Charge 6 - Battery draining quickly

[GregDK]

The last day or two my charge 6 is draining the battery very quickly. Less than a day, going from about 5 days. I can't find any changed settings, the display switches of as usual and GPS is set to phone.

If this battery problem due to a recent FW upgrade? Or is it dead?

Moderator edit: updated subject for clarity

[RiekoC]

Hello @GregDK 

When my Charge 5 started having rapid battery loss, I restarted and recharged my device multiple times over several days. As soon as I saw a rapid drop in battery, I restarted my Charge 5 and put it on the charger until it was back to 100%, often doing this multiple times in a day. Eventually, this process got my device "unstuck" and the battery went back to lasting 6-7 days. Although there's no guarantee that this will work for your Charge 6, it might be worth a try.

[DaniFitbit]

Hi, I appreciate all this information that you've shared about the battery draining situation that you've been having with your Charge 6, @GregDK.

It’s nice to see you around @RiekoC! Thanks a lot for the useful information and for your personal experience.

@GregDK, if you haven't done so already, please make sure that you've followed the steps provided in this article to improve battery life in general, as this has been generally useful for other users. In addition, please complete a three pulse restart following the steps listed here below: 

1. Connect your device to the charging cable. For instructions, see How do I charge my Fitbit device?
2. Press the button located on the flat end of the charger 3 times (end if the USB cable), pausing for 1 second between presses. Then wait 10 seconds or until the Fitbit logo appears.

The battery can last up to 7 days; because battery life is affected by use and other settings, actual results may vary, but the battery shouldn't be draining only after a few hours. 

I'll be around.

[GregDK]

Did the 3-pulse restart several times and recharged several times to 100%. The Charge 6 goes from 100% to 15% battery in 7 hours with no special activity. The screen has also now become very little responsive to touch, making it difficult/impossible to "slide" screens sideways as well as up/down Right now it's stuck in the "Low Battery" screen. So something is definitely wrong.

[DaniFitbit]

Hi @GregDK and welcome back to the community. 

I appreciate your message, and I'm sorry to hear that the issue still remains. Thanks for your efforts too.

Since you have already performed all the suggested troubleshooting steps, I recommend you contact support, since they have more tools in order to find your options. 

Contact Us.

[JUSCHN]

Hi! 

I was having the same problems as GregDK + constant Add Card notification most probably contributing hugely to draining the battery. I switched off the Always On Display and after that I can't navigate the menus at all because I get to the Add Card notification and after that my less than 2 years old Fitbit is dead. I can't use it at all since 16.07.25.

[DaniFitbit]

Thanks for joining the conversation @JUSCHN, it's great to welcome you to the Fitbit community. 

Thank you for the details provided in your post about the situation with your Fitbit after getting the Add Card notification constantly. I will be my pleasure to assist you in any way I can. 

I understand how important is it for you to get back on track with your device. Would you be so kind as to answer the following questions for me?

• Is the LED light on the back of the device working?
• Is the vibration function still working?
• If you try to sync your watch, will the data be synced with the Fitbit app?

Meanwhile, I recommend that you read the following article and try the tips: Why isn't my Fitbit device's battery charging?

[MJL007]

My conclusion is they want you to sign up to Fitbit premium, which is why the battery is playing up! Or go to Google watch! My charge 6, (purchased 18 months ago, due to my previous Alta screen dying) can go from 43% charged to 91% charged if you do a reset of it! I have to charge every day, as it can go from 100% to 85% in 2.38 hours whilst sleeping!! Wish I had never bought it! Never had an issue until Google got involved and the last January 2025 update! 

[GregDK]

I've handed the Charge 6 into the store where I bought it (here in Denmark there is a 2 year obligatory kind of warranty). I expect they will give me a new one. The Charge 6 is a replacement the store gave me for a Charge 5 that stopped working. And I'll likely have to have the Charge 6 replaced again in 18 months time. If I had to stay all over if probably get a more serious activity watch, but I like the Charge series small size, and most of the time it had done the job. But with major flaws, occasionally dropped workouts and grossly wrong distance/speed  on done stages on the Camino Frances (restart of watch fixed that), but very annoying.

[DaniFitbit]

Welcome back to our forums @GregDK and @MJL007, thanks for the input.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts and personal experience about the Charge 6. I'm sorry for any inconvenience experienced while using your watch, and appreciate the time taken in sharing your feedback. Our team constantly works to improve our devices, and the input from our members is definitely a big part of this process.

Btw, have you tried the basic troubleshooting steps posted previously in this thread, @MJL007? If the issue remains after attempting them, please contact support. There you'll find additional tools to help you better investigate your case.

[MJL007]

Hi. Yes I have tried all the troubleshooting steps. My charge 6 was ok until the update in January 2025. I hadn’t had any problems until then! Now it will only last a day, it has to be charged every day. 

[DaniFitbit]

Welcome back @MJL007! 

Thank you so much for your efforts so far and for the details regarding your Charge 6 battery drain. I fully understand how important it is to keep your device in the best possible condition.

In this case as you have already tried all the troubleshooting steps, contact support if you haven't already. They'll be more than glad to assist you further with the Charge 6.

Fill out the form. You will then be recommended some help articles. After that, you will be able to choose how to contact support.