Smart Earrings: The Next Big Thing in Wearables?

May 11, 2026

A smiling woman tries on earrings in front of a mirror

Smartwatches, rings and other wearable devices have become go-to tools for tracking everything from daily steps and sleep to heart rate and body temperature. A newer option is “smart” earrings, which look like jewelry but monitor vital signs to support overall health.

Chad Raymond, DO, a preventive cardiologist and Director of Cardiovascular Rehabilitation for University Hospitals Harrington Heart & Vascular Institute, says he’s cautiously optimistic about these new devices. “They have the potential to provide additional information about your health.”

What Are Smart Earrings?

“Smart earrings are miniaturized wearable devices that can be worn like a true earring or be attached to the auricular cavity of the ear itself,” says Dr. Raymond. Most wearable trackers, like smartwatches and rings, read blood flow in small vessels near the skin on the wrist or finger, but smart earrings monitor blood flow at the ear, closer to the head.

“Companies like Lumia Health are making earrings designed to measure blood flow up to the brain,” says Dr. Raymond. They were designed to help track chronic blood flow disorders like postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), low blood pressure issues and symptoms like brain fog in people with long COVID.

Smart earrings typically come in a pair, but only one of the earrings contains the tracking technology. They’re designed to look like jewelry, with studs and hoops for those with pierced ears, and cuffs for those whose ears are not pierced or who don’t want to wear an earring.

Monitoring Targeted to Women

Smart earrings can track a range of vital signs. “The most accurate ones so far are heart rate, heart rate variability, blood oxygen saturation, and skin and core body temperature,” says Dr. Raymond. “Others like respiratory rate and pulse-wave velocity are emerging technologies.”

A newer company, Incora Health, has its sights set specifically on helping women. “Although its earrings aren’t on the market yet, they aim to target hormonal menstrual cycle changes and focus on how that might relate to overall health,” says Dr. Raymond. The company says its smart earrings track standard health metrics — heart rate, sleep, activity — and analyze data based on a woman’s menstrual cycle, which may give insights into hormonal issues and support fertility awareness.

Why Measure From the Ear

Preliminary research suggests that measuring heart rate and other metrics from the ear may give more accurate measurements than the wrist or finger. “Because the ear is closer to the body’s core circulation, it may provide more stable readings of temperature and blood flow,” says Dr. Raymond. “There also tends to be less motion at the ear than at the wrist during day-to-day activity.”

Benefits of Wearing Smart Earrings

Smart earrings offer many of the same benefits as other wearables, including continuously tracking data while you wear them. They can help you spot patterns in your sleep, activity and stress levels, and give you a clearer picture of your overall well-being. Over time, this information may help you adjust your habits in ways that support your health, like getting more rest or managing stress.

“The biggest potential benefits so far seem to be that the earrings may be less intrusive, and better able to differentiate stress, nervous system signals and core body temperature measurements,” says Dr. Raymond. “They may also carve a niche for monitoring hormonal cycles, metabolic insights and illness detection.” Additionally, he says, research suggests that smart earrings can measure heart rate, respiratory rate and core body temperature with accuracy similar to medical devices. “Smart earrings are also being designed to fit more comfortably into everyday life, whereas wearables like rings or watches might be more intrusive,” he says.

Are There Any Downsides or Risks?

Most smart earrings are not medical devices, and they don’t yet appear to perform as well as some smartwatch features for monitoring heart rate variability, sleep tracking or oxygen levels, says Dr. Raymond. “And they haven’t yet been clinically proven to measure things like blood pressure, brain signals, glucose or stress scores.”

Dr. Raymond also points out that smart earrings are newer, so there is less research focused on how accurate they are compared with wrist or ring wearables. “Currently, they are smaller, so the batteries are smaller and provide less processing power,” he adds. “They also tend to focus on specialized sensing and not being an all-in-one device like you might get with a smart watch or ring.”

A common concern with all wearables is how the data is interpreted and presented. “It could end up confusing people who are using them to manage their health,” says Dr. Raymond. For now, it’s important to keep in mind that smart earrings and other wearable devices can collect large amounts of data, but you still need your doctor’s help to understand what those numbers and patterns may mean for your overall health.