Apple Watch Not Getting Notifications? Try These Fixes

Common causes

• Apple Watch and iPhone disconnected, so notifications go to your iPhone instead
• Apple Watch locked
• Do Not Disturb turned on
• iPhone unlocked, so notifications go to your iPhone instead

Step-by-Step Solutions

Work through these steps in order and check for a new notification on your watch after each one.

1. 1

   Step 1: Lock your iPhone

   Notifications appear on your Apple Watch or your iPhone, but not both, and an unlocked iPhone gets them instead.

   If your iPhone is unlocked, you get notifications on your iPhone instead of your Apple Watch.

   When your iPhone is locked or asleep, notifications go to your Apple Watch, unless your watch is locked. Lock your iPhone, then wait for the next notification.

   Good to know

   When you read or dismiss a notification on your watch, it’s also dismissed from your iPhone.

2. 2

   Step 2: Check that your watch is connected

   When your Apple Watch and iPhone disconnect, notifications go to your iPhone instead.

   Press the side button on your Apple Watch to open Control Center. If your devices are disconnected, you might see the red iPhone icon, the red X icon or the Wi-Fi icon. When your watch connects again, the green iPhone icon appears.

   To reconnect, keep your Apple Watch and paired iPhone close together so they’re in range.

3. 3

   Step 3: Turn off Airplane Mode and turn on Wi-Fi and Bluetooth

   These are Apple’s next checks when your watch and iPhone are disconnected.

   On your iPhone, swipe down from the top-right corner of the screen to open Control Center. Make sure Airplane Mode is off and that Wi-Fi and Bluetooth are on.

   On your Apple Watch, press the side button to open Control Center, then make sure Airplane Mode is off. After each change, see if your devices connect.

4. 4

   Step 4: Unlock your Apple Watch

   When your watch is locked, notifications go to your iPhone.

   When your Apple Watch is locked, the lock icon appears on the watch face. To unlock it, wake your watch, then enter the watch passcode.

   With Wrist Detection, which is on by default, your watch locks automatically when you’re not wearing it.

   To have your watch unlock when you unlock your iPhone, open the Apple Watch app on your iPhone, tap My Watch, tap Passcode, then turn on Unlock with iPhone.

   Good to know

   Your iPhone must be within normal Bluetooth range (about 33 feet or 10 meters) of your watch to unlock it. If Bluetooth is off on your watch, enter the passcode on the watch instead.

5. 5

   Step 5: Turn off Do Not Disturb

   When Do Not Disturb is on, notifications go to your iPhone.

   When Do Not Disturb is on, the Do Not Disturb icon appears on the watch face.

   To turn it off, press the side button to open Control Center on your Apple Watch, then tap the Focus control. If no Focus is on, the Do Not Disturb button is gray.

   Do Not Disturb is one of the Focus settings, along with Personal, Sleep and Work. A Focus allows only the notifications you want to receive. When a Focus is active, the Focus icon appears at the top of the watch face.

   Good to know

   A Focus schedule works on both your iPhone and Apple Watch. To turn one off, open the Settings app on your watch, tap Focus, choose a Focus, tap a schedule, then scroll down and turn off Enabled or tap Delete.

6. 6

   Step 6: Check the app’s notification settings

   An app might be set to send no notifications, or to send them quietly to Notification Center.

   Open the Apple Watch app on your iPhone, tap the My Watch tab, then tap Notifications. Tap the app to see its options.

   Mirror my iPhone uses the same notification settings as your iPhone. If the app uses Custom, check which option is chosen:

   • Allow Notifications: notifications appear in Notification Center and your watch alerts you.
   • Send to Notification Center: notifications go straight to Notification Center without your watch alerting you.
   • Notifications Off: the app sends no notifications.

   Good to know

   By default, notification settings on an Apple Watch you set up for yourself mirror your iPhone. On your iPhone, open the Settings app, tap Notifications, tap the app, and turn on Allow Notifications. Some apps only offer an on or off setting for your watch, in the Mirror iPhone Alerts From section.

7. 7

   Step 7: Unmute an app on your watch

   An app you muted or turned off from a notification stays quiet on your watch.

   Touch and hold the top of the watch face to open Notification Center. Swipe left on a notification from the app, then tap the More button.

   Mute 1 hour and Mute for Today send notifications straight to Notification Center without a sound or display. To see and hear them again, swipe left on a notification, tap the More button, then tap Unmute.

   If you turned the app off, open the Apple Watch app on your iPhone, tap My Watch, tap Notifications, tap the app, then tap Allow Notifications.

8. 8

   Step 8: Restart your Apple Watch and iPhone

   Restarting both devices is one of Apple’s steps for reconnecting them.

   To turn off your watch, press and hold the side button until the sliders appear, tap the button that appears, then drag the Power Off slider to the right. To turn it back on, hold down the side button until the Apple logo appears.

   To turn off your iPhone, open the Settings app, tap General, then tap Shut Down. To turn it back on, hold down the side or top button until the Apple logo appears.

   Good to know

   You can’t restart your Apple Watch while it’s charging.

9. 9

   Step 9: Unpair and pair your watch again

   If your Apple Watch still can’t connect, Apple’s last step is to unpair it and pair it again.

   Keep your watch and iPhone close together. On your iPhone, open the Apple Watch app, go to the My Watch tab and tap All Watches. Tap the info button next to your watch, tap Unpair Apple Watch, then tap Unpair followed by your watch’s name.

   If your watch has a cellular plan, choose whether to keep or remove it. If you’ll pair your watch and iPhone again, keep your plan.

   Type your Apple Account password to disable Activation Lock, then tap Unpair. Then pair your Apple Watch and iPhone again.

   Good to know

   Unpairing erases your Apple Watch and restores it to factory settings. When you unpair, your watch is backed up to your iPhone so the latest data is saved. Information that syncs to iCloud, like Messages, isn’t included in that backup.

Frequently Asked Questions