Top 5 Apple Watch Heart Rate Apps: A Quick Review

Does your Apple Watch ever feel like it’s just telling time? That powerful heart rate sensor is doing much more, but finding the right app to unlock its full potential can feel like a maze. You want accurate tracking during your toughest workouts or simple peace of mind during the day, but scrolling through the App Store often brings more confusion than clarity.

Choosing the perfect heart rate monitor app involves more than just picking the first one you see. Should you prioritize real-time graphs, detailed historical data, or maybe integration with other fitness platforms? These little decisions make a big difference in how useful your watch becomes for your health journey.

This post cuts through the noise. We will break down the best Apple Watch heart rate monitor apps available today, focusing on what makes each one stand out. By the end, you will know exactly which app fits your fitness goals and daily routine perfectly.

Top Apple Watch Heart Rate Monitor App Recommendations

No. 1

1.83" HD Smart Watch, 30 Days Battery Life, Sleep/Heart Rate/SpO2/Blood Pressure Monitor, Calls/Messages/Notifications, 5ATM 110+ Sports Modes Fitness Tracker Watch, for Women & Men/ Android & iPhone

WHY CHOOSE AKUMAKA G62 SMART WATCH? ① Stylish Design: Chic silver finish that complements any outfit; ② Bluetooth Calls & Messages: Stay connected hands-free; ③ Health Monitoring: Track heart rate, SpO₂, sleep, and BP in real time; ④ Fitness Modes: Multiple sports tracking to meet your goals; ⑤ Long Battery Life: 1000mAh battery for extended use; ⑥ Free App Support: Easy setup and detailed health insights; ⑦ Wide Compatibility: Works with Android and iPhone
Elegant Smart Watches for Women: This smartwatch comes with a silver metal frame and a 1.83" HD screen, which is elegant and stylish overall. 2 different styles of watch bands (1 metal, 1 silicone) are perfect for work, casual wear and special occasions. In addition, there are more than 200 watch face styles to choose from, and you can also upload photos to customize your unique watch face
Continuous Health Monitor: With the latest touch chip CST816D, high-sensitivity G-sensor STK8321 and PPG heart rate sensor HX3918 built in, AKUMAKA smart watches can monitor heart rate, blood oxygen, blood pressure and sleep accurately. The sleep tracker turns on automatically at night, and the other three can be measured automatically or manually at any time
Bluetooth Calls Messages Notifications: After connect your phone and smartwatch, you can easily make and answer calls directly on your wrist, without holding your phone all the time. The watch will also receive real-time messages or app notifications from SMS, Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram and so on. Bluetooth alerts is convenient, but note that you can't edit or reply to messages from your smart watch
5ATM Fitness Watch with 110+ Sports Modes: As a daily wearable activity tracker, it keeps recording your steps, distance and calories burned, and no need to take it off even if you sweat, wash your hands or it rains. This fitness watch supports 110+ sports modes, of which 8+1 sports modes are built into the watch system. No matter you like outdoor or indoor workouts, it will help you stay active and fit

No. 2

Smart Watch Fitness Tracker with 24/7 Heart Rate, Blood Oxygen Blood Pressure Monitor Sleep Tracker 120 Sports Modes Activity Trackers Step Calorie Counter IP68 Waterproof for Andriod iPhone Women Men

【Superb Visual Experience & Effortless Operation】Diving into the latest 1.58'' ultra high resolution display technology, every interaction on the fitness watch is a visual delight with vibrant colors and crisp clarity. Its always on display clock makes the time conveniently visible. Experience convenience like never before with the intuitive full touch controls and the side button, switch between apps, and customize settings with seamless precision.
【Comprehensive 24/7 Health Monitoring】The fitness watches for women and men packs 24/7 heart rate, 24/7 blood pressure and blood oxygen monitors. You could check those real-time health metrics anytime, anywhere on your wrist and view the data record in the App. The heart rate monitor watch also tracks different sleep stages for light and deep sleep,and the time when you wake up, helps you to get a better understanding of your sleep quality.
【120+ exercise modes & All-Day Activity Tracking】There are more than 120 exercise modes available in the activity trackers and smartwatches, covering almost all daily sports activities you can imagine, gives you new ways to train and advanced metrics for more information about your workout performance. The all-day activity tracking feature monitors your steps, distance, and calories burned all the day, so you can see how much progress you've made towards your fitness goals.
【Messages & Incoming Calls Notification】With this smart watch fitness trackers for iPhone and android phones, you can receive notifications for incoming calls and read messages directly from your wrist without taking out your phone. Never miss a beat, stay in touch with loved ones, and stay informed of important updates wherever you are.
【Essential Assistant for Daily Life】The fitness watches for women and men provide you with more features including drinking water and sedentary reminder, women's menstrual period reminder, breath training, real-time weather display, remote camera shooting, music control,timer, stopwatch, finding phone, alarm clock, making it a considerate life assistant. With the GPS connectivity, you could get a map of your workout route in the app for outdoor activity by connecting to your phone GPS.

