Smartwatch Not Syncing? Apple Watch, Garmin, Fitbit Fixes

By Suraj Giri, reviewed by Suraj Giri on September 26, 2026
Published September 26, 2026. 9 min read.

Most smartwatch sync failures come down to three things: the watch lost its Bluetooth link to your phone, a power-saving mode is limiting background data, or the watch needs a restart. Keep the watch near your phone, open its app, and restart both. Then find your brand below for the full force-sync steps. Charging, pairing and reset problems live on the parent guide, smartwatch sync, battery and pairing fixes.

This page covers smartwatches, fitness trackers and smart rings. "Sync" here means health and app data moving between the watch and its phone app: steps, sleep, workouts and contacts. Apple's full order for its watch is on Apple Watch Not Syncing. If the watch shows disconnected and won't pair at all, first connect a smartwatch to your phone, then come back here.

A runner sitting on a wooden park bench with a round smartwatch on the wrist, forearm resting on a knee, beside a gravel path. — A runner takes a break on a park bench with a smartwatch on the wrist. Illustration: Gadget247News, generated with Runway

Find Your Problem: Brand, Cause and First Fix

The table gives each brand's most likely sync cause and the first fix from its maker's support page, plus rows for notifications and updates.

Watch or symptom	Most likely cause	First fix	Full steps
Apple Watch not syncing	Watch disconnected from the iPhone	Check for a green iPhone icon in Control Center, keep your watch near your iPhone, and turn on Fitness Tracking in the Health app.	Apple Watch Not Syncing
Fitbit not syncing or showing the wrong time	Fitbit disconnected from the phone	If the time is off by an hour or more, change the time on your Fitbit; otherwise restart it and sync manually.	How to Change the Time on a Fitbit and Fitbit Not Syncing
Garmin not syncing with Garmin Connect	Bluetooth off, phone offline or a Garmin Connect outage	Turn on Bluetooth on your phone and watch, make sure the phone is online, then restart both devices.	Garmin Watch Not Syncing With Garmin Connect
Pixel Watch not syncing	Watch not connected, or Bedtime mode or Battery Saver limiting data	Check the Google Pixel Watch app shows Connected, then turn off Bedtime mode and Battery Saver.	Pixel Watch Not Syncing
Oura Ring not syncing	Ring airplane mode on, or the Oura app not open	Put your Oura Ring on its charger for a few minutes, then open the Oura app and wait for it to finish syncing.	Oura Ring Not Syncing
Samsung Galaxy Watch not syncing	Watch and phone not connected through the Galaxy Wearable app	Restart your phone, then your watch, and check they're connected in the Galaxy Wearable app.	Galaxy Watch section below; alerts: Samsung Galaxy Watch notifications not working
Notifications stopped too	The same phone link	Fix the sync first, then the notification settings	Notifications Stopped Too? below
Stopped after an update	A watch, phone or app update, or a service outage	Check the known issues for your watch's latest update.	latest smartwatch and earbud updates

Each first fix is the opening step of the linked brand page; for Galaxy Watch it's the first step on Samsung's own sync page.

Check These First on Any Smartwatch

These three checks come from the steps that Apple, Google, Samsung and Garmin publish:

Keep the watch next to your phone with Bluetooth on. For an Oura Ring, put the ring on its charger instead, with the Oura app open.
Open the companion app and let it run. On Android, the Google Health app (formerly the Fitbit app) needs its Location permission turned on, plus Nearby devices on Android 12 and later.
Restart the watch and the phone.

Syncing and connecting are different faults. Connecting is the Bluetooth link between watch and phone; syncing is the data that travels over it. Samsung says the phone and watch must be connected through Bluetooth to sync content, and Google says a Fitbit must stay near the phone to sync, so a watch that shows disconnected needs the connection fixed first.

