The Fitbit Edge Is Everything the Charge 6 Should Have Been.
I’ve been using the new Fitbit Edge for a little over a week and am pleased to report that it does a fantastic job. It has more features than I expected (for example, Google Maps directions were available from the start), and it fixes the mistakes Google made with the Fitbit Charge 6. After testing the Fitbit Edge, here’s my review of what works well, what doesn’t, and my overall opinion of the device.
The Edge is exactly what I expected the Charge 6 to be.
When I reviewed the Charge 6 in May 2025, I liked a lot about it , but I also found a few serious flaws. Tightening the strap distorted GPS readings (odd, but true), and some features required a subscription (like music controls, which only worked with YouTube Music). The promised side button wasn’t actually a button and didn’t even always work.
I’m happy to report that all my major complaints about the Fitbit Edge have been addressed. Or, in other words: the Edge is what the Charge should have been from the start.
The Fitbit Edge’s heart rate and GPS sensors are impressively accurate.
Accuracy testing is always a top priority for me when testing, but frankly, I didn’t expect much from this device. In my eyes, a Fitbit can be successful even if its heart rate sensor is merely “good enough.” No one should expect lab-grade accuracy from a Fitbit.
But I was pleasantly surprised by how functional the Edge is in this regard. It sometimes takes a few minutes to lock onto a heart rate signal (as with most optical devices), but once it does, it works flawlessly—I think it can claim to be one of the best wearable heart rate monitors on the market, alongside the Apple Watch and high-end Garmin devices. The Edge’s accuracy is noticeably better than the Fitbit Air, even though they appear to use the same sensor hardware.
Location accuracy is also quite good, only slightly different from the Garmin results I tested with the Edge. It may not be the best on the market, but it far exceeds the Charge 6’s capabilities.
Music playback controls on the Fitbit Edge actually work.
Unlike the Charge 6, the Fitbit Edge has real music controls. I can play something on Spotify or Castro (my favorite podcast app ) on my phone and then control the audio from my wrist—and this feature no longer requires YouTube Music or a subscription.
You can now trade Fitbit devices in the app.
When the Fitbit Air and the Google Health app first launched, you could connect both a Fitbit and a Pixel Watch to a single phone, but not both simultaneously. That’s finally changed: I was able to connect the Edge to my phone without losing the connection to the Air. Switching between the two Fitbits also works seamlessly. For example, one night the Edge’s battery died, so I slept with the Air, and in the morning, after the Edge had charged, I switched back. The app seamlessly displayed both my Air’s sleep data and my Edge’s activity data, without having to change any settings.
A nice bonus is that the Fitbit Edge charger is the same as the Fitbit Air. (The Pixel Watch and Fitbit Charge 6 chargers are not compatible with the Edge.)
The Fitbit Edge fitness tracker fits better and looks more attractive than the Charge 6.
The Fitbit Edge is similar in size to the older Charge 6, but with a noticeably larger screen. The strap fits almost identically to the Pixel watch strap—meaning, it generally lacks the Charge 6’s odd stiffness when hanging off your wrist.
The Fitbit Edge also has a physical button—not a haptic joystick like the Charge 6, but a real, physical button. And it even works (returns to the home screen) almost every time I press it. The Charge 6’s joystick wasn’t as reliable.
The Fitbit Edge still has two major drawbacks.
Overall, I’m quite happy with the Fitbit Edge. It’s much better than the Charge 6, and it adds accuracy and a better display to the features I already liked about the Fitbit Air. However, there are a few things I’m not entirely sold on.
First, the device lacks an NFC chipset, meaning it can’t use Google Pay. I don’t mind paying with my phone or card at the register (and I always carry my phone with me), so this isn’t a problem for me, but I know many people enjoy paying with their wristband, and the Fitbit Edge doesn’t have that feature. (According to Google, most Fitbit users didn’t actually use Google Pay, so they removed the feature—presumably to accommodate other components while maintaining the device’s compact size.)
Another drawback, as much as I hate to say it, is the Google Health app. It’s not bad, but I still have issues with the AI when it assigns workouts I didn’t request, and I agree with Reddit users who complain about the lack of visibility into yesterday’s data. (On the other hand, Google recently added a feature to disable AI analytics , which is a big help.)
Result
Overall, the Fitbit Edge is a great fitness tracker. It accurately measures heart rate and mileage while running and walking; it offers convenient music controls; and it looks good, feels good, and works flawlessly. The price also reflects the quality: it’s definitely worth the $20 premium over the Charge 6, while still being less than twice the price of the Air, which I think is fair. For those who don’t need a smartwatch or running watch and would be happy with a simple Fitbit, this model is practically perfect.