How to Find an Apple Watch That's Lost or Stolen
Find My and other Apple features can help you locate a lost Watch, and protect your data
While it’s great to get a new Apple Watch, losing one can totally ruin your day. (Ask me how I know.) But unlike your keys or your wallet, your Watch—in concert with an iPhone or other Apple device—can actually help you determine its location and maybe even help you to get it back. Here’s what you need to know.
The good news is that if you’ve paired your Apple Watch to an iPhone that already has the Find My iPhone function set up, the Find My Watch capability is automatically enabled. Pairing your Watch with your phone also enables the Activation Lock function, which protects your Watch by requiring your Apple ID and password before anyone can reactivate your Watch and pair it to another iPhone.
To make the process of finding your Apple Watch easier, there are some settings that you should enable right now, before you lose your Watch (or before you lose it again).
Enabling Find My Watch
Turning on the Find My Network setting allows you to locate your device even when it’s offline. According to Apple, Find My Network is an encrypted, anonymous network of hundreds of millions of Apple devices that can help you locate your device; it works a bit like a Tile tracker or an Apple AirTag.
Follow the Steps, Find Your Watch
To find your Watch using Find My Watch, go to the Watch App on your iPhone, scroll to the All Watches tab, and tap on the round Info icon on the right. Next, tap on Find My Apple Watch.
This will allow you to see the Watch’s approximate location using GPS and either WiFi or a cellular connection. The function is reasonably precise. I could, for example, see whether my Apple Watch Series 7 was in my office, toward the front of my house, or the kitchen, which is toward the back. That said, during another trial, the Find My Watch app said my Watch was 25 feet away, when it was actually on my wrist only inches from my iPhone.
If you think your Watch is nearby you can tap Play Sound to help you find it. The sound isn’t super loud, so if you’re looking in your home, be as quiet as possible and listen carefully for the ping. Your Watch will continue to ping until you tap Dismiss on your phone or the now-recovered Watch.
You can also use the Find My Watch function on your computer. Start by going to your iCloud account. Sign in with your Apple ID, and open Find iPhone. Click All Devices, then click your Apple Watch.
Still can’t find your Apple Watch? You can take steps to protect your information.
Put Your Watch Into Lost Mode
If Find My Watch can’t locate your Watch, you can put your device into Lost Mode, which locks down your phone and also sends a message to whoever finds your Watch.
To put your Watch in Lost most, open Find My on the Watch app of your iPhone and tap on the name of your Apple Watch. Scroll down to Mark as Lost. Then tap Activate > Continue.
At this point, you can enter a custom message that includes your phone number, which will be displayed on the Watch face. Enter a message of up to 70 characters, such as, “Oh, no, I lost this Watch! Please call me.” Find My should now send you an email message to confirm that you put your Apple Watch in Lost Mode.
Putting your watch in Lost mode also enables Activation Lock, which prevents someone from turning off Find My, reactivating the Watch, and pairing it with another Phone without entering your passcode.
When you do locate your missing Apple Watch, you can turn off Lost Mode by simply tapping the Unlock button on your Watch, then entering your passcode. You can then start using your Watch again just as you normally would. You can also turn off Lost Mode on your Watch from your paired iPhone or through iCloud.
If you’re convinced your watch was stolen, or permanently lost, you can use the Erase This Device function, which will wipe your data from the device. (It will remain on your iPhone.) Note that once you erase your device, it can no longer be located or tracked by the app.
If you didn’t have Activation Lock enabled, you might want to change your Apple ID password. This can prevent anyone from accessing your iCloud information or from using other services from your missing device. You may also want to report your lost or stolen Watch to local law enforcement, so it’s good to store the serial number somewhere. Here’s how to find your device’s serial number.
