Why is my apple watch not pairing with my iphone

Ready to switch from your Apple Watch Series 7 to the new Series 8, Ultra, or SE? Or maybe you just need to transfer your existing Apple Watch with your new iPhone? Follow along for how to seamlessly pair a new or existing Apple Watch with iPhone without losing data – including a new process in iOS 16.

Apple Watch backups happen automatically and are saved on the iPhone your Apple Watch is paired with. However, there’s no place in Settings to manually back up your Apple Watch or see when the last automatic backup was.

Read on for how to make sure your Apple Watch is backed up and you’re all set to upgrade to your new one.

If you’re upgrading to a new iPhone 14 (or any other new model), you’ll need to take care of that first.

  • How to upgrade to your iPhone 14 without losing data

Apple notes that these items are not included with Apple Watch backups: Bluetooth pairings, credit or debit cards used for Apple Pay, Apple Watch passcode, and Messages.

How to pair Apple Watch with a new iPhone

New with iOS 16 – automatic transfer for existing Apple Watch

A fresh and seamless new process should show up with iOS 16 to move an existing Apple Watch from your old iPhone to your new one.

  1. Make sure to set up your new iPhone and restore with a backup or complete the Quick Transfer option from your old iPhone
  2. After setting up your new iPhone, make sure your Apple Watch is on your wrist (and passcode entered)
  3. Look for a message on your watch to Pair Watch with new iPhone?
  4. Choose OK
  5. You can leave your watch on your wrist as the transfer happens – even workouts/Ring progress from earlier in the day remains after transfer

If this process doesn’t show up for you, follow the steps below…

Why is my apple watch not pairing with my iphone

 Use an Apple Watch backup to pair a new or existing watch

  1. If you’re upgrading to a new iPhone, make sure to set that up first (restore from fresh backup)
  2. Open the Watch app on your new iPhone to start the pairing process (you can choose to add your new Apple Watch before removing your existing one too: All Watches > Add Watch if the auto pair screen doesn’t pop up)
  3. Power on your Apple Watch and look for the pairing sphere code, follow the prompts
  4. When asked, choose to restore your new Apple Watch from a backup and choose the most recent one
  5. If you’re not seeing a backup available from your most recent iPhone backup, follow along below for how to force an Apple Watch backup

Pair new Apple Watch with new iPhone

If you need or want to pair a new Apple Watch with your iPhone or pair an existing watch as a new one:

  1. Open the Watch app on your iPhone
  2. Tap All Watches in the top left corner
  3. Choose Add Watch
  4. Follow the prompts
  5. You should see an option to restore the backup from your previous watch to your new watch

Force an Apple Watch backup

If you’re not seeing an available backup to restore, you might need to force a backup.

Since Apple Watch backups don’t happen with every iCloud or Mac/PC backup with your iPhone, this is how Apple says to do force them:

  1. Keep your paired Apple Watch and old iPhone close together
  2. Open the Watch app on your iPhone
  3. Tap All Watches at the top, pick your watch, then tap the “i” on the right side
  4. Tap Unpair Apple Watch (during the unpairing process your Apple Watch will do a fresh backup to your iPhone)
  5. Follow the prompts to unpair your current Watch
  6. Make a fresh backup of your old iPhone, restore that backup to your new iPhone
  7. Open the Watch app on your new iPhone to start the pairing process of your new Watch
  8. Power on your new Apple Watch and look for the pairing sphere code, follow the prompts
  9. When asked, choose to restore your new Apple Watch from a backup and choose the most recent one

Read more 9to5Mac tutorials:

  • Apple Watch: How to see your detailed heart rate history
  • Do’s and don’ts for cleaning your dirty iPhone (and why you should make it a habit)
  • How to turn on end-to-end encryption for iMessage, iCloud, iPhone backups
  • Here’s how to get 60-hour battery with Apple Watch Ultra

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Why is my apple watch not pairing with my iphone


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Guides

Why is my apple watch not pairing with my iphone

Apple Watch

Apple Watch is Apple's wearable is designed to help you stay active, motivated, and connected. It runs watchOS, and it comes in 40mm and 44mm size options.

Why is my apple watch not pairing with my iphone

iPhone

Introduced in 2007 by Steve Jobs, iPhone is Apple's flagship iOS device and easily its most popular product around the world. The iPhone runs iOS and includes a large collection of mobile apps through the App Store.

How-to

About the Author

Michael Potuck

@michaelpotuck

Michael is an editor for 9to5Mac. Since joining in 2016 he has written more than 3,000 articles including breaking news, reviews, and detailed comparisons and tutorials.

What do I do if my Apple Watch wont connect to my iPhone?

Unpair your devices, then pair them again If your Apple Watch still can't connect, unpair it from your iPhone, then pair your Apple Watch and iPhone again.

Why is my watch not connecting to my phone?

Check the settings on both devices If your phone has Wi-Fi or Bluetooth turned off — or if either of your devices are in Airplane Mode — they won't be able to pair. Make sure all settings are set properly to facilitate the connection.

Why is my Apple Watch having trouble pairing?

If the pairing process stalls If it seems like the pairing process has stalled — for example, the pairing animation remains on the screen for several minutes — resetting your Apple Watch might help: Press and hold the Digital Crown while your Apple Watch is in pairing mode. Tap Reset when it appears on your watch.