Wearables market projection
Analysts project global wearable device shipments will hit 544 million by 2031, driven by smartwatches, rings, better health features and 5G connectivity — so the market is still set for rapid growth. For fitness fans, that means more devices will track sleep, recovery and advanced biometrics over the next five years. (globenewswire.com)
A wearable is just a computer you keep on your body, and the big shift is that it now spends more time measuring you than notifying you. ABI Research says global shipments will rise from 402.96 million devices in 2026 to 544.08 million in 2031. (technologymagazine.com) That forecast is not mostly about people buying their first step counter. ABI Research says vendors are pushing down prices while adding more health, fitness, and connectivity features, which is how the category keeps growing even after smartwatches became mainstream. (markets.businessinsider.com) The wrist is still the center of the market, but the finger is becoming the new growth slot. ABI Research expects smart rings and near field communication rings, which are rings that can tap to pay or unlock things, to reach 113.5 million shipments and $6.1 billion in revenue in 2031. (technologymagazine.com) Smart rings work because they drop the screen and keep the sensors. Oura says its latest ring uses light sensors for blood oxygen, heart rate, heart rate variability, breathing rate, a temperature sensor, and an accelerometer that tracks movement. (ouraring.com) That sensor mix is why wearables are moving from counting workouts to watching recovery. Sleep Foundation says the Oura Ring uses temperature trends, blood oxygen, heart rate, heart rate variability, and breathing rate to estimate sleep stages through the night. (sleepfoundation.org) Watches are climbing the same ladder into medical screening. The United States Food and Drug Administration cleared Apple’s sleep apnea notification feature on September 13, 2024, and the agency says it analyzes Apple Watch data for patterns linked to moderate to severe sleep apnea. (fda.gov) Samsung is pushing the ring side of that same idea. Samsung says Galaxy Ring tracks sleep, heart rate, and skin temperature, and wraps those readings into its Samsung Health app instead of asking people to wear a second watch to bed. (samsung.com) The other piece of the forecast is cellular connectivity, which means some wearables will rely less on a nearby phone. ABI Research says 5G-enabled wearables will jump from 1.3 million units in 2026 to 66.9 million in 2031. (technologymagazine.com) The key term there is Reduced Capability, which is a lighter version of Fifth Generation cellular built for smaller gadgets. ABI Research says this standard was designed to cut the cost and power demands of 5G for devices like wearables that do not need full smartphone-grade speed. (abiresearch.com) That is why the next five years probably look less like a gadget boom and more like a sensor land grab. International Data Corporation says smart rings and display-less smart glasses are now part of the longer-term expansion story, which means more body-worn devices will compete on battery life, comfort, and the quality of the health data they can collect quietly in the background. (idc.com)
