Check your battery and charge your Apple Watch

Check your battery at a glance from the watch face, Control Center, or Nightstand mode.

Apple Watch showing its charge level

Check your battery charge

You can check your Apple Watch battery's charge level in several places:

Apple Watch showing charging details in the Settings app 

See charging details in Settings

Open the Settings app, then tap Battery. Your current charge level appears, along with a detailed charging graph.

Apple Watch connected to Apple Watch Magnetic Charging Cable

Charge your Apple Watch

If your battery is low, the low battery icon  appears on the screen of your Apple Watch. To charge your Apple Watch:

  1. Handle your Apple Watch and accessories safely and always take off your watch before charging it. 
  2. Plug the Apple Watch Magnetic Charging Cable, Apple Watch Magnetic Fast Charging USB-C Cable, or Apple Watch Magnetic Charging Dock into a USB power adapter. 
  3. Plug the adapter into a power outlet. You can also plug the charging cable into a USB port. 
  4. Position the back of your Apple Watch on the charger. The charger's magnets align your Apple Watch, and you'll see the battery charging icon  on your watch face.
  5. Give your Apple Watch time to charge. While your device is charging, your Apple Watch goes into Nightstand mode

If you have Apple Watch Series 7 or later, you can charge your watch quickly with fast charging.

Optimized battery charging

Your Apple Watch learns from your daily charging habits to improve the lifespan of your battery. Learn more about Optimized Battery Charging on your Apple Watch.

Low Power Mode in watchOS 9

Your Apple Watch with watchOS 9 can enter Low Power Mode, which turns off and changes some features to save battery life. Learn more about using Low Power Mode on your Apple Watch.

Apple Watch in Power Reserve mode    

Power Reserve in watchOS 8 and earlier

In watchOS 8 and earlier, Power Reserve shows only the time on your Apple Watch while preserving your battery life. When your Apple Watch is in Power Reserve, press the side button to show the current time. In Power Reserve, your Apple Watch and iPhone won't communicate, and you can't access other watch features. 

When your battery drops to 10 percent, your Apple Watch alerts you and asks if you want to use Power Reserve. When the battery gets too low, your watch automatically enters Power Reserve, and the low battery icon  appears next to the time. Learn how to maximize your battery life and lifespan

To turn on Power Reserve:

  1. Swipe up on the watch face to open Control Center.
  2. Tap the battery percentage. 
  3. Drag the Power Reserve slider, then tap Proceed.

To turn off Power Reserve:

  1. Press and hold the side button until you see the Apple logo.
  2. Wait for your Apple Watch to restart. You might need to charge your Apple Watch first. 

If you can't charge your Apple Watch

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