I’m not receiving notifications on my watch

This page can help if:

• Your watch doesn't vibrate when you receive a notification.
• You're not seeing notifications at all.

Important: The steps below are for Wear OS and may vary based on your manufacturer, device and software version.

Try to restart your phone and your watch

To restart your watch, swipe down on your watch and tap Restart. If your watch runs Wear 2, you can restart it through your watch’s Settings app.

If restarting doesn't work, try other troubleshooting steps below. Make sure to check your watch after each step to check if notifications start working.

Make sure that your watch isn’t in Cinema mode

If your watch is in Cinema mode, notifications won’t appear and your display will be turned off.

Here’s how to turn off Cinema mode:

• If your watch has a power button: Press it.
• If your watch doesn't have a power button: tap the screen twice quickly.

Learn more about Cinema mode.

Make sure that you’re receiving notifications on your phone

Your watch uses the notification settings that you have on your phone, so if your phone doesn't vibrate or make a sound for an app, your watch won’t vibrate.

1. On your Android phone, open the Settings app .
2. Tap Apps and notifications Notifications.
3. Tap App notifications
4. If the app that you want is listed as 'Off', tap the app name and then turn it on.

Make sure that you haven’t turned off (blocked) notifications for specific apps

1. On your phone, open the Wear OS app or the companion app for your device.

Tip: If you use the companion app for your device, follow the companion app instructions.

2. Tap Notifications Block app notifications.

3. You’ll find a list of any apps that are muted.

4. Next to the app that you want to unmute, tap Unblock .

Make sure that app notifications and system notifications

If a specific app’s notifications aren't appearing, open the app on your phone and check its settings to make sure that notifications are turned on.

System notifications

You can also check the app’s system notification settings on your phone to make sure that system notifications are turned on. Here’s how:

1. On your Android phone, open the settings app.
2. Tap Apps and notifications  Notifications.
3. Tap App notifications.
4. Find the app that you want to tick and tap the app name.
5. Make sure that your notifications are turned On.

Check that your phone is connected to the Internet

Try opening a website on your phone, such as news.google.com, to make sure that you are connected.

Make sure that your watch is paired with your phone

Make sure that your iPhone’s Bluetooth is turned on and that it is in range of your watch.

For more help, find out more about how to pair your watch to your phone, or try some steps to troubleshoot pairing.

Tip: You won't see the disconnected icon if your watch is in aeroplane mode. If your watch isn't paired, on your watch's screen, you may see the disconnected icon .

​If none of these steps work, try to reset your watch to factory settings.

Important: When you reset your watch to factory settings, all apps, settings and data on your watch are erased.