are you’re trying to decide between two wearables: a smart ring or a smartwatch. Both serve as fitness trackers, and each category features two standout options, the Oura Ring 4 and the Apple Watch Series 11. But determining which is better for you can feel downright confusing—while they are both health trackers at their core, each serves different purposes. In this Oura Ring versus Apple Watch guide, we break down the pros and cons of both so you can figure out which is best for your needs.

The Oura Ring 4 and Apple Watch Series 11 against a yellow background.

We compare the Oura Ring 4 versus Apple Watch Series 11 based on firsthand testing—considering their design, sleep tracking and fitness tracking abilities and more.

Illustration: Forbes / Photos: Retailers

Our tech team tested each device for several months, taking into account its design, sleep-tracking capabilities, fitness-tracking features and battery life. Here’s how to determine which one is best suited for you.

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Weight: 4 to 6 grams | Dimensions: 7.9mm wide, 2.8mm thick | Material: Lightweight titanium with non-allergenic, non-metallic inner molding | Battery life: Up to 8 days | Full charge: 80 minutes | Compatibility: iOS and Android | Durability: Water resistant up to 328 feet | Sizing: 4 to 15

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Getting the most accurate 24/7 heart rate trackingTruly robust health-tracking metrics

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Weight: 1 ounce and up | Display size: 1.7 inches and up | Battery life: Up to 38 hours | Material: Aluminum or titanium | Full charge: 75 minutes | Compatibility: iOS | Durability: Water resistant up to 164 feet | Sizing: 42mm and 46mm

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A truly seamless experience within the Apple ecosystemStrong array of fitness-tracking featuresUseful app integrations, which help you take calls and listen to Spotify

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Detailed sleep health details are essential

Oura Ring Vs. Apple Watch: Overview
One Sits On Your Finger, The Other Straps To Your Wrist

The Oura Ring 4 is a smart ring that comes in sizes ranging from 4 to 15 and is compatible with iOS and Android. To determine your size, you can use the brand’s complimentary sizing kit. It comes in several traditional finishes (starting at $349), including Silver, Black, Stealth, Brushed Silver, Gold and Rose Gold, and ceramic finishes as well: The Oura Ring 4 Ceramic, priced at $499, is available in fun colorways including Midnight, Cloud, Tide and Petal.

The brand recommends wearing the ring on your index finger, but you can wear it on any finger, on either hand. Keep in mind that you cannot take calls or dive into apps straight from the Ring—its sole function is to track health metrics. One more thing to note: While you can access some of the software, a subscription of $70 per year (or $6 per month) is required to unlock every single health-tracking feature.

The sensor domes are practically nonexistent on the Oura Ring 4.

Rebecca Isaacs for Forbes

The Apple Watch Series 11 is Apple’s latest smartwatch, and it’s ideal for those who are fully in the Apple ecosystem. Available in two sizes, 42mm and 46mm, it also comes in two different metallic builds: the aluminum at $399 and titanium at $699. While the aluminum model offers your choice between GPS only or GPS with cellular connectivity, the titanium model offers only the latter. These options can help you determine whether you can take calls from the smartwatch, so choose carefully. Your choices are limited on the watch size and material, though you can select from plenty of different wristbands, including rubber, textile and stainless steel, across a range of colors.

While the Apple Watch can be worn on either wrist, keep in mind that the crown and action button rests on the right side of the display. Because it’s a smartwatch, the Apple Watch not only tracks your health metrics, but it also offers a suite of apps, including Spotify integrations. You can install plenty of apps to customize how you interact with it as well. And—unless you add an app that requires one—there is no subscription required to access all the health data the smartwatch provides.

Oura Ring Vs. Apple Watch: Sleep Tracking
One Dives Deep Into The Details

The Apple Watch can track several metrics, including how long you sleep, your sleep stages, the amount of time spent in each sleep stage and more. During testing, our tech team found it easy to see at-a-glance information: It’s perfectly suitable if you want a general report of your sleep insights.

The Apple Watch also features sleep apnea tracking; over a 30-day period, and when enabled and worn overnight, it monitors your sleep data for sleep disturbances. After 30 days have passed, and if your body shows signs of sleep apnea, the Apple Watch alerts you. It can also provide a PDF with your sleep data if you’d like to share it with your doctor. The latest model offers hypertension tracking as of this year as well, which, when enabled, also runs over the course of 30 days.

The OLED display on the Apple Watch 11 is bright and easy to read.

