On Apple Watch, there's an option in watchOS that lets your iPhone unlock your watch as long as the ‌iPhone‌ is unlocked (Settings -> Passcode -> Unlock With iPhone). Enabling this option means you don't have to input a passcode twice in the morning – one on your Apple Watch when you put it on your wrist, and one on your ‌iPhone‌ when you unlock it for the first time.

apple watch unlock
However, we've heard reports that the "Unlock with ‌iPhone‌" function hasn't been working for some people since at least iOS 14.7. Apple was aware enough of the same problem on iPhones with Touch ID to issue a fix with the release of iOS 14.7.1, but it appears that Face ID-equipped iPhones are affected too, and iOS 14.7.1 does nothing to resolve it. If you have a Face ID ‌iPhone‌ and the Unlock With ‌iPhone‌ feature isn't working on your Apple Watch, here are a couple of possible solutions.

Disable Unlock iPhone With Apple Watch

Perhaps confusingly, some users have found that disabling the "Unlock With Apple Watch" feature on ‌iPhone‌ somehow returns functionality to the "Unlock With ‌iPhone‌" switch on Apple Watch.

  1. On your ‌iPhone‌, launch the Settings app.
  2. Tap Face ID & Passcode.
  3. Under "Unlock With Apple Watch," toggle the switch next to your Apple Watch's name so that it's in the gray OFF position.

settings
Of course, this is a workaround rather than a fix, because you're turning off one feature to resurrect another, so you'll have to weigh up whether the compromise is worth it in your particular use case.

If you often rely on the "Unlock With Apple Watch" feature to access your ‌iPhone‌ when you're wearing a face mask, then the workaround isn't going to work for you, in which case...

Unpair Then Re-pair Your Apple Watch

Unpairing Apple Watch from ‌iPhone‌ has worked for some people suffering from the issue. It takes a bit of time, but if you miss the "Unlock With ‌iPhone‌" feature on your Apple Watch, then it's probably going to be worth the effort.

  1. Bring your ‌iPhone‌ and Apple Watch close together, then open the Watch app on your ‌iPhone‌.
  2. In the My Watch tab, tap All Watches.
  3. Tap the info (i) button next to the watch that you want to unpair.
  4. Tap Unpair Apple Watch. (For GPS + Cellular models, choose to keep your cellular plan.)
  5. Tap again to confirm. You might need to enter your Apple ID password to disable Activation Lock.

Before erasing all content and settings on your Apple Watch, your ‌iPhone‌ creates a new backup of your Apple Watch. You can use the backup to restore a new Apple Watch. After your Apple Watch unpairs, you'll see the Start Pairing message. Then you can pair your watch to your ‌iPhone‌ again in the normal way.

  1. Press and hold the side button on your Apple Watch until you see the Apple logo.
  2. Wait for the "Use your ‌iPhone‌ to set up this Apple Watch" message to appear on your ‌iPhone‌, then tap Continue. If you don't see this message, open the Watch app on your ‌iPhone‌, tap All Watches, then tap Pair New Watch.
  3. Follow the on-screen instructions to re-pair your watch.

Note that some users who re-paired their Apple Watch to their ‌iPhone‌ found that although it fixed the problem, they no longer received a notification on their ‌iPhone‌ that their Apple Watch had been unlocked, suggesting Apple has some work to do to thoroughly nix whatever bug is affecting this behavior.

Final Thoughts

watch
At the end of the day, neither the workaround nor the solution (assuming it works for you) are ideal, but as of writing there appears to be no other way to get Unlock With ‌iPhone‌ working properly again. On the bright side, Apple is aware of the problem and we should see a fix arrive in the next software update to iOS 14 or with the release of iOS 15 in September.

Related Roundup: Apple Watch 10
Buyer's Guide: Apple Watch (Neutral)

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro 34ths Perspective

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 10 New Features

Sunday March 23, 2025 10:00 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of March 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...
maxresdefault

Apple Releases iOS 18.4 With Priority Notifications, Ambient Music, New Emoji and More

Monday March 31, 2025 10:03 am PDT by
Apple today released iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4, the fourth major updates to the iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 operating system updates that came out last year. iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 come two months after Apple released iOS 18.3 and iPadOS 18.3. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to...
top stories 2025 03 29

Top Stories: WWDC 2025 Announced, iPhone 17 Pro and iOS 19 Rumors, and More

Saturday March 29, 2025 6:00 am PDT by
Apple's big developer event is a little over two months away, and rumors about what we can expect to see in Apple's next major operating system updates are becoming increasingly frequent. A public release of iOS 18.4 is also imminent with a number of updates and improvements, although we won't be getting the major Apple Intelligence Siri upgrades that had reportedly been planned for this...
Magic Mouse Green

What to Expect From the Magic Mouse 3

Saturday March 29, 2025 10:15 am PDT by
Apple is reportedly working on a new Magic Mouse. Below, we recap what to expect. The two key rumors for the Magic Mouse 3 so far include a relocated charging port, along with a more ergonomic design. It was briefly rumored that the Magic Mouse 3 would also feature voice control, but that was misinterpreted information. Relocated Charging Port While the Magic Mouse switched from...
iOS 18

iOS 18.4 Expected Next Week - Here Are the Release Notes

Friday March 28, 2025 2:01 pm PDT by
With the second release candidate of iOS 18.4 that Apple seeded out today, the company finally provided us with release notes that give a full rundown on what to expect. There's an Apple Vision Pro app, new Apple Intelligence features for notifications and additional language support, plus an Apple News Food feature for Apple News+ subscribers, and several updates that should improve the...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature Homescreen

Six Things to Know About Apple's Upcoming Foldable iPhone

Friday March 28, 2025 3:54 pm PDT by
We've been hearing rumors about a foldable iPhone for almost a decade now, but it looks like we might finally see the device come to fruition in 2026. We're going to be waiting many more months for the foldable iPhone, but so far we're hearing good things. Apple wants to make it creaseless. It's taken Apple multiple years to design a foldable iPhone that it's satisfied with because Apple ...
iOS 19 visionOS UI Elements

Apple Codename Provides Clue About iOS 19's Rumored New Design

Sunday March 30, 2025 6:40 am PDT by
Multiple sources have claimed that iOS 19 will introduce a new design with more translucent buttons, menus, notification banners, and more, and there is now another clue that points towards this glass-like appearance. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman today said the new design project is codenamed "Solarium" internally. A solarium is a room with glass walls that allow in plenty of sunlight, so this...
macOS Sequoia Feature

Apple Releases macOS Sequoia 15.4 With Mail Categorization and More

Monday March 31, 2025 10:04 am PDT by
Apple today released macOS Sequoia 15.4, the fourth major update to the macOS Sequoia operating system that launched in September. macOS Sequoia 15.4 comes two months after the launch of macOS Sequoia 15.3. Mac users can download the ‌‌macOS Sequoia‌‌ update through the Software Update section of System Settings. It is available for free on all Macs able to run macOS 15. With...