Fitbit Premium vs free: What's the difference and is upgrading to Premium worth it in 2024?

It might be time to weigh up the benefits of using Fitbit Premium vs free if you've been using your device for a while. Fitbit Premium offers users access to new metrics, insights, workout videos, recipes, and more for a monthly fee But with many of these insights available elsewhere now, is it worth it in 2024?

I've used the Fitbit Premium app on and off for about two years now, after upgrading my pick of the best fitness trackers for women from a Fitbit Versa 3 to a Sense 2, which includes a six-month free trial of Fitbit Premium. From better sleep and stress insights to video workouts and recipes, I find there are so many more features that the upgrade fee seems reasonable overall - provided that you actually want this additional information. 

Whether you've just bought one of the best Fitbits and you want to know more about the app linked to your device, or your free trial has just ended and you're thinking of upgrading, this is what you need to know about Fitbit Premium vs free, how much it costs, and whether it's really worth the investment.

Fitbit Premium vs free 

There are some major differences between Fitbit Premium and the free version of the app. The free version of the Fitbit app is completely cost-free to download from the app store and use, provided you have a Google account. The app is compatible with all the different types of Fitbit too, so each model uses the same one. With a device connected, you can access a range of health metrics, including sleep, stress, exercise, and step summaries for the week and month. As the name suggests, however, the Premium version is the next level up from this. It offers more detailed insights, additional health metrics, and exciting features exclusive to subscribers - including online workouts, recipes, and the famous Readiness Score, which considers various stats to determine whether your body is ready for exercise. Yet it comes at an additional cost, separate to buying the device. 

Having tried and tested the Premium app for myself, these are the main differences between Fitbit Premium vs free to consider: 

How much does Fitbit Premium cost in the UK?

Fitbit Premium costs £7.99 per month, a subscription you can cancel at any time, or £79.99 per year, paid upfront. In both cases, you have a 90-day free trial to kick off your plan, so you can always cancel after testing the premium version for a few weeks if you decide the features aren't for you. 

Many of the newest Fitbits come with a free Premium subscription included in the initial purchase. The Fitbit Charge 6, Fitbit Charge 5, Fitbit Sense, Fitbit Inspire 3, Fitbit Sense 2, and Fitbit Versa 4 all offer six months of Premium with the purchase of a device. The Inspire 2 offers a full year's trial before you have to pay. With these trials, you can enjoy all the upgraded features at no extra cost, although you do have to register with your card details so be sure to set a reminder to cancel if you don't want to continue the subscription. 

What does Fitbit Premium offer?

1. Readiness Score

Fitbit's Readiness Score is one of the best features on the Premium feature list if you work out regularly. Using your recent activity, sleep score, and heart rate variability (HRV) measured against your baseline, the feature generates a score to assess how ready you are to exercise again. It's undoubtedly one of the most sought-after features offered by the Premium version of the app as there's not a similar version on the free version of the Fitbit app. 

As well as your Readiness Score for the day (furthest picture on the right), it also offers recommendations based on the score for how many Active Zone Minutes you should hit and suitable workouts you could follow to achieve this (middle picture). At the end of the week, you'll be able to see how your score for each day compares to one another and previous weeks, meaning you'll be able to spot trends in your activity levels and tiredness. 

A higher Readiness Score means you're well rested and ready for a higher-intensity workout, while a lower score suggests you need to rest instead of exercising. Anyone who's used other fitness trackers will notice that this feature is very similar to that on the WHOOP 2.0, at £30 per month on top of the device purchase. Some Garmin devices, including the Garmin Forerunner 945, have this insight included within the smartwatch.  

The only downside of the Readiness Score is that it's unavailable on some Fitbits. At the moment, the Readiness Score is only available on the Sense, Versa 3, Versa 4, Charge 5, Luxe, or Inspire 2, so if you don't own one of these models then you may not have access to this top-tier app feature, but you will still pay the same £7.99 fee.

2. More health metrics

For those looking to get deep insights into their health and wellbeing, Fitbit Premium may be a better option than the free version. The paid version offers users access to more metrics - including manual blood glucose tracking (which needs to be input manually) and advanced skin temperature details, which can be useful for advanced sleep insights. 

Both of these will be useful metrics for some people. For example, those with type 2 diabetes need to measure their glucose levels regularly and the Fitbit app can be a useful tool to help with this. However, unlike many of the other features in the free version of the app, measuring blood glucose levels requires another device as Fitbit can't get this information itself. The Premium version will allow you to track your glucose levels after inputting the details yourself, rather than doing it automatically - as it does with your step count, for example. 

3. Sleep Profile

Fitbit is famous for its sleep-tracking abilities and helping its users learn how to sleep better. The free version offers plenty of insights into this, provided you wear your device to bed every night. 

On the free version, you'll be able to see how many hours per night you've slept (picture on the right-hand side above) and view a breakdown of all the different types of sleep you had through the night. With Premium, the Sleep Profile feature collates this information and forms a monthly detailed analysis of your sleep patterns through the last 30 days and offers insights to help you understand which elements of your sleep pattern need improvement. It even goes so far as to offer you a sleep animal - an animal that most resembles your sleep schedule for the past month. 

This is an excellent feature for anyone looking to drill down into their sleep habits, like what time to sleep and wake up every day. However, you do have to wear the device in bed for the full 30 days of the month. If you take it off to give your skin a break from the strap or forget to wear it, you'll lose this insight.

