How to Fix Fitbit Charge 5 Battery Draining Fast

ByChad Buenaflor Posted on Updated on
9 Comments

The Fitbit Charge 5 battery should last up to 7 days, but certain settings and features can drain it much faster. Here’s how to extend your battery life.

Method 1: Disable Always-On Display

  1. On your Fitbit Charge 5, swipe down from the top of the screen.
  2. Tap Settings (gear icon).
  3. Scroll to Display Settings.
  4. Turn off Always-On Display.
  5. This is the biggest battery saver on the Charge 5.

Method 2: Reduce Screen Brightness

  1. On the Charge 5, go to Settings > Display Settings.
  2. Set Brightness to Dim or Normal.
  3. Reduce the Screen Timeout to the shortest duration.
  4. This significantly reduces battery consumption.

Method 3: Limit Notifications

  1. Open the Fitbit app on your phone.
  2. Tap your profile icon > Charge 5.
  3. Tap Notifications.
  4. Turn off notifications for apps you don’t need on your wrist.
  5. Keep only essential notifications (calls, texts) enabled.

Method 4: Turn Off GPS

  1. Open the Fitbit app.
  2. Tap your profile icon and select Charge 5.
  3. Set GPS to Phone GPS instead of Built-in GPS for exercises.
  4. This uses your phone’s GPS instead, saving the tracker’s battery.
  5. Only enable built-in GPS when you exercise without your phone.

Method 5: Restart the Device

  1. Connect your Charge 5 to its charger.
  2. Press and hold the button on the side for 8 seconds.
  3. Release when you see the Fitbit logo.
  4. This clears any software glitches causing excess battery drain.
  5. If the issue persists, check for firmware updates in the Fitbit app.

9 Comments

  1. Bought my Fitbit charge 5 in 2023. For the last month it will not stay on. I put it back on the charger and it is at 95%? Display will not stay on.

  2. Purchased charge 5 in 22 and for last 6 months wont hold a charge. I charge it to 100% then it dies at 65% battery while i am running. Threw it in a drawer left it for a week then chaeged it to a 100% and it worked pretty good forva month then started back down hill going dead at around 30% then after charging it to a 100% each day it began getting worse. As i stated it died this last time at 65% battery left. Wont buy another fitbit again. All our neighbors are retired and walk or run daily and have same issues with fitbit and have gone to other devices. Goodbye fitbit

  3. Have been having the same problems with charging I charged the fit bit charge 5 for 24 hours straight and in only two hours it went down to 75%. Last month I could not get it to sync with my phone and the tech went in and updated it now it will sync but won’t hold a charge

  4. what a waste of money. company should be held accountable or stop selling these fitbits. only holds a charge for half a day, turns off. tell everyone you know/spread the word not to purchase a fitbit.

  5. Joining the chorus of people upset here and elsewhere with Fitbit/Google; my Charge 5, purchased in November 2022, has spiraled downward with each recent update. After the last one (late August 2024), I am now down to 6-8 hours from 100% to 0% with just about everything turned off. Done with Fitbit.

  6. I’m done Fitbit. Bought my charge 5 in Feb 2022 and now battery drains after 6 hrs. Tried all these fixes to no avail. Co texted costumer service and they never responded. Bad thing is that my problems occurred after last software update. Wow!

  7. I am done with using Fitbit product, I bought a Charge 5 in 2022 and now I am experiencing black screen battery flat-out every 10-12 hours of usage. Tried every tips on the website and nothing is working. Wanted to replace a new battery but there are no service center available. Some other 3rd party service center offered battery replacement services but need to pay deposit for them to order a new battery that takes 2 weeks to arrive and the total fee is SGD185.00.

    I gave up on using this product.

  8. My Fitbit Charge 5 no longer hold a charge more than a few hours. I tried a factory reset as well as restarting. I called Fitbit service and they basically said no longer under warranty, so not their problem. The Fitbit was purchased in May 2022. What a waste. I had two prior Fitbit Charge 3’s that I also had to replace ( my health insurance was giving me a “kickback” for hitting milestones on a Fitbit). I am done with Fitbit and their inferior product. Going back to an old school watch.

  9. My fitbit charge 5 dies every day even after fully charged. I called to say that one of 4 round gold circles on back was black and looked broken. I thought they would send me a replacement since I only had it since March. Nope, they sent me a new charger. Terrible

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