Whoop introduced two new fitness wearables earlier this week, and to go with it, a trio of subscription plans under the One, Peak, and Life labels. The launch, however, left many long-term fans of the screen-less wearable with a bitter taste as the company reneged on a remarkable promise of free upgrades.
Whoop made the commitment in a blog post published late last year, but has since deleted it. “Instead of purchasing new hardware every time an updated model is produced, WHOOP members receive the next-generation device for free after having been a member for six months or more,” the company said back then.
It seems that your company believes in deceit. I’ve been supporting your company since 2022. In 2025, I ask myself if this is the correct decision. What happened to this “Membership Model”? “WHOOP members receive the next-generation device for free”
Following the launch of its latest wearable devices, the Whoop 5.0 and Whoop MG, subscribers were askedtopay an “upgrade fee.” The backlash has been pretty vocal across social media platforms and forums like Reddit. But it seems Whoop is not going to fully honor its original commitment.
A Whoop spokesperson told Bloomberg that “like any company, we from time to time update our commercial policies.” In the meantime, Whoop quietly updated its support page on May 9, clarifying the free upgrade situation and the requirements tied to it.
Nadeem Sarwar / Digital Trends
In order to upgrade from Whoop 4.0 to Whoop 5.0 or the MG version, there are only two options on the table. Pay an upgrade fee ($49 for Whoop 5.0 and $79 for Whoop MG) or extend the current membership by 12 months, with plans starting at $199 per user annually.
What relief is available?
Nadeem Sarwar / Digital Trends
The only relief available to long-term subscribers is that if they have more than 12 months remaining on their subscription, they will get the free upgrade. The fresh offer only applies to the mid-tier Peak subscription, and not the One or Life package.
The situation has been somewhat confusing so far. A few users are reporting that when they reached out to Whoop support with evidence of the brand’s prior commitment, they were extended the freeupgrade. Some are claiming that they are got an AI-generated response from Whoop support.
The Whoop 5.0 launch feels like extortion!
I’ve been subscribed for over 4 years and now I have to shell out more money for something that was meant to be a free upgrade?
The price of the Whoop MG subscription would buy you a new Apple Watch Series 10, EVERY YEAR!! Not good!
A few users wrote that they have been denied the free upgrade and asked to pay the aforementioned fee. Some are even floating the idea of filing consumer reports citing misleading marketing claims by Whoop. It would be interesting to see if Whoop is taken to court, but so far, it seems the company could get in legal hot water if the situation escalates.
The Whoop 5.0 is here to make fitness bands cool again. Unlike the best smartwatches, the Whoop does not have a screen and doesn’t mirror anything from your phone, so it’s distraction-free. While smart rings have taken a lot of fitness band functionality and put it on your finger, Whoop feels there’s still plenty of life left in a primarily wrist-worn health tracker. With new hardware, new features, and a new subscription package, there’s a lot to understand, so lets go through the Whoop 5.0.
Whoop 5.0 hardware
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There are two versions of the new Whoop: the Whoop 5.0 and the Whoop MG. The Whoop MG has a medical-grade, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved electrocardiogram (ECG) feature which is missing from the Whoop 5.0. Otherwise, the two appear to be identical. The case is seven percent smaller than the Whoop 4.0, but retains the same unusual strap system, which clips around the main body.
The body contains a set of enhanced sensors, an upgraded haptic engine, improved accelerometer and gyroscope, and a redesigned processor that’s 10 times more efficient than the previous model. This has enabled a 14 day battery life, plus another 14 days from the Wireless PowerPack. This is another idiosyncrasy carried over from the last Whoop, where the battery pack is required to charge the main body, and also acts as a battery pack for recharging on the move.
Andy Boxall / Digital Trends
While the Whoop 5.0 is made for the wrist and you can get a variety of different straps for it, what makes it even more unusual is the range of sports clothing with special pockets for the Whoop 5.0. These include compression shirts, bralettes, briefs, and bike shorts. Other “Pods” are available so you can wear the Whoop in other ways.
A brief hands-on with the Whoop MG better shows the reduction in size, as it feels lighter and less pronounced on your wrist. The clasp and strap is still a bit of a pain to adjust, and it’s often a bit too tight or a bit too loose, but the strap is elasticated so it should gradually stretch to the correct size. The most premium fabric strap is attached to the Whoop MG and mine comes in black with a silver clasp, and it looks modern and cool. As before though, the Whoop takes up wrist space without providing the time or any other information, so you may choose to wear it opposite a watch.
Whoop 5.0 new features
Whoop
Wear the Whoop 5.0 to track more than 145 different activities, count your daily steps, and measure specific data points like V02 Max and muscular strain during strength training workouts, plus overnight to measure sleep and receive a Sleep Score based on a revised algorithm to better reflect sleep quality. The Whoop 5.0 also has cycle tracking with insights into hormonal shifts and how they affect sleep, stress, and recovery.
Beyond these basics, the Whoop 5.0 will show a new data set called Healthspan. It’s geared more towards long-term health, and examines nine different metrics to calculate your Whoop Age and Pace of Aging. Whoop claims it goes further than any estimates of your cardiovascular age, and comes with its own personalized advice to help you improve long-term health.
Andy Boxall / Digital Trends
Using a new technology, the Whoop 5.0 will be able to estimate your blood pressure too, after calibrating the band using a traditional blood pressure monitor. Finally, the ECG feature looks for irregular heart rhythms and will alert the wearer if any abnormalities are noticed. In the future there will also be the option to book blood tests and have the results directly integrate into the Whoop app.
Whoop price tiers
Andy Boxall / Digital Trends
If all this sounds good, now we get to the part where some confusion and frustration may set in, because Whoop is introducing a new subscription system with the band, and it’s based on the features you require. There are three price tiers — Whoop One, Whoop Peak, and Whoop Life — and access to features differ depending on the one you choose. The Whoop band is included in the price, and there’s a lifetime warranty for it with all three plans. It’s easier to show the differences in a table. For reference, an O indicates the feature is included, while an X indicates it is not available on that plan.
Feature
Whoop One
Whoop Peak
Whoop Life
Sleep, Strain, and Recovery
O
O
O
Personalized Coaching
O
O
O
V02 Max/Heart Rate Zones
O
O
O
Cycle Tracking
O
O
O
Healthspan and Pace of Aging
X
O
O
Health Monitor/Health Alerts
X
O
O
Real-time Stress Monitor
X
O
O
Blood Pressure
X
X
O
ECG and Heart Screener
X
X
O
Advanced Health Sensing
X
X
O
Strap
CoreKnit
SuperKnit
SuperKnit Luxe
Charger
Basic Wired
Waterproof Wireless PowerPack
Waterproof Wireless PowerPack
Price
$199 per year
$239 per year
$359 per year
What it means is, if you want the full Whoop experience with the ECG monitoring, blood pressure, and the rather nebulous Advanced Health Sensing you have to select the top package. It’s also worth noting if you’re interested in the blood test feature, it will be an additional cost regardless of which tier you select, but it will be available on all of them. Some features, such as the ECG Heart Screener and blood test results are region specific. Whoop 5.0 is available to buy from Whoop’s website, Amazon, and retailers including Best Buy.
