The Apple Watch and the iPhone are made for each other and both augment the functions of the other. Regardless of which Apple Watch model you own — the brand new Apple Watch Series 10, last year’s Apple Watch Series 9 or Apple Watch SE, or an older model — you’ll need to pair it with your iPhone.

Setting up your Apple Watch to work with your iPhone is just the beginning. For more ways to benefit from your watch, have a look at our guides covering the essential Apple Watch tips, the best Apple Watch faces, and the best Apple Watch apps, which promise to make your watch as integral to your life as your phone.

Before you get started, make sure that both your Apple Watch and your iPhone are updated to the latest version of their respective operating systems. Right now, that would be iOS 15 and WatchOS 8. Make sure Bluetooth is enabled on your phone and make sure both your watch and phone are fully charged or plug them in to replenish the charge as you pair. The pairing process is virtually identical in iOS 13 and WatchOS 6, iOS 14 and WatchOS 7, and iOS 15 and WatchOS 8.

You can pair more than one watch with your iPhone, but only one watch can be active on your phone at any specific time. The WatchOS platform doesn’t support wearing two watches at once, nor does it support the simultaneous sharing of watches between multiple users. Not all carriers support multiple, active cellular plans at the same time, so make sure your carrier supports the feature. The steps are very similar to the pairing procedure above. There are slight differences between iOS 13 and WatchOS 6 and iOS 14 and WatchOS 7, including the ability to set up separate watches for various family members. The interface for iOS 15  and WatchOS 8 is virtually identical to the previous version.

You can have only one Apple Watch active at a time. To switch watches, remove your current watch, pair the second one, then raise your wrist or move your arm. If you enable the Auto Switch control, which shows up when you have two watches paired, your iPhone automatically switches watches when you do. If you want to choose when to switch, instead of automatically switching, turn off Auto Switch.

The Family Setup feature allows you to join more than one watch for kids and adult family members to one iPhone. You can control each watch with your phone’s Apple Watch app. This feature is compatible with iPhone 6S and subsequent models, as well as Apple Watches Series 4 and later with WatchOS 8. The pairing method for each individual watch is similar to the process for a single user. The only difference is that when you select which family member is connected to each watch, you can personalize items like Location Services, Siri, Apple Cash Family, Messages in iCloud, Health Data, Emergency SOS, Emergency Contacts, Medical ID, Activity, Workout Route Tracking, and Photos.

If you want to remove a watch, the sequence is the same for the last three generations of the iPhone and Apple Watch operating systems.

Now that you can successfully pair and set up your Apple Watch, we encourage you to go check out our instructions on how to back up your Apple Watch to prevent ever having to start the process over from the beginning.