WHOOP Wants You to Never Take Your Tracker Off With Its New $149 Meridian Band 

WHOOP just did something it’s never really done before. The tech company didn’t release a new tracker, it dropped a whole new look.

Meet the WHOOP Meridian, WHOOP’s jewelry-style band available from August 27, 2026, for $149. It is not a WHOOP 6.0 and it is certainly not the new hardware.  It’s the exact same WHOOP 5.0 sensor you already know, just dressed up in a stainless steel Apple Watch-style Milanese strap that made people fall head over heels a few years ago. So it can sit next to your rings and bracelets instead of looking like you forgot to take off your gym gear.

And to make the campaign even more impressive, even brought out Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk and French rugby star Antoine Dupont to show you exactly who they think will wear this to weddings without anyone knowing that they have been doing their workouts with it.

So What Actually Is ‘WHOOP Meridian’?

That’s where people are likely to be confused. Meridian is not an evolution of WHOOP’s product range into the next generation. It’s just a band that comes with the WHOOP 5.0. This means that underneath the metal mesh, the exact same WHOOP 5.0 sensors are used, delivering the same tracking precision, working with the same app and providing the same recovery scores as the fabric model does.

Everything else is different in terms of material, design and features. WHOOP replaced its SuperKnit fabric with stainless steel Milanese mesh, creating a unique and stylish tapered silhouette, and introduced a magnetic buckle that lets users adjust the strap while it’s still on their wrist. And this is actually a completely new feature for WHOOP.

The band comes in four finishes– Gold, Rose Gold, Alloy and Matte Black. Also, it weighs 54 grams which makes it noticeably heavier than the fabric band.

Why Bother? Because WHOOP Hates When You Take It Off

WHOOP’s entire pitch is built on 24/7 wear. The more you wear it, the more accurate the recovery and sleep metrics will be. That is why Peak and Life (WHOOP MG) provide a charging puck to charge the device while it remains on the arm and why the app immediately notifies you when it senses that you took it off and calls you “off body” like a clingy ex.

The trouble is that a bulky fabric band does not fit all occasions. Nobody would want to see a sporty strap underneath a suit sleeve at a wedding and a nice dinner party is certainly not the occasion for something that clearly belongs in a gym. That’s the exact problem Meridian is trying to solve, and it’s not the first company to solve it this way. Oura, for example, already cracked it by taking the same approach and turning it into a ring.

The Catch Nobody’s Talking About: Charging

Now, here’s the one thing that’ll get under the skins of WHOOP die-hards. That wireless charging puck that allows you to charge your tracker while it’s still on your wrist won’t work with Meridian. Metal interferes with wireless charging, so if you’re wearing a WHOOP Meridian band, you have to physically take the band off to charge the tracker.

For a company that prides itself on “never being off the body,” that’s kind of ironic. The solution would be band switching; leave the fabric wristband on for overnight use and charging, then swap to Meridian when you have a formal event. Far from seamless but it’ll do the trick.

Meridian at a glance:

• Price: $149 / £119 / AU$219 (band only, sold separately from the WHOOP)
• Release date: starting August 27, 2026, direct from WHOOP
• Band material: Stainless steel Milanese mesh band, 1.5mm-1.7mm thick
• Colors available: Gold, Rose Gold, Alloy, Matte Black
• Band weight: 54g
• Fit: Adjustable magnetic clasp, fits wrists ranging in size from 15cm to 21cm
• Compatibility: Compatible with WHOOP 4.0 and 5.0
• Wireless Charging: No, you have to physically remove the tracker to charge
• Membership required: Yes, WHOOP memberships start at $199 per year on top of the band

WHOOP Meridian vs the Fitbit Air

And here comes the tricky part for WHOOP. Google has just released the Fitbit Air worth only $99.99. It is a fully-fledged screen-less health tracking device with heart rate tracking 24/7, sleep monitoring, activity tracking and battery life of up to 7 days. This means that the entire device is $50 cheaper than WHOOP offers a mere band for.

The difference is what you’re actually buying into. Core health tracking provided by Fitbit Air works even without paying a Google Health Premium subscription. Meanwhile, you can use WHOOP only if you have an active subscription that starts from $199 per year. And Meridian does not even touch those prices since it is a mere cosmetic addition to the WHOOP ecosystem.

Who Should Actually Buy This?

Best for:

• Current WHOOP users who have been annoyed by the sporty look of the normal band
• Those attending weddings, work events, or outings where they want continuous monitoring
• Small wrist sizes, as the adjustable clasp is better suited for different sized wrists than the fixed strap

Skip it if:

• Anyone who isn’t a current WHOOP user and the $149 cost doesn’t include the tracker or subscription service
• If you are more interested in continuous wireless charging than style
• New users of screenless trackers looking for the most affordable option, Fitbit Air is a better value

Wrap Up

Meridian isn’t a tech upgrade and WHOOP doesn’t claim that it is. It is basically the same hardware, the same app and the same accuracy, just packaged differently for when a fabric strap might look out of place. Is the $149 price tag worth it? Well, it really all depends on whether it makes any difference to you. If wearing the tracker doesn’t make you look like you are wearing a fitness tracker, sit this one out. If it does, Meridian has done its job. But if you want advanced features, this isn’t it.

Feature Image © WHOOP

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