No. 3

LIVIKEY Fitness Tracker Watch with Heart Rate Monitor, Activity Tracker with Pedometer, Sleep Monitor, Calories & Step Counter, IP68 Waterproof Smart Watches for Women Men Fitness Watch for Sports

Heart Rate and Sleep Monitoring: The Fitness Tracker monitors your heart rate automatically all day, and you can select manual mode through the App. The fitness Watch also monitors your sleep at night, providing a detailed analysis of your sleep quality (deep sleep, light sleep, awake time). It is a health advisor for women men in daily life.
Multi Sport Modes with Activity Tracking: The fitness tracker features 9 sport modes like running, walking and more. Additionally, the activity tracker records daily steps, calories burned, walking distance and active time throughout the day. You can also set a daily steps goals through the App to track your progress.
Smart Notification Reminder: You can get SMS messages, and SNS notifications directly on your wrist including Facebook, Twitter, Gmail ect. You won't miss any important calls and message and stay updated. Please note: the smart watch can not make calls or text.
Long Battery Life and IP68 Waterproof: This smart watch only requires 2 hours of charging and can be used for 5-7 days continuously. IP68 waterproof rating can withstand daily sweat, washing hands and rainy day, allowing you to fully enjoy your workouts.
More Functions & Compatibility: Fitness watch comes with multiple smart functions such as stopwatch, alarm clock, breathing guide and sedentary alert, enhancing convenience to your daily routine. The tracker is compatible with iPhone Android Phones which run on iOS 8.0 or Android OS 4.0 & Bluetooth 4.0 or above. Please note that it is not compatible with tablets or computers.

No. 4

Apple Watch SE 3 [GPS 40mm] Smartwatch with Starlight Aluminum Case with Starlight Sport Band - S/M. Fitness and Sleep Trackers, Heart Rate Monitor, Always-On Display, Water Resistant

HEALTH ESSENTIALS — Temperature sensing enables richer insights in the Vitals app* and retrospective ovulation estimates.* You’ll also get a daily sleep score, sleep apnea notifications,* and be alerted if you have a high or low heart rate or an irregular rhythm.*
GREAT BATTERY LIFE — Enjoy all-day, 18-hour battery life. Then charge up to twice as fast as SE 2* and get up to 8 hours of battery in just 15 minutes.*
ALWAYS-ON DISPLAY — Now you can read the time and see the watch face without raising your wrist to wake the display.
A GREAT FITNESS PARTNER — SE 3 gives you a healthy number of ways to track your workouts. With real-time metrics and Workout Buddy powered by Apple Intelligence from your nearby iPhone,* you’ll hit your goals like never before.
STAY CONNECTED — Send a text, take a call, listen to music and podcasts, use Siri, and get notifications. SE 3 (GPS) works with your iPhone or Wi-Fi to keep you connected.

No. 5

USMECBL Fitness Trackers,Blood Oxygen Heart Rate Sleep Monitor,Smart Band 24/7 Health Monitoring,Calorie Pedometer Steps Counter Activity watchs/Notifications for iOS/Android

【10-14 Day Long Battery Life – Wear It Day and Night】Forget daily charging anxiety. A single, full charge powers up to 7 days of continuous use. Monitor your sleep seamlessly every night and enjoy worry-free weekends or travel without carrying a charger. Running watch Regular use up to 10-14 days, standby for 30 days.
【24/7 Accurate Health Monitoring】Keep a close eye on your well-being with all-day automatic heart rate tracking, detailed sleep stage analysis (deep, light, awake), blood oxygen (SpO2) saturation monitoring. Gain valuable insights into your body's patterns and make informed decisions about your health.
【25 Sports Modes & Smart Activity Tracking】Track virtually any activity with 25 built-in modes (Cycling, tennis, football, baseball, cricket, rugby, dancing, sit-ups, gymnastics, rowing, jumping jacks, hockey, etc). It automatically records your steps, distance, and calories burned. The built-in stopwatch helps you time your workouts precisely, helping you crush your fitness goals.
【 Universal Compatibility & Stable Connection】Works seamlessly with both iOS and Android smartphones. Receive call, text, and app notifications (SNS) reliably on your wrist. The Bluetooth connection is stable, so you stay connected without constantly re-pairing.
【 Smarter Daily Life Management】More than a tracker, it's your personal assistant. Control your phone's music, check the weather forecast, find your phone with a tap, and use the "Shake-to-Take" feature to remotely control your phone's camera. Customize alerts to avoid notification overload.

