How to Silence Apple Watch

Between all of the different notifications and other noises that your devices can make, you might decide to put your Apple Watch on silent.

Fortunately, this is something that you can accomplish through a couple of different methods.

Our tutorial below will show you how to silence your Apple Watch in two different ways, as well as how you can adjust some other sound options for the device.

This how to silence Apple Watch video provides additional information on this topic.

How to Turn Off the Sound on an Apple Watch

  1. Open the Control Center.
  2. Tap the bell icon.

Our guide continues below with more information on this topic, including pictures of these steps.

The Apple Watch’s clear, bright screen makes it easy to read text and see images. It can, however, play sounds, such as alerts for new phone calls or text messages.

This is beneficial if you rely on specific noises to alert you to specific events, but it might be bothersome if the haptic feedback is sufficient to inform you.

Fortunately, you have control over many of the sounds made by the Apple Watch, including a setting that puts the watch in silent mode.

If you don’t want to hear any sounds from your Apple Watch, keep reading to find out how to enable this setting.

Related: Find out how to turn off theater mode on the Apple Watch if it’s currently activated.

How to Put an Apple Watch Into Silent Mode from the Control Center

The steps in this guide were performed on an Apple Watch Series 7 in WatchOS 8 but will work for most other devices and versions.

Step 1: Drag your finger up from the bottom edge of the watch face to open the Control Center.

swipe up from the bottom of the screen

Step 2: Tap the button with a bell on it to enable Silent Mode.

how to silence Apple Watch

Now that you know how ot silence Apple Watch, you will be able to use this method any time you want to stop the sounds coming from the device.

How to Use the Settings Menu to Activate Apple Watch Silent Mode

There is another way that you can enable silent mode, and it involves going through the Settings menu.

Step 1: Press the crown button on the side of the watch.

Step 2: Open the Settings app.

tap Settings

Step 3: Choose the Sounds & Haptics option.

choose Sounds and Haptics

Step 4: Tap the button next to Silent Mode to turn it on.

how to put Apple Watch in silent mode

You may either do it and forget about it if you never want to hear sounds from your watch, or you can quickly turn the sound on and off as needed now that you know how.

This will not disable alerts or timers if the watch is charging, as explained below.

How to Increase or Decrease Apple Watch Volume

Although the majority of this post has focused on how to mute the Apple Watch, you can also change the level of the music playing from the device.

Step 1: Open the Settings app on your watch.

Step 2: Scroll down to find the Sounds & Haptics option.

Step 3: To adjust the volume, press the left speaker button or the right speaker button.

If you tap the slider bar, you may also alter the volume by using the crown on the side of the watch.

The following section goes through the Haptic Alerts setting on the watch. If you don’t like any of the vibrations that the watch will play, you can change this setting.

How to Enable or Disable Haptic Alerts on Apple Watch

Your watch has a feature called “Haptic Alerts” that vibrates to notify you when you have a notice, which you can enable or disable.

Step 1: From the watch’s apps menu, select the gray Settings icon.

Step 2: Scroll down to find the Sounds & Haptics menu.

Step 3: Scroll down and turn on the Haptic Alerts toggle switch.

In this section, you can choose whether to use the haptic alert vibration that is set as the default or to make it more prominent.

How to Adjust Apple Watch Digital Crown Haptics

After determining whether or not to leave your smartphone’s haptic vibration settings enabled, you may want to modify this setting for the crown as well.

Step 1: Open the Settings app on your watch.

Step 2: The next step is to choose Sounds & Haptics.

Step 3: To activate or disable the Crown Haptics, press the Crown Haptics button.

This setting is not available on older Apple Watch devices because it is only available on series four and higher models.

How to Turn On or Turn Off the Haptic Chimes

The watch has one more haptic feature that you may or may not wish to use.

This “Haptic Chimes” feature allows you to choose whether to receive a sound or a vibration to warn you of specific time intervals.

You can alter this setting by following the steps below.

Step 1: On the first step, open the Apple Watch Settings app.

Step 2: In step two, select the Accessibility option.

Step 3: Choose the chimes.

Step 4: Enable or disable the Chimes option.

If you keep the haptic chimes turned on, you may adjust the schedule to control how frequently they play and what tone is played at each interval.

How to Use Mute to Cover on Apple Watch

You might wish to use the “Cover to Mute” audio setting on the Apple Watch.

If you’ve chosen to keep the audio on, you can instantly silence watch notifications by placing your palm over the watch face.

For this to function, the Cover to Mute setting must be enabled, which we will explain in the instructions below.

