I know we typically write about saving money by using cable TV alternatives, but today I wanted to share a story about this cool app that saved us a lot of stress.
My wife rarely gets emotionally attached to electronic gadgets. However, she has developed a very special relationship with her Fitbit Flex. You will always find it on her wrist tracking her steps, making sure her sleep is restful, and counting burning calories.
So when she lost it in the yard raking leaves last weekend, I was prepared for a week fraught with sadness and grief. However, thanks to a simple iPhone/iPad app called the Fitbit Finder, the crisis was averted.
A Hopelessly Lost Fitbit
While we live in a modest 1200 square foot house, our yard is .5 acres of 100 year old oak trees that rain leaves down for weeks every fall. Picture trying to locate a wristband sized gadget in a leave covered football field. After an hour of searching, my wife’s mood turned to despair as the search seemed hopeless.
At that point my wife bursts into tears. She rarely treats herself to gadgets, and she formed a bond with the tiny task master that used to live on her wrist. While I don’t fully identify with the Fitbit craze, I do understand the attachment formed with a tool that helps further your goals. We have all had favorite hammers, or a go-to wrench.
I have a number of friends that treat their phone as if it’s another body part. So after hours of exhausting yard work and an hour of hopeless searching, the tears over the loss of her favorite gadget were justified.
The App That Found It
Typically, I reach out to Google in times of need. This habit tends to extremely annoy my wife. So when she told me she needed help searching, I immediately joined her in the yard instead of jumping on the computer. However, once I saw the tears I knew she needed a break. I told her to go get cleaned up and relax, and we’ll figure it out.
She agreed. I immediately jumped on the computer and searched for an app to locate this thing. Fitbit Finder from Front Seat, LLC. was the first app I stumbled upon. It cost $5 to download, and I knew nothing about the app. However, I didn’t care. I’d try anything at this point, so I ponied up the 5 bucks and hit download.
The setup was simple. Once the app started, it began to search for nearby Fitbit devices within 150 feet of my iPhone. It immediately notified me that it found a Fitbit Flex. It sounds an audible ping similar to that of a submarine using SONAR. There was also a graph that indicated the strength of the signal coming from the nearby lost Fitbit.
I turned up the sound and just walked in the direction that gave the strongest signal. As I walked in the correct direction, the iPhone in my hand pinged louder and louder until it brought me to a flower pot in our driveway on the side of the house. Sure enough, the lost Fitbit was hanging off a plant in the pot as if it were a Christmas tree ornament.
I walked into the house holding the formerly lost Fitbit Flex and showed it to my wife. She wrapped her arms around me and gave me a great hug. Oddly, the flower pot where I found the Fitbit was nowhere near my wife when raking leaves. She moved the pot from the backyard to the front of the house before she started raking. If it wasn’t for the Fitbit Finder app, we never would have found her lost Fitbit.
I know it was just a Fitbit, but I felt like I slayed a dragon. Being a hero in my wife’s eyes was definitely worth the $5 gamble on what turned out to be a must have app if you own a Fitbit.
Download the Fitbit Finder
Here is my affiliate link to Purchase the Fitbit Finder. It works with any iPad or iPhone newer than the iPad3 or iPhone 4s. It also requires iOS 7.1 or later. It is designed to specifically find Fitbit Flex, Fitbit Force, Fitbit One, and Fitbit Zip models. If you have the Fitbit Charge, a reader recommended giving the BTLExplorer a try.
What About Android Users?
While I haven’t attempted this myself, I have heard of Android users utilizing the Bluetooth Finder. It’s free from Google Play store.
Still Can’t Find It?
If you haven’t had any success finding your Fitbit, then I recommend contacting Fitbit support. Who knows? They may take pity on you and help you replace it. They have great customer service.
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Conundrum says
This works very well BUT my method will find even a totally dead/crippled Fitbit. The secret is that 13.56 MHz antenna originally designed to locate RFID chips and lost passports (patent pending!) and a softmodded SDR as well as a few other random parts from Ze Junk Drawer of Doom.
Sometimes even if the casing looks tatty the unit (cough Flex /cough) will still work, to fix use some Boots ™ blue light cure nail varnish!
Working on a keyring sized version now, this could be incredibly useful for all sorts of reasons.
Some phone batteries can be located this way so if you’ve lost your spare it will still show up albeit slightly off frequency.
VDH says
The question is not is this a good fitness tracker…IT IS.
The question is how long will you have it before it is lost due to a VERY poor design on how the Alta attaches to your arm.
