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June 8, 2023
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Ever since Life Alert’s commercials featured the famous line “I’ve fallen and I can’t get up,” medical alerts have been associated with getting help after a fall. It’s common knowledge that falling is a serious risk for older adults. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, an older adult in the U.S. suffers a fall every second, making falls the leading cause of injury or death among people ages 65 and up.
It’s important that medical alert devices include automatic fall detection. People are often unable to press their help button after a fall, but automatic fall detection can sense when they’ve fallen and immediately contact the monitoring center for assistance.
Pro Tip: Preventing falls is one of the best ways to keep yourself and loved ones safe, especially during the holiday season. Read my article, Fall Prevention for Seniors, for tips to avoid falls.
Fall detection works the same way as airbag deployment in a car. Through a combination of accelerometers, sensors, and algorithms, an equipped help button senses when you fall down. It’s also the same accelerometer technology that allows your smartphone to adjust the picture accordingly when you rotate the screen.
Once the unit detects a fall, it automatically sends a signal to the call center. This is of paramount importance. Even if you’re unconscious, injured, or too confused to press the button, help is still contacted.
| Companies evaluated | 24 |
|---|---|
| Hours of research | 50+ |
| Hours of product testing | 240+ |
| Ranking criteria | 6 |
| Finalists chosen | 5 |
To choose the best medical alert with fall detection, we tested and evaluated companies on multiple criteria.
Bay Alarm Medical alert systems are among our favorites overall, and their fall detection performed exceptionally well in our tests. It was the only fall detection pendant not to trigger a false alarm from crouching or dropping the device.
Water-resistant: Yes
Integrated pendant: Bay Alarm Medical requires an additional button to enable fall-detection functionality.
Cost: The in-home landline system starts at $24.95 monthly, and the cellular system starts at $29.95 monthly. The On-the-Go systems include two device options, which start at $29.95 per month. These options include 24/7 mobile protection in the form of a GPS Help Button or SOS Smartwatch. You can also bundle packages to save more.
Cost to add fall detection: $10 per month
Contracts: Month to month
Equipment or setup fees: None
Our verdict: Bay Alarm Medical has long been one of my favorite medical alert providers. With a combination of accurate fall detection and affordable yet advanced equipment, Bay Alarm Medical is your best choice for fall detection devices and great in-the home medical alert systems with responsive and clear two-way communication and extended battery life.
To learn more about this company, read my hands-on Bay Alarm Medical review.
Medical Guardian features one of the widest selections of at-home and mobile alert systems. No matter your needs, there is a Medical Guardian option to suit them. For fall detection, we were most impressed by the Active Guardian, a mobile, GPS medical alert that has built-in fall detection that can be activated for a small fee.
Water-resistant: Yes
Integrated pendant: Yes, for the Active Guardian and Mini Guardian. All other mobile and at-home options are worn as a separate unit.
Cost: Medical Guardian costs are relatively affordable. The Classic Guardian System starts at $29.95 per month, and the Home 2.0 starts at $34.95 per month. For on-the-go options, Mobile 2.0 starts at $39.95 per month, Active Guardian starts at $44.95 per month, and Mini Guardian starts at $39.95 per month.
Cost to add fall detection: $10 per month on any device
Contracts: Month to month, quarterly, or annual
Equipment or setup fees: None for most systems; $124.95 for Mini Guardian
Our verdict: Based on our tests, Medical Guardian offers a robust range of products and fall detection you can trust. It is our choice for the best mobile medical alert with fall detection. To learn more about the company, read my Medical Guardian review and Active Guardian review.
Select MobileHelp devices have an option to add fall detection pendants to an existing system for $10 per month. If you add MobileHelp’s fall detection button, it’ll automatically send an alarm in the event of a fall and you are not able to push a button. Currently, the systems that are compatible with MobileHelp Fall Button are MobileHelp Classic, MobileHelp Solo (On-the-Go system), and MobileHelp Duo.
Water-resistant: Yes
Integrated pendant: The fall detection pendant can be added on to select MobileHelp devices for an additional $10 per month.
Cost: For the In-Home systems, MobileHelp Classic is $19.95 per month, MobileHelp Wired Home is $24.95 per month, and MobileHelp Touch Classic is $54.95 per month. For the On-the-Go systems, MobileHelp Solo is $37.95 per month, and MobileHelp Micro is $29.95 per month. You can also opt for complete protection with bundle packages that start at $41.95 per month.
Cost to add fall detection: MobileHelp has an optional fall detection pendant for $10 per month and additional help buttons for $2.
Contracts: You can pay for MobileHelp devices on a monthly, quarterly, semi-annually, or annual basis. No long-term contracts are required.
Equipment or setup fees: There are no upfront costs for MobileHelp devices.
Our verdict: With its combination of systems for both in and out of the home, MobileHelp has a device to suit just about any user. MobileHelp costs also start at $19.95 per month.
To learn more about MobileHelp, read my full MobileHelp review.
LifeFone has a long history of providing quality medical alerts backed by top-notch customer service. The company offers a wide range of options for any lifestyle, including an at-home landline option that travels with you wherever you go. Simply take it with you and plug it into the landline at your new location, whether you’re on vacation, visiting family, or moving to a new home. You can choose from the in-home landline or cellular options, the on-the-go mobile device with a wristband or pendant, or a voice-in mobile device that has everything in one pendant.