4. Meditation exercises

Calm and Breethe are two of the best meditation apps to download - and Fitbit has partnered with both of them to offer exercises within the Premium version of the Fitbit app. Users of the free version will find some exercises but nowhere near the number and quality of the ones offered to Premium users. 

Each of the categories targets a different moment of rest: Meditations for Sleep, Meditations for Stress, Relaxing Sounds, Stories for Sleep, Mindful Minutes, Morning Meditations, Boost Body Positivity, and Mindful Meals. The exercises range also from around 20 minutes to 45 minutes long, so you're bound to find something to fit the time you have. 

If you're not particularly keen on meditation or incorporating more mindfulness into your daily activity, this feature may be a little lost on you. However, if you were considering a subscription to Breethe, Calm, Aura, or Ten Percent Happier, and you already have a Fitbit device, Premium would be a good time and money-saving investment. 

5. Workouts

Looking to lower your fitness age? Another excellent feature included in the Fitbit Premium version of the app is workout videos and sessions from a collection of the best workout apps. Some videos available for free, as with meditations, but again there are significantly fewer and these are very basic. Premium subscribers get access to a whole library of workout videos, created and curated by the brand alongside partners like Les Mills and fitness icons like Davina McCall.

Whether you're looking to do one of the quick yoga mat workouts or want a full circuit training session at home, there will be a program on the app to follow. 

It's a truly excellent feature if you're new to exercise, you want to learn how to get fit, or want to discover more ways to work out without a personal trainer or coach at a significantly higher price. Having tried the workouts myself, I can vouch for how good they are. They are dynamic, informative, and versatile, so you can take them anywhere with you, provided you are comfortable using your body weight or have one of the best resistance bands to hand.

6. Recipes

When it comes to making lifestyle changes around our health, the hardest part is often nutrition. Luckily, Fitbit Premium has a feature to make it easier. Using recipes from Eating Well and a library of their creations, you can learn how to make everything from nutritious lunches and dinners (as pictured above) to genuinely tasty and healthy snacks. My favourites include rice cauliflower and broccoli bowls, charred shrimp and pesto bowls, peanut butter oat energy balls, and veggie pancakes.

Whether you've bought a Fitbit to reduce your stress levels, improve your sleep, or lose weight, you may need to look at your eating habits to see any serious progress. Even for the would-be chefs, Fitbit Premium's extensive range of recipes is a great source of inspiration for those days when you can't think of what to make that ticks all the nutritional boxes and still tastes great. 

7. Wellness Report

Once you've signed up for the Premium version of the Fitbit app, you can start working on your Wellness Report by wearing your Fitbit every day and night for a whole month. After the month is up, your device will have enough data for the app to create a detailed report, which covers all your health data. 

As it includes insights into your heart health, weight, sleep, and activity levels, it's incredibly useful information for your benefit and take to your doctor if you're having a problem - or just looking for a check-up. Importantly, the app also explains the information to you so you can have conversations with confidence. 

The Wellness Report isn't a feature you'll be looking at every month hopefully, unlike the workouts, recipes, or Readiness Score, but it's a useful one to have to look at your health over the years. 

How to get 6 months free Fitbit Premium

If you're in the market for an upgrade, you can get 6 months free by purchasing one of the more recent Fitbit models as this is included as part of the bundle. To activate your trial, connect your Fitbit to the app. Tap on the profile icon in the top left-hand side of the screen, tap 'Fitbit Premium', and begin the trial. 

You'll be charged the standard monthly price of £7.99 once your trial is over unless you have another deal in place or cancel your subscription. 

Is Fitbit Premium worth it?

Yes, if the extra money is in your budget and you're looking to make positive changes to your fitness and eating lifestyle in 2024, subscribing to Fitbit Premium will be well worth it. In my opinion, unless you're dealing with issues related to oxygen saturation or blood glucose, it's not the additional health metrics that are most valuable, but rather the Daily Readiness Score, video workouts, and recipes. These alone I believe are enough to justify the subscription considering how much you'd be spending on them if you signed up for apps that offer these individually. Although, it's worth weighing up Fitbit vs Apple Watch if you're deciding on a device as some of these features are free with the Apple product.

However great Fitbit Premium is on the surface, it's only worth investing in the subscription if you plan on using all or most of the features regularly. In my opinion, Fitbit Premium is best suited to those looking to start exercising consistently at home or in the gym, those looking to improve their daily diet with healthier choices, and those who need a little motivation to get going with it all. 

Anyone looking to make truly transformational changes may be better off looking at some of the other trackers, such as those by Garmin or WHOOP, which are more advanced. 

Is Fitbit worth it without Premium?

If you're already subscribed to other fitness platforms, regularly watch workout and recipe videos online, attend classes rather than go to the gym on your own, and think you could assess your readiness levels from how tired you're feeling, you may find you don't have use for the additional features. In that case, in weighing up Fitbit Premium vs free, the free app version would be just fine. 

Equally, if you're not interested in signing up to another monthly subscription and just want one upfront cost, it may be worth weighing up Garmin vs Fitbit. Garmin devices offer many of these features automatically with purchase - although not all, so check the small print. 

The free version of the app is a great choice for those new to Fitbit who are still sussing out everything the tracker has to offer, along with anyone who wants the basics of fitness tracking like step count, distance, heart rate, and calorie-burn insights.