Unlock with Apple Watch Not an Option on New Mac Studio

Unlock your Mac with your Apple Watch - Apple Support

How to set up Auto Unlock

Make sure that your devices meet the system requirements for Auto Unlock and are set up as follows:

• Your Mac and Apple Watch have Wi-Fi and Bluetooth turned on.
• Your Mac and Apple Watch are signed in with the same Apple ID using two-factor authentication.
• Your Apple Watch is using a passcode.

If your Mac is using macOS Ventura or later:

1. Choose Apple menu  > System Settings.
2. In the sidebar, click Touch ID & Password (or Login Password, depending on your Mac model).
3. In the Apple Watch section on the right, turn on the setting for your Apple Watch.

If your Mac is using an earlier version of macOS:

1. Choose Apple menu  > System Preferences.
2. Click Security & Privacy.
3. Select ”Use your Apple Watch to unlock apps and your Mac” or “Allow your Apple Watch to unlock your Mac.”

According to the web page setup instructions, you will find the Apple Watch under

System Settings -> Login Password

watchOS 3 or later

• Apple Watch (all models)

macOS Sierra or later (which Sonoma 14.6.1 satisfies)

• MacBook introduced in 2015 or later
• MacBook Pro introduced in late 2013 or later
• MacBook Air introduced in 2013 or later
• Mac mini introduced in 2014 or later
• iMac introduced in 2013 or later
• iMac Pro
• Mac Pro introduced in 2013 or later
• --->>> Mac Studio introduced in 2022 or later <<<---

So the Mac Studio is supported.

So I would suggest going through each of the items in this web page to make sure they are done.

Unlock your Mac with your Apple Watch - Apple Support

Are the following true?

• Your Mac and Apple Watch have Wi-Fi and Bluetooth turned on.
• Your Mac and Apple Watch are signed in with the same Apple ID using two-factor authentication.
• Your Apple Watch is using a passcode.

I am fairly sure the Mac has to be able to see the Apple Watch via the above 3 settings, or it does not offer the feature.

I remember 5 or 6 years ago when I had a company 2017 13" MacBook Pro at work, that did not show the Apple Watch unlock option. When I took the company Mac home for Covid-19 quarantine, the option finally appeared.

I'm sure the difference was the network that was at issue. At work there were lots of subnets, and the Apple Watch would talk to the WiFi network, but the iMac was on an Ethernet connection on a different subnet. I think they did not see each other. When I took the Company Mac home they were both on the same home network and subnet. At this point the unlock with Apple Watch option was available, and I have used it multiple times every day for the past 4 and a half years.

Try searching for "Apple Watch"

It is possible that Apple Watch is under a differ System Settings panel because you are using a Mac Studio

No. My previous screenshot that shows my Apple Watch setup for unlocking my Mac has the name "BobWatch". You will see "BobWatch" is not shown in my Bluetooth list of devices.

Congratulations 🎉