What Is watchOS?

watchOS is the software that makes your Apple Watch work. Much like macOS runs your MacBook, tvOS runs your Apple TV, and iOS runs your iPad and iPhone, watchOS, based on iOS, was first released along with the original Apple Watch in April of 2015.

The interface was new for Apple, with a home screen containing little round icons for all the apps the Apple Watch can run and a new Digital Crown button that rotates and can be pushed. The watchOS software allows the Digital Crown, which emulates a traditional watch crown, to scroll through lists of items and zoom in and out on the home screen.

watchOS 10 (beta)

Release date: Fall 2023

The watchOS 10 beta for developers was released on June 5, 2023. Like iPadOS 17 and iOS 16, its focus is on widgets. This new version of the UI aims to make navigation easier. "Smart Stacks" will keep apps organized and available.

Major updates to the Health app also aim to provide more information. The updated Compass works with hiking workouts to let you drop pins and navigate more easily. For biking workouts, Apple Watch tracks different fitness "zones" to help optimize. Other options will use the Apple Watch's sensors to analyze your technique and help you track your mental health, time in the sun, and other metrics.

Finally, NameDrop is a feature that helps you easily share contact information with other Apple Watch and iPhone users. You just need to place your device close to someone else's to transfer the data.

watchOS 9

Release date: September 12, 2022

watchOS 9 was all about refinement. What's that mean? It means the Health app added: Medication Reminders, Sleep Stages, and AFib History. Watch faces were updated with new designs and better bokeh to make your portraits seem sharper. It also added crash detection, when combined with a new model, can help call for help with you can't.

Few new apps were added, but the current apps were enhanced with more features many owners called for. watchOS 9 feels so mature we're expecting Apple to take watchOS in a totally new direction when watchOS 10 is announced. Instead of relying on apps, we wonder if Apple will go all-in on widgets (think mini apps) that help you get information faster.

watchOS 8

Release date: September 20, 2021
Final version: 8.7.1

The Apple Watch's eighth major OS update includes various cool new features. Among them are new workout types for Tai Chi and Pilates, as well as more advanced functionality for cycling and voice feedback.

WatchOS 8 also includes an update to its fall detection algorithms and a makeover of its wellness app. Previously called Breathe, the new Mindfulness app includes a new session type and guided meditations.

Users will also notice more advanced insights into the Apple Watch's sleep functions, including a sleep respiratory rate measured in breaths per minute. This information is available in the Health app on the iPhone.

Wallet features several impressive new updates, with Ultra Wideband support for digital car keys and home keys, corporate badges, and even hotel keys.

Finally, watchOS 8 offers a completely redesigned Home app; new watch faces; new Scribble, dictation, and emoji tools for the Messages app; and a notification filtering feature, Focus, designed to reduce distractions.

watchOS 7

Release date: September 16, 2020
Final version: 7.6.2

watchOS7 came packed with several new features, including Family Setup, sleep tracking, automatic hand-washing detection, a new Sleep app, new workouts, and improvements to Maps and Siri.

Family Setup lets people who don't have an iPhone use an Apple Watch. Apple is targeting children and older adults, but anyone can take advantage of this if they have a family member with an iPhone. They also get their own phone number so that you can keep in touch. It also includes parental controls and activities designed with kids in mind. Finally, Apple Cash Family lets you send money to your children (or other family members).

The OS update also came with new, customizable watch faces and face sharing functionality. Users can share watch faces with others right from their wrist.

The Sleep app charts your sleep patterns, and offer Wind Down and Wake Up features. Your watch automatically goes into Do Not Disturb when you retire for the day.

Your watch can also detect and time handwashing so you get the full, recommended 20 seconds. It also can send you an alert to wash your hands when you get home.

watchOS 6

Release date: September 19, 2019
Final version: 6.2.8

The sixth iteration of watchOS brought with it a few good changes, like a dedicated watchOS App Store, new apps like Calculator, an Activity trends feature, and health-focused features like a menstrual cycle tracker and a hearing health app.

Apple watchOS 6 also brought new watch faces, an improved Siri that can tell you what song is playing nearby, automatic audiobook syncing, a redesigned Reminders app, and a new Voice Memo app. Plus, you can finally add Animoji and Memoji stickers to your messages right from your wrist.

watchOS 5

Release date: September 17, 2018
Final version: 5.3.8

watchOS 5 arrived with the latest iteration of Apple Watch hardware, Series 4. It brought with it a slew of new features and additions to the OS, including more fitness activities, apps, Siri abilities, and notification improvements:

• The Apple Workout app got a new Compete with Friends system, auto-detection for workouts, and added Yoga and Hiking to the list of available tracking. Pace alerts and cadence tracking also showed up.
• A new Podcasts app arrived for watchOS, letting you stream your favorites via LTE or sync from your iPhone (for GPS-only devices).
• Walkie-Talkie made its debut, letting you tap and hold an on-screen button to chat via voice just like a real walkie-talkie (the feature uses FaceTime Audio to do so).
• The Siri watch face now allows third-party apps support, and you can raise your wrist to activate Siri. The Apple digital assistant also now integrates with Siri shortcuts, allowing for more complex responses to your commands.

