Apple Watch won't turn on? 7 fixes to try

A black Apple Watch is not always a dead one. The screen can be off because of a setting, the watch can be in a low battery mode, or the battery can be empty. Check the easy things first. Most watches that look dead come back with a good charge and a restart.

How to fix an Apple Watch that won’t turn on

Why won’t my Apple Watch turn on?

The watch has three states that look the same from the outside: off, asleep with the display dark, and in a mode that limits the display. A dead battery is the most common reason it will not start. After that come a charger that is not connecting, a setting that keeps the screen dark, and a software freeze. A damaged battery or a failed board is the rarest cause and shows up after a drop or water.

Is the watch off, asleep or in a special mode?

Before you charge or reset anything, find out which state the watch is in.

• Asleep: the display is dark to save battery. Tap it, raise your wrist or press the Digital Crown.
• Theater mode: the screen stays dark until you tap it, and the watch is silent. You see a pair of masks in Control Center when it is on.
• Power Reserve: only the time shows, and a button on the screen lets you leave it. Press and hold the side button to restart.
• Screen Curtain: a VoiceOver feature that turns the display off completely while the watch works. Turn it off in Accessibility settings.
• Off or drained: no response at all. Charge it.

Charge it the right way

A drained battery needs time. Put the watch on the magnetic charger, with the back flat against the puck, and plug the cable into a wall adapter. After a minute or two, you should see a red lightning bolt, which means the battery is very low. Leave it. After about half an hour, the watch may show the Apple logo and start up. A green bolt means it has charged enough, and is charging normally.

If you see no bolt at all after a few minutes, the charger is not working with the watch. Wipe the back of the watch and the puck, remove the case and try again with a different wall outlet. The steps on this page assume the charger works, so if you suspect a cable or an adapter, use the guide for an Apple Watch that will not charge.

Leave Power Reserve

Power Reserve is a mode that shows only the time and turns off most features, to stretch the last bit of battery. On some older watchOS versions, a very low battery turns it on without asking, and the screen looks like the watch is off. To leave it, press and hold the side button until the Apple logo appears. If the battery is nearly empty, put the watch on the charger first. The watch will restart when it has enough power.

Check Theater mode and Screen Curtain

In Theater mode, the display stays dark until you tap it or press the Digital Crown, and the watch does not wake when you raise your wrist. Swipe up on the watch face, or press the side button, to open Control Center, and tap the Theater mode button, which shows two masks, to turn it off. If you use VoiceOver, check Screen Curtain. On your iPhone, open the Watch app and go to Accessibility › VoiceOver, and turn off Screen Curtain. Triple tap the screen with two fingers also toggles it. Menu names can differ by watchOS version.

A dark watch after a drop, water or a hot day

Think about what happened just before it went dark. A hard knock can loosen the battery connection, water can trip the safety shutdown, and a long time in the sun can make the watch switch itself off to cool. If the watch is wet, dry it with a soft cloth and let it rest. Do not charge it right away. If it was hot, let it cool to room temperature before you try anything else.

Force restart the watch

If the watch will not respond, even after it has been charging, a force restart can clear a software freeze. Press and hold the side button and the Digital Crown together for at least 10 seconds. Keep holding through the screen going dark, and release when you see the Apple logo. Nothing is erased. If you see a red bolt and nothing else, it needs more time on the charger. Wait for another half hour and try again.

If the Apple logo appears and nothing else

A watch that shows the logo and then sticks, or restarts again and again, has a different problem. It points to the software, and it needs other steps, such as updating from the iPhone or erasing the watch. Read the guide on a watch stuck on the Apple logo. Erasing the watch, and then setting it up again, is covered under resetting an Apple Watch.

When the battery or the hardware is the cause

If the watch stays dark after a long charge on a known good charger and a force restart, the problem is physical. The battery may be worn out, the charging coil may be damaged, or the board may have failed. Drops, water and heat all cause this. Signs that point to the battery are a screen that lifts away from the case, or a watch that is very hot to the touch while it charges. In those cases, stop charging, and take it to Apple or an authorized service provider.

What a repair or replacement costs

Apple lists service fees by watch model on its support site, and the cost depends on the model and on whether you have AppleCare+. If the battery holds under 80% of its capacity and the watch is covered, the battery service may be free. For other repairs, expect a fee. Ask for the price before you agree to anything. On an older watch, a repair can cost nearly as much as a newer or refurbished model, so compare the two, and check for trade-in offers. If you are weighing a plan, see whether AppleCare is worth it.

What if the watch turns on but the iPhone cannot see it?

Once the watch is awake, it may still not link with your iPhone. Check that Bluetooth and Wi-Fi are on in the iPhone’s Control Center, that Airplane Mode is off on both devices, and that the Watch app shows your watch. If the watch asks to be paired as new, the link was lost. The guide on a watch that will not connect to your iPhone covers this. Keep in mind that a watch you reset needs an iPhone backup to bring your data back, and that you may need your Apple Account password if Activation Lock is on.

How to keep it from happening again

• Charge the watch every night, or whenever it drops below 20%.
• Use the original charger, and clean its surface now and then.
• Keep watchOS up to date from the Watch app.
• Turn on Optimized Battery Charging to slow battery wear.
• Keep the watch away from heat and water beyond its rating.