apple watch won't unlock Mac

OK, this procedure worked ONCE. My problem has been that whatever seems to work doesn't work consistently. So, I'll let you know if it works over and over again.

This is a four year old (at least) issue that Apple has been ignoring over successive major updates of MacOS, iOS, and WatchOS. The setting turns itself from on to off spontaneously without apparent cause. Attempting to turn it back on produces this obsolete, and therefore totally useless diagnostic--

That message only confuses the issue. A setting that had been working stops, BUT the Mac, iPhone, and Watch all remain signed into a common iCloud and Apple-ID, using the same WiFi Network, and all are linked together through Bluetooth (turning Bluetooth off and back on has no effect BTW), according to Apple's support pages it *should* be possible to turn Use Apple Watch to unlock your Mac back on. However, attempting to do so fails and produces the above nonsense diagnostic.

There are numerous long strings on this topic in the support communities that searching for a topic often overlooks. It's way past time for Apple to fix this bug.

I install updates to MacOS, iOS, and WatchOS as soon as they are released. For YEARS (I own a Watch 5) the Watch will unlock my Mac after the updates for some period of time (sometimes days, sometimes weeks) THEN it mysteriously stops. Occasionally, it will recover if I restart all three devices, but I have NOT FOUND a CONSISTENT pattern to get it working agains. Sometimes, I get up in the morning, and the function has mysteriously returned.

What drives me nuts, is trying to turn it pack on in System Settings produces this bogus message:

1) The Watch IS sounded into the same AppleID as iCloud, Mac, and iPhone. 2) There is NO OPTION in the Apple Watch app to sign into iCloud since at least the release of Watch 5.

I can't help but conclude that this bug has plagued users since at least 2017 and Apple has paid zero attention to it.

I SAY AGAIN. THE WATCH IS SIGNED INTO iCloud on the same network WITH the SAME AppleID. WiFi AND Bluetooth BOTH are active.

I've been following this glitch for YEARS through at least four MacOS, iOS, and WatchOS versions. I've not found way to replicate the spontaneous failure NOR a straight-forward, reliable means of restoration. Any attempt to turn the function back on in MacOS System Settings results in the following BOGUS message (The Mac, iPhone, AND Watch ALL are on the SAME WiFi network and signed into the SAME AppleID):

This happened to me after the 14.2.1 (23C71) M2 macBook Air system update and , 10.2 watch update. In my case the watch showed in settings regardless if it was on.

The How to: Unlock your Mac with your Apple Watch - Apple Support. didn't work however adding shutting off the watch along with it did:

1. Shutdown the watch.
2. Turn off the apple watch setting on the mac as described in the link.
3. Shutdown the mac as described in the link.
4. Turn on the mac as described in the link.
5. Open the apple watch setting on the mac as described but leave unchecked. The watch may show even though its off.
6. Turn on the watch.
7. After the watch is completely booted and unlocked switch on the apple watch setting in the mac settings.

This is at least a 4 year old bug. You'll find LOTS of comments. Many of them misguided. The December 27, 2023 comment by Inaworldofhurt is the best one I've read so far. Maybe it will work for you, if you can get the really awful early 1990's search function that communities uses to find it.

That bogus message does say that. Let us know when you find a way to use the Watch app to sign into iCloud--a screen shot would be nice. The Watch app should confirm that the Watch is signed into an AppleID.

IF the Watch had been unlocking the Mac and suddenly stopped doing so; you are likely to find: 1) the Watch is still signed into the same AppleID as the Mac and the phone, 2) all three are active on the same WiFi network, 3) Bluetooth is on for all 3 devices AND the Bluetooth setting on the iPhone indicates that it is paired with the Watch.

In short, ALL of the requirements for the Watch unlocking the Mac are met, yet it doesn't. Now what?

Hi CMatheso,

welcome to the Apple (user-to-user) Community.

Re: "apple watch won't unlock Mac"

Apple support has a January 31, 2023 article online that may be helpful in checking requirements etc.

How to: Unlock your Mac with your Apple Watch - Apple Support

All the best :-)

Replies that ignore the posted problem, disbelieve what the post referred to actually says, or offer irrelevant advice are not helpful.

FindMy from iCloud.com locates the Watch. Would that be possible if the watch was not active on WiFi?

The Watch app on the iPhone says the watch is signed into the same AppleID as the Mac and the iPhone.

What do you make of the MacOS System Preferences error message?

Same issue, login had worked for Mac and websites accessed in Safari (e.g., iCloud login).

