The most common Google Fit problems and how to fix them

Google Fit was once the company’s premier health-tracking solution. Thanks to its excellent journal feature and ability to sync with and display data from other specialized apps, it still exists on many users’ devices. Although it’s still functional on many smartwatches, it isn’t without its share of problems. Below we outline some of the more common Google Fit problems and detail potential solutions.

Google Fit and Health Connect issues

Health Connect is Google’s attempt at creating a central health data hub for Android users. This allows it to act as a middleman, syncing various fitness platforms that don’t typically support each other. Google Fit is one such platform, but some users have found it challenging to sync Fit data to Health Connect. Here are a few potential solutions.

• Check if Health Connect is allowed to receive information from Google Fit.
  • In Google Fit, open the Profile tab, tap the Settings icon, and then toggle on Sync Fit with Health Connect.
  • Follow the prompts, select the health data fields, and then tap Done to enable communication between the two platforms.
• If you’ve already done this but find that Google Fit and Health Connect aren’t syncing, toggle off Sync Fit with Health Connect and repeat the procedure above.
• Still nothing? Make sure both apps are updated. Ensure that Google Fit version 1.85 or newer is installed.
• Health Connect is still in its fledgling phase, so expect to find a few issues here and there. If you desperately need to sync Google Fit data with other platforms, try a third-party app like Health Sync.

If you face Health Connect problems on another platform, like Fitbit or MyFitnessPal, those dedicated guides may help you solve them.

Google Fit and Apple Health issues

Unfortunately, there isn’t a perfect two-way sync between Google Fit and Apple Health. Apple Health can push data to Google Fit, but pulling data from Fit to Health seems limited.

However, you can still connect Google Fit to Apple Health to give Google Fit access to your health data stored on Apple Health. Here’s how:

• Open the Google Fit app.
• Tap Profile (bottom right corner).
• Tap Settings (top right corner). Under “Activity tracking,” tap Track your activities with Health.

This will allow Google Fit to use your data from Apple Health for a more complete picture of your activity. There are some known issues with syncing data between Google Fit and Apple Health, particularly when trying to get Google Fit data into Apple Health. Here’s why this might be happening:

• Apple Health limitations: Apple Health might not be able to pull data directly from Google Fit. While Apple Health can push data to Fit, the functionality seems to be one-directional.
• Permissions: Double-check that both Apple Health and Google Fit have permission to access the relevant health data categories on your phone.

Here are some things you can try to fix the issue:

• Reconnect apps: Disconnect and reconnect Google Fit from Apple Health within the Health app. This might refresh the connection and resolve any glitches.
• Check data sources: Make sure you aren’t accidentally double-counting steps by having another fitness tracker app feeding data into both Apple Health and Google Fit.

Activity tracking issues

You may run into a few fitness tracking issues while using Google Fit. Here’s how to fix the majority of them.

Common problems and solutions

• If you’re using Google Fit on your phone to track activity, you’ll need to enable Track activity metrics within the app.
  • Open Google Fit on your phone, tap the Profile tab and select the Settings icon. Find Activity tracking and toggle it on.
  • If this feature is enabled, try restarting your phone before tracking an activity.
• If Google Fit isn’t recognizing a walk or run automatically, switch on activity detection.
  • In Google Fit, tap the Profile tab, then the Settings icon. Tap Activity tracking and toggle it on.
• Is your calorie burn figures too high or low? Keep your profile data current, as Fit uses this as a measuring stick for your base calorie burn.
  • In Google Fit, open the Profile tab, tap Height or Weight, adjust these to your current measurements, and tap Done to save.

• Be sure to enable location tracking on your device when you’re out on a walk, run, or bike ride. This will ensure distance tracking is a little more accurate.
• Is Google Fit simply not recording Heart Points or steps? This seems to be a common issue across newer versions of Google Fit. There is currently no silver bullet for this issue, but ensure that the latest version of Fit is installed. You may also try reinstalling Fit, clearing its app cache, and rebooting your devices if all else fails. Also, ensure that the latest version of your smartwatch or fitness tracker’s firmware is installed.

Incongruent fitness data issues

If your activity data differs between your smartwatch or fitness tracker and the Google Fit app on your phone, you’ll need to sync the two devices.

• You can prompt a manual sync by opening Google Fit on your phone, tapping the Journal tab, and then selecting the sync icon at the top of the screen. Ensure that your smartwatch and phone have internet access, Bluetooth enabled, and they’re relatively close to one another.

Activity tracking issues

Several users across Reddit and Google’s support forums have reported activity tracking automatically toggling off, even if they manually enabled them. It’s unclear what caused the problem, but it affected Pixel 7 series users, Samsung Galaxy S23 users, and others.

• According to the Google community manager, the problem has since been resolved, and users don’t need to perform any steps to remedy it.
• If you want to reenable your tracking preferences, open Google Fit, tap the Profile tab, and then select Settings > Activity tracking.

Third-party and connected app issues

One of Google Fit’s biggest draws is its support for a wide range of third-party apps and services. Occasionally, you may run into a syncing or permission issue with some of these. Here’s how to rectify them.

Common problems and solutions

Google recommends the following quick fixes for misbehaving third-party apps.

• Check if your third-party app or service is still connected to Google Fit.
  • Open Google Fit and head to your Profile tab. Tap the Settings icon, then select Manage connected apps. You’ll find a list of currently linked apps here. Connect your app to Google Fit if it isn’t on the list.
• If the app is listed but isn’t working, try disconnecting it from Google Fit, and then reconnecting it.
  • Open Google Fit, head to the Profile tab, tap the Settings icon and select Manage connected apps.
  • Find your app, then tap the right arrow, select Delete all connections you have with [App] to disconnect the app from Google Fit. But remember, this will disconnect your Google Account with the app, not just Google Fit.

• Finally, check if the third-party app has the correct permissions enabled. You must access your permissions page within your phone’s settings menu.

Other issues

• If the Mobvoi app cannot sync with Google Fit, try updating the former. The newer versions of the Mobvoi app solved an issue that users discovered at the tail end of 2022.
• Oura also experienced issues with Google Fit syncing in October 2022. The problem was fixed a few days later, but update the Oura app if you’re still experiencing issues.
• Are no third-party apps working? Consider updating core Google service apps. This includes Google Mobile Services. This may solve your Google Fit problems.

Are you still dealing with Google Fit problems you can’t seem to solve? Is there a problem we didn’t cover in this guide? Let us and the community know in the comments below.