Quick Answer:No, you do not need a Fitbit Premium subscription to use the Google Pixel Watch 2. However, the Pixel Watch 2 comes with a complimentary six-month trial for the service.
Google’s second-generation smartwatch, thePixel Watch 2, is here, and it’s one ofour favorite smartwatches. Google’s latest wearable brings a slew of updates over its predecessor that range from a newer, faster processor to new and updated sensors for gathering deeper insights into your health. The Pixel Watch 2 also borrows features once exclusive to Fitbit smartwatches, like the ability to detect stress levels, a feature enabled by a new continuous electrodermal activity (cEDA) sensor. With deeper, closer integration with Fitbit products and plenty of Fitbit branding on its box and in its software, you may be wondering whether a Fitbit Premium subscription is needed to use the Google Pixel Watch 2. Let’s talk about it.
Is a Fitbit Premium subscription mandatory to use the Google Pixel Watch 2?
As already outlined in the quick answer section above, we have already established that you do not need a Fitbit Premium subscription to use the Google Pixel Watch 2.
The Google Pixel Watch 2 is a full-fledged smartwatch based on Google’s Wear OS platform. It is, therefore, similar to competing Wear OS-powered smartwatches from the likes of Samsung, Fitbit, Garmin, and Fossil. While the Pixel Watch uses Fitbit to track health data, a paid subscription is not required to use the Fitbit app, either on your Pixel Watch, or the companion app on your Android phone.
With an optional Fitbit Premium subscription ($10 per month or $100 per year), you will be given access to additional features like a Daily Readiness Score, Sleep Profile, Stress Management Score, detailed wellness reports, and access to a library of video and audio wellness content. But basic features like step and exercise tracking and sleep tracking do not require a subscription.
Why does the Google Pixel Watch 2 come with a Fitbit Premium trial?
Given Google prominently advertises that the Pixel Watch 2 comes with a six-month subscription to the Fitbit Premium, it may seem like an active subscription is required to use the device, as is the case with some other trackers like those from Oura and Whoop. But that’s not the case.
To understand why Google does this, we need to understand that Fitbit is a Google-owned company that itacquired back in 2021. Since the acquisition, Google has been bringing several Fitbit features to its products. This process is likely to continue in the foreseeable future as well, especially because Fitbit is a well-known brand in the fitness and wellness space, and Google would want to leverage it as much as possible.
Google Pixel Watch 2
Now that you know you do not need a Fitbit subscription to use the Google Pixel Watch 2, let us reassure you that it is actually a great smartwatch with several improvements over its predecessor. It still looks as chic as the first gen Pixel Watch, but gets a much faster processor, and features a bunch of improvements thanks to a plethora of improved and new sensors.
