Fitbit users have been struggling with ‘very frustrating’ app bugs for months

Users of the Fitbit app on iOS and Android have reported issues with the app syncing and collecting and displaying accurate data. Some have been complaining about these issues since at least April, and Fitbit has been working on fixing the syncing issues since at least September 3. However, Fitbit, which is affiliated with Google, has not said when it expects the bugs to be fully resolved.

On September 3, an update appeared on the Fitbit Status Dashboard indicating a service disruption, indicating an incident affecting the Web API.

“Some users may notice data discrepancies or syncing issues between (third-party) apps and Fitbit. Our team is currently investigating the cause of the issue,” the dashboard says.

On September 3, Fitbit also released version 4.24 of its mobile apps. It’s unclear whether the update is related to the problems. At least some of the complaints in this story began to come to light before September.

Owners of older and newer Fitbit devices have taken to the company’s online support forum to discuss software issues they’re allegedly having. There are several threads with dozens of pages of responses pointing to issues like the app dashboard “deleting steps and not syncing properly,” steps being recorded but not distance traveled, the app seemingly displaying inaccurate data, and other bugs.

When asked for comment on the complaints, a Google spokesperson told Ars Technica, “We are aware of the issue and are working hard to resolve it.”

Monthly problems

Some complaints about the apps have persisted for months. Fitbit representatives said online that the issues are being worked on.

For example, in an 11-page thread on the Fitbit community forum, users say the app incorrectly claims they’ve taken roughly the same number of steps per day for several days in a row. The thread started on April 10. On September 8, a Fitbit moderator said Fitbit was “aware of the situation and working to resolve it.”

“We haven’t received a time frame yet on how long it will take for our team to resolve this issue. Hopefully, it will be fixed soon,” Fitbit moderator JuanFitbit said.

In another thread, started July 3, a Charge 5 user claimed that his iOS was tracking steps but not miles. On September 18, JuanFitbit wrote in the thread, “We still haven’t received word on how long this will take. But our team is treating this as a high priority.”

“Incredibly irritating”

As you might expect, constant bugs and broken features left users disappointed and looking for solutions.

“This is incredibly annoying,” forum user MonkeyPants wrote on Sept. 11. “The app has constant sync issues, especially with One.”

Since acquiring Fitbit in 2021, Google has made sweeping changes to the platform, including removing the online dashboard, social features and the ability to sync Fitbits with computers. Some longtime Fitbit owners have accused Google of cutting Fitbit support and quality in favor of Google Pixel watches. Google, for its part, has denied it will discontinue Fitbit products.

On the Fitbit forum, user DustyStone claimed to be having issues with the app’s dashboard losing steps and not syncing properly. He claimed that this happened with both his old Fitbit One and his newly purchased Inspire 3:

It seems like Google just messed up the app somehow. What’s worse is that nothing has changed in weeks. Google is a major league tech company. But their response to this issue and the removal of Fitbit’s web platform shows that this may no longer be true.

Similarly, MBWaldo stated that he’s “not sure how serious the Fitbit team is about fixing” the app’s issues, while also lamenting the lack of a web-based dashboard, as was the case with countless other users we’ve seen.

“Very frustrating!!!!” MBWaldo wrote. “I’ve had this for a few days now. I’ve deleted and reinstalled the app, unpaired and re-paired the ONE, and searched the app store for an update – NADA. And of course the dashboard is no longer available on fitbit.com.”

Fixed some application issues

Based on information from the Fitbit forums, it seems that at least some of the recently reported software issues have been fixed.

For example, some customers recently reported an issue with the “Workout Days” app tiles not loading properly. Some users also said that they no longer had an issue with the app displaying calorie counts for future days.

You only need to go back to the recent Sonos app scandal to be reminded of how important it is to ensure that software changes don’t negatively impact the experience of existing hardware. A company’s bad app and slow response to issues can ruin otherwise working hardware and discourage future purchases.

While this is different from the Charge 5 battery issues that were suspected to be caused by a firmware update — Google has denied that this was the case but has not provided an alternative answer — it’s still an improvement that Google is at least acknowledging the app’s issues. But killing the feature, combined with a broken app experience, won’t help the wearable brand’s flawed reputation. Fixes are reportedly in the works, but for some, it may be too little, too late.