5 things to know before buying an Oura ring

However, before you invest in an Oura ring, there are a few things you should know. These cover everything from choosing the right software to understanding how it works and its recurring costs, to using the application and even considering alternatives. Once you’re armed with the necessary information, you’re well on your way to choosing the perfect Oura ring and enjoying how it helps you track your workouts, vitals, sleep, and more.

Unlike a smartwatch that comes with a one-size-fits-all band or multiple band sizes, each with adjustable circumferences to fit wrists of different sizes, a smart ring is a form-fitting device. Before you’re ready to purchase an Oura ring, you must first order a sizing kit. Once you order the ring, Oura will send you a free sizing kit. If you purchase it from a third-party retailer, they may charge a small fee for the sizing kit, which is deducted from the ring’s price. Once you receive it, try on a few sizes until you find the one that fits you perfectly. Wear it for at least 24 hours to see how you feel while you go about your daily activities and sleep. The size of your finger can change throughout the day, especially for women tracking their cycles. You don’t want to end up with something too tight half the time or, conversely, too loose.

It is important to wear the ring on your index, middle, or ring finger to ensure proper capture of information via the bloodstream. From experience, we can attest that when smart rings are the wrong size, they tend to get lost, especially during tasks like loading the washing machine. Proper sizing is key to the Oura ring, and any smart ring, for that matter. For this reason, you can’t pass a smart ring to a friend or family member when you upgrade unless they have the same finger size.

While you can technically wear an Oura ring without subscribing, you’ll probably find the subscription-free setup isn’t worth it. You only get very basic tracking, which defeats the purpose of the ring in the first place. Without a subscription, the only information you get from the Oura Ring app is activity, readiness, and sleep scores, along with labels such as “good,” “optimal,” or “poor.” The Explore tab is still there, but it only shows a few guided meditations, tutorials, and audio sessions. You can download your data from a web dashboard for free, but it is a workaround and won’t provide the same immediacy and detail.

You won’t get data like heart rate and heart rate variability (HRV), sleep hours, stress timeline, blood oxygen, and skin temperature variations without a subscription. There are no personalized health trends or tips, women’s health tracking, automatic workout detection, third-party app integration, or daily reports. A subscription costs $6 per month or $70 per year, so it’s important to factor that into the overall cost. That’s one less fancy latte at the local coffee shop per month. But this remains a recurring cost to consider.

In 2026, Oura finally introduced a charging case with a cover that makes it easy to take your ring with you on long trips and charge it on the go. You’ll need to purchase it separately, and it only works with the Oura Ring 4 and Oura Ring 4 Ceramic. While the Oura Ring has excellent battery life, estimated at 5-8 days for the newer Oura Ring 4 (a bit less with older models like the Oura Ring Gen 3), if you’re going on vacation, you might want to bring a charging case to keep it powered up. You can put it in your purse or pocket to charge it on the go whenever you get a low battery notification. Maybe you want to charge it during lunch at a cafe so it’s powered up again in time for your walk, and you don’t lose those precious steps.

Instead of a case, each Oura Ring comes with a charging dock, a flat, square charger that plugs in via USB-C. Place it on a flat surface, place the ring on it, and recharge. If you want to keep the ring working 24/7 and charge it on the go, the optional case is worth having with one of the new models.

The Oura Ring app works like any other smart ring app, reporting data on your daily steps, calories burned, activities, sleep, stress, readiness, blood oxygen, and more. You can set goals and see progress, view historical data, deadlines, and more. But there are so many other cool features buried within the app that you might not even realize exist.

For example, you can record your meals thanks to an interesting feature that lets you take a photo of a dish before eating it for AI analysis. From there, you can change the details and ingredients if necessary, then receive feedback from the advisor on how this food might play into your health and well-being, as well as its place on a nutritional scale. You can even take a photo of a meal you’re considering eating to get this data before you choose it. There’s also information about menopause to help women navigate the change and a symptoms radar that flags signs of tension that might suggest you have a cold. In Oura Labs you can test new features before they are officially available.

Before you invest in an Oura Ring and membership, remember that there are other options. The Ultrahuman Ring Pro offers a similar experience without requiring a subscription. It uses PowerPlugs, app add-ons that you can download to personalize the tracking experience. Most are free, but some come with a small monthly fee, such as atrial fibrillation detection. There’s also the Luna Ring Gen 2, another favorite of mine, and the Pin Pulse smart ring, which recently had a Kickstarter campaign. This startup model offers features like blood sugar risk tests and blood pressure measurements. It’s an attractive alternative to the big brands, offering accurate workout and sleep tracking, consistent with the Apple Watch Series 11.

You’ll also find smart rings from many other brands, like Samsung, Renpho, Circular, RingConn, and even Reebok. You may want to weigh your options and read reviews before choosing an Oura Ring. That said, the Oura Ring is known for its reliability, sleek, durable design, and incredible sleep tracking. So while this smart ring requires a small monthly subscription to get the most out of it, it’s worth foregoing a single monthly indulgence in order to accurately monitor your health and wellness.