Fitness trackers are made to be worn on the wrist. Some people like to wear fitness trackers on the ankle. Fitness trackers for the ankle will offer a very accurate count of the steps taken by the user. The only challenge will be in terms of less than accurate heart rate monitoring due to lesser blood flow in the ankle. However, there are fitness trackers that can be tied to the ankle for a hassle free fitness tracking experience.
How do I use fitness trackers for ankle?
You can use any good fitness tracker on the ankle. You will need to buy an ankle band. This ankle band is generally available for less than $10. There are ankle bands that are compatible with specific models of fitness trackers. Before getting one, do check if there is an ankle band for the specific model of fitness tracker you wear. You can tie this ankle band on the ankle. Within the ankle band, you can tie the fitness tracker. This completes the setup of a fitness tracker for the ankle.
There are no separate devices that are made for fitness tracking on the ankle. We just make use of ankle bands to put a normal, good quality fitness tracker on top of the ankle for better tracking of pedometer or step count data.
Fitness trackers that can be used on the ankle
There are many fitness trackers that are compatible with ankle bands. We list the main fitness trackers that can help fitness tracking through ankle-based monitoring:
Fitbit Charge 5 for fitness tracking through ankle
Fitbit Charge 5 has got to be the best fitness tracker around. It can be easily mounted on your ankle using a compatible ankle band. You could get a compatible ankle band from one of the local watch stores. Or, you could visit an online marketplace to get one that is compatible with Fitbit Charge 5.

Fitbit Charge 5 is more than ideal for fitness tracking because of the following reasons:
- Fitbit Charge 5 is compatible with Android 10 and later devices. It can work well with any Android smartphone.
- Fitbit Charge 5 is compatible with iOS 13.4 and later devices. This effectively means that you can use a Fitbit Charge 5 with iPhone 6S and later models.
- Fitbit Charge 5 has an extended battery life of 7 days.
- Charge 5 supports GPS and GLONASS satellite systems for accurate GPS monitoring.
- Fitbit Charge 5 also comes with ECG monitoring.
- Fitbit Charge 5 has an optical heart rate monitor. It can be used to take on-demand ECG.
- Charge 5 has a pulse oximeter sensor to take blood oxygenation levels.
- Charge 5 has a water resistance of 50 meters and can be worn during pool swimming.
- Charge 5 also supports an ‘Always on Display’ mode.
Fitbit Charge 5 comes for a listed price that is under $150. However, it is available at discounts generally. It can be termed as one of the most widely used and popular fitness trackers as of now.
Garmin Vivosmart 5 fitness tracker
Garmin’s Vivosmart 5 fitness tracker is a direct competitor of the Fitbit Charge 5 fitness tracker. Like the Charge 5, Vivosmart 5 can be used on the ankle band. You just need to buy an ankle band that is compatible with the Vivosmart 5 fitness tracker. Vivosmart 5 has all the standard features of a fitness tracker. By putting it on the ankle band, we are allowing the Vivosmart 5 to track or count steps more accurately. The Elevate heart rate sensor takes the heartbeat from the wrist. So, putting the Vivosmart 5 on the ankle band will have unintended accuracy of the heart rate data. The main features of the Garmin Vivosmart 5 fitness tracker for ankle are mentioned below:
- Garmin Vivosmart 5 has an OLED screen.
- Vivosmart 5 fitness tracker can work with Android phones and iOS devices.
- Vivosmart 5 comes with a water rating of ‘Swim’. ‘Swim’ rating is equivalent to a 5 ATMs water rating. It can be worn during pool swimming.
- Vivosmart 5 comes with a heart rate sensor and pulse oxygenation sensor. It can do continuous heart rate monitoring. And, it can track blood oxygen levels through the pulse OX sensor. Heart rate monitoring and pulse oxygen monitoring happen through wrist-based sensors. So, if you make use of Vivosmart 5 on the ankle, there is a high chance that the heartbeat data and the blood oxygenation levels may not be as accurate as the wrist-based readings.
- Vivosmart 5 does not have any ECG feature.
- Vivosmart 5 does have Bluetooth, and ANT+ support.
- Garmin Vivosmart 5 comes with a standard battery life of 7 days on the smartwatch mode.
- Vivosmart 5 does have a touchscreen feature.