I’ve lost three fitbit tracker that have this design [Fitbit Flex/Fitbit Flex2 /FitBit Alta. Fitbit is aware that the design of this closure is faulty and very lost prone. But Fitbit went ahead and designed the Flex, Flex2 and Alta with this design.
When company’s are aware that they have a poor product design and continue to produce new versions using the same faulty design. It’s an indication of the lack of integrity that is at the core foundation of the company.
Heidi Hayes says
Thank you Thank you Thank you!!!! I tried the recommended LightBlue and it picked up the existence but the signal never got stronger….I downloaded the fitbit finder and found it it less than 10 minutes….between the seats of my car……..
Andrea Lippold says
Does this work even if it hasn’t synched in over 12 hours? I know the fitbit app won’t download any information without tapping the device to wake it up. I don’t want to spend the $5 if it won’t work when its ‘asleep’.
Dennis Restauro says
Hmmm, unfortunately I haven’t tested it after that long.
Vanessa Chandler says
Hi Dennis, I have lost my fitbit at school and only have had it since Christmas! Please help!
Dennis Restauro says
Did you try the app?
Wendy says
I down loaded the app, paid for it and it said there were no Fitbit’s in the area or my battery was dead. I sat down and cried thinking that I must have lost it somewhere else. I had an alarm set on my Fitbit and as I was crying the fitbit alarm went off and I was pretty much sitting on the dam thing! Thought I would try the app again with my Fitbit in hand and still it didn’t work. Must be my terrible luck!
Dennis Restauro says
Sorry to hear that Wendy. What version of FitBit were you using?
Donna says
I lost mine at a major ball game yesterday.. It shows the last sync was 3:30 pm.. The game ended about 5:30pm… I’ve only had it since June … :(
Delma says
4th App I downloaded. It WORKED!! Thanks a bunch!
Linda Maguire says
The app. Started downloading, stopped and now it is gone but I was charged for the app. Please help. I would like to find my Fitbit before the battery dies. How do I get the app. Back? Thank you.
Dennis Restauro says
You should be able to resolve this through itunes or google play support (depending on who you purchased from)
Becky Moore says
HURRAY! This worked for me in less than 15 minutes, from starting the download to finding the Fitbit. Thank you VERY much for the recommendation.
Diann says
Thank u sir!!! BTW you are a good story teller…I’m not being sarcastic I swear…
Sherra says
Thank you Dennis! I just found my Fitbit Charge. The app was really helpful to narrow down my search in my apartment building.
Louise says
I’m still looking for my FitBit. I know it doesn’t always send out “songs” looking to sync. As near as I can tell, it’s in my bedroom, tries to sync every two hours.
Does the version of Bluetooth count? I know that it won’t sync with iPhone 4s, because they have BT 2.0. My iPhone 5 has BT4.
Dennis Restauro says
The iPhone 5 should pick it up. What type of FitBit is it?
Rob says
Thanks for the article, Dennis. I have an Android and had lost my Fitbit One. I’m on my fourth one and was determined to find this one. I Tore apart the house – I knew it was close by because it would sync as I moved around various parts of the house. I downloaded and used the Bluetooth Finder you mentioned in your article and found it in less than 5 minutes. It was out in my car between the seat and the console. Also on another note, FitBit support has replaced a lost one for me before; they have great customer service. Thanks again!
Kimberly says
Hi Dennis,
Reverse situation. My dog found someone’s fitbit in a field at a local park. Is there any way for me to make sure this gets back to the rightful owner? I was reading and found you can’t hook up the fitbit without a usb adapter. I thought maybe I could plug it in and see who it belonged to. Thoughts?
Dennis Restauro says
Hi Kimberly.
It’s awesome that you are going through the trouble of figuring this out. Little things like this really make the world a better place.
The best way to handle this is to contact FitBit support. You can email, call, or even tweet. They should send you a return package so you can turn it in to them. If the owner ever registered or contacted Fitbit support then they will get it back to them. I’ve heard stories of an individual’s lost fitbit showing up in the mail because someone as conscientious as yourself went through the trouble of figuring out what to do with it.
Stay Awesome,
Dennis
Toland says
This is great. I have lost my tracker less than 5 times in one month. It keeps falling off. Two of the times I was out shopping and was fortunate to find it. I appreciate you spreading the word on this app. I think a bigger issue is that Fitbit needs to do something to correct this design flaw. This makes no sense that this pretty expensive toy can be lost so easily AND does not come with a location tracker, such as the $5 app. The fact that there needs to be an app to find it speaks to its flaw. There needs to be some sort of clasp that totally secures the device or at minimum a way to track it once its lost.
