How to unpair your Apple Watch

There are many reasons why you might want to unpair an Apple Watch. This may be because you have upgraded to a new model. Maybe you’re passing it on to a friend or family member or considering selling it used. Whatever the reason, unpairing your Apple Watch will also erase its data and restore its factory settings. It is therefore important not to follow this process unless you know your Apple account password as well as the watch passcode. In fact, you’ll need to know the password to complete the process anyway, so keep it handy if you don’t know it by heart.

When you have all your ducks in a row, it’s time to proceed. This will also require the iPhone you have paired with the Apple Watch. Using the iPhone and the Watch app, the unpairing process is quick and easy. From here you can do whatever you want with the watch, as it has now been reset to how it was when you first bought it, ready for the next person to enjoy.

With the Apple Watch and paired iPhone close together (both with sufficient battery), open the Watch the app on your iPhone. Go to the “My Watch” tab and select All watches. Select the Information (a small “i” symbol) next to your Apple Watch. You will see the model details. Scroll to Unpair Apple Watch and select it. Select Unpair (Apple Watch name) a second time. If you have a model with LTE and an active plan, you will be asked if you want to keep this cellular plan or remove it. If you plan to pair the watch again with the same plan, such as gifting it to your teenager, select the option to keep your plan. But if you no longer use it within the family, delete it. Note that the plan will remain active until you contact your carrier to officially cancel it.

To complete the process and disable Activation Lock, a Find My feature that ensures no one can use your Apple Watch if it is lost or stolen, you will be asked to enter your Apple account password. Once confirmed, select Ungroup. From there, the watch has been wiped of all historical data and is as good as new again. Note that if you’re setting up a new Apple Watch, you can choose Make it your new Apple Watch during installation, which will disable the old one. It transfers your data to this new watch but doesn’t erase the old one, so you’ll still need to unpair it.

You can technically erase an Apple Watch without having your iPhone. Open Settings from the Apple Watch itself, select GeneralSO ResetAnd Erase all content and settings. Enter your password, choose to keep or remove a cellular plan if you have one, then select Clear all. But this doesn’t remove Activation Lock, so if you plan to sell or pass on the Apple Watch, you’ll need your iPhone to complete the entire process so someone else can use it.

If you keep the device but have problems with your Apple Watch, don’t unpair it. Instead, try restarting the Apple Watch, a different process that doesn’t erase it completely. Reasons to restart the Apple Watch may include pairing difficulties, slow performance, or a frozen screen. Hold the side button, select the power icon and slide the power off button to the right. You can also access Settings > General > Close. Wait a few seconds, then long press the side button to turn it back on.

If the screen is unresponsive, you can force restart by holding down the Digital Crown and Side button at the same time for about 10 seconds until the Apple logo appears. Unlinking is a more permanent solution and should only be used if you no longer use the Apple Watch, and especially if you are giving it away or selling it. If you keep it as a backup, you can relink it at any time.