This Heart Rate Monitor Is Widely Considered the Best, and It’s 27% Off During Amazon’s Big Spring Sale.
A chest strap heart rate monitor is the most accurate way to measure your heart rate during exercise, and today some of the best models are on sale as part of Amazon’s spring sale . Among them is the popular and highly rated Polar H10 .
While most fitness watches and other devices (such as smart rings) can measure heart rate, they use optical sensors, which are often “good enough” but not necessarily as accurate as you’d like. I wrote more about why chest straps are a better option if accuracy is important to you here . Most chest straps, including the H10, directly measure the heart’s electrical activity. Watches, rings, and wristbands instead use green light to detect blood in blood vessels. Accuracy can be affected by poor fit or ambient lighting, so they aren’t as reliable as a chest strap.
Luckily, most watches can pair with a chest heart rate monitor, so your Apple Watch or Garmin can display your heart rate from the heart rate monitor while you run. You can even connect a chest heart rate monitor directly to your phone, without the need for a watch. ( This feature was recently added to the Fitness app for iPhone ; on Android, a third-party app like Polar Beat may be required for direct connection to your phone.)
Today’s deals on Polar heart rate monitors include:
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Polar H10 : $76.99, down from $104.99. This heart rate monitor is widely considered the best on the market.
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Polar H9 : $56.44, down from $69.90. This model can only pair with one Bluetooth device at a time, which is sufficient for most people.
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Polar Verity Sense : $84.99, down from $104.99. This is a wristband with an optical sensor.
If you need help choosing between these three models, the H10 is definitely the best option. It offers excellent accuracy and can connect to two Bluetooth devices simultaneously (for example, a Peloton bike and a Garmin watch). If you don’t need dual connectivity, the H9 is significantly cheaper and will do the same job.
The Polar Verity Sense is n’t a chest strap, but I’m including it here because it’s incredibly popular. It uses an optical sensor, like a smartwatch, and it’s attached to a wrist strap. Many people find that the wrist strap provides more accurate readings than a wrist strap (this can vary from person to person), so it’s a good option if you don’t like the fit or feel of a chest strap.