Oura Ring 4 review: It's got this edge over Apple Watch and Samsung Galaxy Ring

Oura Ring 4 has entered the chat and is here to let you know that your Apple Watch’s one-to-two day battery life is, well, cute — I guess?

While you’re frantically searching for a charger every night, this little wearable can survive for about a week — doing so without missing a beat in tracking your health and fitness. And with competitors like the Samsung Galaxy Ring in the mix, the battle for the best wellness wearable is heating up.

I can finally put my finger on what makes the Oura Ring 4 stand out (pun fully intended). Don't roll your eyes, but it has something to do with AI.

Although I adore the Oura Ring 4, my recommendation is dependent on which device you have. I've tested the Oura Ring 4 on both my Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra as well as the iPhone 16 Pro Max — and this beastly little wearable appears to be more compatible with one over the other.

Oura Ring 4 price

The Oura Ring 4 I tested in this review comes in the Gold variant. This finish is so stunning, when I first saw it, my eyes popped out like a cartoon character that spotted a shiny treasure chest.

It costs $499 via Amazon and starts shipping on Oct. 15.

The Oura Ring 4 also comes in Black, Brushed Silver, Rose Gold, Silver, and Stealth.

The Gold colorway, in my opinion, is the most attractive.

In fact, Gold and Rose Gold are the priciest finishes at $499 (likely because they fly off Oura's shelves quite quickly) followed by Brushed Silver and Stealth at $399. Silver and Black are the cheapest at $349.

It's also worth noting that the Oura Ring requires a subscription fee that sets you back $6 a month (or $70 a year).

Oura Ring 4 sizes

Oura Ring 4 has expanded its sizing range, so whether you have slim or chubby fingers, you're more likely to find a fit.

The Oura Ring 4 comes in the following sizes: 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15.

If you don't know your size, don't fret. During your purchase journey, you'll be given a sizing kit so you can order the right size for yourself.

Keep in mind that an Oura rep told me that the index finger is the most ideal place for your ring, which leaves your ring finger empty for trinkets like engagement and wedding rings (and other decorative jewelry). Interestingly, my ring finger requires a size 5, but my index finger is a size 7. As such, beware that you may not be able to use the Oura Ring 4 interchangeably between one finger and another if they have different circumferences.

The fit should be snug — not too restrictive nor too loose.

Oura Ring 4 design

If you have an Oura Ring 3, you'll notice that the sensors are raised, which produces a bumpy design inside the ring. (The Samsung Galaxy Ring has a similar design.)

I never found the bumpy sensors to be much of a bother. Still, Oura is determined to stay the reigning champ of wellness rings — expertly balancing cutting-edge sensors with a sleek, minimalist design. For the fourth-generation device, Oura has recessed the sensors for an even more refined look.

For comparison, check out Mashable Senior Editor Chris Taylor’s Oura Ring 3, sitting stylishly right next to his wedding ring.

Now take a look at the Oura Ring 4's new slick, inner design.

No bumps! It's as smooth as a baby's bottom.

I wore the Oura Ring 4 for 16 days, and even after hopping into the shower with it and washing dishes, it still managed to hold up for over two weeks. The Oura Ring 4 is water resistant up to 328 feet and can handle shallow water activities, but not deep-sea diving.

However, it's still early days. I plan to write up a six-month review, too, to see if the Oura Ring 4 still looks good-as-new as time progresses.

Oura Ring 4 health and fitness features

The new Ring 4 doesn't necessarily have any new monitors nor sensors, but Oura boasts that they're more accurate (more on that later).

The Oura Ring 4 can track the following:

• Heart rate

• Heart-rate variability

• Bedtime detection

• Sleep staging

• Blood oxygen levels (spO2)

• Cardiovascular age

• Cardio Capacity

• Daytime stress and resilience

• Body clock and chronotype

• Cycle insights

• Automatic Activity Detection

So you may be wondering, "How is the Oura Ring 4 more accurate?" Long story short, Oura increased the number of signal pathways in the Ring 4 to 18, up from eight.

The additional 10 signal pathways produce more accurate readings. In fact, Oura says that it proved this by conducting research with a third-party organization and discovered the following data improvements:

• Blood oxygen sensing (SpO2) has improved by 120%, leading to a 30% boost in accuracy for average overnight SpO2 measurements

• Breathing disturbance index (BDI) is now 15% more accurate due to the enhanced signal quality

• There are 7% fewer gaps in the heart rate graph during the day

• At night, the heart rate graph shows 31% fewer gaps

I can’t personally vouch for the improvements in accuracy, as I never owned an Oura Ring 3. However, I can share my own experience with how well the Oura Ring 4 tracks workouts and other health metrics.