No. 6

Fitness Tracker with Heart Rate/Blood Oxygen/Sleep Monitor, 20+ Sports Modes Smart Watches for Women/Men, Activity & Step Tracker Smart Watch for Android/iOS Phones (Dark Black)

【24/7 Heart Rate Monitor 】This blood pressure watch supports real-time dynamic heart rate, blood oxygen, blood pressure ,Sleep Tracking,temperature monitoring so you can know more about your physical condition.
【Sleep Tracking 】The Smart watches monitors your sleep and analyzes your sleep quality through Deep Sleep, Light Sleep, Awake stage, gives you a nightly sleep score in the app, leading a healthy lifestyle.
【25 Sport Modes Activity Tracker】you can select any number of sports modes in the app as your exclusive sports mode to record your sports data.can record all daily health data such as steps, distance, and calorie consumption in the App "Keep Health"
【1.10 inch AMOLED HD Touchscreen】 The durable stainless steel frame of C60 pairs flawlessly with the Skin-friendly fitness straps, while its 1.10 inch AMOLED HD Touch Color Screen design and multitude of invigorating watch faces blow you away any moment
【Smart Functions】An easy-to-use activity fitness tracker with various intelligent features. Including Call & Message Reminder,Remote Photograph, Drink Water Reminder, Sedentary Reminder, Female Health,Family Health, Alarm Clock, Stopwatch, Find Device, etc

No. 7

Apple Watch SE 3 [GPS 44mm] Smartwatch with Midnight Aluminum Case with Midnight Sport Band - M/L. Fitness and Sleep Trackers, Heart Rate Monitor, Always-On Display, Water Resistant

HEALTH ESSENTIALS — Temperature sensing enables richer insights in the Vitals app* and retrospective ovulation estimates.* You’ll also get a daily sleep score, sleep apnea notifications,* and be alerted if you have a high or low heart rate or an irregular rhythm.*
GREAT BATTERY LIFE — Enjoy all-day, 18-hour battery life. Then charge up to twice as fast as SE 2* and get up to 8 hours of battery in just 15 minutes.*
ALWAYS-ON DISPLAY — Now you can read the time and see the watch face without raising your wrist to wake the display.
A GREAT FITNESS PARTNER — SE 3 gives you a healthy number of ways to track your workouts. With real-time metrics and Workout Buddy powered by Apple Intelligence from your nearby iPhone,* you’ll hit your goals like never before.
STAY CONNECTED — Send a text, take a call, listen to music and podcasts, use Siri, and get notifications. SE 3 (GPS) works with your iPhone or Wi-Fi to keep you connected.

No. 8

LIVIKEY Fitness Tracker Watch with Heart Rate Monitor, Activity Tracker with Pedometer, Sleep Monitor, Calories & Step Counter, IP68 Waterproof Smart Watches for Women Men Fitness Watch for Sports

Heart Rate and Sleep Monitoring: The Fitness Tracker monitors your heart rate automatically all day, and you can select manual mode through the App. The fitness Watch also monitors your sleep at night, providing a detailed analysis of your sleep quality (deep sleep, light sleep, awake time). It is a health advisor for women men in daily life.
Multi Sport Modes with Activity Tracking: The fitness tracker features 9 sport modes like running, walking and more. Additionally, the activity tracker records daily steps, calories burned, walking distance and active time throughout the day. You can also set a daily steps goals through the App to track your progress.
Smart Notification Reminder: You can get SMS messages, and SNS notifications directly on your wrist including Facebook, Twitter, Gmail ect. You won't miss any important calls and message and stay updated. Please note: the smart watch can not make calls or text.
Long Battery Life and IP68 Waterproof: This smart watch only requires 2 hours of charging and can be used for 5-7 days continuously. IP68 waterproof rating can withstand daily sweat, washing hands and rainy day, allowing you to fully enjoy your workouts.
More Functions & Compatibility: Fitness watch comes with multiple smart functions such as stopwatch, alarm clock, breathing guide and sedentary alert, enhancing convenience to your daily routine. The tracker is compatible with iPhone Android Phones which run on iOS 8.0 or Android OS 4.0 & Bluetooth 4.0 or above. Please note that it is not compatible with tablets or computers.

The Essential Buying Guide for Your Apple Watch Heart Rate Monitor App

The Apple Watch is a fantastic tool for tracking your health. A big part of that is monitoring your heart rate. Choosing the right heart rate app makes a big difference. This guide helps you pick the best one for your needs.