Rebecca Isaacs for Forbes

If you’re seeking a wealth of sleep health data, however, Oura is king. The smart ring monitors key metrics like total sleep, efficiency, sleep stages, time spent in sleep stages and much more. It can also measure latency, or how long it takes to fall asleep, as well as monitor how many sleep debt hours you have. It uses these metrics to provide useful, detailed insights—like when the smart ring told me that a latency of less than five minutes meant I was overtired at bedtime.

While it doesn’t feature a dedicated sleep apnea tracking—it tracks breathing disturbances—the Oura Ring 4 also does a more comprehensive job of connecting the dots between your sleep health and your other key metrics. As one example, I can check the app to see how many hours of sleep I experienced in any given night. In addition to these sleep details, I could also see whether I had worked out that day and what kind of workout I completed.

By connecting those dots, one tester and I agreed that we felt it better connected our sleep habits and health trends. “It allows you to identify where you need to make behavioral and lifestyle changes,” our tester said.

Oura Ring Vs. Apple Watch: Fitness Tracking
One Automatically Registers Your Activity

Both the Oura Ring 4 and the Apple Watch Series 11 provide key data like step tracking, heart rate and more. However, there’s one clear winner here: the Apple Watch Series 11. The Oura Ring 4 can track the basics, but it’s more of an afterthought. For example, if you walk for 30 minutes, it can collect the metrics, including heart rate, heart rate variation, oxygen saturation and more. However, it can’t fully track finer details—and it can’t track in real time.

Our panel testing found that the Oura Ring 4 takes several minutes to register workouts. It still tracks workout types, but one of our testers shared that she felt its tracking insights were “less comprehensive” than smartwatches that double as fitness trackers. One of my favorite features during testing, however, was its ability to track other metrics, like housework, as fitness.

The Oura Ring 4 takes several minutes to register and update your fitness stats.

Rebecca Isaacs for Forbes

The Apple Watch Series 11, on the other hand, can provide detailed insights. The Apple Watch uses the iPhone’s Health app, which houses all of your health data. Our tester noted that when she tested the wearable as a contender for the best fitness trackers, it accurately tracked her heart rate variability, “including how long I spent in certain zones, my walking heart rate and how long it took my body to return to normal post-exercise.”

Unlike the Oura Ring 4, the Apple Watch can detect movement automatically and in real time, but it also goes further: It can automatically sense and track the type of activity or workout. “I never had to manually record activities like outdoor walks or yoga,” said our tester, who added the Apple Watch detected strokes when she swam laps in the pool.

Oura Ring Vs. Apple Watch: Battery Life
One Lasts For Days

If you’re prone to forgetting to charge your devices, the Oura Ring Gen 4 may be the better choice. Depending on your size, the smart ring lasts around seven days on a single charge, though larger sizes can last up to eight. It features a complimentary charging stand, but the stand must be connected to a power source. If you prefer a charging case that can charge your ring without being plugged into a power source, you can opt for the Oura Ring Charging Case for $99. It can charge your ring up to five times, which means the device can last over a month if you’re regularly on the go. Keep in mind that the Oura Ring Gen 4 doesn’t charge as quickly as the Apple Watch.

The Apple Watch Series 11, on the other hand, has a significantly shorter battery life. During testing of the best smartwatches, our tech team found the battery lasted for around 24 hours with normal use; enabling power-saving modes extends its life to around 30 hours. To be clear, that’s not a knock against the device or the brand. The battery has to run many more features, including texting, music playback, app integration, health tracking and much more. But it does mean that you need to charge it more frequently. It charges much faster than the Oura Ring; 30 minutes will provide up to 80% of battery.

Oura Ring Vs. Apple Watch: Final Verdict
Depends On What You Prioritize

Ultimately, it depends on what you’re seeking. If you want data to help change behavioral or lifestyle habits, the Oura Ring is a great choice. While it does offer a treasure trove of health tracking metrics, it’s also an excellent option for someone who may have special health concerns or for casual fitness enthusiasts, especially since it takes a few minutes for fitness tracking to register on the app. If you want to change your lifestyle habits by reviewing sleep data and other metrics, the Oura Ring 4 is the best option for your needs.

For fitness enthusiasts who run or cycle, the Apple Watch Series 11 offers an excellent blend of fitness tracking and health tracking features. If you plan to use any app integrations, the Apple Watch should be your go-to choice. It can help you respond to text messages, listen to music and more without ever having to reach for your iPhone. If you’re seeking to improve your fitness routine with real-time tracking, choose the Apple Watch.

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