Pixel Watch Won’t Connect to Your Phone? Try These Fixes

Common causes

• Setup steps on the watch not finished yet, so its name doesn’t appear on your phone
• A phone farther than 0.5 m (1.6 ft) from a Pixel Watch, too far for Fast Pair to work
• Location sharing turned off on a phone that needs it to set up the watch
• A phone that isn’t connected to Wi-Fi, which can show as “Network error” in the Pixel Watch app
• A watch that runs Wear OS 3 being set up in the Wear OS app, which it isn’t compatible with

Step-by-Step Solutions

Work through these steps in order, trying to connect again after each one, and leave the factory reset until last.

1. 1

   Step 1: Check power and distance

   Start by making sure your phone and watch are both powered on and close together.

   Make sure your phone and watch are both powered on and close together. If your watch shows Disconnected, move your watch and phone closer together first.

   For a Pixel Watch, confirm that the battery is fully charged. Your phone must be within 0.5 m (1.6 ft) of your Pixel Watch for Fast Pair to work.

   Good to know

   Pixel Watch and Pixel Watch 2 only connect to Android phones.

2. 2

   Step 2: Turn on Bluetooth and turn off Airplane mode

   Check that Bluetooth is turned on on your phone and that Airplane mode is turned off.

   On your Android phone, open the Settings app and tap Connected devices. If you see Connection preferences, tap it. Then tap Bluetooth and check that Bluetooth is turned on.

   On your watch, swipe down from the top of the screen and tap Settings. On some watches, you need to swipe left to find this option. Tap Connections, scroll until you find Airplane mode and check that it’s turned off.

   With a Pixel Watch, check that Airplane Mode is turned off on both your phone and your watch.

   Good to know

   For a Pixel Watch, also check that the Pixel Watch app’s nearby permission is set to Allow.

3. 3

   Step 3: Turn on location and Wi-Fi

   Some phones need location sharing on to set up a watch, and for a Pixel Watch, Google also asks you to turn on location and Wi-Fi.

   On some phones, you need to turn on location sharing to set up your watch. Open the Settings app and tap Location. If you don’t see Location, tap Security & location, then Location. Turn Use Location or Location on.

   For a Pixel Watch, turn on location and Wi-Fi, confirm that your location is set up correctly, and check that your phone is connected to either a Wi-Fi or mobile network. A “Network error” message in the Google Pixel Watch app may indicate that your phone isn’t connected to Wi-Fi.

   Good to know

   After you set up your watch, you can turn Use Location off again.

4. 4

   Step 4: Finish the setup steps on your watch

   Your phone won’t list the watch until you’ve completed the steps on the watch itself.

   When you see “Tap to begin” on your watch, tap the screen. You might need to wait for your watch to power on fully. Then choose a language and accept the terms of service on the watch.

   If you’re using the Wear OS app and your watch shows “On your phone, download & open: Wear OS”, tap Refresh in the app on your phone.

   Watches that run Wear OS 3 aren’t compatible with the Wear OS app. If you use the companion app for your watch, follow that app’s instructions.

   Good to know

   Setup can take several minutes while your watch and phone share info. If your phone still shows “Getting watch details” or “Finishing…” after 20 minutes, continue with the steps below.

5. 5

   Step 5: Update your phone, watch and app

   Google suggests making sure your devices and app are up to date before you try again.

   Make sure your Android phone, the Wear OS app or your watch’s companion app, and your watch are up to date. For a Pixel Watch, update the watch firmware, the Pixel Watch app and your phone’s firmware.

   After you update your phone or app, try to connect your devices again.

6. 6

   Step 6: Remove the watch from Bluetooth and set it up again

   Remove the watch from your phone’s Bluetooth memory, then set up your watch and phone again.

   On your Android phone, open the Settings app and tap Connected devices, then Previously connected devices. Tap the name of your watch, then tap Settings, Forget, then Forget device.

   On your phone, open the Wear OS app or the companion app for your watch, choose Add a new watch and follow the on-screen instructions.

   Good to know

   If you’ve synced your watch and phone before, you might need to complete extra steps to set them up again.

7. 7

   Step 7: Restart your watch and phone

   Turn your watch off and on again, then restart your Android phone.

   On a Pixel Watch, press and hold the crown for 3 seconds, then scroll down and tap Restart. If the watch froze while pairing, wait until it’s fully on after the restart, bring the phone and watch together again, then retry the pairing process.

   On other watches that run Wear OS 3, swipe down from the top of the screen and tap Restart.

   Then restart your Android phone.

   Good to know

   If your Pixel Watch screen is still unresponsive after a restart, press and hold the crown and side button for about 35 seconds or longer, until the “G” logo appears. The watch should restart and be ready to use shortly.

8. 8

   Step 8: Factory reset the watch and pair it again

   If nothing else works, Google suggests a factory reset, which erases all apps, settings and data on your watch, and then setting it up from the beginning.

   A factory reset erases all apps, settings and data on your watch. For a Pixel Watch, it can help with “Can’t pair” or “Can’t find your watch” errors in the Pixel Watch app.

   On a Pixel Watch, swipe down and tap Settings, then tap Settings, Disconnect & reset, then Ok. You can also do it from your phone: open the Pixel Watch app and tap System, then Reset and unpair watch.

   On other Wear OS watches, first open the Wear OS app or your companion app, tap Advanced settings, then Forget watch, and tap Forget watch again to confirm. Remove the watch from your phone’s Bluetooth memory if it’s still listed. Then, on the watch, swipe down from the top and tap Settings, then System. Scroll and tap Disconnect and reset, or Unpair with phone if you don’t see it, and tap Done to confirm.

   When the reset is finished, set up your watch and phone again.

   Good to know

   When you re-pair a Pixel Watch after a factory reset, sign in with your most recent PIN or Google Account login. This helps prevent others from using your device without permission.

Frequently Asked Questions