Liputan6.com, Jakarta Just upgraded to a fresh iPhone and wondering how to pair Apple Watch to new phone? You're not alone. Thousands of Apple users face this exact challenge every day. Transferring your watch might look complicated at first glance, but with the right approach, it's actually quite straightforward.
Opening that new iPhone box brings a mix of excitement and that nagging worry about moving all your digital life over correctly. Your Apple Watch isn't just a timepiece—it tracks your health data, holds your favorite apps, and stores personal settings you've customized over time.
Learning how to pair Apple Watch to new phone correctly will save you time and prevent data loss. This guide will walk you through the process step by step, making it easy to transfer your watch no matter if you still have your old phone or not. We wrote this guide on Wednesday (20/8/2025).
The Complete Process When You Still Have Your Previous iPhone
First, gather these essentials before starting:
- - Your Apple account credentials
- - Wi-Fi connection for both iPhones
- - Both devices charged to at least 50%
- - Your current watch passcode
Now, follow this step-by-step process:
1. Prepare with updates. Get your old iPhone running the latest iOS available. Do the same for your Apple Watch. This preparation step might take up to an hour, so plan accordingly.
2. Secure your health data. Navigate to Settings, tap your name, select iCloud, then See All, and confirm Health is active. Computer backup users should enable encryption to protect health information.
3. Create a full backup. Use either iCloud or your computer to save a complete backup of your old iPhone, which automatically includes your watch data.
4. Configure your new iPhone. When setting up, select the option to restore from your latest backup. If prompted about your watch, ensure it's on your wrist and unlocked before tapping Continue.
5. Complete through the Watch app. With your watch unlocked and worn, open the Apple Watch app on your new iPhone. Follow any confirmation prompts that appear. If "Start Pairing" shows instead, you'll need to unpair your watch first.
After finishing these steps, your watch will fully sync with your new iPhone, bringing over all your personalized settings and data.
Transferring Your Watch Without Access to Your Previous Phone
If your old iPhone is no longer available, follow this alternative approach:
1. Start fresh with your watch. Erase all content to remove the existing pairing link.
2. Prepare your new device. Complete the iPhone setup process and log into your iCloud account. Skip ahead if you've already done this.
3. Initialize pairing. Start the Apple Watch app on your new iPhone and begin the pairing sequence.
4. Access your saved data. Look for available backups in the app. Ensure both devices have the latest updates to see all backup options. Note that some recent activity data might not transfer if it wasn't included in your last backup.
5. Choose your most recent data set. Select the latest backup when prompted. Without any backup, you'll need to configure your watch from scratch.
6. Finalize the connection. Complete all on-screen prompts to finish the setup. Allow several days for all iCloud information to fully appear.
Troubleshooting When Pairing Stops Midway
If the process halts during your iPhone setup, try these recovery steps:
1. Open the Apple Watch app on your new iPhone
2. Navigate to the My Watch section
3. Select All Watches
4. Look for the "Pairing Not Complete" message
5. Ensure your watch is on your wrist and unlocked
6. Tap Finish Pairing to resume the transfer
This will pick up where the process stopped and complete syncing your watch with your new device.
Resolving Frozen Screen Issues During Transfer
If your watch freezes on the Apple logo screen during pairing:
1. Force restart your watch. Press and hold both the Digital Crown and side button simultaneously until the screen goes dark and the Apple logo reappears, then release.
2. Perform a reset. After restarting, press firmly on the screen or hold the Digital Crown, then tap the Reset option.
3. Begin pairing again. Bring your iPhone close to your watch and follow the on-screen instructions to complete the connection.
If health and activity information is missing, here are some things you can do:
- For iCloud users: Verify Health is enabled in iCloud settings on both phones
- For computer backup users: Try recovering from an encrypted backup of your previous iPhone
- Without any backup: Unfortunately, your health records cannot be recovered