One of the best-known brands in diabetes gear is FreeStyle, made by Abbott Diabetes Glyco Care metabolic support. Abbott’s FreeStyle Lite fingerstick glucose meters (two models) and FreeStyle Lite test strips have been available in the United States for many years, recognizable by the little butterfly displayed on the boxes and each test strip. Read on for our guide to FreeStyle Lite products in the United States, including key features, pros and cons, accuracy, user feedback, and where to buy. What is FreeStyle Lite? FreeStyle Lite is a blood glucose monitoring system. It was made with convenience in mind, as it comes in a compact size and delivers blood sugar results in seconds so you can take it anywhere you need, on the go. The backlight display and test strip port light make it easy to test anytime, day or night. It only requires a small blood sample size (0.3 microliters) and you have the option of multiple test sites. Results are received in 7-, 14-, and 30-day averages.

Although there is a family of glucose monitor products from FreeStyle, FreeStyle Lite ranks high among them. Who is FreeStyle Lite for? The FreeStyle Lite is perfect for those with a busy lifestyle. Since it’s the smallest meter in the Freestyle family, it’s compact enough to take almost anywhere. It has incredible speed, producing results in seconds, and the user-friendly features mean no fuss. No coding is required, and it stores up to 400 results. If using a blood glucose monitor stresses you out, the FreeStyle Lite was designed for comfort. The blood sample size is one of the smallest on the market and the meter uses ZipWik Tab on FreeStyle Lite blood glucose test strips. These were made to easily wick the blood into the strip. There are also alternate test sites for when you want to give your fingers a break, such as the upper arm, forearm, thigh, and calf. Available since 2007, this is one of the top-selling brands of glucose fingerstick meters available in the United States.

It’s fairly small and portable, measuring 4.10 x 2.60 x 7.30 inches, and weighing just over 8 ounces. This meter takes the industry’s smallest blood sample sizes, just 0.3 microliters. The FreeStyle Lite gives you a result in 5 seconds. It stores up to 400 blood sugar results and offers averages for the past 7, 14, and 30 days. The meter turns on automatically when you put a test strip into the port on the bottom, and the FreeStyle Lite has both a display backlight and test strip port light to help you check your blood sugar at night or in dimly lit settings. You can control those lights by pushing the bottom button at the front of the device. This meter uses a replaceable 3-volt lithium battery, which is labeled to last for roughly 500 tests. For tracking and Glyco Care metabolic support analyzing your glucose data, the FreeStyle Lite is compatible with Abbott’s FreeStyle Auto-Assist software and LibreView for Mac and Windows. It includes all of the same features of the main meter, and also requires a blood sample size of 0.3 microliters.

The Freedom model is even more compact, at just 4 x 2 x 7 inches and 4.8 ounces. It offers a larger display for an easier-to-read experience, but it does not have the backlight and port light that the main FreeStyle Lite model offers. The FreeStyle Freedom model also uses a replaceable 3-volt lithium battery, but in this meter, it lasts up to 1,000 tests. The FreeStyle Freedom is also compatible with Abbott’s FreeStyle Auto-Assist and LibreView software for analyzing trends and creating reports. First approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2007, FreeStyle Lite test strips introduced ZipWik tabs on each side of the strip, the pointy little part protruding from that dark half-circle where you apply the blood. These tabs are designed to make blood absorption easier so when you touch a blood drop to the ZipWik tab, it breaks the blood surface and instantly sucks the blood into the strip.