These heart rate monitors help you move towards your fitness goals

Best Heart Rate Monitors

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What to Consider

Use

How you will be using your heart rate monitor is perhaps the most important factor. Obviously, if you want to wear it swimming, youll need one thats waterproof, for example.

Certain exercises, like boxing and kettlebell workouts, dont work well with wrist heart rate monitors. For running, make sure your monitor doesnt get in the way of your arm movements.

Type

The typical heart rate monitor is a strap that goes around your lower chest and uses an electrocardiogram signal to measure your heart rate. These give the most accurate measurements and work well for most exercises. However, some people may find them uncomfortable.

The alternative is either an armband or wristband HRM. These heart rate monitors use an optical sensor to measure blood flow in your veins. These are often less accurate, especially if they shift while in use, and as previously mentioned, may not be suitable for all exercisesbut theyre generally less expensive and easier to wear.

Metrics

Depending on your fitness goals, you may want your HRM to tell you more than your heart rate. If you are in training, consider one that will measure your heart rate variability or calories burned.

How We Selected

We only recommend high-quality heart rate monitors that are accurate, durable, and comfortable to wear. To find the best, we read through a number of customers reviews for various heart rate monitors and consulted reporting from our Hearst colleagues at Mens Health, as well as reviews from PCMag, CNET, and Sports Illustrated. We then narrowed our choices to include top picks for different budgets and uses.

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