Abbott FreeStyle Libre
The most recommended of 3 continuous glucose monitors
Recommended for continuous blood sugar tracking that shows trends over days. Critics mainly point to readings that can be inaccurate, including a recent sensor bug.
Recommended for continuous blood sugar tracking that shows trends over days. Critics mainly point to readings that can be inaccurate, including a recent sensor bug.
19 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 9
- criticize it
- 10
- approval share
- 47%
Recommended in 4 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 9 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- 0.9 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, not met.
- Recommended in 4 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Trends and habits useful despite rough numbers
“Probably very inaccurate numbers but the trends could be okish.”
Comment from 16 Aug 2026 in “SugarTrack – an offline Android logbook for blood sugar (no account, no cloud)” “Wearing it for 2-4 weeks is usually enough to learn a lot about your relationship with sugar.”
Comment from 11 Jul 2026 in “Weightlifting beats running for blood sugar control, researchers find”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Readings can be inaccurate
“Freestyles are not reliable to be used purely for managing immediate levels of glucose”
Comment from 26 Dec 2025 in “Seven Diabetes Patients Die Due to Undisclosed Bug in Abbott's Glucose Monitors” “Probably very inaccurate numbers but the trends could be okish.”
Comment from 16 Aug 2026 in “SugarTrack – an offline Android logbook for blood sugar (no account, no cloud)” “If undetected, incorrect low glucose readings over an extended period may lead to wrong treatment decisions”
Comment from 26 Dec 2025 in “Seven Diabetes Patients Die Due to Undisclosed Bug in Abbott's Glucose Monitors” - Comment from 27 Dec 2025 in “Seven Diabetes Patients Die Due to Undisclosed Bug in Abbott's Glucose Monitors”
- Comment from 26 Dec 2025 in “Seven Diabetes Patients Die Due to Undisclosed Bug in Abbott's Glucose Monitors”
Sensor bug linked to deaths
“It's a stretch to go from "associated with 7 deaths" to "killed 7 people". These devices are worn by millions.”
Comment from 26 Dec 2025 in “Seven Diabetes Patients Die Due to Undisclosed Bug in Abbott's Glucose Monitors” “The FDA reports that Freestyle injured over 700 people and killed seven people with this bug.”
Comment from 26 Dec 2025 in “Seven Diabetes Patients Die Due to Undisclosed Bug in Abbott's Glucose Monitors” “On one hand, this is a very, very bad bug.”
Comment from 26 Dec 2025 in “Seven Diabetes Patients Die Due to Undisclosed Bug in Abbott's Glucose Monitors” Companion app is poor
“luckily without their shit app”
Comment from 26 Dec 2025 in “Seven Diabetes Patients Die Due to Undisclosed Bug in Abbott's Glucose Monitors” “it is quite a disappointing thing software-wise”
Comment from 26 Dec 2025 in “Seven Diabetes Patients Die Due to Undisclosed Bug in Abbott's Glucose Monitors” Device stops working, no Health sync
“The device was essentially not functioning anymore.”
Comment from 26 Dec 2025 in “Seven Diabetes Patients Die Due to Undisclosed Bug in Abbott's Glucose Monitors” “did not sync to Apple Health”
Comment from 15 Oct 2026 in “New Withings Users Must Pay $99/Year for Apple Health Syncing”
Other continuous glucose monitors people recommend
The two most recommended other continuous glucose monitors, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abbott FreeStyle LibreThis page | 9 | 10 | 47% | 4 | — | — |
| Abbott continuous glucose monitor | 8 | 10 | 44% | 3 | — | — |
| Dexcom G7 | 5 | 7 | 42% | 3 | — | — |
What people said
All 20 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“did not sync to Apple Health”
“I still carry around a Libre CGM reader rather than installing the app.”
“Libre 3 is somewhat okay and sometimes even mediocre”
“Libre 2 is absolute crap.”
“Probably very inaccurate numbers but the trends could be okish.”
“CGMs are great, I use a Libre”
“Wearing it for 2-4 weeks is usually enough to learn a lot about your relationship with sugar.”
“the CGM consistently reports low blood glucose when a fingerstick reading is actually 20–30 percent higher”
“The device was essentially not functioning anymore.”
“it is quite a disappointing thing software-wise”
“They helped me to bring my glucose levels back into normal range without the need for any medication.”
“you may enjoy this write up of decrypting the app database with glucose readings and third party API keys”
“It's a stretch to go from "associated with 7 deaths" to "killed 7 people". These devices are worn by millions.”
“luckily without their shit app”
“Freestyles are not reliable to be used purely for managing immediate levels of glucose”
“If undetected, incorrect low glucose readings over an extended period may lead to wrong treatment decisions”
“After wearing it for some time I woke up one morning to sky high blood sugar”
“certain FreeStyle Libre 3 and FreeStyle Libre 3 Plus sensors provide incorrect low glucose readings”
“On one hand, this is a very, very bad bug.”
“The FDA reports that Freestyle injured over 700 people and killed seven people with this bug.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.