ArticlePloS one2020
Estimating physical activity and sedentary behaviour in a free-living environment: A comparative study between Fitbit Charge 2 and Actigraph GT3X.
Article in PloS one, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT07021144 (VA|PREVENTION), which is not on this map. Cited by 27 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
VA|PREVENTION: Randomized Controlled Trial of a Person-Centred Digital Intervention to Prevent Diabetes in High-Risk Adults
Who cites it
27 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 52 citations in OpenAlex.
- Quality Evaluation of Free-living Validation Studies for the Assessment of 24-Hour Physical Behavior in Adults via Wearables: Systematic Review.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2022Pooled it
- Trajectories of Adherence to Study-Prescribed Physical Activity Goals in a mHealth Weight Loss Intervention.Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Trial
- Hair Cortisol Concentration, Weight Loss Maintenance and Body Weight Variability: A Prospective Study Based on Data From the European NoHoW Trial.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2021Trial
- A systematic review of digital and wearable sensor data in the ABCD study: Insights, methods, and emerging opportunities.Developmental cognitive neuroscience · 2026Article
- Using network science to examine temporal relationships between 24-hour movement behaviors and depression during the transition to college: protocol for a prospective cohort study.Journal of activity, sedentary and sleep behaviors · 2026Article
- Using Network Science to Examine Temporal Relationships between 24-Hour Movement Behaviors and Depression During the Transition to College: Protocol for a Prospective Cohort Study.Research square · 2026Article
- Cleaning and pre-processing of actigraphy data for physical activity and sleep research: a scoping review.Physiological measurement · 2026Article
- Pre-Season Total Energy Expenditure and Dietary Intake of Professional Male Soccer Players: A Doubly Labelled Water Study.European journal of sport science · 2026Article
- Article
- Agreement Between TDK Silmee W22 and ActiGraph wGT3X-BT for Estimating Daily Step Counts and Moderate to Vigorous Physical Activity in Free-Living Adults: Comparative Study.JMIR formative research · 2025Article
- Interactions Between Sedentary Behaviour, Moderate-Vigorous Intensity Physical Activity and Acute Psychological Stress-Induced Inflammatory Responses.Stress and health : journal of the International Society for the Investigation of Stress · 2025Article
- Association of Smartphone-Based Activity Tracking and Nocturnal Hypoglycemia in People With Type 1 Diabetes.Journal of diabetes science and technology · 2025Article
- Usability and Implementation Considerations of Fitbit and App Intervention for Diverse Cancer Survivors: Mixed Methods Study.JMIR cancer · 2025Article
- Comparison of Omron and ActiGraph monitors in estimating daily step counts and time spent in moderate to vigorous physical activity in free-living adults.BMJ open sport & exercise medicine · 2025Article
- Article
- Detection of sedentary time and bouts using consumer-grade wrist-worn devices: a hidden semi-Markov model.BMC medical research methodology · 2024Article
- From wearable sensor data to digital biomarker development: ten lessons learned and a framework proposal.NPJ digital medicine · 2024Review
- Integrating 4 methods to evaluate physical function in patients with cancer (In4M): protocol for a prospective cohort study.BMJ open · 2024Article
- Pre- and post-COVID 19 outbreak relationship between physical activity and depressive symptoms in Spanish adults with major depressive disorder: a secondary analysis of the RADAR-MDD cohort study.Frontiers in psychology · 2024Article
- Convergent Validity of the Patient Reported Outcome Measurement Information System-Pediatric Physical Activity Instrument (PROMISChildren (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
10 authors at 6 institutions in 4 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundActivity trackers such as the Fitbit Charge 2 enable users and researchers to monitor physical activity in daily life, which could be beneficial for changing behaviour. However, the accuracy of the Fitbit Charge 2 in a free-living environment is largely unknown.
objectiveTo investigate the agreement between Fitbit Charge 2 and ActiGraph GT3X for the estimation of steps, energy expenditure, time in sedentary behaviour, and light and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity under free-living conditions, and further examine to what extent placing the ActiGraph on the wrist as opposed to the hip would affect the findings.
methods41 adults (n = 10 males, n = 31 females) were asked to wear a Fitbit Charge 2 device and two ActiGraph GT3X devices (one on the hip and one on the wrist) for seven consecutive days and fill out a log of wear times. Agreement was assessed through Bland-Altman plots combined with multilevel analysis.
resultsThe Fitbit measured 1,492 steps/day more than the hip-worn ActiGraph (limits of agreement [LoA] = -2,250; 5,234), while for sedentary time, it measured 25 min/day less (LoA = -137; 87). Both Bland-Altman plots showed fixed bias. For time in light physical activity, the Fitbit measured 59 min/day more (LoA = -52;169). For time in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, the Fitbit measured 31 min/day less (LoA = -132; 71) and for activity energy expenditure it measured 408 kcal/day more than the hip-worn ActiGraph (LoA = -385; 1,200). For the two latter outputs, the plots indicated proportional bias. Similar or more pronounced discrepancies, mostly in opposite direction, appeared when comparing to the wrist-worn ActiGraph.
conclusionModerate to substantial differences between devices were found for most outputs, which could be due to differences in algorithms. Caution should be taken if replacing one device with another and when comparing results.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.