What the Oura Ring 5 Upgrade Really Is
An Oura Ring 5 upgrade is the decision to move from the fourth-generation Oura health tracking wearable to the fifth-generation smart ring, trading a bulkier build for a slimmer design, subtle performance gains, and new wellness features while weighing the added cost and subscription value. At its core, this is a smart ring comparison question: does a thinner, more comfortable band and fresh features meaningfully improve daily use? The Oura Ring 5 is redesigned to be smaller and lighter than the Ring 4, while preserving multi-day battery life and full-time health tracking. Passive blood pressure tracking, sturdier materials, and refined sensors promise a more polished experience, but data accuracy gains remain marginal. That makes the Ring 4 vs Ring 5 choice less about raw metrics and more about comfort, durability, and whether the extra features justify the higher price.
Design, Comfort, and Durability: The Everyday Differences
For most Ring 4 owners, the first noticeable change in the Oura Ring 5 upgrade is its shape and feel. Oura says the new model is 40% smaller than the Oura Ring 4, measuring 6.09mm wide and 2.28mm thick, so it sits closer to a traditional wedding band than a chunky gadget. This slimmer profile makes it less likely to rub neighboring fingers, snag during workouts, or feel intrusive during sleep and showers. According to ZDNET, the Ring 5 is “significantly thinner, nearly indistinguishable from a wedding band,” which will appeal to anyone who found the Ring 4 a bit conspicuous. Durability also improves: the Ring 5 uses a scratch-resistant vapor deposition coating and carries an IP68 rating. That should better withstand bumps, weight training, and frequent handwashing, making it a more resilient daily health tracking wearable.
New Features and Health Tracking Accuracy
The headline feature beyond the slimmer design is new passive blood pressure tracking on the Oura Ring 5, a capability the Ring 4 lacks. This addition fits into Oura’s larger promise of continuous wellness insights, adding another dimension to sleep, readiness, and activity scores. Under the hood, Oura re-engineered the hardware, adding more powerful LEDs and a new battery while refining algorithms for greater efficiency. In practice, comparisons between generations suggest health tracking accuracy differences are slight. Core metrics like sleep staging, heart rate, and daily readiness remain very close, meaning long-time Ring 4 users will not see a dramatic leap in data quality. For many, the upgrade feels more like a refinement than a reinvention: you gain passive blood pressure monitoring and polished sensing, but day-to-day trends and guidance will look familiar rather than transformational.
Battery Life, Price, and Subscription Value
Battery life nudges in the right direction, but not by a huge margin. The Oura Ring 4 offers about five to eight days per charge, while Oura rates the Ring 5 at six to nine days, helped by more efficient algorithms and updated hardware. That extra day can reduce charging friction, especially if you travel often or wear the ring overnight for sleep data. On cost, the company positions the Ring 5 as a premium step above the Ring 4: ZDNET notes it starts at USD 399 (approx. RM1,840) versus USD 349 (approx. RM1,610) for the Ring 4. Since Oura’s subscription remains part of the experience, that upfront difference plus ongoing membership becomes a key decision point. If your Ring 4 still holds a charge and you are content with current features, the higher entry price may feel hard to justify.
Should Ring 4 Owners Upgrade Now?
When you compare Ring 4 vs Ring 5 in real-world terms, the upgrade case is strongest for people who care about comfort, durability, and the new blood pressure feature. Smaller hands, or anyone who finds the Ring 4 bulky, will likely enjoy the 40% smaller build and lighter weight. Heavy users who routinely bang their ring on gym equipment or countertops will also value the tougher coating and higher IP rating. However, health tracking accuracy remains close between generations, and battery life gains are modest. That means Ring 4 users who are happy with their fit and features may not see a compelling reason to upgrade immediately, especially given the higher starting price and subscription. The Oura Ring 5 upgrade makes most sense as a long-term comfort and polish upgrade—or as the obvious entry point for new buyers starting from zero.