Track your sleep with Apple Watch (2024)

With the Sleep app Track your sleep with Apple Watch (1) on AppleWatch, you can create sleep schedules to help you meet your sleep goals. Wear your watch to bed, and AppleWatch can estimate the time you spent in each sleep stage—REM, Core, and Deep—as well as when you might have woken up. When you wake up, open the Sleep app to learn how much sleep you got and see your sleep trends over the past 14 days.

Siri: On Apple Watch Series 9 using watchOS 10.2 or later, say something like: “How much did I sleep last night?” (Not available in all languages or regions.)

If your AppleWatch is charged less than 30 percent before you go to bed, you’re prompted to charge it. In the morning, just glance at the greeting to see how much charge remains.

Note: AppleWatch tracks your sleep based on the sleep schedule you create. AppleWatch can also track your sleep when your Sleep Focus starts. To receive sleep data from AppleWatch, it must track your sleep for at least four hours each night.

Track your sleep with Apple Watch (2)

You can create multiple schedules—for example, one for weekdays and another for weekends. For each schedule, you can set up the following:

  • A sleep goal (how many hours of sleep you want to get)

  • What time you want to go to bed and wake up

  • An alarm sound to wake you up

  • When to turn on the Sleep Focus, which limits distractions before you go to bed and protects your sleep after you’re in bed

  • Sleep tracking, which uses your motion to detect sleep when you wear AppleWatch to bed and the Sleep Focus is active

    Note: Sleep tracking is available on watchOS 8 or later.

Tip: To turn off the Sleep Focus, press and hold the Digital Crown to unlock, press the side button to open Control Center, then tap Track your sleep with Apple Watch (3).

Set up Sleep on AppleWatch

  1. Open the Sleep app Track your sleep with Apple Watch (4) on your AppleWatch.

  2. Follow the onscreen instructions.

You can also open the Health app on iPhone, tap Browse, tap Sleep, then tap Get Started (below Set Up Sleep).

Change or turn off your next wake-up alarm

Track your sleep with Apple Watch (5)
  1. Open the Sleep app Track your sleep with Apple Watch (6) on your AppleWatch.

  2. Tap Track your sleep with Apple Watch (7).

  3. To set a new wake-up time, tap the wake-up time, turn the Digital Crown to set a new time, then tap Track your sleep with Apple Watch (8).

    If you don’t want your AppleWatch to wake you in the morning, turn off Alarm.

You can also open the Health app on your iPhone, tap Browse, tap Sleep, then tap Edit below Your Schedule to change your schedule.

The changes apply only to your next wake-up alarm, after which your normal schedule resumes.

Note: You can also turn off the next wake-up alarm in the Alarms app Track your sleep with Apple Watch (9). Just tap the alarm that appears below Track your sleep with Apple Watch (10), then tap Skip for Tonight.

Change or add a sleep schedule

  1. Open the Sleep app Track your sleep with Apple Watch (11) on your AppleWatch.

  2. Tap Track your sleep with Apple Watch (12).

  3. Turn the Digital Crown to scroll down to Full Schedule, then do one of the following:

    • Change a sleep schedule: Tap the current schedule.

    • Add a sleep schedule: Tap Add Schedule.

    • Change your sleep goal: Tap Sleep Goal, then set the amount of time you want to sleep.

    • Change Wind Down time: Tap Wind Down, then set the amount of time you want the Sleep Focus to be active before bedtime.

      The Sleep Focus turns off the watch display and limits distractions before your scheduled bedtime.

  4. Do any of the following:

    • Set the days for your schedule: Tap your schedule, then tap Active On. Choose days, then tap Track your sleep with Apple Watch (13).

    • Adjust your wake time and bedtime: Tap your schedule, tap Wake Up or Bedtime, turn the Digital Crown to set a new time, then tap Track your sleep with Apple Watch (14).

    • Set the alarm options: Tap your schedule, then turn Alarm off or on and tap Sound & Haptics to choose an alarm sound.

    • Remove or cancel a sleep schedule: Tap your schedule, then tap Delete Schedule (at the bottom of the screen) to remove an existing schedule, or tap Track your sleep with Apple Watch (15) to cancel creating a new one.

Change sleep options

  1. Open the Settings app Track your sleep with Apple Watch (16) on your AppleWatch.

  2. Tap Sleep, then adjust these settings:

    • Turn On at Wind Down: By default, the Sleep Focus begins at the wind down time you set in the Sleep app. If you’d prefer to control the Sleep Focus manually in ControlCenter, turn this option off.

    • Sleep Screen: Your AppleWatch display and iPhone Lock Screen are simplified to reduce distractions.

    • Show Time: Show the date and time on your iPhone and AppleWatch while the Sleep Focus is active.

  3. Turn Sleep Tracking and Charging Reminders on or off.

    When Sleep Tracking is on, your AppleWatch tracks your sleep and adds sleep data to the Health app on your iPhone.

    Turn on Charging Reminders to have your AppleWatch remind you to charge your watch before your wind down time and notify you when your watch is fully charged.

    You can also change these sleep options on your iPhone. Open the AppleWatch app on your iPhone, tap My Watch, then tap Sleep.

View your recent sleep history

Track your sleep with Apple Watch (17)

Open the Sleep app Track your sleep with Apple Watch (18) on your AppleWatch to see the amount of sleep you got the night before, the time spent in each sleep stage, and your sleep average over the last 14 days.

Note: Information about sleep stages is available on watchOS 9 or later.

To see your sleep history on iPhone, open the Health app on iPhone, tap Browse, then tap Sleep. For more details—the average time you spent in each sleep stage, for example—tap Show More Sleep Data.