Key Features to Look For

When you look at different heart rate monitor apps, some features stand out. These features make the app useful and easy to use.

Accurate Readings and Consistency

Accuracy: The app must give readings close to what a medical device would show. Check reviews to see if users trust the numbers.
Real-Time Updates: You want the heart rate to show up quickly on your screen. Slow updates make tracking during exercise hard.
Background Monitoring: A good app keeps checking your heart rate even when you are not actively using it. This helps catch important changes throughout the day.

Data Presentation and History

Easy Charts: The app should show your heart rate data using clear graphs. You should easily see your resting heart rate versus your active rate.
Historical Tracking: You need to store weeks or months of data. This lets you spot trends over time.
Export Options: Sometimes you need to share your data with a doctor. Look for apps that let you export your readings easily.

Important Materials (Software Aspects)

Since this is software, “materials” mean the technology and design behind the app.

Compatibility and Integration

iOS and watchOS Support: Make sure the app works perfectly with your current Apple Watch model and iPhone operating system. Older apps might not run well on new devices.
Health App Integration: The app should share data smoothly with Apple’s built-in Health app. This keeps all your fitness data in one place.
Third-Party Connections: If you use other fitness apps like Strava or MyFitnessPal, check if the heart rate app connects to them.

Interface Design

Simplicity: The design must be clean. You should find the information you need in just a couple of taps, especially when you are running or busy.
Watch Face Complications: Look for apps that let you put a small heart rate reading directly onto your Apple Watch face. This offers instant access.

Factors That Improve or Reduce Quality

What makes one app better than another? It often comes down to performance and support.

Quality Boosters

Low Battery Drain: A high-quality app monitors your heart without quickly draining your Apple Watch battery.
Custom Alerts: The best apps let you set custom alarms for when your heart rate goes too high or too low for a certain period.
Regular Updates: Developers who frequently update their apps fix bugs and add new features.

Quality Reducers

Cluttered Screens: Too many ads or confusing menus make an app frustrating to use.
Inaccurate Calibration: If the app consistently gives strange readings, it loses trust quickly.
Slow Loading Times: Waiting for data to load slows down your workout routine.

User Experience and Use Cases

How you use the app matters most. Think about when you will check your heart rate most often.

Common Use Cases

During Workouts: You need an app that focuses on zone training. It should clearly show your current heart rate zone (like fat burn or cardio).
Resting Heart Rate Tracking: For general health checks, an app that tracks your sleep and resting rate is vital for long-term health insights.
Irregular Rhythm Notifications: Some advanced apps look for signs of conditions like Atrial Fibrillation (AFib). These apps provide an extra layer of safety.

A great user experience means the app fades into the background when you don’t need it, but provides precise information instantly when you do.

10 Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) about Apple Watch Heart Rate Apps

Q: Do I need a separate app if my Apple Watch already shows my heart rate?

A: Yes, sometimes. The built-in app shows the current rate, but third-party apps often offer better historical tracking, custom alerts, or deeper integration with specific workout types.

Q: Are third-party heart rate apps safe to use with my personal data?

A: Generally, yes, if you download them from the official Apple App Store. Always check the privacy policy to see how they handle your health information.

Q: How do I know if an app is accurate?

A: Look for apps that mention clinical testing or have many reviews from users who compare the readings to chest strap monitors, which are often considered the gold standard.

Q: Can these apps track my heart rate while swimming?

A: Many modern Apple Watch heart rate apps support water resistance, but you must confirm this feature specifically before purchasing or downloading.

Q: Will using a heart rate app drain my Apple Watch battery too fast?

A: Apps that check the heart rate very frequently (like every few seconds) will drain the battery more. Good apps manage this efficiently.

Q: What is a “Heart Rate Zone,” and why do I need an app for it?

A: Heart Rate Zones are percentages of your maximum heart rate that show how hard you are working (e.g., recovery, endurance). Apps display these zones clearly during exercise.

Q: What is resting heart rate, and why is it important?

A: Resting heart rate is how fast your heart beats when you are calm or sleeping. A lower resting rate usually means your heart is strong and healthy.

Q: Do I have to pay for the best heart rate apps?

A: Many apps offer a free basic version, but the best features, like advanced analytics and custom alerts, usually require a one-time purchase or a monthly subscription.

Q: How do I fix it if my heart rate reading seems wrong?

A: First, make sure the Apple Watch band is snug—not too tight, but touching your skin firmly. If the problem continues, try restarting both your watch and your phone.

Q: Can these apps notify me if my heart rate is too high when I am not exercising?

A: Yes, this is a key feature in many premium apps. They send a notification to your watch and phone if your heart rate stays elevated above your set limit while you are inactive.