Aria 2 inaccurate body fat readings

[Emilyinyyc]

I recently completed an in-depth bio metrics analysis using a BodPod, the most accurate commercial analysis on the market, and learned I had 17% body fat. The Aria 2 tells me I have 29.5% body fat. I am a fitness instructor and muscular body type and believe the first number is more accurate. Is anyone else having this same issue? Or does my Aria 2 need to be returned?

Moderator edit: updated subject for clarity

[Lope1851]

Yes mine lowers my body fat percent as I gain weight - and I mean fat, not muscle. I'm quite fit but not at as low the 9.5% body fat Aria 2 constantly measures.  

[MB10000]

I also found that my fitbit scale was high by about 10 percentage points for body fat percentage. Following a suggestion from the forums, I changed my gender on my profile, logged a weight, and changed it back. This brought my BF% to a reasonable value - but only for one reading, then it jumped up 13 points again on the next reading, taken without changing any settings, less than a minute later. Maybe foolishly I wrote to fitbit help, who not only were completely unhelpful, they refused to even acknowledge the difference in the readings. I've been back and forth now for five emails and don't expect anything from them anymore. I had been happy with my fitbit alta and excited for the aria, am now disgusted by the whole experience. Don't waste your money on an Aria 2 - the weight might be okay, but it doesn't always sync for me, the BF% may be very wrong, and the company is unwilling to acknowledge let alone try to fix either fact.

I have been back and forth with support several times, they won't even let me return mine.

I recently completed an in-depth bio metrics analysis using a BodPod, the most accurate commercial analysis on the market, and learned I had 17% body fat. The Aria 2 tells me I have 29.5% body fat. I am a fitness instructor and muscular body type and believe the first number is more accurate. Is anyone else having this same issue? Or does my Aria 2 need to be returned?

Moderator edit: merged replies

[JuanJoFitbit]

@ca-runner Thank you for participating in our Fitbit Community! I'm sorry to hear that your Aria 2 is not providing accurate body fat readings. Regarding your question, the Dashboard settings are connected to the scale once it's set up. Changing the settings will help the scale to track more accurate readings. If you see that the accuracy is not correct after changing the settings, please try the following troubleshooting steps if you haven't done so: restart and re-calibrate your scale by taking out the batteries for 15 seconds and put them back in. After this, weigh yourself 5 times in a row and see if your body fat percentage is more accurate. Let me know how it goes.

@richardm32000 I'm sorry for the late response. However, I'd like to follow up and would like to know if you were able to change the settings after following the great advice that shared @Ginnaki.

@GritsnGravy @Lope1851 Thank you for participating in our Fitbit Community! I'm sorry about the inaccurate readings that you are experiencing with your Aria 2. I'd like you to take a look and follow the tips that are listed in this help article, under the subject "How can I get the most accurate reading from my scale?", which explains more information about the Aria 2 accuracy. Also, if you haven't done so, please restart and re-calibrate your scale by taking out the batteries for 15 seconds and place them in again. After this, weigh yourselves 5 consecutive times and let me know if the issue gets fixed. Make sure that your scales are on a hard surface and you are stepping on them still.

@MB10000 Welcome to our Fitbit Community! I'm sorry about the experience you've had with your Aria 2 accuracy. I totally understand how frustrating this is for you. However, I was able to reach our Support team and was told that they'll contact you via email soon in order to follow up and provide a solution.

[vakalate]

Measured myself on the new Aria 2 I got. First it gave me readings around 7.6% body fat (which is ridiculously inaccurate). Now it's giving me a 17.5% reading after 20 minutes.

I followed the FitBit representatives instructions to take out the batteries and then take 5 consecutive readings but they are all showing up inaccurate. 

I recently got a full body analysis done by the InBody 770, one of the industry standards and got a body fat percentage of 22.5% which reflects what I should look like with accurate BFP. 

I understand that electronic impedance isn't always accurate but scattered readings and an error margin of more than 5 to 10% essentially renders this product useless for people like me that purchased it for its BFP readings. I could have paid $20 for a regular scale and synced my readings manually.

Returning this product unless there's a realiable fix. Unfortunately I live abroad so I have to wait for a while before I return the scale when I am in the US for a refund since they do not pay for return shipping costs as per the comments here. 

Highly dissapointed! 

[JuanJoFitbit]

@vakalate Welcome aboard to our Fitbit Community! I'm sorry to hear that your Aria 2 is not providing accurate body fat percentage. Thank you for taking the time to troubleshoot this issue before contacting our forums.

I totally understand how frustrating this is for you. However, I'd like to help you and turn the bad experience into a good experience if you haven't returned your scale.

I'd just like to know if your scale is placed on a hard surface and you are stepping on it barefoot. If these details are already covered, please follow the tips that are listed in this help article, under the subject "How can I get the most accurate readings from my scale?".

Keep me posted on the outcome! 😀

[MB10000]

I'm not sure if or how the username will show up, but this is MB10000 again. After going through all the troubleshooting options again, FitBit support did eventually allow me to return my Aria 2. I didn't have to pay my own return shipping as some people have said, and I now have the return payment so I can confirm it all went through.

