Apple Watch Ultra Not Showing Notifications? 10 Ways to Fix it

One of the main benefits of owning an Apple Watch is receiving emails, messages, and app notifications right on your wrist. But what happens when your Apple Watch Ultra stops showing notifications?

Below, I’ll show you what to do when Apple Watch Ultra notifications are not working.

How Notifications Work on Apple Watch Ultra

Before we start troubleshooting, it’s good to understand how notifications work onan Apple Watch Ultra:

• You will only see alerts for new notifications on your Apple Watch Ultra when it’s both unlocked and on your wrist.
• If you’re actively using your iPhone, you won’t receive any notification alerts on your Apple Watch Ultra.

You can find these notes at the top of the Notifications menu in the Watch app on your iPhone. It’s very likely one of these factors may be the reason why you’re not getting notifications on your Apple Watch Ultra.

How to Fix Apple Watch Ultra Not Showing Notifications Issue

If your Apple Watch Ultra is no longer showing notifications, here are some troubleshooting steps you can try.

1. Check Notification Settings

On the Watch app on your iPhone, you have the option to enable specific notifications for your watch. You can customize notification settings for your watchOS apps and mirror notifications for your iPhone apps. If you’ve disabled notifications for an app, they won’t appear on your Apple Watch Ultra.

To check your notification settings, open the Watch app on your iPhone and tap on Notifications. Scroll down to find a list of apps, where you can select an app to confirm if its notifications are enabled for your Apple Watch Ultra.

2. Restart Your Apple Watch Ultra

A minor software glitch could be the reason why your Apple Watch Ultra isn’t getting notifications. Sometimes restarting your Apple Watch can fix these sorts of minor software problems.

To restart your Apple Watch Ultra, follow the steps below:

1. Long press the side button.
2. Tap the Power icon on the top-right corner of your screen.
3. Drag the Power slider to the right to turn off your Apple Watch.
4. Wait 30–60 seconds, then press and hold the side button again to turn on your Apple Watch.

3. Ensure Your Apple Watch Ultra Is Unlocked

If you have set a passcode on your Apple Watch Ultra, as a security precaution, it will not display any notifications. You’ll then have to unlock your Apple Watch Ultra to view your notifications.

If your watch is locked, it will display a blue lock icon at the top of the screen. To unlock your watch, swipe up and enter the passcode. To disable the passcode entirely, follow these steps:

1. On the Apple Watch, start the Settings app. To do that, press the Digital Crown and tap the gear-shaped app.
2. Tap “Passcode.”
3. Tap “Turn Passcode Off” and then confirm you want to do this by tapping “Turn Off.”
4. Enter your current passcode to confirm the change once more.

4. Turn Off Focus

One of the most common reasons why Apple Watch Ultra notifications are not working is because Focus is turned on. The Focus feature on Apple devices blocks your notifications when turned on to prevent distractions. When you enable Focus, your device won’t alert you when notifications come in, and they will not appear on your screen like usual, but you can manually check them afterward.

To turn off Focus on your Apple Watch Ultra, follow the steps below:

1. Touch and hold the bottom of the screen, then swipe up to open Control Center.
2. To turn off a Focus, just tap its button in Control Center.

It’s important to note that if you’ve turned on Focus on a connected device, it will be mirrored on your Apple Watch Ultra. For example, if you’ve turned on Focus on your Mac, it will also be enabled on your Apple Watch Ultra. So, make sure you turn it off on your other devices.

5. Turn Off Airplane Mode

Similarly, it’s a good idea to make sure your iPhone and Apple Watch are not in Airplane Mode. Airplane Mode disables all connections to Wi-Fi, mobile networks, and Bluetooth on your device, depending on your settings. When turned on, calls, messages, and notifications from apps that need an internet connection will not come in on your device.

Open Settings on your iPhone and make sure the switch next to Airplane Mode is off. Then, open Control Center on your Apple Watch and make sure the Airplane Mode icon is black and gray. If the icon is orange and white, Airplane Mode is on. Tap the icon to turn Airplane Mode off.

6. Turn Off Cover to Mute

Cover to Mute is a cool Apple Watch setting that lets you mute your watch by simply placing your hand above it when a notification arrives. You can turn it off to troubleshoot your notification issues. Here’s how to turn off Cover to Mute:

1. On your iPhone, open the Apple Watch app.
2. Go to the My Watch tab.
3. Tap Sounds & Haptics.
4. Toggle off Cover to Mute.

7. Update Your Apple Watch Ultra and iPhone

Apple regularly releases watchOS and iOS updates to fix known bugs and introduce new settings and features. Your Apple Watch Ultra might not be showing notifications because one or both of your devices are running outdated software.

To update your Apple Watch, launch the Watch app on your iPhone and go to General -> Software Update. Tap Download and Install if a watchOS update is available.

To update your iPhone, launch the Settings app and go to General -> Software Update. Tap Download and Install if a software update is available.

8. Unpair and Re-Pair Your Apple Watch Ultra

Another troubleshooting measure you can try is to unpair your Apple Watch Ultra from your iPhone and re-pair it. You should be careful while carrying out this step because any Apple Watch Ultra data that isn’t backed up to your iPhone will be lost in the process.

So, once you’re certain your Apple Watch Ultra is backed up to your iPhone, you can proceed with the unpairing process.

1. Keep your Apple Watch and iPhone close together as you unpair them.
2. Open the Apple Watch app on your iPhone.
3. Go to the My Watch tab and tap All Watches.
4. Tap the info button next to the watch that you want to unpair.
5. Tap Unpair Apple Watch.
6. Type your Apple ID password to disable Activation Lock, then tap Unpair.

Now, pair your Apple Watch Ultra like you did when you first set it up (using the Watch app).

9. Apple Watch Ultra not getting notifications from a specific app?

Sometimes, the problem is not with your Apple Watch but the apps themselves. If your Apple Watch Ultra isn’t getting notifications from a specific app, it may be a bug that can be fixed with an update.

1. Press the Digital Crown to see your apps and then tap the App Store icon.
2. Scroll down to the bottom and tap Account.
3. Tap Updates.
4. Tap Update next to an app to update only that app, or tap Update All.

10. Contact Apple Support

If none of the tips mentioned above has worked in fixing the Apple Watch Ultra not getting notifications problem, it’s time to contact Apple for tech support.

Successfully Fixed Notifications Not Showing on Apple Watch Ultra Issue

We hope one of these troubleshooting steps helped you get notifications on your Apple Watch Ultra again. Always stay on top of your notification settings to decide which notifications you receive, and use Focus to turn off notifications when you don’t want any distractions.

Furthermore, you can choose how notifications appear on your Apple Watch Ultra with notification previews.