Apple Watch Not Syncing

An Apple Watch syncs its data to the iPhone over their connection, so a disconnected watch stops syncing. A red iPhone icon or a red X in Control Center means the watch and iPhone aren't connected; the green iPhone icon means they are. Apple also asks you to make sure Fitness Tracking is on for your Apple Watch: open the Health app, tap your profile, then Devices, your Apple Watch and Privacy Settings, and turn on Fitness Tracking. After some iOS updates, Apple asks you to update watchOS too, so that your data, including Activity data, keeps syncing to your iPhone. Missing alerts share the same link and have their own page, Apple Watch Not Getting Notifications.

Fitbit Not Syncing: Start With the Time

A Fitbit that shows the wrong time might be disconnected from your phone: Google lists the wrong time as one of the signs. If the time is off by an hour or more, change the time on the Fitbit first, with the steps in How to Change the Time on a Fitbit. If it's off by a few minutes, Google sends you to its Bluetooth and internet check. Otherwise, follow Google's order: uninstall the Google Health app on other nearby phones or tablets signed in to the same account, restart the Fitbit, then sync by hand from Connections in the app. A restart turns the Fitbit off and on without losing any activity data. The Fitbit app became the Google Health app starting May 19, 2026, so older guides that say "Fitbit app" mean the same app. Fitbit Not Syncing has Google's full 10-step order, and Fitbit Not Getting Notifications covers missing alerts.

Google's first five steps for a Fitbit that won't sync: uninstall the Google Health app on other nearby phones and tablets, restart the Fitbit, sync by hand from Connections, turn Bluetooth off for at least 3 seconds and back on, then restart the phone. — Google's order for a Fitbit that won't sync, steps 1 to 5 of 10, from Google Health Help (support.google.com/googlehealth/answer/14236618), checked September 26, 2026. Diagram: Gadget247News

Garmin Watch Not Syncing With Garmin Connect

A Garmin watch syncs through the Garmin Connect app, and Garmin asks for three checks before any advanced step: Bluetooth turned on for both the phone and the watch, the phone online over cellular or Wi-Fi, and no outage on the Garmin Connect Status page. Then restart both devices, turn off Battery Saver or Stealth Modes, and only after that remove the watch and add it again. To force a sync or resync with an iPhone, use the two answers at the end of this page. Garmin Watch Not Syncing With Garmin Connect has every step, and Garmin Watch Not Getting Notifications covers alerts.

Pixel Watch, Galaxy Watch and Oura Ring Not Syncing

Pixel Watch: A Google Pixel Watch is set up in the Google Pixel Watch app, and its fitness data goes to the Google Health app. Google's first check is that the watch shows as Connected in the Google Pixel Watch app, and it warns that Battery Saver and Bedtime mode limit background data. To restart, press and hold the crown for 3 seconds, scroll down and tap Restart. The full order is on Pixel Watch Not Syncing, and Pixel Watch Not Getting Notifications covers alerts.

Samsung Galaxy Watch: Samsung says the watch and phone must be paired through the Galaxy Wearable app and connected over Bluetooth to sync content. Its checks: restart the phone, then the watch; keep both above 25% battery; turn off Power saving mode, Watch only mode and Airplane mode; then turn on the app permissions on the phone and watch. Alerts are covered in Samsung Galaxy Watch notifications not working.

Oura Ring: Put the ring on its charger for a few minutes, then open the Oura app and wait for the latest sync. Ring airplane mode turns off the Bluetooth link between the ring and the app; placing the ring on its charger turns airplane mode off again. Oura Ring Not Syncing has the rest.

How to Sync Contacts to a Smartwatch From Android or iPhone

Contacts on a smartwatch come from your phone or its account, so you fix missing contacts on the phone side first. An Apple Watch keeps contacts up to date across devices with iCloud; if you use more than one contacts group or account, Apple says to open the iPhone's Contacts app, tap Lists and make sure All iCloud is selected. A Google Pixel Watch gets your phone's contact list during setup, when you approve access through the linked Google Account. For a Samsung Galaxy Watch on an Android phone, Samsung's sync page names no contacts setting. It says syncing content needs the phone and watch paired through the Galaxy Wearable app and connected over Bluetooth, with app permissions turned on. For Fitbit, Google says the device shows calls and texts from your nearby phone but names no contacts setting. Unbranded watches with a "BT sync" style app follow the app named in their manual; we don't cover unbranded apps.