To clarify, I’ve only been using the Oura Ring 4 for 16 days, and certain features, like Cycle Tracking, need around two months of data to accurately predict my next period.

As such, my Oura Ring 4 is still "figuring me out." But based on what it knows of me so far, it's done an impressive job. For example, it can pick up on my stress quite well — showing an uptick of anxiety during work hours and more relaxed readings after hours while I'm watching Love Island USA on Peacock with my fiance.

Similarly, the Oura Ring 4 accurately spotted that my heart rate climbs as the day begins, but drops during nighttime and the wee hours of the day before work.

It also does a good job at recording workouts. I run on the treadmill at least three days a week. When I check the Oura app, there's often a prompt asking whether the run (or walk) that it detected is valid. All you need to do is hit confirm.

If there are days where you don't want the Oura Ring 4 to penalize you for not being active (you're given a score based on your sleep and activity), you can set up "Rest Mode" for your Oura Ring 4.

Oura Ring 4 AI advisor

The one feature on the Oura Ring 4 that gives it an edge over the Galaxy Ring and Apple Watch is the AI advisor, which is currently in experimental mode.

The Samsung Galaxy Ring that utilizes Galaxy AI to generate an Energy Score (a daily measurement that analyzes your sleep, heart rate and activity level), but Oura takes it one step further with AI, giving users an advisor that understands your data and lets you ask it questions.

This is important for someone like me who gets overwhelmed with data, from my activity levels and sleep score to my stress readings and blood oxygen readings. What does all of this mean?

Thanks to the AI advisor, I can ask it questions like, "Based on my data, what can I do to become a healthier individual?" Check out its response below.

The AI advisor accurately pointed out that I have challenges with sleep, with a bad habit of going to sleep too late. Plus, it said that I have high activity levels, but being more consistent would be helpful.

You can adjust the tone of your advisor, too. You can have it be more of a motivational coach with a smidge of tough love — or it can have a softer side. I requested the latter; the world is cruel enough as it is.

Oura Ring 4: iOS vs. Android

I've tested the Oura Ring 4 on both the iPhone 16 Pro Max and the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra.

My Oura Ring experience was more seamless on my iPhone compared to Android. For example, when you set up your Oura Ring 4 with your device, it will ask you to test the smart sensing technology. Setting it up with the iPhone 16 Pro Max went smoothly, but my Android device struggled to pick up the signals, eventually pairing after several resets.

Data like sleep information and stress populated ultra-fast on my iPhone, but it took a lot more time to converge on my Android.

Plus, the Oura app also takes into consideration information collected via the Health app on iPhone. Oura does not do the same with Samsung and other Android devices.

That being said, if you have an iPhone, don't consider any other ring but the Oura Ring 4. The Samsung Galaxy Ring plays nicely with Samsung devices and nothing more.

Oura Ring 4 battery life

Oura claims that the Ring 4 has an extra day of battery life (i.e., 8 days), up from the 7-day runtime of its predecessor.

However, in my experience, the Oura Ring 4 appeared to have the same rating as the Oura Ring 3, lasting about 6 to 7 days on a charge — not 8 days. This is in line with the Samsung Galaxy Ring. This runtime is still impressively long, and makes these wearable form factors far more appealing than my Apple Watch Series 10, which can only last up to two days.

Still, your mileage may vary. As mentioned earlier, I was using both my iPhone and Android to test the Oura Ring 4, with the latter making the wearable work quite hard because, for whatever reason, the Oura Ring 4 doesn't play as nicely with Android devices.

On another note, one thing that I prefer with the Samsung Galaxy Ring is its charging station, which doubles as a portable case.

The Oura Ring 4's charging station is a bit too exposed for my tastes.

Is the Oura Ring 4 worth it?

The Oura Ring 4 is absolutely worth it, particularly if you have an iPhone. Your experience may be different, but when I tested the Oura Ring 4 with both the iPhone 16 Pro Max and Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra, it played far more nicely with the iOS device.

Plus, the Oura app considers the data collected in your iPhone's Health app, too.

The Oura Ring 4 requires a $6-per-month subscription, but the Apple Watch and Samsung Galaxy Ring do not. However, what gives this ring the edge is its AI advisor. As someone who has trouble making sense of what the gathered data is inferring about my health, Oura's AI advisor gives me clarity.

Overall, the Oura Ring 4 is a wellness powerhouse with a sleek design and cutting-edge AI that takes personalized health tracking to the next level.