How can I resolve Apple Watch sign-in verification issues?

I've been struggling with this problem for a long time, but I found a solution myself

my main apple id account is registered to gmail, there was also a second icloud mail account on my phone, I logged out of icloud mail on my phone and connected an apple account gmail and everything worked!

I had the same issue with Watch SE 2020. It works after unpairing the watch,uninstalling Watch App on iPhone, rebooting the phone, installing Watch App and pairing from the start, NOT restoring the backup. This is the way to avoid Apple Account login which causes the problem.

This was happening to me too. But it managed to connect somehow.

first I just pair the watch and phone without signing in to Apple account. Once connected, I went to watch app on the phone to sign in account it still have error but after a while it recognised the login. Some glitches.

if other apps on phone is using different account like iMessage, AppStore etch you won’t be able to skip the whole process due to verification failed issue. This was my problem my iMessage reachable is my number and hotmail email. Hope this helps.

Those are typically network errors. If you're at home, restart your network. Also, you can try an alternate network (such as a friend, or Apple Retail Store, etc). Stay away from hotel and open networks.

Be sure to check email. Had my name @ Gmail for primary and my name@ iCloud for secondary. I had to make sure both devices used same email

OP replied:

“Hey,

i bought a new watch and it worked. I pretty sure now it is because the watch is too old”

There it is then! I don’t know if I want to buy a new watch - on the shallow side, the new ones aren’t rose-gold and I like that colour most of all, on the rational side, the watch works fine!

so annoying, I feel like I spent enough on the new phone, and I don’t need a new watch!

I'd suggest making sure both devices have the latest software updates and trying the sign-in process again. If the issue persists, reaching out to Apple Support for further assistance could be helpful.

5/21/25

I am also having same issue with my Apple Watches (series 5) pairing to iPhone 12 max plus. I tried resting, powering off, and even deleting watch app. Same issue with verification failure.

I was able to repair my Apple Watch Series 8.

even tried the lasted update for iPhone. Nothing…

tried switching to a older iPhone with the downgrade software.

tired pairing watch and now got information! Your Apple Watch is not able to pair; need software 18 or higher.

apparently Apple Watch 5 is now outdated and not able to use. (Trying to set up for my kids family share).

I can’t find any statement from Apple that series 5 is not compatible. If you already have watch installed it works! But if you unpair it you are not able to repair.

Did you restore your new iPhone from the backup of the old device and pair the watch after that, restoring from the last watch backup, as explained in this article?

Pair your Apple Watch with a new iPhone - Apple Support

Also have a look at this article:

If you can't pair an Apple Watch with your iPhone - Apple Support

If you're encountering "Verification Failed" issues when setting up your Apple Watch, ensure you're connected to a stable internet connection, check if your Apple ID login information is correct, and consider restarting both devices. If the problem persists, reach out to Apple Support for further assistance.

The Series 5 needs a 2.4GHz Wi-Fi connection. Does your Wi-Fi network provide both, 2.4 and 5GHz?

Just restarted my iPhone, and voilà—I was able to log in. (Series 5 user here)

icult wrote:

Me too. I have the same issue. However, when I first pair my iPhone 13 and iwatch s5 I didn’t had the same problem. Along the way my fitness apps stop syncing with my phone so I had my iwatch reset and unpaired only to find out that there is this issue “verification failed, an unknown error occurred” tried it several times. I had no intention to upgrade my watch as still works and does what I need.

Yes, when I bought my 13 Pro Max in ‘22 I had no problem doing the verification, and I never unpaired since, so I never realised that this issue existed.

only when I bought a 16 this month did I realise I couldn’t sign in the watch anymore - as this thread shows, it’s the fact that the watch OS can’t be updated beyond 10.5 on watches like the SE 2020 (mine). I’ve already given feedback on the issue but I don’t think anything will come of it. There’s a poster down thread who’s been to an actual Genius Bar (we don’t have such a thing in my country) and they couldn’t solve it for the poster. Seriously, Apple, I’ve been hooked since 2012 but why do you make it so hard?

I have finally succeeded today with my iPhone 16 Pro and Apple Watch SE 2020. Didn't do anything specific, just decided to try one more time: unpaired it, then paired again and voila - somehow it's working now. I wasn't asked to log in this time, by the way