Which Watch and App Do You Have?

Each brand syncs through its own app, so the first step is knowing which app your watch uses. The table pairs each brand with its companion app and the page that holds its sync steps.

Brand	Companion app	Sync page
Apple Watch	Apple Watch app on the iPhone	Apple Watch Not Syncing
Fitbit	Google Health app	Fitbit Not Syncing
Google Pixel Watch	Google Pixel Watch app for setup, Google Health app for fitness data	Pixel Watch Not Syncing
Samsung Galaxy Watch	Galaxy Wearable app	Galaxy Watch paragraph above
Garmin	Garmin Connect app	Garmin Watch Not Syncing With Garmin Connect
Oura Ring	Oura app	Oura Ring Not Syncing

For the Apple Watch model itself, Which Apple Watch Do I Have lists the model numbers.

A round smartwatch on a blue fabric strap next to a smartphone and a plastic cup of water on an airplane tray table by the window. — A smartwatch and a phone on a tray table during a flight. Illustration: Gadget247News, generated with Runway

Updates, Outages and Notifications

Sync can also stop for reasons outside the watch, such as a software update or a service outage, and notifications tend to stop with it.

Did an Update or Outage Stop Syncing?

A smartwatch that suddenly stopped syncing often follows a watch, phone or app update, or a service outage. Google lists updating the phone, the Google Health app and the Fitbit itself as one of its sync steps, and Apple's watchOS note is in the Apple Watch section above. For Garmin, check the Garmin Connect Status page before you reset anything. We track versions and known issues under latest smartwatch and earbud updates. Get an email when a smartwatch update breaks syncing, and when it's fixed.

Notifications Stopped Too?

Notifications travel over the same phone link as synced data, so a broken link stops both. Apple says missing notifications, messages or calls on an Apple Watch can mean the watch and iPhone aren't connected, and Google lists missing notifications as a sign a Fitbit is disconnected. Fix the connection first, then use the notification page for your brand, linked in the brand sections above.

When to Contact the Manufacturer

Contact the maker when the brand page's steps have failed, in this order:

Try the next fix on the brand page for your watch.
Restart the watch, or reset it as a last step: see how to restart or reset a frozen smartwatch, then pair and sync it again.
Contact official support: Apple Support, Google Health Help for Fitbit, Google Pixel Watch Help, Samsung Support, Garmin Support or Oura Support.
Ask about repair or warranty service.

Smartwatch Sync: Quick Answers

These four answers cover common Apple Watch and Garmin sync questions.

Why won't my Apple Watch sync with my phone anymore?

An Apple Watch that stopped syncing is most likely disconnected from the iPhone, and a red iPhone icon in Control Center confirms it. Bring the two close together, turn off Airplane Mode, turn on Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, restart both, and update watchOS if your iPhone asks; Apple Watch Not Syncing has the rest.

How do I force my Apple Watch to sync?

To force an Apple Watch to sync its calendars, open the Apple Watch app on your iPhone and tap My Watch → General → Reset → Reset Sync Data. Apple's force-sync steps cover calendar data only, so for other data, reconnect the watch to your iPhone, restart both and follow Apple Watch Not Syncing.

How do I force my Garmin watch to sync?

To force a Garmin watch to sync, open the Garmin Connect app with the watch connected; Garmin says the app should start syncing on its own. You can also sync from the watch: on a Forerunner 265, hold LIGHT to open the controls menu, then select Sync. For other models, check the owner's manual, which Garmin names as the place for device-specific settings. Garmin Watch Not Syncing With Garmin Connect has the steps.

How do I resync my Garmin watch to my iPhone?

To resync a Garmin watch to an iPhone, restart the watch and the iPhone first. If it still won't sync, select Remove Device for the watch in Garmin Connect, choose Forget This Device for it in the iPhone's Bluetooth settings, then restart both. In Garmin Connect, select More → Garmin Devices → Add Device → Find Nearby Accessories, put the watch in pairing mode, select Set Up and confirm that the six-digit code matches.