Step 1: Open the Settings app on your watch.

Step 2: In step 2, open the Sounds & Haptics menu.

Step 3: At the bottom of the menu, toggle the Cover to Mute option on or off.

Step 4: Keep in mind that you must place your palm on the watch face for three seconds for this to work. When it happens, you will feel a vibration that confirms your success.

Video About Silencing an Apple Watch

Additional Information About Silencing an Apple Watch

The Apple Watch Theater Mode is a particularly useful function when used with the silent mode button.

When you pick theater mode, the Apple Watch screen is switched off, and muting is enabled.

One of the key motivations for using theater mode is that you are watching a movie or a show in a dark environment. Even a little digital screen, such as that on a watch, can be distracting.

When you pick Sounds & Haptics from your watch’s screen or the Apple Watch app, you’ll discover a slider for alert loudness.

If you don’t want to completely disable sound warnings or haptic messages, you can manually lower the volume using the digital crown on the side of the watch.

The Watch app on your iPhone allows you to select from a number of noises and haptic notifications, such as those detailed above.

By starting the Watch app, selecting the My Watch page, and then selecting an option, you may access a variety of settings options.

You can change the alert settings on the watch or configure them to mirror the iPhone settings for the same apps.

If you’re having trouble utilizing the Control Center on the watch because the buttons are so small, you might want to try the Watch app.

Another approach to silence your watch is to use the cover-to-mute feature. If your watch begins to make noise, simply place your palm over it. This behavior will be detected, and the device’s alert noises will be turned off.

You should also consider hitting the Do Not Disturb button in the Control Center. Another useful solution for your sound problems is to disable all of your notifications on the watch by activating that. This will be valid until tomorrow AM.


How do I set my Apple Watch to only vibrate?

If you don’t want your Apple Watch to make any noises and would rather get vibration or haptic notifications, you can put your phone in silent mode.

Swiping up from the bottom of the screen and hitting the bell icon brings up the Apple Watch Quiet Mode toggle. Silent mode is activated when the bell icon has a slash through it and is red.

You may confirm that haptic alerts are enabled by pressing the digital crown, opening the Settings app (the gear symbol), and selecting the Sounds & Haptics option. There, you can enable or disable haptic alerts.

Why doesn’t my Apple Watch ring when I get a text message?

If no sounds are heard, the mute setting is most likely activated. You may instantly silence or unmute the watch by quickly sliding up from the bottom of the screen and touching the bell icon.

You may also change the watch’s extra sound settings by touching the crown button, selecting Settings from the menu, and then select Sounds & Haptics.

You can change the sound options and enable features that change the device’s noises and haptics, such as the crown haptics that play when the dial is twisted.

If your sounds are enabled, one last place to look is under the Settings app’s Notifications area. You can check to see if the watch is using the watch’s built-in settings or mirroring your phone for notifications by selecting Messages from that menu.

How can I enable or disable the Do Not Disturb feature on my Apple Watch?

The quickest approach to activate the Apple Watch Do Not Disturb mode is to swipe up from the bottom of the screen, hit the half-moon icon, and select the Do Not Disturb option.

You may also activate and modify your watch’s Do Not Disturb mode by clicking the digital crown on the side, touching the gear symbol, selecting Concentrate, and then selecting Do Not Disturb.

As a result, by creating a new Do Not Disturb profile, you can choose the kind of notifications you want to receive when the mode is enabled.

Why is there a crescent moon icon on my Apple Watch?

Because the watch’s “Do Not Disturb” mode is enabled, this indicator is visible.

You may disable this by scrolling down and pressing on the crescent moon icon after activating the Control Center on your watch by sliding up from the bottom of the screen.

What is the Quiet Mode on the Apple Watch?

The “Quiet Mode” toggle switch is located in the Sounds & Haptics menu, which is accessible by scrolling through the Apple Watch settings.

You’ve probably noticed that your Apple Watch occasionally emits noises in reaction to notifications or other events.

By selecting Quiet Mode from the Settings > Sounds & Haptics menu, you can prevent the watch from making any noises other than alarms or timers that go off while the watch is charging.

What is the Theater Mode on the Apple Watch?

The Apple Watch also features a “Theater Mode” option that works similarly to the device’s silent mode.

When in Theater Mode, the device’s screen will be turned off, and the audio will be muted.

This setting is intended for usage in theaters where as little noise and light as possible are desired.

You can activate or deactivate Apple Watch Theater Mode by sliding up from the bottom of the watch face and pressing the button with the two masks.

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