Oura Ring 5 vs Ring 4: what changed, price and whether to upgrade

Oura Ring 5 vs Ring 4: which should you buy?

Choose Oura Ring 5 if you want the smaller ring. Oura says it has 40% less volume than Ring 4 and is 6.09 mm wide against 7.90 mm². It costs $399 in Silver, against $349 list for Ring 4, and Oura rates its battery at 6 to 9 days against 5 to 8^{2, 6, 11, 12}. Choose Ring 4 if you’d rather pay less (a $50 gap at list price) or you need a size outside 6 to 13.

The membership is the same on both, at $5.99 a month or $69.99 a year⁴. Oura says a Ring 5 with an active membership has all the same features as Ring 4². Three years come to $608.97 for Ring 5 and $558.97 for Ring 4, before tax. Oura also says Ring 5 has greater accuracy, but we found no study of Ring 5 to check that^{2, 11}.

Oura Ring 5 and Ring 4 side by side

Prices are US list prices on Oura’s store, before tax, checked November 6, 2026. Neither showed a US sale price. Oura’s Ring 4 Silver page showed $244.30 against a struck-through $349 but named no country, and we couldn’t confirm it as a US price; check Oura’s page for the current price. Specs come from Oura’s own Ring 5 and Ring 4 pages and its Ring 5 versus Ring 4 table. None of it is an independent measurement.

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Ring 5 or Ring 4: which one fits which need

Each suits a different need, and this isn’t a ranking. Start with size, then check storage and your finger size.

• You want the smaller, lighter ring: Oura Ring 5. It’s $399 in Silver, 6.09 mm wide and from 2 g, and Oura rates the battery at 6 to 9 days^{2, 6}. The catch: it stores three days of data against seven, has two photodetectors against three and fits whole sizes 6 to 13 only².
• You want to pay less or keep wider sizing: Oura Ring 4. It’s $349 list in Silver, stores seven days of data and comes in sizes 4 to 15^{2, 12}. The catch: it’s 7.90 mm wide, Oura rates its battery at 5 to 8 days, and Oura says Ring 5 has greater accuracy^{2, 11}.

What changed from Oura Ring 4 to Ring 5

Oura says Ring 5 has a thinner design with 40% less volume, and more precise personal health data². Its dimensions are 6.09 mm wide and 2.28 mm thick, against 7.90 mm and about 2.88 mm². Oura says it rebuilt the battery system so the smaller ring still lasts about a week, and rates it at 6 to 9 days².

Some things went the other way. Ring 5 stores three days of data on the ring, against seven, and has two photodetectors, against three². Its sizes run 6 to 13, against 4 to 15². Oura doesn’t say whether the two-photodetector design changes heart-rate or sleep-staging accuracy.

Much stayed the same. Both are titanium, rated to 100 m, and use the same membership at the same price^{2, 4}. Oura says Ring 5 has all the same membership features as Ring 4, including detailed sleep analysis, 24/7 heart rate, blood oxygen (SpO2) and cycle insights².

Is Oura Ring 5 really 40% smaller?

That is Oura’s claim, worded two ways. Its Ring 4 page says 40% smaller, and its Ring 5 support page says 40% less volume^{2, 11}. The listed dimensions are narrower and thinner by less: by our arithmetic, 6.09 mm is about 23% narrower than 7.90 mm, and 2.28 mm is about 21% thinner than 2.88 mm².

The volume claim could still hold, since volume depends on the whole shape, and the sensor dome is taller on Ring 5, at 0.7 mm against 0.3 mm². The pages we read don’t show how Oura measured volume, so it’s a maker’s figure we can’t check.

Oura Ring 5 vs Ring 4: what three years costs

Ring 5 is $399 and Ring 4 is $349, both in Silver^{6, 12}. With the $69.99-a-year membership, three years come to $608.97 and $558.97 before tax, a $50 gap that is just the list-price difference^{4, 12}. If a US Ring 4 sale at the $244.30 shown on November 6 is confirmed, three years would come to $454.27¹². Paying monthly at $5.99 comes to $71.88 a year, or $614.64 and $564.64 over three years, and the free first month for new members isn’t deducted^{4, 5}.

Ring 4 comes with a size-specific charger and USB-C cable¹¹. Ring 5’s Charging Case, which gives a full day of charge in 10 minutes, is sold separately¹. Oura’s optional protection upgrades, $45 for 2 years or $60 for 3, aren’t in either total^{6, 12}. For what the membership buys and how cancelling works, see Oura membership cost and what it buys. Waiting for a sale? See Oura Ring Black Friday 2026 for what Oura discounted last year.

Should you upgrade from Ring 4 to Ring 5?

Not for features. Oura says Ring 5 with an active membership has the same features as Ring 4, and your membership carries over because it’s tied to your account, not the ring². Upgrade if the size of Ring 4 bothers you, since size is the change Oura leads with.

Stay on Ring 4 if it fits and works. You’d pay $399 for a ring with a shorter data buffer, fewer photodetectors and, like Ring 4, no published accuracy study of its own². Oura’s Ring 4 page has an Upgrade FAQ, but we found no upgrade price or trade-in terms in what we read, so whether Oura discounts an upgrade is unknown¹¹.

If you try Ring 5, order the Ring 5 sizing kit first, because its sizing differs slightly from Ring 4^{2, 3}. Oura takes a ring back within 30 days if it’s fully functional and undamaged. Cancel the membership if you return it⁷. Still on a Ring 3, or weighing a used one? See Oura Ring 3 vs Ring 4 vs Ring 5.

Are Oura Ring 4 and 5 banned in the US?

No. Neither is under an exclusion order. In January 2026 the US International Trade Commission opened Samsung’s patent case seeking to bar imports of Oura wearables (Investigation No. 337-TA-1478)⁸. The ITC’s notices through October 26, 2026 show the case still open, with no violation finding^{9, 10}.

Sources

1. Oura Ring 5 Oura · manufacturer
2. Discover Oura Ring 5 Oura · manufacturer
3. How to Choose the Right Oura Ring Size Oura · manufacturer
4. Oura Membership Oura · manufacturer
5. Oura Ring Membership Oura · manufacturer
6. Oura Ring 5, Silver Oura · manufacturer
7. Return & Exchange FAQs Oura · manufacturer
8. Certain Wearable Devices; Institution of Investigation (Investigation No. 337-TA-1478) US International Trade Commission (Federal Register) · regulator
9. Notice of a Commission determination not to review an initial determination granting unopposed motion for partial termination by withdrawal of certain patent claims, Investigation No. 337-TA-1478 US International Trade Commission · regulator
10. Commission notices: Investigation No. 337-TA-1478 US International Trade Commission · regulator
11. Oura Ring 4 Oura · manufacturer
12. Shop Oura Ring 4: Silver Oura · manufacturer
13. Accuracy of Three Commercial Wearable Devices for Sleep Tracking in Healthy Adults Sensors (MDPI)