When your Apple Watch’s battery is low, you can keep it running while still using some of its features by turning on Low Power Mode (just like using the same feature on iPhone). This article explains how to turn Low Power Mode on and off, and how the mode saves battery life.

What To Know

  • To turn on Low Power Mode on Apple Watch, from watch face, tap battery > Low Power Mode slider > Turn On.To turn off Low Power Mode, from watch face, tap battery > Lower Power Mode slider to off.If your face doesn’t show the battery level, swipe up to enter Control Center, and then tap the battery percentage.

How to Turn on Low Power Mode on Apple Watch

With Low Power Mode enabled, you’ll still be able to see the time and use selected features of your Watch, but other features are disabled and others are just reduced. That’s done to enable the battery charge you still have to last longer. For more detail on that, check out the bottom of the article. In the meantime, to turn on Low Power Mode on Apple Watch running watchOS 9 and up, follow these steps:

  • From the watch face, tap the battery icon if it’s present and skip to step 3. If your watch face doesn’t have a battery icon, swipe up from the bottom of the watch face to open Control Center.
  • Tap the battery percentage.
  • Move the Low Power Mode slider to on/yellow.
  • On the next screen, you can choose to Turn On Low Power Mode indefinitely, Turn On For and choose 1-3 days, or Dismiss if you’ve changed your mind.
  • After tapping Turn On or Turn On For, you’ll know Low Power Mode is enabled thanks to the yellow circle at the top of the screen.

How to Turn off Low Power Mode on Apple Watch

If Low Power Mode is enabled and you want to turn it off, follow these steps:

From the watch face, tap the battery icon if it’s present and skip to step 3. If your watch face doesn’t have a battery icon, swipe up from the bottom of the watch face to open Control Center.

Tap the battery percentage.

Move the Low Power Mode slider to on/yellow.

On the next screen, you can choose to Turn On Low Power Mode indefinitely, Turn On For and choose 1-3 days, or Dismiss if you’ve changed your mind.

After tapping Turn On or Turn On For, you’ll know Low Power Mode is enabled thanks to the yellow circle at the top of the screen.

Low Power Mode is automatically turned on when your Watch battery drops to 10%. If Low Power Mode is on and you’re charging your Watch, it automatically turns off when your battery charge reaches 80%.

  • Tap the battery icon on the watch face and skip to step 3. If your watch face doesn’t show the battery, open Control Center by swiping up from the bottom of the face.
  • Tap the battery percentage.
  • Move Low Power Mode slider to off/white.

What Does Apple Watch Low Power Mode Do?

Low Power Mode conserves battery by turning off or reducing the energy-hungry features of the Apple Watch. When you’ve got the mode enabled, here are the features that are impacted:

Tap the battery icon on the watch face and skip to step 3. If your watch face doesn’t show the battery, open Control Center by swiping up from the bottom of the face.

Move Low Power Mode slider to off/white.

  • Always-On screen is not available.

  • Background app refreshes happens less often.

  • Background blood oxygen measurements are turned off.

  • Background heart rate measurements are turned off.

  • Heart rate notifications (high heart rate, irregular rhythm, low heart rate) are turned off.

  • If iPhone isn’t close by, Wi-Fi and cellular connections are disabled, and incoming phone calls and notifications are turned off.

  • Placing phone calls takes longer.

  • “Start workout” prompt is turned off.

  • Siri takes longer to respond.

  • User interface (animations and scrolling) don’t look as good.

  • Watch face complications update less often.

  • How do I get an Apple Watch out of Power Reserve?

  • Power Reserve is a feature in watchOS 8 and earlier. To get your Apple Watch out of Power Reserve mode, press and hold the side button until the Apple logo appears. Your Apple Watch will restart without Power Reserve on; however, you likely have to charge the Apple Watch.

  • Why won’t my Apple Watch get out of Power Reserve?

  • If your Apple Watch is stuck in a power-saving mode, you must recharge the Watch. If it’s still stuck in Power Reserve after recharging, try resetting the Apple Watch.

  • How do I power off an Apple Watch?

  • To power off your Apple Watch, press and hold the side button until you see the Power Off slider. Slide to turn off the Apple Watch. Note that you can’t power off an Apple Watch while it’s charging.

Power Reserve is a feature in watchOS 8 and earlier. To get your Apple Watch out of Power Reserve mode, press and hold the side button until the Apple logo appears. Your Apple Watch will restart without Power Reserve on; however, you likely have to charge the Apple Watch.

If your Apple Watch is stuck in a power-saving mode, you must recharge the Watch. If it’s still stuck in Power Reserve after recharging, try resetting the Apple Watch.

To power off your Apple Watch, press and hold the side button until you see the Power Off slider. Slide to turn off the Apple Watch. Note that you can’t power off an Apple Watch while it’s charging.

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