This article explains how to manually sync your Fitbit with an Android phone or iPhone using the Fitbit app. While data automatically syncs to the Fitbit during the day, you may want to perform a manual sync at some point.

What to Know

  • Turn on the Fitbit and confirm the phone’s Bluetooth is enabled. Ensure your Fitbit device and phone are close.Open the Fitbit app on your phone and tap Today. Press and hold the screen and pull down for a manual sync.Or, tap Today, select your profile icon, select your device icon, and then tap Sync Now.

How to Sync a Fitbit to Your iPhone or Android

Syncing your Fitbit device to your iPhone or Android smartphone is the fastest and easiest way to send your latest fitness activity to your Fitbit account.

After you download the Fitbit Health and Fitness app and perform the initial setup on your smartphone, your Fitbit tracker routinely syncs to your smartphone throughout the day. You usually don’t need to manually sync your data.

However, you can manually sync your Fitbit with your smartphone, perhaps to meet a Fitbit Challenge deadline so you can add your activity before the Challenge ends. Here’s how it works:

  • Turn on the Fitbit tracker and ensure Bluetooth is enabled on your phone.
  • With your Fitbit device nearby, open the Fitbit Health and Fitness app on your phone and tap Today.
  • Press and hold on the app screen, and then pull down on the screen. Your devices will manually sync.
  • Optionally, tap Today, select your profile icon, select your device icon, and then tap Sync Now.

Your Fitbit syncs with the app, and a progress bar appears. The entire sync takes no more than a few seconds.

Turn on the Fitbit tracker and ensure Bluetooth is enabled on your phone.

With your Fitbit device nearby, open the Fitbit Health and Fitness app on your phone and tap Today.

Press and hold on the app screen, and then pull down on the screen. Your devices will manually sync.

Optionally, tap Today, select your profile icon, select your device icon, and then tap Sync Now.

Fitbit Syncing Tips and Solutions

Here are a few common Fitbit syncing issues and solutions.

  • Ensure Bluetooth is turned on: Bluetooth is essential for a Fitbit device to sync with a phone or PC. Ensure Bluetooth is enabled on your device. If you have a habit of putting your device in Airplane Mode (which turns off Bluetooth), turn it off before trying to sync your fitness data.
  • Only sync to one device at a time. One of the common causes of sync errors is a Fitbit device pairing with more than one device simultaneously. While you can pair the Fitbit to multiple devices, you can only receive notifications from one. Syncing to too many devices can cause the Fitbit to refuse to sync. You’ll then need to perform Fitbit syncing issue fixes, which may include a hard reset. An easy solution to this problem is turning on Bluetooth only on the device to which you want to sync your Fitbit.
  • Xbox One consoles can’t sync Fitbits. The official Fitbit app may be available on Microsoft’s Xbox One video game consoles. Still, you can’t sync your Fitbit devices with it due to the console hardware not having Bluetooth functionality. You can use the Xbox One Fitbit app to check your stats and leaderboards.

What Happens During a Fitbit Mobile Sync?

When syncing your Fitbit device to your smartphone, the Fitbit hardware wirelessly connects to your phone via Bluetooth. During this process, your fitness activity goes to the Fitbit app on your mobile device, which sends all the new information to the Fitbit servers via Wi-Fi or your mobile network.

The Fitbit app can also send information to the Fitbit device during a sync. If another source collects fitness activity for the same account, the info downloads to the tracker to reflect the correct amount of exercise performed on that day. Syncing can also update a Fitbit tracker’s time during daylight savings time or traveling to a different time zone.

  • How do I sync Apple Health with my Fitbit?
  • There is currently no official support for syncing your Fitbit with Apple Health or the Apple Watch. However, there are several third party apps like MyFitnessSync that allow you to share data from the Watch to your Fitbit account.
  • How do I sync my Fitbit to a computer?
  • Download the Fitbit app to the computer and open it, then sign in or create a new account. Plug in the USB dongle that comes with the Fitbit, choose it from the list of models presented in the Fitbit app, and select Set Up Your [device name]. Follow the on-screen instructions to finish syncing.

There is currently no official support for syncing your Fitbit with Apple Health or the Apple Watch. However, there are several third party apps like MyFitnessSync that allow you to share data from the Watch to your Fitbit account.

Download the Fitbit app to the computer and open it, then sign in or create a new account. Plug in the USB dongle that comes with the Fitbit, choose it from the list of models presented in the Fitbit app, and select Set Up Your [device name]. Follow the on-screen instructions to finish syncing.

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