What is Fitbit?
Fitbit is now a hardware brand attached to somebody else's app. On 19 May 2026 the Fitbit app was renamed the Google Health app and pushed out as an automatic update; fitbit.com redirects to the Google Store, and you can no longer sign in with a standalone Fitbit account — everyone had to move their account to a Google Account, with Google saying it would start processing data deletions for accounts that didn't from 15 July 2026. The trackers still say Fitbit on them (Fitbit Charge 6, Fitbit Versa 4, the newer Google Fitbit Air), but the software, the support docs and the subscription all say Google now.
The rebrand actually made the Strava connection better, which is not what most people expect. Before it, only bikes, runs, hikes and walks with GPS crossed over. Now the docs say any activity type you log in Google Health can sync to Strava, with or without GPS, and you pick which types in the app under Connections → Partner apps (Android) or Apps and services (iOS) → Strava → Activity writing. The catch: you have to re-authorise. If you never update the old connection, you stay on the old behaviour — GPS bikes, runs, hikes and walks only.
The direction that got worse is the other one. Google's own help page states plainly that activities logged in Strava will no longer sync to Google Health through the Strava integration, and that it's working with Strava on import options. So this is a one-way pipe: Fitbit out to Strava, nothing back. If you want your Strava rides showing up in Google Health, you have to route them through Health Connect on Android or Apple Health on iPhone — which works, and which Google warns can leave you with duplicate records if you have both paths running at once.
Key Features
One-way sync from Google Health to Strava
New exercises logged on a Fitbit device or Pixel Watch upload themselves to Strava. Nothing travels back the other way through this integration.
Per-activity-type control
Under Strava → Activity writing you toggle individual exercise types on and off, so your strength sessions and dog walks can stay out of your Strava feed while your runs go through.
No GPS required any more
Treadmill runs, gym sessions and other non-GPS exercises now sync, which is what people were using FitToStrava and similar bridges for. That's a real removal of a workaround, not a marketing claim.
Forward-only — history does not backfill
Connecting the accounts syncs nothing you've already done. Google's fallback is manual: open the Fitness tab, pick the activity, More → Export, and upload the TCX to Strava yourself, one at a time.
Third-party data comes in, but doesn't count for everything
Garmin, Apple Watch, Whoop, Oura and Strava data can all reach Google Health via Health Connect or Apple Health. Google notes it currently uses first-party data only to calculate Sleep Score and Cardio Load, so a Garmin-recorded week won't move those numbers.
Premium is an AI coach, not the tracking
Activity, sleep and health tracking are free with a paired device. The $9.99/month Google Health Premium adds Google Health Coach — adaptive fitness plans, sleep coaching, medical record summaries, workout and mindfulness libraries — and requires a paired Fitbit or Pixel Watch, being 18 or over, and living in a supported country.
Phone only
Google Health runs on Android 11+ and iOS 16.4+. There's no web or desktop version.
Who It's For
- Fitbit and Pixel Watch owners on Strava who want their workouts in the feed without paying for a bridge app
- Gym and treadmill people whose non-GPS sessions were previously stuck inside Fitbit
- Anyone who logs in Strava and wants it in Google Health — you'll be setting up Health Connect or Apple Health, because the direct route is gone
- Cross-platform data hoarders happy for Google Health to be the aggregator, as long as they know Sleep Score and Cardio Load ignore outside data