Neither function works any longer.

27" iMac running Ventura 13.5.2

Apple Watch 5 running 9.6.2

iPhone Xs running 16.6.1

I note after reviewing the requirements as outlined here and checking System Information > Bluetooth that neither my phone, nor my watch are connected.

I presume for auto login to work, my Mac needs to have a Bluetooth connection with one, or both.

If I attempt to pair my phone with my Mac, it briefly appears in the list of Bluetooth devices in OS X System Preferences, and on my phone in Bluetooth preferences, and disappears just as quickly. If it persists long enough on my phone to click the [Connect] button, I am presented with a “Pairing Unsuccessful” screen:

I’m at a loss.

Hi interrobang ... wondering if you checked your iMac supports auto-unlock:

(ie: We do not know which iMac model (year) you are using)

From the article you referred to:

says:

"If you're not sure whether your Mac supports Auto Unlock,

✽  press and hold the Option key

while choosing Apple menu  > System Information.

✽  Select Wi-Fi in the sidebar of System Information.

✽  On the right side, look for ”Auto Unlock: Supported.”

_______________________________________________________________________

Re: "I presume for auto login to work, my Mac needs to have a Bluetooth connection with one, or both".

Please check that your iMac and Apple Watch have Wi-Fi and Bluetooth turned on.

NB:

The first time you log in after you've turned on, restarted or logged out of your Mac, you must enter your password manually. After that, Apple Watch can log in for you.

_____________________________________

Seems there was an issue with auto-unlock: was resolved with macOS Ventura 13.4

Info: What's new in the updates for macOS Ventura - Apple Support

You may want to send feedback to Apple if the issue persists on your iMac version:

Feedback - iMac - Apple

____________________________________________________

Re: "If I attempt to pair my phone with my Mac ... ":

This is quite another issue : (The author is discussing auto-unlock Apple Watch.)

You may want to view the excellent answer provided in the discussion thread below:

In attempting to pair my iPhone, iMac and… - Apple Community

else: you might want to begin a new discussion using the "Ask the Community"link at the top of this author's discussion thread.

All the best :-)

1. The Watch IS and ALWAYS HAS BEEN on both Bluetooth and WiFi. It works or doesn't willy-nilly with not a single change in any setting.

1. Is there an Apple Watch app that is NOT on your iPhone? Look at your Apple Watch app, wherever you find it, and see if there is any way to sign into iCloud.

This does seem to work, but the link to Apple Support is unhelpful and superfluous.

1. Shutdown the Watch
2. In your Mac: "Touch ID and Password" (within System Settings) attempt to turn on "Use Apple Watch to unlock your applications and your Mac." It will fail with a FUBAR message about signing into iCloud
3. Restart the Mac
4. Sign into Mac after restart; let the restart fully finish. THEN put Mac to sleep (or close the laptop).
5. Restart the Apple Watch and unlock the Watch (Watch password)
6. Wake up the Mac and sign in. Check "Touch ID and Password" within System Settings. It should show that "Use Apple Watch to unlock your applications and your Mac" is on. If so, the function is restored.

I *think* this is sound, except my experience with this bug over the years is that no simple fix is likely to keep working. Maybe I need correct incantations during some specific phase of the moon?

I never restart my Mac until weird things start happening that suggest that the OS's working memory has been corrupted in some way (as in the OS insists that there is not Internet modem, for instance). The sudden failure of my Apple Watch to unlock my Mac *appears* to be one of those corruptions that requires a bit more than simply restarting the Mac.

Problem was resolved yesterday evening.

The issue was the watch was not on WiFi.

We had some issues with wireless connectivity and I had been troubleshooting that for the past few days.

(Note: a single bad ethernet cable can disrupt an entire wired/wireless network.)

Using a network analysis tool from an Irish company whose name rhymes with Thing, I could see my phone had an IP, however the watch also needs an address.

So, I unlinked my watch from my phone, and rebooted the watch.

Helpfully, I received a security alert that a new device was on my network (the watch).

After relinking watch to phone, it now functions properly.

*It might have been possible to simply restart the watch to obtain the same result.

Seems the unlock difficulty may be caused by the Watch not being linked to both Bluetooth and Wi-Fi at the time. If you read through the discussion, C Matheso describes the fix that worked in that case, if the wi-fi connection drops out.

Re: "No option in the Apple Watch app to sign into iCloud":

The message says:

"You can sign in using the Apple Watch app on your iPhone."