MAX30102 Heart Rate Sensor

Welcome to this beginner-friendly Arduino tutorial on the max30102 heart rate. By the end of the guide, you'll wire the module to an Arduino UNO, flash a short sketch, and read live values on the Serial Monitor — no prior electronics experience required.

What you'll learn

• How the module works in plain language
• The exact parts you need and how to wire them safely
• The full Arduino IDE sketch with comments
• Common issues and how to fix them

Arduino code

Open the Arduino IDE, paste the sketch below into a new file, install any libraries the sketch #includes (Tools → Manage Libraries), select your board and COM port, then click Upload.

/*
  Optical Heart Rate Detection (PBA Algorithm) using the MAX30105 Breakout
  By: Nathan Seidle @ SparkFun Electronics
  Date: October 2nd, 2016
  https://github.com/sparkfun/MAX30105_Breakout

  This is a demo to show the reading of heart rate or beats per minute (BPM) using
  a Penpheral Beat Amplitude (PBA) algorithm.

  It is best to attach the sensor to your finger using a rubber band or other tightening
  device. Humans are generally bad at applying constant pressure to a thing. When you
  press your finger against the sensor it varies enough to cause the blood in your
  finger to flow differently which causes the sensor readings to go wonky.

  Hardware Connections (Breakoutboard to Arduino):
  -5V = 5V (3.3V is allowed)
  -GND = GND
  -SDA = A4 (or SDA)
  -SCL = A5 (or SCL)
  -INT = Not connected

  The MAX30105 Breakout can handle 5V or 3.3V I2C logic. We recommend powering the board with 5V
  but it will also run at 3.3V.
*/

#include <Wire.h>
#include "MAX30105.h"

#include "heartRate.h"

MAX30105 particleSensor;

const byte RATE_SIZE = 4; //Increase this for more averaging. 4 is good.
byte rates[RATE_SIZE]; //Array of heart rates
byte rateSpot = 0;
long lastBeat = 0; //Time at which the last beat occurred

float beatsPerMinute;
int beatAvg;

void setup()
{
  Serial.begin(115200);
  Serial.println("Initializing...");

  // Initialize sensor
  if (!particleSensor.begin(Wire, I2C_SPEED_FAST)) //Use default I2C port, 400kHz speed
  {
    Serial.println("MAX30105 was not found. Please check wiring/power. ");
    while (1);
  }
  Serial.println("Place your index finger on the sensor with steady pressure.");

  particleSensor.setup(); //Configure sensor with default settings
  particleSensor.setPulseAmplitudeRed(0x0A); //Turn Red LED to low to indicate sensor is running
  particleSensor.setPulseAmplitudeGreen(0); //Turn off Green LED
}

void loop()
{
  long irValue = particleSensor.getIR();

  if (checkForBeat(irValue) == true)
  {
    //We sensed a beat!
    long delta = millis() - lastBeat;
    lastBeat = millis();

    beatsPerMinute = 60 / (delta / 1000.0);

    if (beatsPerMinute < 255 && beatsPerMinute > 20)
    {
      rates[rateSpot++] = (byte)beatsPerMinute; //Store this reading in the array
      rateSpot %= RATE_SIZE; //Wrap variable

      //Take average of readings
      beatAvg = 0;
      for (byte x = 0 ; x < RATE_SIZE ; x++)
        beatAvg += rates[x];
      beatAvg /= RATE_SIZE;
    }
  }

  Serial.print("IR=");
  Serial.print(irValue);
  Serial.print(", BPM=");
  Serial.print(beatsPerMinute);
  Serial.print(", Avg BPM=");
  Serial.print(beatAvg);

  if (irValue < 50000)
    Serial.print(" No finger?");

  Serial.println();
}

How it works

The sketch initialises serial communication and the max30102 heart rate driver in setup(), then in loop() it samples the sensor at a regular interval and prints the result to the Serial Monitor at 9600 baud. Open the Serial Monitor (Ctrl+Shift+M) after upload to see live readings.

Troubleshooting checklist

• No readings: verify the baud rate in Serial Monitor matches the sketch (usually 9600).
• Garbage characters: wrong baud rate or loose GND wire.
• Library not found: install the exact library referenced in the #include line via Library Manager.
• Sensor not detected (I²C): run an I²C scanner sketch to confirm the address.

What to build next

Once the basic readout works, try logging values to an SD card, sending them over Wi-Fi with an ESP32, or pushing them to a Blynk IoT dashboard. Pair this module with our simulator round-up to prototype the circuit before soldering.