I’m trying to connect my watch to a new phone and it won’t do anything

Have you unpaired your watch from Your previous phone? Make sure to follow all of these steps carefully

Follow these steps if you have access to your old iPhone

Update your old iPhone

Before you switch your Apple Watch to a new iPhone, update your old iPhone to the newest version of iOS that's available.* You should also update your Apple Watch. It can take from several minutes up to an hour for the update process to be completed. You may want to update overnight or wait until you have enough time for it to be completed successfully. Make sure both your devices are charged.

* You may see that your iPhone is up to date on its current version, but there's an update available. For example, even if your iPhone is up to date and running the latest version of iOS 14, there may be an option to update to iOS 15.

Check your Health and Activity settings

If you back up using iCloud, go to Settings > [your name] > iCloud and make sure that Health is on.

If you back up using your computer, encrypt your backup to save your Health and Activity content.

iCloud doesn't store your Activity Sharing data.

Back up your old iPhone

Follow these steps to back up your old iPhone in iCloud or on your computer. Your iPhone also backs up your Apple Watch. Learn what's backed up. 

Set up your new iPhone

Set up your new iPhone. When asked if you have an iCloud or iTunes backup, choose your most recent backup to restore your data from your old device to your new device. Make sure that your iPhone and Apple Watch are up to date; if they aren't, you might not see your backup in the list. 

If your iPhone asks if you want to use your Apple Watch, tap Continue. If it doesn't ask, you can still set up your Apple Watch manually in the next step. Get help if your iPhone doesn't ask if you want to use your Apple Watch.

Open the Apple Watch app on your new iPhone

Keep your Apple Watch and iPhone close together. Open the Apple Watch app on your iPhone.

If your iPhone asks you to confirm that you want to use your watch, follow the onscreen steps to finish setting up.

If your iPhone asks you to Start Pairing, unpair your Apple Watch so that you can set it up. 

After setup, you can start using your Apple Watch with your new iPhone. 

If you dont have your old iPhone or if you erased it

Your Apple Watch might still be paired with your old iPhone. Use the steps below to unpair:

1. Erase your Apple Watch. 
2. Set up your new iPhone and sign in to iCloud. If you've already set up and signed in, skip this step.
3. Open the Apple Watch app on your new iPhone, then pair your watch with your new iPhone.
4. Try to restore from a backup. Make sure that your iPhone and Apple Watch are up to date; if they aren’t, you might not see your backup in the list. You will lose Activity, Workouts or settings on your watch that has changed between the last backup and now. If you use iCloud in iOS 11 and later, Health and Activity data is stored in iCloud and automatically kept up to date on devices where you're signed in with the same Apple ID. 

• • If you’re asked to restore from a watch backup, select the most recent backup. 
  • If you don't have a backup, you need to set up your Apple Watch as new. 

1. Follow the onscreen steps to finish setting up.
2. Start using your Apple Watch with your new iPhone. You might need to wait a few days for all your iCloud data to appear.

If your Apple Watch is stuck while pairing

If your Apple Watch gets stuck at the black screen that shows the white Apple logo, follow these steps:

1. Press and hold the Digital Crown and the side button at the same time until your watch restarts. Then release the Digital Crown and side button.
2. After your watch restarts, firmly press the screen or press and hold the Digital Crown.
3. Tap Reset.
4. After your watch resets, you can pair it with your iPhone. Bring your iPhone near your watch, then follow the onscreen instructions.