Water-resistant: Yes
Integrated pendant: The voice-in mobile option is integrated, but the on-the-go mobile option and both at-home options come with a separate fall detection pendant.
Cost: The in-home landline system starts at $29.95 per month, and cellular starts at $34.95 monthly. Their basic on-the-go system starts at $39.95 monthly, their At-Home & On-the-Go, VIP voice-in pendant starts at $43.95 per month, and their smallest voice-in pendant, the At-Home & On-the-Go, VIPx with optional fall detection starts at $45.95 per month.
Cost to add fall detection: LifeFone prices fall detection at $5 per month, the most affordable we’ve seen.
Contracts: Month to month
Equipment or setup fees: None
Our verdict: LifeFone provides reliable, high-quality equipment with lots of options, good customer service, and competitive pricing. Whatever you need from your fall detection medical alert system, LifeFone has one for you.
To learn more about the company, read my hands-on review of LifeFone.
With Alexa Together, you have the option of purchasing one of several devices that enable its fall detection feature. And while each of these devices comes with an upfront cost (anywhere from $169.99 to $249.95), Alexa Together charges no monthly fee to use these devices.
Our favorite fall detection device, the SkyAngelCare fall detection pendant, functions similarly to other devices on this list. When worn around the neck, it will automatically detect falls and trigger a call to Amazon’s urgent response center. This pendant also features a button that allows a user to manually initiate a call.
Water-resistant: Yes
Cost: The SkyAngelCare fall detection pendant costs $169.99; however, once you buy the pendant, you pay nothing extra for fall detection.
Contracts: Alexa Together comes with a six-month free trial, after which time the service costs $19.99 per month.
Equipment or setup fees: $169.99 for the fall detection pendant; $84.99 for an Echo Show
Our verdict: Based on our tests, the fall detection pendant from SkyAngelCare worked exceptionally well, and it paired nicely with the voice commands of our Alexa Together system. To learn more about our experience with Alexa Together, read our Alexa Together review.
Aloe Care Health devices take a different approach to fall detection. In addition to its Mobile Companion, which features built-in fall detection, it offers a fall detection button that can be mounted to your bathroom wall. By digitally mapping your bathroom’s layout, it can accurately detect when you fall. The system can also use voice commands in the event of a false alarm.
Water-resistant: Yes
Integrated pendant: Mobile Companion has integrated fall detection, but the other systems require the wall-mounted fall detection feature, which operated with a high level of accuracy in our tests.
Cost: The Mobile Companion costs $24.99 per month with a $99.99 one-time hardware fee. Aloe Care Essentials goes for $29.99 per month with a one-time hardware fee of $149.99, and the Essentials Plus and Tota Care packages cost $39.99 per month and $49.99 per month, with one-time hardware fees of $249.99 and $349.99, respectively.
Cost to add fall detection: Aloe Care Health does not charge an additional fee for fall detection; the feature is included with each of its systems.
Contracts: Month to month
Equipment or setup fees: $99 to $349.99, depending on the system
Our verdict: With its multipronged approach to fall detection, Aloe Care Health offers reliable fall safety both in the home and on the go. This, combined with its handy voice commands, makes the company one of the best options for fall detection.
To learn more about Aloe Care Health, read my full Aloe Care Health review.
Pro Tip: To learn more about this unique type of medical alert system, check out my pick for the best voice-activated medical alert system.
One concern we hear frequently regarding fall detection is that the pendants can send out false alarms.
To be completely transparent: Yes, this is a genuine issue. No fall detection system is perfect, and from time to time, the sensors may mistake an ordinary movement — such as bending forward or getting into bed — for a fall and send out an alarm. If it happens, however, you can simply press the button on your base station or pendant to contact the call center and let them know there’s no problem.
On the flip side, most systems are set not to send out an alarm if they detect movement after a fall. This is to prevent false signals — the system assumes if you can move, then you can press your alarm. It’s a good idea to press your help button after a fall to make sure help is coming.
Fall detection systems aren’t perfect, but we firmly believe they are worth the investment — especially for older adults who are particularly at risk of falls, such as people with balance issues, unsteadiness on their feet, or a history of falls.
It’s far better to risk the occasional false alarm than be left without a way to get help after a fall. Medical alert companies are well aware of the potential for false alarms, so they’re prepared for them to happen.
Fall detection uses accelerometers and other motion technology to detect whether you’ve experienced a fall. From there, it will alert an emergency monitoring center.
Yes. Some medical alert systems have built-in fall detection functions, while other systems offer an optional fall detection pendant add-on.
There are many different medical alert systems that offer the best fall detection features. We’d recommend looking into Bay Alarm Medical or Medical Guardian.
Yes. Some of the newer smartphones in the market today may have fall detection capabilities. Some smartphones, like the Galaxy Watch 3, have a built-in accelerometer feature to detect falls and send alerts.
Yes. According to Apple, falls are automatically recorded in the Health app on your iPhone. You can also check fall history by opening the app on your iPhone.
Fitbits do not currently have fall detection features.
