A veteran triathlete who’s made a name for himself stress-testing fitness tech took Apple’s new in‑ear heart rate feature through several running, cycling and pool sessions — and found himself surprised at how well the AirPods Pro 3 measured up. Ray Maker, the endurance tester who runs the site DC Rainmaker, predicted that outdoors in particular, and during moments of intensity spikes, the earbuds would have a tough time. Instead, he found the readings to be strikingly close to what athletes actually require for day‑to‑day training.
A triathlete’s real‑world test on run, ride and swim
Maker tested the AirPods Pro 3 on steady runs, indoor and outdoor cycling rides, and swim intervals.
Now read: Our review of the OnePlus 8 wireless earbuds.
The buds have an IP57 rating, so they’re dust‑resistant and capable of surviving under a meter’s worth of water for up to half an hour. In use, they withstood many repeated dunkings and sweat without any issues (though Bluetooth signals are unstable underwater for streaming continuous data — a limitation of all true wireless earbuds).
Apple’s new and improved Fitness app now lists the AirPods as a heart rate source when you’re working out. And you get the same three factors when you start a new session from the new Workout tab.
- Automatic music
- A motivating “buddy” voice
- Time or calorie goals
Heart rate and other important stats are shown in the app as well as on iPhone’s Lock Screen through Live Activity, so you don’t have to go digging for numbers mid‑effort.
Ear Infrared: Reasons for Higher than Expected Accuracy
Unlike previous earbud attempts that relied on green LEDs, Apple’s sensor uses infrared light and samples rapidly — Maker observed a pulsing frequency of around 250 times per second. That’s a meaningful design choice. Vasculature in the ear is abundant and relatively stable compared to that in the wrist, which is why medical researchers and sports scientists have been studying PPG technology on the ear for pulse rate/oxygen. Ear‑canal PPG has been found in studies quoted by the likes of IEEE EMBS and Stanford Medicine to limit motion artifacts inherent with wrist wearables when exercising, especially at high‑intensity levels.
Put simply: the algorithm is given cleaner data to work with because of faster infrared signals in a place less influenced by arm swing or tendon motion. It’s not a system that can ensure ideal results in every circumstance, but it does lift the bar on accuracy during endurance pieces.
Output: strong tracking, slight lag on hard intervals
Indoors, with little vibration and temperature variation, the AirPods Pro 3 locked on to heart rate quickly and held steady. The usual challenges of the outdoors — road shock, head movement and wind — were then present, but the earbuds continued to perform. The only recurring hiccup Maker cited was that it didn’t always measure the very top of brief, high‑intensity spikes. But as the exertion plateaued, the readings snapped back into place.
Maker’s takeaway was simple: he went into it expecting failure based on past earbud attempts with optical sensors and instead found the AirPods Pro 3 to be “shockingly competent” for heart rate. That response is consistent with the overall research: Wristwear can float away from its measurement during sprints or intervals, with errors that can get up into several beats per minute when there’s lots of motion, while ear‑based sensors often can filter out some of the noise. The AirPods don’t eliminate every artifact, but they shrink the gap considerably.
What this means for athletes who are serious and those who are casual
For steady runs, tempo sessions and long rides, the AirPods Pro 3 seemed accurate enough to pin zones without a chest strap guiding the way. True, for razor‑sharp interval work — particularly VO₂ max repeats where second‑by‑second accuracy counts — a dedicated strap is still going to win out. Swimmers should consider in‑pool heart rate as a bonus, not an entitlement, due to the physics of Bluetooth and water.
The convenience factor is huge. If you’re already wearing earbuds for music or calls, having trustworthy heart rate flow seamlessly into Apple Fitness reduces the friction in completing a workout and capturing training load, estimating calories and reviewing trends. For athletes who don’t consistently wear a watch, this is the first in‑ear option to feel like it could effectively serve as the primary sensor on a number of workouts.
Bottom line: rare win for earbud‑based heart rate
Maker’s multi‑sport testing reveals that Apple has managed what the others struggled with: a reliable in‑ear optical heart rate system for most training, albeit slightly laggier at the very top end.
It’s not a full replacement for a chest strap in every circumstance, but it’s far more than I would have expected — and it turns the AirPods Pro 3 from “nice‑to‑haves” into an actual fitness tool.
If Apple continues to improve the algorithms and make the data more available for structured workouts, the ear could be the new sweet spot for unfettered, accurate everyday heart rate tracking.