Review your sleeping respiratory rate

Your AppleWatch can help track your breathing rate as you sleep, which can give you greater insight into your overall health. After wearing your watch to bed, follow these steps:

  1. Open the Health app on your iPhone, tap Browse, then tap Respiratory.

  2. Tap Respiratory Rate, then tap Show More Respiratory Rate Data.

    The Sleep entry shows the range of your respiratory rate as you’ve slept.

Note: Respiratory Rate measurements are not intended for medical use.

Turn off respiratory rate measurements

  1. Open the Settings app Track your sleep with Apple Watch (19) on your AppleWatch.

  2. Go to Privacy & Security> Health.

  3. Tap Respiratory Rate, then turn off Respiratory Rate.

You can also open the Apple Watch app on your iPhone, tap My Watch, tap Privacy, then turn off Respiratory Rate.

For more information about Sleep on iPhone, see the iPhone User Guide.

See alsoUse Focus on AppleWatch

Download this guide: PDF

Track your sleep with Apple Watch (2024)

FAQs

Does the Apple Watch track sleep accurately? ›

Your Apple Watch, like most wearable sleep trackers, is using other metrics, like physical movement, pulse rate, and breathing, to infer which stage you're in, so it may be less accurate. But ultimately, this sleep staging data is less important than how much sleep you're getting overall.

How does Apple Watch know I'm sleeping? ›

Apple developed a sleep staging classifier algorithm that's based on accelerometer signals derived from Apple Watch. The accelerometer signals contain information about oscillations or changes that correspond to body movements, including respiration-induced motion patterns.

What are the best ways to track sleep with Apple Watch? ›

In the Watch app on your iPhone, tap the My Watch tab, then tap Sleep. Then tap Track Sleep with Apple Watch to turn on this setting. To get the most accurate results when wearing your watch to sleep: Turn on Charging Reminders.

Can you see how well you slept with Apple Watch? ›

View your recent sleep history

Open the Sleep app on your Apple Watch to see the amount of sleep you got the night before, the time spent in each sleep stage, and your sleep average over the last 14 days.

Why is my Apple Watch sleep wrong? ›

If both devices are updated and you're still not seeing accurate data for your sleep, make sure you've set up a sleep schedule. Apple Watch tracks your sleep based on the sleep schedule you create. Apple Watch can also track your sleep when you manually turn on Sleep Focus.

Can an Apple Watch detect sleep apnea? ›

The Takeaway. The new Apple Watch won't be able to diagnose sleep apnea. However, it may be able to detect sleep apnea symptoms, alerting you to contact your doctor for further testing. From there, an in-lab sleep study or home sleep test will be required to diagnose sleep apnea accurately.

Can I wear my Apple Watch in the shower? ›

You can wear your watch in the shower but as you know, Apple advises against subjecting the watch to harsh chemicals that can eat away at the seals and then make the watch susceptible to water damage. The watch's warranty doesn't cover water damage.

How many minutes of deep sleep should you get? ›

How much deep sleep is ideal? In healthy adults, about 70% of sleep is deep sleep and around 25% of your sleeping time is your deepest sleep. So, if you sleep for 7–8 hours, the time spent in your deepest sleep should be around 105–120 minutes or one and three quarters to 2 hours.

Why does my Apple Watch not always record my sleep? ›

If your watch battery dies, it won't track your sleep data. Make sure that you're wearing your Apple Watch at a comfortable fit. If your watch is too loose, the accelerometer may register too much movement during your natural sleep.

How many hours of REM sleep do you need? ›

Rapid eye movement or REM sleep is the fourth out of four total stages of sleep. REM sleep is characterized by relaxed muscles, quick eye movement, irregular breathing, elevated heart rate, and increased brain activity. Most adults need about two hours of REM sleep each night.

How much deep sleep do you need by age? ›

If you're under age 30, you may get two hours of deep sleep each night. If you're over age 65, on the other hand, you may only get a half hour of deep sleep each night, or none at all. There's no specific requirement for deep sleep, but younger people may need more because it promotes growth and development.

Is sleep on Apple Watch accurate? ›

The Apple Watch shows more light or core sleep and less deep sleep than the Fitbit. Tracking your sleep stages and cycles is most accurately done by polysomnography; it's not as simple as monitoring your heart rate all night.

Can an Apple Watch detect heart palpitations? ›

You can enable notifications from the Heart Rate app on your Apple Watch to alert you to high or low heart rates and irregular heart rhythms.

Does Apple Watch tell you sleep score? ›

Apple Watch and Additional Sleep Apps

The app measures heart rate, time spent in deep sleep, and other metrics that build on the watch's built-in programs. You can also receive daily scores based on the quality of your sleep from the previous night.

How much deep sleep is normal on an Apple Watch? ›

How much deep sleep is normal? The average Apple Watch user gets 49 mins of deep sleep per night—about 13% of total sleep time. (If you did the math and calculated the average person gets about 6.5 hours of sleep, that's right—most people aren't getting enough sleep.) 13% is the average, but there's a lot of variance.

How accurate are sleep tracking watches? ›

Research from the journal Sports has shown that commercial devices are good at detecting periods of sleep but less effective at determining wake periods. Trusted Source MDPI Open Access View Source This means trackers may overestimate the overall time a wearer spends asleep each night.

How to calibrate an Apple Watch for sleep? ›

Tap "Settings" in the app, and then tap "Sleep/Wake Calibration." There are 10 sensitivity levels. Level 1 detects less sleep and more wake time, while Level 10 detects more sleep and less wake time. You can adjust the sensitivity over time, so the app accurately detects your sleep sessions.

Does sleep tracking drain Apple Watch? ›

Sleep mode is automatically enabled when you create a sleep schedule. Even if you're not interested in sleep tracking with Apple Watch, having the schedule and sleep focus will limit battery drain if you opt to wear your smartwatch overnight.

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