Apple Watch Battery Draining Fast? Try These 14 Easy Fixes!

Are you dealing with the frustrating problem of your Apple Watch battery draining fast after updating to watchOS 10? Rapid battery loss on your watch can disrupt your daily routine, making it necessary to find practical solutions. Understanding the main causes and applying effective fixes is key to restoring your Apple Watch’s battery life.

Many users have reported major battery drain problems after updating to watchOS 10. This can often be due to compatibility issues or bugs introduced by the new update. Here are the most common reasons why your Apple Watch battery might be draining faster than normal:

• Beta Software Updates: Beta versions of watchOS are meant for testing and may introduce software bugs or poor power optimization, which can lead to faster battery drain.
• Background Activity: Many background tasks like data syncing, health tracking, and fetching updates continue running when you’re not directly using the device, causing battery usage to increase.
• Outdated Software or Bugs: If your Apple Watch has outdated watchOS or software bugs, it can result in bad power management, which means the battery ends up draining quickly. Software updates usually fix these types of issues. Read more about battery-draining software bugs here.
• Heavy Feature Usage: Features like the Always On display and Background App Refresh, when used heavily, can cause the battery to run down much faster than normal.
• Third-Party Apps: Apps from the App Store that are not optimized for the Apple Watch may cause extra power use, especially if they are outdated or have bugs.
• System Glitches: Sometimes, watchOS has minor problems or software errors that can cause sudden battery drain. These can often be corrected by updates or troubleshooting steps.
• Poor Charging Habits: Using non-Apple chargers or not allowing your device to reach a full charge regularly can hurt long-term battery health. It’s best to use Apple-certified chargers and let the watch charge fully when possible.
• Active Walkie-Talkie & Weather Widget: These features update information or stay connected continuously, which uses more energy and may drain the battery faster.

Try these steps to solve fast battery drain on your Apple Watch:

1. Restart Your Watch

A quick restart can refresh your Apple Watch and stop any background tasks or minor bugs that could cause fast battery usage. Restarting clears temporary files and resets certain system processes, which can help save power.

Just press and hold the side button until the power slider appears. Slide to power off, then after a few seconds, hold the same button again until you see the Apple logo.

2. Close Unused Applications

If you keep apps running in the background, they can use up battery for no reason. Closing unused apps often leads to better battery performance and gives you longer usage throughout the day.

3. Download Latest Update

Outdated watchOS versions can cause battery-related issues. If you haven’t updated your Apple Watch in a while, check for the latest updates. For example, after some users noticed a battery drain in watchOS 10, Apple released version 10.0.1, which included improvements.

1. Press the Digital Crown.
2. Open the Settings app and select General.
3. Tap Software Update. If there’s an update, follow the instructions to install it. Keep the watch on its charger during the update process.
   

   

4. Charge Your Watch by Turning It off Overnight

This method was suggested by a user on Reddit and can help reset your Apple Watch’s battery calibration.

1. Press and hold the side button until you see the power options.
2. Tap on the power icon at the top right.
3. Slide the “Power Off” bar to the right.
   

5. Disable Always On

If you don’t need your screen to stay on all the time, turning off the Always On display can save a lot of battery.

1. Press the digital crown to access your Home screen.
2. Open the “Settings” app.
   

   

3. Scroll to “Display & Brightness.”
4. Select “Always On” and tap to open.
   

   

5. Turn off the Always On switch.
6. Confirm if needed.

6. Adjust Brightness

Lowering your screen brightness helps preserve battery—especially in low-light settings.

1. Go to Settings.
2. Tap “Display & Brightness.”
3. Slide the brightness control to the left to reduce screen brightness.

7. Disable Background App Refresh

Turning off Background App Refresh stops apps from updating content when you’re not using them. This helps your battery last longer, since apps will only update when you open them.

1. On your Apple Watch, go to the Home screen.
2. Open “Settings.”
3. Scroll to “General“.
4. Select “Background App Refresh“.
5. Switch it off.

8. Reduce the Number of Notifications

If your Apple Watch gets too many notifications, its screen and vibration motor are frequently activated. Reducing notifications helps preserve the battery. Here’s how:

1. On your iPhone, open the Watch app.
2. Tap on “My Watch” at the bottom.
3. Select “Notifications“.
   

   

4. Check which apps send notifications and turn off those you don’t need.

9. Disable Haptic Alerts

Haptic Alerts vibrate your wrist for notifications and can use more battery. Turning off Haptic Alerts can help your device last longer.

1. Open the Settings app on your Apple Watch.
2. Scroll to “Sounds & Haptics.”
3. Find “Haptic Alerts” and turn them off.

10. Uninstall the Moby Face App

If you notice battery drain issues after installing the Moby Face app (or similar third-party apps), removing them might help. A Reddit user found this solution improved their battery performance. Here’s how to uninstall it:

1. Find the Moby Face app on your watch.
2. Press and hold its icon until it starts to wiggle.
3. Tap the “X” that appears.
4. Confirm by selecting “Delete App“.

11. Use the Apple 20W Charger

Using an Apple 20W Charger ensures your watch charges quickly and efficiently. Third-party chargers may not give the same reliable results. With Apple’s 20W charger, your watch charges faster and safely, reducing chances of excess energy loss that can hurt battery health.

12. Remove the Weather widget

Widgets keep updating in the background. The Weather widget, in particular, can use more battery as it checks updates often. Removing it can help battery life.

1. Press and hold the display to enter Edit mode (widgets will wiggle).
2. Find the Weather widget.
3. Tap the “–” icon on the widget.
   

   

4. Confirm by tapping “Remove“.

13. Disable Walkie-Talkie

If you don’t use the Walkie-Talkie feature often, turning it off helps save battery.

1. Open Control Center on your Apple Watch (swipe up from the bottom).
2. Tap the “Walkie-Talkie” slider to turn it off.

14. Unpair & Erase Your Watch

If you still have battery issues at this stage, it might be best to reset your watch completely. Here’s how to unpair and erase it:

1. Open the Apple Watch app on your iPhone.
2. Tap “My Watch“, then “All Watches“.
3. Tap the Info (i) button next to your watch.
4. Select “Unpair Apple Watch” and confirm.
   

Contact Apple Support

If your Apple Watch’s battery is still draining quickly after trying everything above, it’s a good idea to contact Apple Support. Their team can help with personalized troubleshooting advice and find any deeper issues affecting your watch.