Samsung Health API: Galaxy Watch Data for Developers

Open Wearables Team · May 5, 2026 · 5 min read

Key Takeaways

Samsung Health Platform provides server-side API access to Galaxy Watch data including heart rate, sleep stages, workouts, stress score, SpO2, HRV and body composition.
Access requires applying to the Samsung Health Developer Program; approval is not automatic and typically takes one to two weeks.
Galaxy Watch 5 and later adds BIA-based body composition measurements; Galaxy Watch 6 and later adds nightly skin temperature.
Stress score is Samsung's distinctive contribution among Android wearables, using HRV analysis to produce a continuous daily stress indicator.
Open Wearables normalizes Samsung Health data alongside other providers into a unified schema.

Introduction

Samsung Health is one of the largest health data ecosystems in the Android world. Galaxy Watch devices are worn by tens of millions of users globally, and the platform tracks a comprehensive range of biometrics beyond what most wrist-based wearables offer. With Galaxy Watch 5's BIA sensor for body composition and Galaxy Watch 6's skin temperature tracking, Samsung has progressively closed the gap with ring-form-factor devices like Oura and Ultrahuman on recovery-focused metrics.

For developers building health apps targeting Android users, Samsung Health is often the primary data source for users who do not have a dedicated fitness wearable. It aggregates from Galaxy Watch, Samsung Health app manual entries, and compatible third-party apps. The Samsung Health Platform API provides server-side access to this data after user authorization.

The integration is not frictionless. Developer program approval is required, OAuth implementation is standard but the endpoint URLs are specific to Samsung's ecosystem, and the data schema reflects Samsung's own terminology and organization rather than an industry-standard model.

What Samsung Health Platform Provides

Exercise and activity data includes workout sessions for over 80 sport types: running, cycling, swimming, walking, strength training, yoga, basketball and many others. For each session you get duration, start and end time, calories burned, heart rate (average, maximum, and per-minute series for supported sessions), distance for sports where it applies, and GPS data where the user was outdoors with the watch.

Daily health metrics represent the continuous monitoring data that Samsung Health collects between workouts. This includes step count and distance walked, continuous heart rate readings from the Galaxy Watch, HRV measured at intervals throughout the day, stress score derived from HRV analysis, SpO2 spot checks, and respiratory rate.

Sleep records contain total sleep duration, time in each stage (awake, light, deep and REM), sleep score, sleep efficiency, and breathing irregularity detection which can flag potential snoring or sleep apnea indicators.

Body composition is available from Galaxy Watch 5 and newer devices that include the BIA (bioelectrical impedance analysis) sensor. Measurements include body weight, BMI, body fat percentage, skeletal muscle mass, body water percentage and basal metabolic rate.

Skin temperature is available on Galaxy Watch 6 and newer. Like Oura and Ultrahuman, Samsung records nightly skin temperature deviation from the user's personal baseline.

The Developer Program

Unlike Garmin, Strava or Whoop which offer self-serve developer access, Samsung Health Platform requires an application to their developer program before you receive API credentials. The application asks about your company, use case, data handling practices and integration plans.

Approval typically takes five to fifteen business days. Applications for consumer health apps in well-defined categories tend to move faster than applications for clinical or research use cases. Applying early in your development cycle is recommended.

Once approved, you receive a client_id and client_secret tied to your application. API credentials are environment-specific: you receive separate credentials for development and production.

OAuth 2.0 and Data Access

Samsung Health uses OAuth 2.0 with the standard authorization code flow. The authorization endpoint is on Samsung's account server, and the token endpoint is on Samsung's Health API server. The scopes map to data categories: r:exercise, r:sleep, r:health, r:profile, r:body.

Token management is straightforward compared to providers with rotating refresh tokens or short expiry windows. Refresh Samsung tokens using the standard refresh grant when the access token expires. Store refresh tokens securely per user and handle 401 responses as a signal to attempt token refresh before re-authentication.

Galaxy Watch-Specific Features

Samsung's stress monitoring is one of the platform's most distinctive capabilities. The Galaxy Watch measures HRV continuously throughout the day when the user is stationary and not exercising. It translates HRV into a stress score on a 0-100 scale, categorized as low (0-25), normal (26-50), high (51-75) and very high (76-100).

This continuous stress monitoring is not available from most wearable APIs. Whoop measures recovery overnight; Oura measures readiness as a morning composite. Samsung measures stress dynamically throughout the day, which enables different product features: intraday stress pattern tracking, correlation of stress peaks with specific activities or times of day, and long-term stress trend analysis.

Open Wearables and Samsung Health

Open Wearables handles Samsung Health developer program credentials, OAuth 2.0 token management and data normalization. Galaxy Watch metrics are mapped to a schema shared with Garmin, Whoop, Polar and other supported providers.

For multi-provider apps targeting Android users, this means a user with a Galaxy Watch and a user with a Garmin Forerunner both produce normalized daily health summaries through the same API endpoint. Self-hosted, MIT licensed, $0 per user.

FAQ

How long does Samsung developer program approval take?

Typically five to fifteen business days. Apply early in your development cycle rather than waiting until implementation is ready.

Is Samsung Health Platform available in all countries?

Samsung Health Platform availability varies by region. Check the Samsung developer portal for the current list of supported countries and any regional restrictions on data types.

Can I access Samsung Health data from non-Galaxy Android devices?

The Samsung Health app runs on non-Samsung Android devices, but Galaxy Watch-specific metrics require Samsung hardware. Standard metrics like steps and heart rate from the phone's sensors may be available.

How does Samsung's stress score compare to other providers' recovery metrics?

Samsung stress score and Whoop Recovery Score measure related but different constructs. Samsung measures intraday stress throughout the day using HRV. Whoop measures overnight recovery. They are complementary rather than competing metrics.