This article explains what to do when your Apple Watch refuses to count steps.
There are several possible causes of the Apple Watch not counting steps issue. Many causes are simple setup issues. There are also hardware-related reasons and issues created by third-party applications. Typical reasons why your Apple Watch may not count steps include:
- The watch is not in contact with your wrist, or the watch sensor is dirty.
- Wrist detection or location services are not activated in the Watch app.
- A competing fitness app is running in the background.
These fixes apply to all Apple Watch models. Please try these troubleshooting steps in the order provided (from easiest to more complex) for the best chance of success.
Make sure you wear your Apple Watch correctly. The problem may be that the sensor is not detecting your activity. Make sure your Apple Watch is pressed firmly against your wrist. It should be tight, but not too tight.
Apple recommends tightening your Apple Watch during exercise and loosening it when you're done.
Clean your Apple Watch. Apple recommends that you clean your watch regularly to ensure its sensors are recognizing your activity.
Restart iPhone. Restarting a paired iPhone can resolve common issues like apps not starting.
Restart your Apple Watch. Restarting your Apple Watch can clear glitches that may be interfering with apps and fitness tracking.
Make sure to restart your iPhone first and then your Apple Watch. This ensures that the watch app restarts correctly before trying to connect to the watch.
Turn on wrist detection by changing the lock settings. You may have accidentally turned off wrist detection. Open the Settings app on your watch, tap Passwords , and make sure Wrist Detection is turned on.
Unlock your Apple Watch. A locked Apple Watch may prevent apps from functioning properly. It's best to set your Apple Watch to unlock every time you unlock your iPhone, which you can do in the Apple Watch app on your iPhone.
Turn on location services. To have the watch properly track your steps, workouts, and more, turn on location services on your iPhone.
Make sure your health app data is correct. Apple Watch uses your personal information to accurately estimate activity results. Check that you have entered all the information correctly.
Close other Apple Watch apps. Close third-party apps running in the background on your Apple Watch. Third-party apps can cause issues with step tracking if your Apple Watch thinks you're using another service for tracking.
Apps such as Apple Watch sleep tracker and heart rate monitor may cause communication errors with Apple Watch. Check all running applications and close any that may be conflicting.
Calibrate your Apple Watch. Reset existing calibration data and recalibrate your Apple Watch for improved fitness tracking. Take your Apple Watch for a quick workout and let the watch recalibrate based on your GPS and location data.
Recalibrating your Apple Watch won't delete your activity history.
Unpair your Apple Watch and iPhone. After unpairing the devices, pair the iPhone and Apple Watch again. Some issues beneath the surface can be fixed by unpairing and re-pairing the device.
When you unpair your Apple Watch from your iPhone, the Watch app automatically creates a backup of your Apple Watch. When re-pairing, select Restore from backup during setup to restore your data (except Apple Pay card and password).
Reset Apple Watch to factory settings. You can delete the current data from the watch and start over, which may clear up any issues with apps or incorrect settings. After erasing, pair the watch with your phone and it will look like a brand new watch.
Do this as a last resort. When you erase your Apple Watch, you lose all data related to it, including content and settings. If you need to save important data, make sure you have an Apple Watch backup.
Contact Apple Watch support. If that doesn't work and you still can't track steps, contact Apple Support. Visit the Apple website to view your support options, schedule an Apple Store Genius Bar appointment, or find a local authorized Apple service provider.
