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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
- Key issues in this Report
- Definitions
- What you need to know
- Executive summary
- Market factors
- Consumer insights
- Opportunities in sub-categories
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THE MARKET
- Rising health awareness and population ageing are driving demand in everyday health management
- Graph 1: health literacy levels*, 2023-26
- Graph 2: population structure, 2014-24
- Health management: beyond supplements to everyday action, supported by technology
- Graph 3: changes in health management behaviour, 2025
- Medical-grade capabilities are moving into the home, taking health management outside the hospital
- AI‑powered data connectivity and insight are driving digital health management for all
- 15th Five‑Year Plan guides health tech towards long‑term care, digital services and earlier prevention
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CONSUMER INSIGHTS
- Health tech ownership and usage
- Wearables paired with conversational AI are now the default setup
- Graph 4: ownership, usage and purchase interest of health tech products, 2026
- Wearables have the highest penetration, with further room for growth
- Conversational AI is lowering barriers, making health management instantly accessible anywhere
- Rising demand for medical information apps, with growing potential to support medical-grade health needs
- Personal health management
- Understanding their health is the top reason consumers buy health tech
- Graph 5: purchase drivers for health tech – personal health management, 2026
- Women show stronger demand for and willingness to act on data-driven health tracking, offering opportunities for brands
- Graph 6: health tech purchase purposes, by gender, 2026
- Graph 7: application of monitored data, by gender, 2025
- The value of women’s health data lies in turning hard-to-articulate feelings into clear, interpretable signals
- Health monitoring must turn data into actionable guidance, not just measurements
- Graph 8: application of monitored data, 2025
- Build trust before driving trial: health tech must clearly communicate certification and data credibility
- Graph 9: attractive features of health tech products, 2026
- Health management for older adults
- Everyday management and emergency backup are key needs, as health tech becomes a popular gifting choice
- Higher digital literacy among younger family members means greater willingness to invest in health tech for older relatives
- Graph 10: purchase drivers for health tech, by AI usage, 2026
- Younger generations use health tech to reduce caregiving uncertainty and spot changes in older relatives’ health early
- Multi-generation families have a higher demand for age-friendly technology
- Graph 11: attractive features of health tech for older relatives, by family structure, 2026
- Living together brings care closer, but makes change harder to talk about
- Bring health signals into everyday life, create non-intrusive opportunities for care and concern
- For consumers who do not live with older relatives, comfort and ease of use matter most when buying for them
- Graph 12: attractive features of health tech for older relatives, by family structure, 2026
- Lower ease-of-use barriers so older adults can start and keep using health tech
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OPPORTUNITIES IN SUB-CATEGORIES
- Wearable devices
- Wearables market polarises further amid state subsidies and rationalised spending
- Graph 13: smart wrist device shipments, 2023-25
- Graph 14: intention to trade up (buy more expensive brands or products) in the next 12 months, by category, 2021-25
- Making health benefits more visible in premium wearables
- Huawei: embedding health management into everyday routines through lightweight, modular feature innovation
- Apple: scientific evidence turns health alerts into trusted guidance
- HONOR: driving feature innovation by tapping into social sentiment and broader societal concerns
- Non-wearable devices with health monitoring features
- Weight management beyond weighing: focus on body composition and long-term trends
- Accurate data and effortless daily viewing drive long-term adoption in smart scales
- Integrate weight management into everyday life, with less pressure and a stronger sense of support
- Health and fitness apps
- Most Chinese consumers can be described as light exercisers and use physical activity to feel healthy
- Graph 15: exercise frequency – exercising for more than 30 minutes, 2024 vs 2025
- Graph 16: motivations to stay engaged in sports, 2025
- Mintel definitions of sports and exercise participant segments
- Light exercisers: health tech fits exercise into fragmented moments, where consistency matters more than short‑term results
- Active sports participants: AI-driven personalisation delivers clarity and results
- Home medical devices
- Pain points in home medical devices vary by age, making service provision key to building trust
- Graph 17: health tech pain points – home medical devices, by age, 2026
- With lifestyle-oriented design and communication, medical device brands are expanding their appeal to younger consumers
- Medical and health information apps
- Create end-to-end solutions across the care journey with AI-driven touchpoints
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WHAT WE THINK
- What we think
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APPENDIX – METHODOLOGY AND ABBREVIATIONS
- Methodology
- Qualitative research participants
- Abbreviations
- China: health priorities, 2026
- Graph 18: health priorities, 2026
- China: health tech challenges – medical and health information apps (eg Xiaohe Health, Ant Afu and Dingxiang Doctor), by age, 2026
- Graph 19: [no title]
- China: priorities when using health tech, by pain point, 2026
- Graph 20: priorities when using health tech – wearables, by pain point, 2026
The role of health tech is expanding beyond precision monitoring to include explanation, actionable guidance and reassurance. Looking ahead, in personal and family health management, health tech will align more closely with everyday life and offer trusted support and companionship that feels more human-centred.
Ruyu Dai, Associate Research Analyst, China
Market Definitions
For the purposes of this Report, health tech refers to technology products, home medical devices and apps used for the day‑to‑day management or monitoring of physical health. This includes:
- Wearable devices such as smart bands and smartwatches used to track health data including activity, sleep, heart rate and blood oxygen levels.
- Non‑wearable devices with health monitoring functions such as smart scales, smart health pillows and smart mattresses for monitoring physical indicators like weight, body fat and sleep in home settings.
- Smart home fitness equipment such as smart fitness mirrors and exercise bikes that are designed to support at‑home workouts and health management.
- Gaming devices with fitness functions such as Nintendo Switch and Wii, which promote physical activity through gamified experiences.
- Home medical devices including home blood pressure monitors, glucometers, pulse oximeters and oxygen concentrators and ventilators for at‑home health monitoring, chronic condition management or basic treatment support.
- Health management apps, including diet management, fitness and mental health apps, used to record, plan and improve behaviours related to diet, exercise and emotional wellbeing.
- Medical and health information apps such as Xiaohe Health (小荷健康) and Dingxiang Doctor (丁香医生) that are used to access medical and health information, seek online consultations or connect with healthcare services.
- General AI or smart assistant apps such as Doubao (豆包), DeepSeek (深度求索) and Qwen (通义千问) that are used for health enquiries, research, test results interpretation or everyday health advice.
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