Battery Draining After WatchOS 9.3 Update

If the battery drains too fast after an update, see all the replies to:

Battery Drain since watchos 7.4 - Apple Community

WatchOS 7.5 battery drain - Apple Community

FWIW, in some cases, unpairing the watch, completely erasing it, then pairing and restoring the backup will resolve the battery draining issue after an update. (Simply unpairing and pairing again may not work.)

Unpair and erase your Apple Watch - Apple Support

Also, some people have found that simply waiting a few days after an update resolves the battery draining problem.

Ho installato l’aggiornamento watch OS 9.3.1 che ha risolto il problema. Ora il problema è per me risolto.

After the update, I reset and repaired my watch again. It sure is a hassle but after Im done with that. My battery lasts me for 2 days without charging from 100%. 2nd end of the day is around 38% remaining. So I guess so far it has been good so far. This is the latest action I did. Hope it helps.

When there are new updates, there are times when apps that I have selected to NOT update in the background are all turned on again. Weird, I know, but it happens. Check for that issue, and turn off the ones you don’t need to constantly update. Also, go to notifications and deselect apps you do not need notifications for. After I get everything back to how I had it previous to the update, I turn off my iPhone first, then watch, then restart iPhone, then watch. In that order. I don’t know what is is, but it works for me. Have been doing this turn-off-start sequence once a week for several years. I wish I could offer more insight, but I’m sure there’s a new update to follow. You can also check out this vid on YouTube that may help. https://youtu.be/wRwuX7r868M

If that's what's happening, I'd guess there is something additional wrong with your watch. I'd contact Apple and arrange to have them evaluate it. That's not normal.

Genius Bar Reservation and Apple Support Options - Apple

Man dont reset the watch. It's causing due the new 9.3 update. Mine is going from 100% to 0% in about 4.5 hours which is really frustrating.

the best way is to just be patient there will be another update hopefully for the battery issues.

internetengine wrote:

I don’t want to erase my phone and ho through all of that just because Apple released a faulty update. This is not customer service.

Why would you need to erase your phone? Just unpair your watch and re-pair it.

JLG 514 wrote:

Please fix this apple

my watch battery went from lasting all day to 4-5 hours after update

this is a software problem

Apple isn't here on this user to user only forum. So they won't see your post, nor respond to it.

Most users are NOT having any battery drain issues. So expecting a fix from Apple for something which isn't happening to most people won't help you.

Have you updated your watch to WatchOS 9.6? If you haven't, you should.

This thread has many suggestions in multiple posts. Which of them have you tried?

I had a similar issue with an iwatch 8 after Updating the software. I took it back as only owned if for a few days. The second watch almost did the same after updating but managed to move back to the 9.2 software and it worked well again. Apple clearly have a huge problem with 9.3. Come on Apple a few more software testers would help.

If you've had the watch for "a few years", you may need to have the battery replaced. Go to Settings>Battery>Battery Health. If it's below 80%, you need a new one. Whether you've budgeted for the replacement of consumable parts is something only you would know:

Apple Watch Service & Repair - Apple Support

larry12b1 wrote:

The battery was lasting over 16 hours prior to the update

(I charge it at night) and it would last over 24 hours on a single charge. Now I'm lucky if I get 10 hours on a single charge.

It was lasting 16 hours? Or 24? Unless you have an Ultra, 16 would be pretty close to Apple's 18 hours. The manufacturer's estimates are usually "under ideal conditions". 24 hours would be an unexpected bonus. 10 hours could be normal depending on what you're doing.

However, if you've checked your battery health and it's above 80%, at this point, I'd suggest you contact Apple and have them run diagnostics.

larry12b1 wrote:

You have to go directly to apple. Many people have had battery issues after the update but in this forum they say it is only you.

What did Apple say? Did they offer any user remedies or testing?

OS 9.5.1 is out

My Ultra goes from 100% to flat in 6 hours. Come on Apple. Please fix it ASAP. I was previously justcharging 15 mins everyday. Now don’t feel like using this watch at all. It’s also getting really hot.

Problem started after 9.3 and 9.3.1 has not fixed the issue.

My Ultra used to last two days with swimming and running. I updated from 9.2 to 9.3 and the following morning it was fully charged to 100% at 9am. I went for an ocean swim at 3pm and it died after 5minutes of swimming. So only lasted 6 hours from 100% to dead. I’ve tried all kinds of solutions recommend but nothing has worked as it initially seems better and then reverts back to the battery drain