Oura Ring vs Ultrahuman review: Best Picks tests the top smart rings for sleep, recovery and fitness tracking

7NEWS

16-07-2025

From 'caffeine windows' to 'social jet lag' and 'sleep scores', I road-tested both smart rings to see which one really gets under your skin.
As someone who regularly falls asleep with a wellness podcast playing and has a vitamin D deficiency despite living in Sydney, I like to think I'm self-aware when it comes to health.
But there's nothing like two rings competing on your finger to really call you out on your daily habits.
Over the past two months, I've been testing the Ultrahuman Ring and the Oura Ring side-by-side.
I've worn them both during sleep, on walks, while cleaning my apartment, and even during a red-eye flight to see how they track recovery and rest.
Each promises to give you a deeper understanding of your health, sleep, recovery, and movement, but they do it in very different ways.
Here's my honest, first-hand experience comparing the two.
Price and subscription: one ring to rule them all?
Let's talk money first, because there's a noticeable difference.
The Oura Ring Gen 4 comes in at $569 in Australia for standard finishes, or a whopping $799 if you want the gold.
That's before the monthly $9.99 subscription fee, which is required to unlock the full experience, including detailed readiness, sleep and activity data. Without it, the ring is basically a stylish sleep tracker.
On the other hand, the Ultrahuman Ring retails for $599 and it available to shop on Amazon Australia regardless of the colour you choose and comes with lifetime access to your data.
No subscription, no locked features, and definitely no paywall guilt if you forget to cancel your free trial.
That alone makes it a solid choice if you're subscription-fatigued (aren't we all?).
Design and wearability
Both rings are sleek and comfortable, but I do slightly prefer the look of the Oura Ring. It feels a little more polished, almost like a designer accessory, while the Ultrahuman has a more tech-forward aesthetic. Not unattractive by any means, just different.
They're roughly the same weight and thickness, and I got used to wearing both fairly quickly. Battery life is comparable, with around five to six days between charges for each ring.
Sleep tracking: Oura takes the lead (for now).
I have to give the edge to the Oura Ring here.
Its sleep tracking feels a touch more dialled in, and the way it breaks down your sleep stages and gives you a nightly 'readiness' score is incredibly helpful.
It knows when I've had a rough night or a random nap, and it's scarily accurate at detecting when I'm asleep or just lying in bed on my phone pretending to wind down.
The Ultrahuman Ring is not far behind, and to its credit, it has something Oura doesn't: the 'Social Jet Lag' feature.
This clever metric compares your weekday and weekend sleep patterns to determine your circadian misalignment. Mine, oddly enough, is set to Adelaide — despite me living in Sydney — because my sleep timing maps closer to two hours west.
It's an eye-opener that made me more conscious of staying up too late on 'free' nights and the impact that has on my energy levels midweek.
Ultrahuman also offers a 'Caffeine Permissible Window,' which I love.
Based on your sleep and wake patterns, it recommends the best time to have caffeine for optimal performance without messing up your sleep later.
For someone who often mistakes coffee for breakfast, this has genuinely changed my routine.
Activity and movement tracking
The Oura Ring deserves credit for how intuitive it is at detecting activity.
I'll vacuum the house or run around doing errands, and it logs that movement, including calorie burn, without me needing to tag it.
It knows when I'm on a walk versus casually standing. This passive tracking feels effortless and motivating.
Ultrahuman leans more into performance and metabolic health.
It has a 'movement index' that gives you a more nuanced look at the quality and distribution of your daily activity.
It's not just steps; it considers how intense your movement is across the day. If you've ever hit your step count but still felt sluggish, this might explain why.
Both rings prompt you to move when you've been idle too long, and both track heart rate variability and recovery, but the emphasis differs. Oura feels a bit more lifestyle-y. Ultrahuman is for those who want a slightly more performance-driven lens.
Health insights and extras
One of the standout features of Ultrahuman is its 'Ultra Age' and 'Brain Age' metrics. According to the ring, I'm three years younger than my actual age — thank you very much — and that little ego boost alone might be worth the price. It's a fun, science-backed way to look at how your lifestyle choices are stacking up over time.
The Oura app lets you snap photos of your meals and track your nutrition manually. While it doesn't offer full-blown macro counting or meal analysis, I found it useful to keep tabs on my general eating patterns. It made me think twice about my portion sizes and timing of meals, especially when reviewing my sleep scores the next day.
Ultrahuman, meanwhile, includes a vitamin D tracker — though you need to manually log how long you've been in the sun. As someone who's clinically low in D, I'd love for it to include a built-in sensor to measure sun exposure. Still, it's a nudge I didn't know I needed.
The winner (so far)
After two months of Ultrahuman and just under one month of Oura, I'm not ready to crown a winner, mostly because I like different things about each.
If I had to make a decision based on what's impacted my habits the most, Ultrahuman probably has the edge.
It's made me think more intentionally about when I drink caffeine, how consistent my sleep is, and how my circadian rhythm affects my energy and mood.
But Oura still wins on sleep tracking accuracy, passive activity detection, and meal logging. I also like the design of the Oura Ring more, and the daily summaries feel a little more digestible and beginner-friendly.
Both rings have changed the way I look at my health. I'm going to bed earlier, moving more during the day, and actually thinking about recovery, not just steps and calories.
Ultimately, it comes down to what kind of feedback you respond to. Ultrahuman pushes you to optimise. Oura encourages balance.
If you want a data-rich, no-subscription experience with a few fun extras (hello, Brain Age), the Ultrahuman Ring is a solid pick.