Oura Ring vs. Whoop: Which wearable fitness tracker should you go for?

The fitness market is flooded with wearable devices that help you track and optimize multiple health metrics, and it’s easy to be overwhelmed by the sheer number of options.

Oura Ring and Whoop are two standout options among wearable fitness trackers, both claiming to help you optimize your sleep, athletic performance, recovery, and overall health. While the core functionality of these devices is similar, you can find some notable differences between them that might influence your decision.

In this Oura Ring vs. Whoop guide, we’ll compare both options side-by-side and take a closer look at their design and innovation, pricing, and other comparable functionalities.

Oura Ring vs. Whoop: A brief overview

Both Oura Ring and Whoop offer discreet wearables that focus on some common health and fitness metrics, such as:

• Sleep duration

• Sleep stages

• Respiratory rate 

• Resting heart rate

• Heart rate variability 

• Heart rate training zones

• Blood oxygen levels 

• Skin temperature

• Menstrual cycle

Both products give you access to raw biomarker data and summarize it with easy-to-understand daily, weekly, and monthly reports. While their core functions are similar, their individual appeal may vary because of their design and branding.

Oura Ring is your standard ring-format wearable, making it a convenient option for many. Its functionalities also focus more on personal wellness, sleep optimization, and recovery. Whoop, on the other hand, is a wearable wristband with more comprehensive features for workout tracking that may have a greater appeal to athletes or those who focus on fitness performance.

Here’s a quick comparison of both:

| Criteria          | Oura Ring 4                                                                                      | Whoop 4.0                                                                                                                                                                  |
| ----------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| Device type       | Smart ring                                                                                       | Whoop 4.0 device can be worn in a wristband, a hydrosleeve, or an arm sleeve. The company also has an underwear line compatible with it.                                   |
| Device cost       | $349–$499, depending on the model                                                                | $0 (the device is free, but you pay for the subscription upfront)                                                                                                          |
| Subscription cost | $5.99/month                                                                                      | • Monthly subscription: $30/month with a 12-month commitment<br> • Annual subscription: $239 upfront for 12 months<br> • Biennial subscription: $399 upfront for 24 months |
| Compatibility     | iOS, Android, Windows Desktop                                                                    | iOS, Android, Windows Desktop                                                                                                                                              |
| Best for          | Health-conscious individuals who want to learn more about their bodies and optimize their health | Fitness enthusiasts and professional athletes who want to optimize their athletic performance

Oura Ring vs. Whoop: An in-depth comparison

Your ideal fitness tracker should match your lifestyle, goals, and personal preferences. With that in mind, we have compared Oura Ring and Whoop across the following eight differentiators:

1. Design

2. Sleep tracking

3. Activity tracking

4. Recovery tracking

5. Stress tracking

6. Cycle tracking

7. Software and interface

8. Pricing

1. Design

Source: Oura Ring

Product design is the main difference between the Oura Ring and Whoop: the former is a smart ring, while the latter is a device that can be worn in different ways.

The most popular option for wearing Whoop is putting it in a wristband. You can choose from a wide variety of colors and designs, so you should be able to find something that suits your personal style. 

Whoop also has an apparel line that primarily features male and female underwear that is compatible with the company’s flagship fitness tracker. You can put this device in boxer shorts, thongs, and bralettes. That might make sense if you want something discreet or in environments where wearing the wristband would be inappropriate due to a dress code.

Source: Whoop

Meanwhile, whether the Oura Ring is a good choice for you will depend a lot on how you feel about wearing rings in general. If you are not used to it, it can feel strange at first. 

Also, this smart ring weighs 3.3–5.2 grams (depending on the size), is 7.9mm wide, and 2.8mm thick. This makes it significantly larger than a regular wedding band, so it’s going to be noticeable and look like a statement piece — whether that’s a pro or a con will depend on your personal style.

The design of these devices also has some important implications for their suitability for different use cases, which we will address later in our comparison. 

2. Sleep tracking

Oura will give you a sleep score in the range of 0–100 while Whoop will give you a sleep performance percentage in the range of 0–100%. Additionally, both devices tell you how long you have slept and how much time you have spent in different sleep stages.

When it comes to sleep latency, the time between going to bed and falling asleep, it appears that with the Oura Ring, you can track it automatically, while with Whoop, you need to put in your bedtime manually.

Sources: Oura and Whoop

Overall, the consensus regarding the Oura Ring vs. Whoop for sleep tracking seems to be that Oura provides more accurate sleep data.

[Reddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/f45/comments/18ayq5r/comment/kc1dr9b)

That said, Whoop has a vibrating alarm feature that automatically wakes you up when you are well-rested. You might find this helpful if you struggle with groggy in the morning.

Bonus tip

If you’re interested in improving your sleep habits, you should consider getting a DNA analysis to understand how genes impact your sleep.

Research suggests that genetic components like circadian rhythm impact how much sleep you need to function optimally and can also predispose you to insomnia, narcolepsy, and sleepwalking. That’s why understanding your genetics data is necessary to optimize your sleep fully. 

One way to do that is through Nucleus, an all-in-one DNA health testing platform that provides genetics-informed risk scores for 170+ mental and physical conditions, including insomnia, migraine, and several cancers.

Nucleus stands out in DNA testing because it’s one of the few platforms that test ~100% of your DNA for more comprehensive and accurate results. You can use the data for sleep optimization and shaping your fitness and lifestyle decisions.

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3. Activity tracking

Whoop has the advantage here because of its design: wearing a wristband allows you to track a wider range of activities because it doesn’t get in the way as much. Plus, the aforementioned Whoop apparel line allows you to put it in your underwear, an arm sleeve, or a hydrosleeve.

In comparison, the Oura Ring is unsuitable for activities involving holding, grabbing, or hitting something with your hands (e.g., weight lifting, rock climbing, and basketball). 

[Reddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/ouraring/comments/1frm8hv/using_oura_for_exercise/)

Additionally, Whoop will give you a strain score, which tells you how much strain you have put on your body. In comparison, the Oura ring will give you an activity score, which tells you how active you have been on any given day. So, the focus of data differs slightly.

Sources: Oura and Whoop

Both the Oura Ring and Whoop include a step counter feature, provide a breakdown of how much time you have spent in each of the five heart rate training zones, and allow you to manually log workouts to ensure no missing activity data. 

They also have a community functionality where you can share your data with friends and track your progress together, which can be quite fun and motivating. 

Overall, Whoop is the preferred option for fitness enthusiasts and professional athletes, while the Oura ring might be better suited for those who simply want to move more.

4. Recovery tracking

Oura and Whoop’s recovery metrics are similar, but the latter might be more useful for fitness enthusiasts. 

Oura provides a readiness score that lets you know how ready you are to face the challenges of daily life. Lower scores indicate your body is stressed.

Whoop provides a recovery percentage, which tells you how well you have recovered from the previous day’s activities. The metrics of recovery and strain are connected: the more recovered you are, the more strain you can handle for the day, which is another bonus point from a fitness perspective. Whoop’s study found that runners who adjusted their workouts according to their recovery scores got the same results with less training time and experienced fewer self-reported injuries.

Bonus read: Oura Ring alternatives!

5. Stress tracking 

Oura includes a daytime stress feature that shows you how your stress level fluctuates throughout the day and summarizes it as stressed, engaged, relaxed, or restored. There’s also a library of guided meditations that can help you get your stress level under control if you are having a rough day. 

Whoop has a similar stress monitor feature that shows you how your stress level fluctuates throughout the day and gives you a stress score that indicates a low, medium, or high stress level. If you want to calm down and reduce stress, you can access guided breathwork exercises from the app. 

6. Cycle tracking

For women, Oura Ring and Whoop offer a manual period journal, automatic cycle tracking based on your key biomarkers, and cycle predictions based on your previous data. 

However, the Oura Ring can be integrated with the FDA-cleared, non-hormonal birth control Natural Cycles, which provides detailed fertility insights. That will require you to pay for the Natural Cycles subscription in addition to the Oura subscription, though.

[Reddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/ouraring/comments/1b33b43/comment/kspmxt1/)

If you intend to use cycle tracking as either a natural birth control method or to increase your likelihood of getting pregnant, it might make sense to go with the Oura Ring. 

Bonus reads: 

• Biohacking for women

• Biohacking books

• Biohacking diet

7. Software and interface

Oura Ring and Whoop have similar apps that work on iOS and Android devices as well as on Windows desktops.

Oura’s app emphasizes sleep, readiness, and activity scores, while Whoop’s app emphasizes sleep, recovery, and strain scores, so the key metrics are similar.

Oura and Whoop both offer weekly and monthly reports that provide an overview of your performance. However, with the former, you can also get quarterly, annual, and anniversary reports. 

