How to reset your Apple Watch

Apple Watches have become an integral part of our everyday lives, acting as an extension of our iPhones and providing a range of features that allow us to stay connected, monitor our fitness, and more. But like any piece of technology, they can have their share of glitches and problems.

A simple reset can often be the trick to solving any issues your Apple Watch is facing, but it's important to know how to do it correctly. That's where we come in. Our experts help our millions of customers to troubleshoot, maintain, and protect the tech gadgets that matter most. Here's their guide to everything you need to know about resetting your Apple Watch to get it back to working as it should.

Reasons to reset your Apple Watch

• Troubleshooting software issues
• Clearing personal data before transferring ownership
• Pairing to a new iPhone

Luckily, resetting your Apple Watch is simple and should only take around 10 minutes of your time. We'll walk you through the steps.

What you need to do before you reset your Apple Watch

If you're resetting your device before repair or troubleshooting or before syncing it to a new iPhone, you'll want to make sure your Apple Watch is backed up before starting. This step is less important if you're resetting the device before transferring ownership.

Data and settings—like your apps, clock face settings, fitness history and awards, and playlists—are automatically backed up to the iPhone it's paired to. As long as you regularly back up your iPhone, your watch data should already be in iCloud. If you haven't backed up your iPhone in awhile, you should do that before you get started resetting your watch. On your iPhone, tap Settings > Your name > iCloud > iCloud Backup > then tap Back Up Now.

Also, if your Apple Watch battery is low, be sure to charge it before you get started with the reset.

Steps for resetting your Apple Watch

There are two different ways you can complete the reset for your Apple Watch: using your iPhone and on the watch itself. We'll show you steps for both, but we recommend using your iPhone if you have it handy.

To reset your Apple Watch using your iPhone:

For this process to go smoothly, make sure your Apple Watch and your iPhone are placed as close to one another as possible.

1. Open the Watch app on your iPhone.
2. In the bottom-left corner, tap on the My Watch tab.
3. Tap on All Watches.
4. Tap on the "i" icon beside the watch you want to reset to open the info and settings page.
5. Now tap Unpair Apple Watch.

For GPS-only models that do not use cellular service, you'll then be prompted to enter your Apple ID password to disable activation lock and complete the unpairing process.

If your Apple Watch is using cellular service, you'll be prompted on whether or not to keep your plan.

• Choose Keep Plan if you're planning to continue using the Apple Watch yourself after it is reset.
• Choose Remove Plan if you're planning to send the watch in for repair or giving it to a new owner. Be sure to also contact your carrier to cancel the subscription if you're not planning to use another Apple Watch.

Confirm the selection by tapping it again, then enter the password to the Apple ID you were using with the watch.

To reset your Apple Watch without your iPhone:

1. Press the Digital Crown on the side of the watch (aka the Home button) to view all apps, then tap Settings.
2. Tap General > Reset > Erase All Content and Settings.
3. If your Apple Watch is using cellular service, you'll be prompted on whether or not to keep your plan.
   • Choose Keep Plan if you're planning to continue using the Apple Watch yourself after it is reset.
   • Choose Remove Plan if you're planning to send the watch in for repair or giving it to a new owner. Be sure to also contact your carrier to cancel the subscription if you're not planning to use another Apple Watch.
4. Tap Erase All.

Frequently asked questions

Will I lose my data if I reset my Apple Watch?

When you reset your Apple Watch, all stored data will be erased.

Your Apple Watch data is automatically backed up to the iPhone it is paired to as long as they've been within range of each other recently. So as long as your iPhone is backed up, your Apple Watch data will be backed up too.

Included in the Apple Watch backup:

• App data (for stock apps) and settings
• App layout for the Home screen
• Watch faces
• Dock settings
• System settings
• Health and Fitness data
• Time zone
• Synced photos and playlists
• Notification settings

Not included in the Apple Watch backup:

• The Watch passcode
• Saved credit/debit cards for Apple Pay
• Saved Bluetooth connections

How do I turn off Find My on an Apple Watch?

Apple’s Find My feature includes an Activation Lock to keep someone else from using an Apple Watch—and accessing personal info. To turn Activation Lock off, you'll need to unpair the Apple Watch. Here's how:

From the paired iPhone:

1. Open the Watch app and tap All Watches.
2. Tap the information icon, then Unpair Apple Watch.
   1. For cellular users, tap Remove [Carrier] Plan.
3. Enter the password and tap Unpair Apple Watch again to confirm.

From a computer:

You'll need to use a computer if you don’t have the paired iPhone.

1. Open icloud.com, and sign in using your Apple ID.
2. Click Find iPhone > All Devices > [watch name].
3. Click Erase Apple Watch, then click Next until the device is gone.
4. Click the x next to the [watch name].

How do I restore data on my Apple Watch?

If you pair your Apple Watch with the same iPhone, or get a new Apple Watch, you will be prompted during the setup process to restore data to your device from the most recent backup. Make sure to keep the Watch close to the iPhone during the pairing process.

1. Turn on the Apple Watch and follow the on-screen instructions.
2. Once the Watch pairs, choose Restore from Backup.
3. Select the backup you want to restore, then continue through the setup process.