Turn on and wake Apple Watch (2024)

• Turn on: If your AppleWatch is off, press the side button until the Apple logo appears (you might see a black screen for a short time first).

  The watch face appears when AppleWatch is on.

  Note: If your AppleWatch won’t turn on, it may need to be charged or you may need to force it to restart. See the Apple Support article If your Apple Watch won’t charge or it won’t turn on.

• Turn off: Normally, you’ll leave your AppleWatch on all of the time, but if you need to turn it off, press and hold the side button until the sliders appear, tap at the top right, then slide the Power Off slider to the right.

  When your AppleWatch is turned off, you can press and hold the DigitalCrown to see the time.

Tip: You can’t turn off your AppleWatch while it’s charging. To turn off your AppleWatch, first disconnect it from the charger.

On a compatible AppleWatch, Always On lets yourwatch display the watch face and time, even when your wrist is down. When you raise your wrist, AppleWatch functions fully.

Note: When your AppleWatch is in Low Power Mode, Always On is turned off. To see the watch face, tap the display.

Always On is available on AppleWatch Series5, AppleWatch Series6, AppleWatch Series7, AppleWatch Series8, and AppleWatch Series9.

1. Open the Settings app on your AppleWatch.

2. Tap Display & Brightness, then tap Always On.

3. Turn on Always On, then tap the following options to configure them:

   • Show Complication Data: Choose the complications that show data when your wrist is down.

   • Show Notifications: Choose the notifications that are visible when your wrist is down.

   • Show Apps: Choose the apps that are visible when your wrist is down.

By default, you can wake the AppleWatch display in these ways:

• Raise your wrist. Your AppleWatch sleeps again when you lower your wrist.

• Tap the display or press the Digital Crown.

• Turn the Digital Crown upward.

If you don’t want your AppleWatch to wake when you raise your wrist or turn the Digital Crown, open the Settings app on your AppleWatch, go to Display& Brightness, then turn off Wake on Wrist Raise and Wake On Crown Rotation.

Tip: To temporarily prevent your AppleWatch from waking when you raise your wrist, use theater mode.

If your AppleWatch doesn’t wake when you raise your wrist, make sure you selected the proper wrist and watch orientation. If your AppleWatch doesn’t wake when you tap the display or press or turn the Digital Crown, it may need charging.

You can choose how long before AppleWatch returns to the clock face from an open app.

1. Open the Settings app on your AppleWatch.

2. Go to General> Return to Clock, then choose when you want your AppleWatch to return to the clock face: Always, After 2 minutes, or After 1 hour.

3. You can also return to the clock face by pressing the DigitalCrown.

By default, the setting you select applies to all apps, but you can choose a custom time for each app. To do so, tap an app on this screen, tap Custom, then choose a setting.

For some apps, you can set AppleWatch to return you to where you were before it went to sleep. These apps include Audiobooks, Maps, Mindfulness, Music, Now Playing, Podcasts, Stopwatch, Timers, Voice Memos, Walkie-Talkie, and Workout.

1. Open the Settings app on your AppleWatch.

2. Go to General> Return to Clock, scroll down and tap an app, then turn on Return to App.

To return to the clock face, just stop what you’re doing in the app—for example, stop a podcast, end a route in Maps, or cancel a timer.

You can also open the AppleWatch app on your iPhone, tap My Watch, then go to General> Return to Clock.

You can keep the display on longer when you tap to wake your AppleWatch.

1. Open the Settings app on your AppleWatch.

2. Tap Display& Brightness, tap Wake Duration, then tap Wake for 70 Seconds.