The consensus seems to be that Oura’s app has a more pleasing user interface. Still, there’s some disagreement as to which app is easier to navigate and provides more in-depth data, which suggests that it likely boils down to personal preference.

8. Pricing 

Whoop seems like the cheaper option because it doesn’t put a separate price tag on its device, but there are more nuances involved here. Whoop 4.0 will cost less for the first year but it will eventually exceed Oura in terms of total cost if you continue using it.

Here’s a sample Oura Ring vs. Whoop comparison between the 1-year and 3-year totals (based on the prices in December 2024):

| Period      | Oura Ring 4     | Whoop 4.0                                                                                                                       |
| ----------- | --------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| 1-year cost | $414.89–$564.89 | • Monthly plan: $360<br> • Annual plan: $239                                                                                           |
| 3-year cost | $558.65–$708.65 | • Monthly plan: $1,080<br> • Annual plan: $717<br> • Biennial plan: $638<br> ($399 for the first 2 years<br> + $249 for the third year)

Which wearable device is the right choice for you: Oura Ring or Whoop?

Both the Oura Ring and Whoop are great fitness trackers, so the choice between them will largely boil down to you:

• Personal style

• Dress code requirements

• Favorite sports and activities

• Health and fitness goals

• Budget 

It’s also worth noting that a ring is a lot easier to lose than a wristband, which can be a concern if you need to remove your ring during certain activities, such as cooking.

Wearable fitness trackers are a great place to start if you want to optimize your health. If you’re serious about leveraging data to improve your fitness, performance, and general health, though, you should get your DNA tested before making any long-term changes.

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Leverage DNA insights for peak health with Nucleus

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[Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/p/C-GqFDmsTz7/)

With a single Nucleus test, you can screen for several health areas, including your cardiovascular, neurological, metabolic, and mental health. Nucleus health reports currently provide genetic risk scores for over 170 mental and physical health conditions, including:

• Type-2 diabetes

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More reports are always added to the database.

Nucleus risk scores are highly customized and calculated based on three key factors: your genetics, ancestry, and your lifestyle data, such as your BMI and cholesterol levels. If your lifestyle data changes over time, your risk scores will also change. That’s why Nucleus updates your health reports regularly as your lifestyle evolves or the latest scientific research. 

Nucleus Premium also includes 9+ trait reports that explain how your genetics affect traits like BMI, height, intelligence, muscle strength, intelligence, and longevity.

Nucleus tests are physician-approved, so you can use the results to get advice from nutritionists, sleep specialists, and other medical professionals. The platform can also connect you with board-certified genetic counselors for a minimal fee.

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You may also like…

Here are some other health optimization and DNA testing learning resources:

|                                                                                    |                                                                                         |
| ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| [Lumen review](https://mynucleus.com/blog/lumen-review)                            | [23andMe review](https://mynucleus.com/blog/23andme-review)                             |
| [Eight Sleep review](https://mynucleus.com/blog/eight-sleep-reviews)               | [Top 5 23andMe alternatives](https://mynucleus.com/blog/23andme-alternatives)           |
| [Eight Sleep alternatives](https://mynucleus.com/blog/eight-sleep-alternative)     | [Ancestry.com review](https://mynucleus.com/blog/ancestrycom-review)                    |
| [BedJet vs Eight Sleep](https://mynucleus.com/blog/bedjet-vs-eight-sleep)          | [5 best Ancestry.com alternatives](https://mynucleus.com/blog/ancestrycom-alternatives) |
| [3x4 Genetics review](https://mynucleus.com/blog/3x4-genetics-review)              | [Ancestry.com vs 23andMe](https://mynucleus.com/blog/ancestry-vs-23andme)               |
| [Dante Labs review](https://mynucleus.com/blog/dante-labs-review)                  | [Natera vs. Invitae](https://mynucleus.com/blog/natera-vs-invitae)                      |
| [Nebula Genomics review](https://mynucleus.com/blog/nebula-genomics-review)        | [Sequencing.com review](https://mynucleus.com/blog/sequencingcom-review)                |
| [Sequencing.com vs. Nebula](https://mynucleus.com/blog/sequencingcom-vs-nebula)    | [InsideTracker review](https://mynucleus.com/blog/insidetracker-review)                 |
| [InsideTracker alternatives](https://mynucleus.com/blog/insidetracker-alternative) | [Myriad Genetics review](https://mynucleus.com/blog/myriad-genetics-review)             |

Featured image sources: Oura and Whoop