Notifications are now grouped by app, and watchOS 5 gives you even more actions to handle them on your wrist. You can view web pages in iMessages and schedule Do Not Disturb events to happen when you leave a location or for a specific time period.

If you're a student, watchOS also offers support for contactless student ID cards, letting you access your dorm, the gym, and the library while also letting you pay for stuff on campus like laundry, coffee, or lunch.

watchOS 4

Release date: September 19, 2017
Final version: 4.3.2 (July 9, 2018)

This new iteration was the end of the road for the first-generation Apple Watch, with 4.3.2 being the final watchOS supported for that original device. There were also several changes to the OS as well, including:

• A new List option for the home screen, which let you see all your apps in a list interface.
• A new Favorites option for the Dock, so that you could choose what showed up when you pressed the Apple Watch side button. Previously, the Dock only showed your most recent apps.

More new watch faces arrived with this version, including a kaleidoscope face, one with Toy Story characters on it, and a dedicated watch face for Siri.

New activity reminders made their debut in watchOS4, too, with heart rate alerts also launching alongside. Apple Music got a boost, too, with an easier way to sync music from your iPhone and a promise of streaming. Another, less exciting yet still useful feature was the added flashlight ability, which sets a bright-colored overlay on your watch face to help you see in the dark.

watchOS 3

Release date: September 13, 2016

A year after the previous version, watchOS 3.0 was released, bringing with it improved performance, new Watch faces, and more first-party stock apps. watchOS 3 was hailed as a fairly significant update, changing some of the interface elements like the function of the side button (it now opened a dock instead of a friends list). Control Center made its Apple Watch debut, too, activated with a swipe up on the screen. 

New watch faces were introduced with watchOS 3, along with more fitness-focused complications (the little bits of information on a watch face). Apple also made it easier for app developers to add complications for their third-party apps.

A new first-party Breathe app made its initial appearance, and the Emergency SOS feature (that can notify chosen contacts and call 911) appeared. watchOS 3 brought new first-party apps, too, like Reminders, Home, Find My Friends, and a heart rate system. You could also now write messages, one letter at a time, with the Scribble feature.

watchOS 2

Release date: September 21, 2015

The second iteration of watchOS (2.0), included support for third-party apps that could run on the Apple Watch without having to "phone home" to an iPhone. For example, you could finally use Facebook Messenger to text and send audio files and share your location right from Apple Watch. GoPro users could now use their Apple Watch as a viewfinder for the popular action cameras, and iTranslate allowed for on-the-fly translation directly from your wrist. Built-in apps also ran faster than companion apps, since they didn’t need to send data to an external iPhone just to run.

watchOS 2.0 brought new capabilities to the Apple Watch, as well, like a Time Travel feature that lets users rotate the Digital Crown to view up to 72 hours forward and back in "time" for apps like Weather and News headlines.

The new OS added new watch faces, display time-out options, easier email reply functions, and Music app improvements as well. Popular nightstand mode was also introduced here, letting Apple Watch users set their device on its side to show a minimalist time and alarm setting, complete with the Digital Crown acting as a snooze button.

watchOS 1

Release date: April 24, 2015

Initially announced alongside the first Apple Watch, watchOS 1 included the home screen, companion apps, and a Glances view, which let you see the data from apps you specify. Glances was like a little set of app widgets that you could swipe up from the bottom of your Apple Watch to access.

The side button opened up the Friends menu, which allowed users to see people they had specified as Apple Watch friends. You'd tap the button and then be able to send digital heartbeats, drawings, and heartbeats to those contacts.

Siri was available in watchOS from day one, as was Force Touch, which continues to exist on the latest models. You could press and hold the Digital Crown to invoke Siri, or (optionally) call out "Hey Siri" to activate the Apple digital assistant. watchOS 1 allowed you to do a lot on the original Apple Watch, like turning on Airplane mode, checking your calendar, and starting a workout.

Other first-party apps like Activity, which tracks your movement, workouts, and periods of standing throughout the day with a clever little circular "rings" interface, were available in watchOS 1.0, as well. You could also make phone calls and use Apple Pay with this original iteration, though you needed your iPhone nearby for the calls.