Sense is tracking my heart rate inaccurately

[deamo5333]

What seems to be going on with the heart rate feature? Mine has suddenly increased 35+ resting rate. This is in no way right. To be honest, I would like to delete the feature. Is there a way? 

Moderator edit: subject updated for clarity and updated label

[DavideFitbit]

Hi, thank you for sharing this information about the inconvenience you've been experiencing with your Sense, @deamo5333.

 Before considering other options, I recommend that you try restarting the device. In addition, please follow the instructions in this article to improve the accuracy of heart rate information and check the information mentioned here about other factors that could affect your heart rate reading, this has been useful to other users who have experienced something similar. 

Regarding your question to remove the feature, note that you can’t turn off heart-rate tracking on Fitbit Sense or Fitbit Versa 3. For more information, see: How do I turn on heart-rate tracking on my Fitbit device?

Hope this helps, I'll be around. 

[SunsetRunner]

Recently changed my Fitbit from a Versa lite to a Sense, I did my first workout with the sense today and it didn’t read my heart rate the same as the Versa lite has for the same workout/same intensity, does the new Fitbit need some time to become more accurate?
Any advice would be much appreciated

Moderator Edit: Clarified subject

[Guy_]

Hi, @SunsetRunner  - if you look in the forums you will find many other posts about heart rate issues. 

There are suggestions about how you wear it but the main problem is related to the firmware which has not been upgraded to fix the issues.

You will also find the vibration isn't as good as your old watch.

Unfortunately there is not much you can do about it. Hopefully it will get addressed in a future update.

[MarreFitbit]

Hi there, @SunsetRunner. Welcome to the Community Forums. Thanks for the details provided in your post. I understand where your concern is coming from. 

Note that you might notice slight variations between your heart-rate reading on your new Fitbit devices compared with your old ones due to improvements in the heart rate sensor and algorithm.

Differences between heart-rate readings on your device and on exercise equipment are likely due to wrist or hand position. Make sure the back of your device is in contact with your wrist and that your band is snug.

Several factors can affect heart rate, including air temperature, stress level, alcohol or caffeine intake, immune response to illness, and medication use (source).

Exercising in cold weather can make it more difficult for your device to track your heart rate, as environmental conditions can affect skin perfusion (the amount of blood that flows through your skin). Spikes in your heart rate during sleep may be caused by sudden movements (for example, waking up and getting out of bed), or a weak signal due to wrist placement. 

As with all heart-rate tracking technology, accuracy is affected by personal physiology, device location on your arm, and type of movement. For a more accurate heart-rate reading:

• Wear your Fitbit device on top of your wrist, and make sure the back of the device is in contact with your skin.
• When you’re not exercising, wear your device a finger’s width above your wrist bone.

• During exercise, wear your device a bit tighter and higher for an improved fit. The band should be snug but not constricting (a tight band restricts blood flow, potentially affecting the heart-rate signal). Many exercises such as bike riding or weight lifting cause you to bend your wrist frequently, which could interfere with the heart-rate signal if the watch is lower on your wrist.

To resolve common issues, see our troubleshooting steps in What factors can affect my heart-rate reading on my Fitbit device?

Hope that helps. 

[Guy_]

The information provided by @t.parker and @SunsetRunner reflect what is expressed elsewhere, that it shouldn't be the user's responsibility to get a decent heart rate reading from the more expensive Sense or Versa 3 watches, due to design or software flaws, when the cheaper older watches are working much better without any constraints.

[NeilFinny]

Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts and insights about the Sense. Our team is aware of the issues with the heart rate not being accurate, but may not be able to provide a fix in the immediate future. We'll continue to monitor the situation, and keep our team informed of the impact to you and other members. I apologize for the experience that you've had with your watch, please know your feedback hasn't gone unnoticed and we'll keep working to improve our products.

erm, so you know you have released a device that isn't fit for purpose?

[Screws316]

I've had the same issue with my Sense since April. My heart rate during weights has been 25-30bpm lower than my versa. About 2.5 weeks ago, I noticed my hr during sleep all of a sudden spiked. No idea why

[john.davies]

It looks like that I am having same issues as many people that my sense doesn’t seem to measure heart rate above 109bpm when on a walk even going up steep hill etc. Mostly say I average 88. Looking at some threads it’s a know issue but can’t see any fixes, anybody had the same and fixed ? Or is it that their is known and should return it! 

[t.parker]

If you experience HR issues and you are still within return window then return it.

[Gr4ndp4]

Hi, @john.davies, welcome, you may be interested in this article How do I track heart rate with my Fitbit device? I have to say I do not experience the problem you report. HR is a core statistic for many of the Fitbit data streams, if your problem persists and you are not able to make progress I suggest you talk to "Customer Support" here. Use the chat facility or phone for a prompt response. I hope this helps.

Cheers

[AtrainT13]

I've seen posts going back to 2020 with minimal input from FITBIT in regards to an actual fix. I just received a sense, but the heart rate is way off and way low. I work in healthcare and take calories in stride to figure out my caloric intake vs. caloric burn.

Did a HIIT workout, max heart rate only hit 128 on fitbit, self taking heart rate 168

Did a weight lifting workout - average heart rate 92, max 112 (self taken at 158)

Did a yoga restorative/stretching workout - average heart rate 101

None of it is accurate, especially when getting up to the higher levels? Where is the fix for this? Why is a defunct product still sold when fitbit is literally based around heart rate tracking?

[AtrainT13]

I was hoping for some resolution since the closing of that. The issue has been happening since 2020. Why is it not fixed yet? I always thought that fitbit prided themselves on their accurate heart rate technology.....

[TommyIzzo]

They haven't officially acknowledged there is a problem. They were running $100 off sales going into the holidays. And where are all the new users complaining, if this is such an issue? I suspect we are a minority and there are not enough serious workout people complaining for fitbit to really do something about current owners. I'll bet the next flagship trackers won't have the same pure pulse 2 heart rate technologies though, that the current Sense and Versa 3 have. 

[AtrainT13]

I agree. I bet the people who have it don't track the calories as specifically or heart rate variation as much. It really needs to be fixed. I don't understand why there is an issue with it, just use the same technology you have all along...

[AtrainT13]

I would appreciate them actually writing a post on this forum at least acknowledging the issue and what they are doing to try and fix it. It's been an issue for an extended period of time. Instead, on the chat I was just on with customer service, they just reiterate what their website says and copy and paste it. They think I haven't read it all and tried it all prior to going to them..... Come on @Fitbit @JonFitbit @AnaFitbit @AmyFitbit @DelFitbit 

[AtrainT13]

@LizzyFitbit please see above

[john.davies]

My issue is with the sense, I never had issues with other models . It appears others have had similar issues with sense

[Screws316]

I've had the Sense for 8 months and always thought the heart rate was inaccurate. With other fitbits and devices,  HR would be between 120-140 lifting weights. Now I barely get above 100. Since the last firmware update, my resting heart rate is out of whack. Sitting on the couch, it's normally in the 50s, now it's in the high 60s to low 70s. Fitbit should be fixing this issue asap or offering current Sense owners something to make up for an inferior product

[LizzyFitbit · Accepted solution]

Hi everyone.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts about the Sense. Let me share that this issue has been reported to our team and they're aware of it, but may not be able to provide a fix in the immediate future. I apologize for this inconvenience and we'll continue to monitor the situation, as well as keep our team informed of the impact to you and other members.

To prevent any confusion, I'm going to close this thread from further comments. However, if you have a different question, I'd encourage you to start a new thread to receive help from the Community. I appreciate your feedback and please know it won't go unnoticed.

See you around.