Verdict: The Oura Ring 5 is the best sleep-tracking ring you can buy in the UK, and the one with the most independent research behind it. It is now small enough to pass as an ordinary band. The drawbacks are money: £399 to start, £499 for most colours, and £69.99 a year for the membership that unlocks the useful parts, while some of the newest health features have not reached the UK.
- Product: Oura Ring 5 (Oura Ring 4 still on sale)
- Maker: Oura Health, Finland
- Price: £399 (Silver, Black), £499 (Gold, Stealth, Brushed Silver, Deep Rose)
- Membership: £5.99 a month or £69.99 a year; first month included for new members
- Battery: 6 to 9 days, depending on size and use
- Size and weight: 6.09mm wide, 2.28mm thick, from 2g
- Water resistance: 100m
- Sizes: US 6 to 13 (sizing kit recommended)
- Phones: iPhone and Android
- Promo Code: None. Oura has no standing public promo code; John Lewis says its Oura sizing kit includes a £10 coupon towards the ring
What the Oura Ring does
Oura reads your pulse through optical sensors on the inside of the ring, along with skin temperature and movement. Overnight, it estimates when you fell asleep, how long you spent in light, deep and REM sleep, how often you woke, and your resting heart rate and heart rate variability. In the morning it rolls that into three numbers: Sleep, Readiness and Activity.
The Ring 5, released on 4 June 2026, keeps the Ring 4’s sensor set in a smaller shell. Oura says the new sensor domes use more powerful LEDs and 12 signal pathways, which it claims improve overnight and workout heart rate. The ring is about 40% smaller than the Ring 4, titanium inside and out, with a new PVD coating meant to resist scratches.
New software arrived with it. Live Activity Tracking shows pace and distance during runs, rides and strength sessions. Nighttime Breathing gives a 30-day view of breathing during sleep. Health Radar, Blood Pressure Signals and Nighttime Blood Pressure were launched only in the US, India and the UAE, and Oura Health Records is limited to 43 US states. Blood pressure is inferred from the ring’s signals, not measured with a cuff.
Price and plans
The Ring 5 costs £399 in Silver or Black and £499 in Gold, Stealth, Brushed Silver or Deep Rose. Engadget’s reviewer put it bluntly: the extra £100 buys a different finish, nothing else. An optional charging case, which holds up to five recharges, costs £99 and must match your ring size.
The membership is £5.99 a month or £69.99 paid yearly. It is tied to your Oura account, not the ring, so it carries over if you upgrade. Over two years, a Silver Ring 5 costs about £539 all in. The Ring 4 launched at £349 and is now much cheaper at UK retailers (Argos listed it at £244 when we checked), and Oura has pushed most of the new software, including live workout tracking, to Ring 4 and Ring 3 owners.
What we liked
It finally disappears on the finger. At 2.28mm thick and around 2g in small sizes, the Ring 5 is the slimmest ring in our best smart rings guide. Earlier Ouras were obviously gadgets; this one passes for jewellery.
The battery is honest. Oura rates it at six to nine days. Engadget found the ring lasting from a Saturday until a low-battery warning the following Monday, which suggests the official figure is cautious.
The evidence base is the deepest of any ring. A 2024 study in Sleep Medicine (Svensson and colleagues, 96 Japanese adults, up to three nights each) compared the Oura Gen3 with its current sleep algorithm against home polysomnography. It found 94.4% sensitivity for sleep, about 73% to 75% specificity for wake, and stage accuracy between 75.5% for light sleep and 90.6% for REM. A smaller 2024 study in Sensors, funded by Oura, found the ring’s four-stage agreement with polysomnography higher than an Apple Watch Series 8 or Fitbit Sense 2. Those studies tested the Gen3; Oura says Ring 5 accuracy is better still, which we have not seen independently confirmed.
The app explains itself. Scores come with short explanations and trend charts that make sense on the first morning. It is the most readable sleep app we have looked at.
What we did not like
Paying twice. No other mainstream ring charges both a premium hardware price and a membership. RingConn, Ultrahuman and Samsung charge once.
UK owners get less. The features that made headlines at launch, Health Radar and the blood pressure tools, were not available in the UK. Engadget’s UK-based reviewer could not test Health Radar at all.
Scores can mislead. Engadget’s reviewer scored 84 for sleep after a night they described as sleepless, because the Sleep score measures sleep structure as the ring sees it, not how you felt. The Readiness score, which fell to 56, was closer to reality. That gap is a reminder that the ring estimates; it does not see brainwaves.
Colour costs £100. The premium finishes are coatings, not different materials.
Health notes
Oura is a wellness device, not a diagnostic one. Temperature trends can hint at illness or cycle changes, and breathing data can show patterns, but neither replaces a test. If you notice repeated low blood oxygen readings, loud snoring with pauses in breathing, or persistent daytime sleepiness, speak to your GP, who can arrange a proper sleep study. If you are on medication that affects heart rate, such as beta blockers, expect readiness and heart rate data to look different and ask your pharmacist how to read them.
How the Oura Ring compares
Oura Ring 5 vs RingConn Gen 3. RingConn costs less, needs no subscription and lasts up to 14 days per charge against Oura’s six to nine. It also vibrates for alerts. Oura is smaller, has the better app and far more published validation. If the yearly fee is the deal-breaker, read our RingConn review.
Oura Ring 5 vs Samsung Galaxy Ring. The Galaxy Ring costs the same £399 RRP (often £299), has no membership and suits Samsung phone owners, but does not work with iPhones and has not been updated since 2024.
Oura Ring 5 vs Ultrahuman Ring Pro. Ultrahuman’s Pro lasts up to 15 days, stores 250 days of data and has no compulsory subscription, but at 2.65mm it is thicker and heavier.
Who should buy the Oura Ring
Buy it if sleep is your main interest, you want the clearest app and the best-studied hardware, and £69.99 a year does not bother you. Choose the discounted Ring 4 if you can accept a slightly larger band. Skip it if you hate subscriptions, want two weeks between charges, or were hoping for the US blood pressure features in the UK.
Oura Ring FAQs
Can you use an Oura Ring without a membership?
Yes, but only basic scores remain. The detailed sleep stages, readiness insights and trend history need the £5.99 monthly or £69.99 yearly membership.
What is the difference between Oura Ring 4 and Ring 5?
The Ring 5 is about 40% smaller, rated for about a day more battery, and uses redesigned sensor domes. Most new software features have also reached the Ring 4, which UK retailers now sell for well under the Ring 5’s £399.
How accurate is the Oura Ring for sleep?
Among the best of any consumer wearable. In a 2024 Sleep Medicine study, the Gen3 identified sleep 94.4% of the time compared with polysomnography, but it was weaker at catching brief wake periods. Our sleep tracker accuracy guide covers the research.
Does Oura measure blood pressure?
No. Its Blood Pressure Signals feature infers possible raised blood pressure from ring data and is not available in the UK. Use a validated cuff monitor if you need readings.
Which finger should I wear the Oura Ring on?
Oura recommends the index finger, with the middle or ring finger next best, and suggests avoiding fingers with large knuckles. Fit matters more than the finger: the sensors need steady contact with the skin. Wear the dummy ring from Oura’s sizing kit on your chosen finger for at least 24 hours, including a night, before ordering.
