How to Fix Apple Watch ‘Storage Full’ Message Error?

An Apple Watch will display the “Storage Full” notification if an app on the watch is not compatible with it or if the iCloud sync is attempting to download large amounts of data onto the watch. Uninstalling conflicting apps or disabling iCloud sync on your phone and the watch will resolve the problem.

Usually, the storage notification on the watch appears when the watch attempts to install an update. Sometimes, the ‘Other Data’ folder is displayed as occupying a large portion of the storage.

In some instances, when you view the storage settings of the watch, there is more than enough space available, but the watch repeatedly displays the notification. When this occurs, you will be unable to track your workouts, play music, or perform other operations on the watch.

1. Restart the Apple Watch and iPhone

The Apple Watch can display a full storage warning due to a sync error between the watch and iPhone. Restarting the watch and phone will solve the problem, as syncing will be re-established.

1. Press/hold the digital crown and side button of the watch for 10 seconds.

   

2. Release the buttons once the Apple logo is shown and check if the storage issue is resolved.
3. If not, quickly tap on the volume up and then on the volume down button of the iPhone.

   

4. Press/hold the side button till the Apple logo is shown and verify if the storage full problem is cleared.

2. Update the Watch OS Directly on the Watch

If you attempt to update your watch’s operating system through the watch app, you might encounter a ‘storage full’ issue. This problem can arise if the synchronization process between your watch and phone fails to complete. To resolve this, it is recommended to update the watch’s OS directly on the watch itself.

1. On the paired iPhone, go to Settings > General > Software Update.

   

2. If an update is available, install the update and restart the phone.
3. Perform a force restart of the watch (discussed earlier) and connect it to a Wi-Fi network.
4. Navigate to Settings > General > Software Update.

   

5. If an update is shown, install the update, and once done, restart the watch. Check if the problem is solved.

3. Disable Siri on the Watch

The Apple Watch will display the ‘storage full’ notification if Siri fails to apply the language pack. As a result, the watch will repeatedly attempt to download the package, eventually filling its storage. To resolve this issue, disable Siri on the watch.

1. Launch Settings on the Watch and select Siri.
2. Disable all the shown options such as:

   Raise To Speak
   
   Hey Siri
   
   Digital Crown

   

3. Restart the Watch and phone. Check if the storage full problem is cleared.

If the issue was resolved but you must use the feature, you may switch the Siri accent to American voices and check if the behavior is not repeated.

4. Uninstall Conflicting Apps on the Watch

If an app on the watch is misbehaving and failing to execute properly, it will start consuming the watch’s storage, thus causing the issue. To fix this, uninstall conflicting apps on the watch.

Stocks and Research apps are reported to cause the storage full issue on an Apple Watch. If you have any of these or any similar apps, uninstall them. To uninstall the Stocks app:

1. Press the Digital Crown button to open the Apps menu on the Watch.
2. Tap and hold the Display till the View Options menu is shown.
3. Open Edit Apps and tap on the delete icon for the Stocks app.
4. Restart the watch and open the Watch app on the paired iPhone.
5. Make sure the Stocks app is also uninstalled there as well and then uninstall the Stocks app on the iPhone.

   

6. Restart the iPhone and then check if the watch’s storage issue is cleared.

If you must use these apps, make sure that iCloud sync for the problematic app is enabled, or you may enable iCloud sync for all the apps installed on the watch. If this does not work, enable iCloud sync for the Watch app on the phone, and check if that solves the problem.

If you do not have any of the above-mentioned apps, you may uninstall apps one by one on the Watch and in the Watch app to find the problematic app.

5. Delete Data on the Apple Watch

You will see the ‘storage full’ notification on the Apple Watch if there is too much data present and the watch does not have enough space to perform the current action (e.g., updating its OS). To solve this issue, delete the data on the Apple Watch.

Since the steps below will delete the data on the watch, make sure to back up the data if it is essential. In this article, we discuss the most common applications that may consume the majority of disk space on your watch.

1. Delete the Workouts on your phone that is linked to your watch.
2. Launch the Watch app on the phone and go to the My Watch tab.
3. Scroll to Music and tap on Edit.
4. Under Playlists & Albums, tap on Delete for any music that is synced to your watch.
5. Go to the My Watch tab and open Photos.

   

6. Select Photos Limit and select a photo album.
7. Reduce the album size and repeat the same for other albums.
8. Remove any old messages from the phone and watch.
9. Restart the phone and watch. Check if the watch is clear of the storage full issue.

6. Disable iCloud Sync for the Watch

If the data on your iCloud is synced to your Apple Watch, it can quickly fill up the space on the watch, causing the storage to become full. In this case, disabling the iCloud sync for the Watch will resolve the issue.

1. Launch Settings of your iPhone and open the Apple ID.
2. Near the bottom, tap on Sign Out and confirm to delete or keep a copy of the data.

   

3. Once done, restart the iPhone and Apple Watch. See if the issue is resolved.

If so, then the data in your iCloud is causing the issue. The data can be

• Reminders, especially, with images
• Phone backup
• Health data

  

You will need to disable the sync of each type to find out the problematic one.

7. Re-pair the Watch with the Phone

You will face the full storage issue on an Apple Watch if the pairing between the watch and the iPhone is not valid or is experiencing glitches. We have seen this happen to many Apple Watches in the past. To fix this, re-pair the watch with the phone.

1. Bring your watch and iPhone close to each other.
2. Launch the Watch app on the phone and go to the My Watch tab.
3. Select your watch and tap on the Info icon.
4. Tap on Unpair Apple Watch and select Keep your cellular plan (for cellular models).

   

5. Confirm to unpair the watch and a backup of your watch will be created on the phone.
6. Once done, remove the Watch app from the phone and force restart the phone.
7. Download and install the Watch app on the phone.
8. Set up the watch and pair it with the phone as a new one (without restoring). Check if its storage problem is solved. If the issue was occurring while updating, then update the watch’s OS, and then you may re-pair it to the phone to restore it from the backup on the phone.

8. Reset the Apple Watch to the Factory Defaults

If none of the above methods work, the easier solution to get your watch working again is to reset it to factory defaults. This will clear all space, uninstall applications, and bring the watch to a factory default state. 

1. Launch the Settings on the Apple Watch and go to General > Reset.

   

2. Tap on Erase All Content and Settings.
3. Confirm to factory reset the watch and once done, remove the watch from the Watch app.
4. Uninstall the Watch app on the iPhone and restart it.
5. Download and install the Watch app on the phone.
6. Pair the watch with the phone and hopefully, the storage full issue will be resolved.

After resetting, it will be better to switch to Personalized instead of duplicates for the following apps:

Messages

Mail

Photo

Music

Contacts

If this does not work, you may use a new Apple ID with the watch and check if that solves the problem. Apart from that, you will need to contact Apple Support if the issue persists.