Pros
- Incredibly sleek and slim
- Very accurate tracking
- Automatic activity detection is flawless
- Great battery life
Cons
- May be too slim for those with chubbier fingers
- Requires a subscription
- Charging case sold separately (dock included)
I reviewed the Oura Ring 4 last year and my observations for the new Oura Ring 5 are largely the same since both offer an app-driven experience using the same app. The most notable difference with the Oura Ring 5 compared to the Oura Ring 4 is the design. It’s much, much slimmer. And it’s my hands-down favourite look of any smart ring I have tried to date, with the same accurate health and wellness tracking.
This is a Piece of Jewelry
The Oura Ring 5, which sells for $529.99 in Canada, is the company’s slimmest smart ring to date, 40% smaller than Oura Ring 4. That’s achieved by redesigning the mechanical, electrical, and optical sensors, as well as the battery. A smart ring is already the ultimate in discreet wearables, but the Oura Ring 5 takes that to another level. It really does look and feel like a piece of jewelry.
It’s incredible that Oura fits so much technology and a sizeable battery into this ring’s much smaller design. Made of lightweight, non-allergenic, scratch-resistant, titanium, it’s IP68-rated so you can wear it in the rain, shower, and pool. Available in sizes 6 to 13, it also comes in various finishes.
The aesthetic benefits are the biggest part of the equation when comparing the Oura Ring 5 to Oura Ring 4. It’s a reason to upgrade if you want something even sleeker on your finger. But the slimmer design isn’t just for the look: it affords tracking benefits, too.
Tracking is Superb With This Smart Ring
Oura says the smoother curvature and low-profile sensor domes offer better skin contact. The Oura Ring 5’s more powerful LEDs also supposedly offer clearer, more consistent readings. Somehow, even though it’s smaller, you get 12 stronger signal pathways for greater accuracy across more finger types and skin tones.
I wore it alongside other wearables to compare stats, including different smartwatches, fitness trackers, and other smart rings. And tracking is as accurate for everything from workouts to vitals and sleep.
I’m most impressed with automatic activity detection. Oura updated the feature since my Oura Ring 4 review, claiming it’s now more accurate, specifically for low-motion activities like pilates. Indeed, it is. In fact, I trust Oura Ring for automatic activity tracking more than any other wearable I have because I know it will almost always work when others fail to detect the exercise. Any time a smartwatch or tracker misses a workout like a walk, strength training, or boxing, sure enough, Oura Ring 5 caught it.
Aside from a few app updates since I reviewed the Oura Ring 4, like live activity tracking from your phone, third-party heart monitor connection compatibility, and Health Radar, everything noted in my review of the Oura Ring 4 still stand for this model. I tested live activity tracking, but unfortunately, it doesn’t show heart rate data from the ring itself: you need to connect a separate heart rate sensor to do that. However, for outdoor activities like walks and runs, you can get live pace and distance through connection to your phone.
Nonetheless, live activity tracking is a nice-to-have feature for runners since, unlike with a smartwatch or fitness tracker, you can’t see your data on your wrist as you go. Yes, you need to pull out your phone to check on the stats, but you can view it on the lock screen. But it can come in handy if you’re doing indoor treadmill runs or cycles and don’t want to hold the handlebars the entire time but still want to see the continuous real-time measurement. It’s also useful if you prefer your own heart rate monitor over the machine’s. If you’re wearing Apple AirPods Pro 3, which have a built-in heart rate sensor, you can hear the metrics from the buds.
It’s a Marvel Battery Life is So Good
Oura Ring 5 comes with a charging dock. You can get the optional charging case if preferred: I wish Oura would start bundling this with the ring!
Battery life was already great with the Oura Ring 4 and it has been improved with the Oura Ring 5. You’d think that to make the ring so much smaller, Oura would have to sacrifice on battery size and/or efficiency. But it’s actually the opposite. Oura Ring 4 is rated to last anywhere from five to eight days while Oura Ring 5 is six to nine. Four days into charging and I was still at 59%. You will easily get a full week per charge.
Should You Get the Oura Ring 5?
I have tested close to a dozen smart rings, so I have a good idea of how they work, which ones are best, and how the app experiences compare among them. Oura has long been a leader in the space, but with so much growing competition, there’s pressure to up its game. Oura isn’t the only game in town anymore. I would easily recommend competitor rings like the Ultrahuman Ring Air (which I reviewed last year) and the Luna Ring Gen 2 that I reviewed earlier this year alongside Oura Ring. They offer accurate tracking, too, have their own unique features, and don’t require a subscription.
With Oura, you can technically wear the smart ring and get basic data without a membership. But it’s really designed to be used with one. That’s the one factor that has reluctant buyers looking elsewhere. Honestly, I can’t blame them. Who needs another monthly charge on their credit card?
That said, if you can stomach the $7.99 monthly membership fee, maybe by sacrificing one Starbucks latte and muffin each month or sacrificing or downgrading a streaming service you no longer use, you get a premium experience and guidance towards your health and wellness.
Oura Ring 5 offers reliable tracking and a robust app, and new features are being added all the time to justify the price. These include everything from perimenopause and menopause symptom logging for women of a certain age to nutrition tracking, and the Oura Advisor AI assistant. As more features are added, there’s more value.
The other apps are free, yes, but Oura emphasizes its backed-by-science data and private app experience. That said, I’m not going to tell you Oura is the only option. But it’s one of the best ones out there, and the choice between spending $8 a month on something frivolous or investing it in your health is a no-brainer. That said, if you don’t have the $8 per month to spend, check out my other recommendations.
Should You Get Oura Ring 4 or Oura Ring 5?
If you’ve decided you want to go with the Oura Ring, now the decision comes down to which of the two newest models should you get? The decision largely comes down to design. As someone with long and slender fingers, I adore the Oura Ring 5 much more than the Oura Ring 4. But someone with shorter and thicker fingers might prefer the Oura Ring 4, finding that the Oura Ring 5 looks too tight or dainty. If you want the slimmest, sleekest smart ring you can find that doesn’t even look like a smart ring at all, the Oura Ring 5 is a fabulous choice. If you prefer a wider, though still slim and comfortable design, the Oura Ring 4 is still a solid option.