I'm disappointed; I'd prefer to have a cool accurate body-fat percentage scale to sync with my FitBit account, but all things considered FitBit support did in the end do about the best they could for me. I think the variation in height and body type might just make the electric impedance not work for everyone; though I never got an explanation how changing my gender and changing it back could temporarily make the measurement reasonable. Best of luck if you're having the same problem!

[Ginnaki]

Hi, thank you for your update. Glad you you managed to sort something out. I just weighed in this morning and my body fat has jumped up by 5% overnight ! My weight is identical. I just ignore this reading now , watch what I eat , and worry about more important things . It still works fine for my partner so he’s happy . I’ll bring up my concerns at my next trip to the doctor, if they think I have a reason to worry, then I will. If not ? Then all is good.
Thanks again,
Ginny

Moderator edit: personal info removed

[_loul_]

Did you find a solution?
I got the same issue, I set to Lean mode and my BF should be around 11-5% but the Aria is detecting 7.8 or 8%.

It is good for my ego but not really precise.
When I moved it from my parent house to my place I immediately lost 4%... I thought this could be the floor but the consistency of the measurement around 8% are strange...
I also checked and my gender is correctly documented.

[TaraBri]

The top of the range Tanita has me at 14% body fat and the Aria 2 at 29%. I am not happy as I bought this just to get the body fat measurements. 

[Nilous]

When a scale is +-5% away from an accurate measurement, and changes 3% with its own readings, how can you say it has any validity?  It's effectively just a random guess, and shouldn't even be shown.  If I am 15% body fat and you're saying i'm anywhere from 13 to 19% body fat, all you're saying is "I don't know."  Or do I just have a failing scale that it has such a HIGH range of variance?

[AcuAdela]

Emily,

I am having the same issue with my Aria. I am 5’ 7”, 137 lbs, size 4 with and while I’m a little softer than I usually am (I turned 45) the scale is telling me I have 33.6% body fat. It’s outrageous. 

[TaraBri]

Hi Emily

I am having exactly the same issue. Other monitors have me at 15% but this has me around 30%. I know it is not right.

Warmest regards
Tara

[AcuAdela]

---

@JuanJoFitbit wrote:

@ca-runner Thank you for participating in our Fitbit Community! I'm sorry to hear that your Aria 2 is not providing accurate body fat readings. Regarding your question, the Dashboard settings are connected to the scale once it's set up. Changing the settings will help the scale to track more accurate readings. If you see that the accuracy is not correct after changing the settings, please try the following troubleshooting steps if you haven't done so: restart and re-calibrate your scale by taking out the batteries for 15 seconds and put them back in. After this, weigh yourself 5 times in a row and see if your body fat percentage is more accurate. Let me know how it goes.

@richardm32000 I'm sorry for the late response. However, I'd like to follow up and would like to know if you were able to change the settings after following the great advice that shared @Ginnaki.

@GritsnGravy @Lope1851 Thank you for participating in our Fitbit Community! I'm sorry about the inaccurate readings that you are experiencing with your Aria 2. I'd like you to take a look and follow the tips that are listed in this help article, under the subject "How can I get the most accurate reading from my scale?", which explains more information about the Aria 2 accuracy. Also, if you haven't done so, please restart and re-calibrate your scale by taking out the batteries for 15 seconds and place them in again. After this, weigh yourselves 5 consecutive times and let me know if the issue gets fixed. Make sure that your scales are on a hard surface and you are stepping on them still.

@MB10000 Welcome to our Fitbit Community! I'm sorry about the experience you've had with your Aria 2 accuracy. I totally understand how frustrating this is for you. However, I was able to reach our Support team and was told that they'll contact you via email soon in order to follow up and provide a solution.

---

I changed my gender from female to male like you recommended and weighed myself again. Now it’s reading my body fat at 23.2% instead of 35%, which seems way more accurate considering my weight and measurements. 

Will it go back to the higher reading of my change my gender back to female? 

[TaraBri]

There told me to change it then change it back to reset it. It took off 1% of body fat and then it returned. Please let me know how you go when you change it.

Warmest regards
Tara

Moderator edit: personal info removed

[AcuAdela]

Well, I switched gender back to female and it’s now reading my body fat at 34%. I can’t believe that for a $130 scale you have to play around with it so much to get a more accurate reading. I guess I’ll lesve my gender as male as that gives me a more accurate body fat percentage. But really that shouldn’t matter at all if the device works through bio impedence. Very disappointing.

[Fastereddie]

All I can say is I hope this guys are right. Mine said 30 percent which might be correct but then again $129 it’s probably not that accurate. 

[KAS1973]

I use the aria 2 scales and find them to b fairly  accurate it says I'm 12% body fat where as the boditrax system in my local pure gym tells me 12.1%

[Fastereddie]

Interesting. I’m going to get Dexa next week and that should give me a very accurate reading. Thanks

Sent from my iPhone

[KAS1973]

Ull have to let me know how it goes

[Fastereddie]

Will do thanks

Sent from my iPhone