Vivosmart 5 is priced at $149.99, the identical price point of Fitbit Charge 5.
Fitbit Inspire 2 fitness tracker for ankle
The Inspire 2 series fitness trackers of Fitbit come in one size and multiple band sizes of Small and Large. Inspire 2 is one of the proven fitness trackers from the Fitbit family of trackers. You could put Inspire 2 on a compatible ankle band to track fitness activities through ankle. We list the main features of Inspire 2 fitness tracker below.
- Fitbit Inspire 2 can work with Android 10 and later versions. On a similar note, Instinct 2 can work with iOS 13.4 and later versions of the mobile operating systems.
- Inspire 2 has an extended battery life of 10 days. It can go from zero to full charge levels in 2 hours of charging.
- Inspire 2 has a water resistance rating of 50 meters. It is, therefore, suitable for pool water swimming.
- Inspire 2 is well under $100. And, the good thing is that it is being marketed with a free one year Fitbit Premium subscription. Fitbit Premium offers Daily Readiness score for fitness level monitoring. It also shares irregular heart rhythm alerts. Fitbit Premium tracks and shares in-depth sleep score details to monitor and rate your sleep quality very closely.
- Inspire 2 can perform continuous heart rate monitoring. However, the accuracy will be affected if you choose to put the Inspire 2 on your ankle.
Inspire 2 is a reliable fitness tracker from Fitbit. It works well for wrist-based readings and data collection. It would do well with a compatible ankle band to take step count readings accurately.
Fitbit Luxe fitness tracker
Fitbit Luxe is a strong fitness tracker that carries a luxury finish. It can be easily put on a compatible ankle band for ankle-based tracking. In terms of price, Fitbit Luxe sits in-between the Fitbit Charge 5 and Fitbit Instinct 2 series fitness trackers. We look at some fine details of the Fitbit Luxe for your ankle based fitness tracking requirements.
- Fitbit Luxe supports Android 10 and later versions of Android operating system.
- Luxe can work with iOS 13.4 and later versions of the Apple operating system.
- Fitbit Luxe has a battery life of up to 5 days. It can go from zero to full charge levels in about 2 hours.
- Luxe is water resistant to 50 meters. This should make it apt for pool water swimming.
- Luxe has an optical heart sensor for continuous heart rate monitoring. Heart rate data is recorded in intervals of one second.
- Fitbit Luxe is made of stainless steel and the band is made of silicon. This makes Luxe one of the stronger fitness trackers around.
- Luxe can also take blood oxygen saturation levels. But, for ankled based positions, the accuracy of blood oxygen levels may be a bit questionable.
- Luxe comes with Bluetooth support for easily syncing fitness data with the paired smartphone.
Luxe can work well for step counts if you intend to put it on an ankle band.
Summary
Ankle fitness trackers are used by many athletes as a way to take double readings or backup fitness tracking readings. Most fitness trackers can easily be used on the ankle. All that you need is a compatible ankle band to house the fitness tracker. The best fitness trackers that can provide reliable data have been listed as part of our effort to get you reliable metrics of fitness trackers.
You may like to read more content related to fitness trackers:
- Fitbit Charge 5 Vs Fitbit Charge 4
- Fitbit Charge 4 – Poor Band Quality
- Fitbit Charge 4 – iPhone compatibility and issues
- Fitbit Charge 4 Fitness Tracker – Heart Rate Monitoring

Helen Kurt is a geeky nerd who loves to cover the wearables space. She has over 5 years of experience in the smartwatch domain. You can reach her on email at [email protected].