I love my fitbit, but I am frustrated already. I contacted customer service and they are sending me a new bracelet, but from what I can assume from the post its not MY device, it’s all the devices that are a bit unreliable. Still thanks for posting because I am going to buy the app. It will provide some comfort in the meantime.
Thanks again
silly joe says
I lost mine at the car wash and i have not been able o locate it! But a friend of mine said that when he lost his fitbit, he emailed the company and they replaced it, free of charge!
Parker says
does the fitbit device have to have battery life in order for the finder to work?
Dennis Restauro says
Yes. It will need to have some battery left for this to work. If the Fitbit is fully charged, it should last a little under 5 days.
Doug says
My wife lost her Fitbit One last night. I tried syncing with her PC and it says it found it and did a sync. I figured it had to be close, but after continuous looking in the house it was still lost. Tried syncing again this morning and it would not find the device. I used a BT finder app on my Android phone and tracked to a remote part of the yard but there was such a delay in finding a signal that the app was not that helpful. I found this app and after a few minutes checking in that same area the Fitbit Finder honed in on the location, I had spent 4 hours with the other app but after 15 minutes I found it! What a relief! The graph and the pings were the key along with a quick “refresh” on the signal.
Jerry Foster says
I can’t believe this app worked. I lost it 4 days ago in the house while doing renos. I was able to isolate it to the centre of the house using the sync feature on the Fitbit app, but couldn’t locate it. Downloaded the app and found it in 10 minutes, in the basement in a box with some paint stuff in it. I wish that the Fitbit bracelet worked as well as this app. Thank you.
Kirby Speas says
I surrcomed to the $4.99 app!
Found my FiTBitch and couldn’t be happier!
I was not sure if I had left it at my parents house 3 hours away, or lost it
Around town – my tracker was tracking somewhat of my habits because the dress
was in my luggage- so I figured it was most likely around me-
Time was a factor for the $4.99 purchase because I knew it hadn’t been charged in a week .
I do wish it had a bing-ping or hotter-colder follow along.
I followed the bars on the screen and there it was attached to a dress !
Good luck y’all, it works!
Crystal says
I received my fitbit for Mother’s Day. Last night I went out of town with a couple of friends and some how I arrived at home without my flex….. I just wish there was an app that could pinpoint its location like the iPhones do… Not only find it if its 5-150 away.. The town I went to is about 2 hours aways from where I live….
Dennis Restauro says
Most devices like that currently use Bluetooth which has a limited range. As more devices come with sensors and the “Internet of Things” becomes more prevalent, you will see devices like this using the 3G/4G network to communicate over longer distances.
Ian says
If a Bluetooth app Does tell you your Fitbit is around you, another trick you can do is to set a ‘silent’ alarm from your computer on the Fitbit dashboard, and then sync from your Fitbit phone app. This will push the alarm to the Fitbit. Then move around the house when it’s quiet, and you may hear the vibrating alarm.
Dennis Restauro says
That’s a great tip. Has anyone tried this?
Erica says
Yes! I just used this technique to find the Fitbit I have been looking for for days! Ian and Dennis, thank you SOOO much.
I have a Windows phone and an iPad 2, so the suggested apps weren’t an option for me. Just with syncing I had narrowed down the general location of the device, but after days of searching I still couldn’t find it. I had completely forgotten about the alarm functionality. I heard the buzzing from the first alarm, and two alarms later, I honed in on the device. Yay!! What a relief! Thanks again!!!
Maggie says
Hi there – The silent alarm helped me find my Fitbit. The dashboard showed that although no activity was recorded and the battery was low, the Fitbit was still syncing, which meant it was somewhere nearby. Since it was close to one of my set alarm times, I listened and heard the Fitbit humming in the back of a closet that I had been packing yesterday in preparation for moving. Hearing the alarm saved me a lot of work going through bags and boxes, including donations for the second-hand shop! Sure glad I had an alarm set!
Edward says
The app does not work on the Fitbit charge HR
Dennis Restauro says
Thanks for the heads up, I’l add an update to the article.
jackie says
BTLExplorer works for the Charge HR. It provides signal strength.
Pat says
Lost my Fitbit – downloaded this app – Fitbit had been missing for 18 hours – thought I had lost in whilst taking cover in a storm – found it in the laundry after less the 90 seconds. Best $6 I have spent in a while.
Lekeya says
Thank you for this tip. It was a Godsend! Downloaded the app and found signal in the garage that led me to the garbage can that was on the curb for collection in the morning. Found Fitbit in garbage bag. My toddler has been very interested in the trash can and helping Mommy throw things away. Thank goodness I got to it before it hit the dump. Thank you.
Jim Zenevitch says
I came home from the office and my wife was very upset about loosing her Fit Bit. She was searching every room in the house, her car, the garage and was not going to stop until she found it. I went on line and saw positive postings about the Fit Bit Tracker. We spent the $5.00 and downloaded it to her phone. We followed the sounds of the pings and watched the signal strength grow as we moved towards our walk in closest. I positioned her phone low to the floor and the tracker lit up. We moved a pair of shoes and there it was, My wife was so happy and thankful. It really does work,
Ken Watson says
i looked for a while for mine then found it in a room 20 ft away from where I started. It never registered even though the Fitbit was charged .I remembered I took it off while lifting weights. App was flat lining when I was right next to my fit bit. What a waste of money. How do I get my money back ?
Dennis Restauro says
Sorry to hear that. This thing worked like a charm for us. Have you tried getting in contact with the developer?
ALM says
THANK YOU!!! THANK YOU for this article!!!! I had already figured out to walk around trying to sync. So I was at least relieved to determine that my fitbit was in the house and not at one of the stores I had been to earlier. But our house is three stories and about 6,000 square feet. The best I could do was pinpoint the middle section of the house. After reading your article, I paid the $4.99 to buy the Fitbit Finder app. At first, it was very frustrating because the signal kept jumping all over the place. After staying with it – going very slowly through the house – and backtracking my projects, I FOUND it! In the back corner of my basement inside of a boxed buried under packing papers!! I had wrapped and boxed some pictures then put the extra packaging paper in the box. I couldn’t believe it!!! I NEVER would have found my fit bit without this tracking app!!! The frustrating signal was when I was on the floor directly over the box. :) THANK YOU for taking the time to write this article!
Dennis Restauro says
That’s great! I never considered altitude before, but it’s a great point you bring up about searching on multiple floors.
Liz says
After frantically tearing apart the house, digging in the snow and offering the kids a bounty for my lost fitbit (which I had been using for less than 48 hours) I decided to try the app. After a quick download and a few minutes still looking in the house, I stepped outside and found it in the backseat of the car! Never would have looked there- thanks for sharing the app that ended hours of crazy searching!! Now I need to go put my house back together ;)
Dennis Restauro says
That’s awesome Liz! I’m glad you found it. We has a similar experience looking all over the yard for my wife’s Fitbit. Then we downloaded the Fitbit Finder and it took us to a spot in the yard where my wife was only in for a second. Sure enough, that’s where it was.
Vicki says
OMG!! This app is fantastic! I was out last night taking care of the goats and dogs & when I got back home I noticed my fitbit was no longer on my wrist. Needless to say I was frantic. Went and traced my steps but with no luck. This morning I downloaded the fitbit tracker app and within 30 minutes I found it. YAHOO!! Thank you very much!
Carol says
I lost my Fitbit last evening at a location in another town not too far from my town. I went back this morning to look for it not knowing about Fitback Finder or using the Dashboard. I checked again tonight and noticed the Fitbit synced at 10:41 am this morning the time I was in the area. Going back this evening, there was no more sync but still registers as having battery power. Maybe someone picked it up?
Any suggestions?
Dennis Restauro says
A fitbit battery will last about 4-5 days if it’s fully charged. Did you go back with the finder and see if it pings?
Heather says
WOW!!! I totally should have done this and read this post the day it was published. I lost my Fitbit while walking my neighborhood with my son and the dog, trick or treating on Halloween. :(
Dennis Restauro says
Sorry to hear that. You may want to check out Tiletracker as well. They are little tracker tags you can put on anything and then sync with your phone so you can always locate it. I haven’t tried them yet, but a friend swears by them.
Tanya says
I’m assuming this only works if the fitbit still has charge? I lost mine about a month ago when we moved. I know it’s somewhere in the house in a box or tucked away in a pocket, I just can’t seem to locate it. But I know by now the battery is dead.
Dennis Restauro says
Yes, unfortunately the device needs to have power. Sorry :(
jimmy says
I just found my Fitbit Charge HR with Bluetooth finder even though the battery was supposedly dead. It had sent several low battery messages over 2 weeks ago, two weeks after losing it. We had a happy reunion today. So the signal was weak but it still was enough for the finder program to find it.