How to Turn Off Maps Directions on Apple Watch

To turn off Maps directions on your Apple Watch, open the Watch app on your iPhone, tap My Watch, tap Maps, and turn off the Turn Alerts switches for Driving, Driving with CarPlay, Walking, and Cycling. Your iPhone keeps giving directions, but the watch stops tapping your wrist at every turn. If a route is running right now and you just want it gone, end the route in Maps instead.

Those are two different jobs, and this guide covers both, along with the related settings that stop the watch from reopening Maps, playing turn tones, or showing Maps notifications.

What You Need Before You Start

• Your paired iPhone. The Turn Alerts switches are in the Watch app on the iPhone. Apple notes that some app settings can only be changed there, so do not expect to find every option on the watch itself.
• A watch you set up for yourself. Apple says mirrored notification settings do not apply to an Apple Watch you manage for a family member, so some notification options may look different on a managed watch.
• A rough idea of your software version. The steps below follow the current Apple Watch User Guide for watchOS 27. Apple last spelled out the Turn Alerts steps in the guide for watchOS 7 through watchOS 9, and menu positions can shift between versions. Where a label may differ, that is pointed out.

A turn alert is the signal the watch gives during a route. According to Apple, the watch uses sounds and haptics (the taps and vibrations you feel on your wrist) to tell you when to turn. A low tone followed by a high tone means turn right, a high tone followed by a low tone means turn left, and you feel a vibration on the last leg and again when you arrive.

How to Turn Off Maps Turn Alerts on Apple Watch

This is the setting most people are looking for. It stops the wrist taps for the travel modes you choose, without touching Maps on your iPhone.

1. Open the Watch app on your iPhone. Apple also calls it the Apple Watch app.
2. Tap the My Watch tab.
3. Scroll down to the list of apps and tap Maps. On the newest software the app list may sit behind an Apps row, so tap that first if you see it.
4. Find the Turn Alerts section. Apple lists four modes there: Driving, Driving with CarPlay, Walking, and Cycling.
5. Turn off the switch for each mode where you do not want alerts on your wrist. A switch that is off is gray.

There is no Save button. Close the Watch app when you are done. The setting applies to the modes you switched off, so the next driving route should run on the iPhone without turn alerts on the watch, while any mode you left on behaves as before.

Apple documents this setting in its Get directions in Maps on Apple Watch guide. Use the version menu on that page and choose watchOS 9 to see the Turn Alerts instructions in Apple’s own words.

Which Turn Alerts should you turn off?

The switches are independent, so you do not have to turn off all four. The table shows what each one controls and a common reason to change it.

Switch	Covers	Reason to turn it off
Driving	Driving routes without CarPlay	Your phone is mounted in view and already speaks each turn
Driving with CarPlay	Driving routes shown on your car’s screen	The dashboard display already shows the next turn
Walking	Walking routes	You would rather look at the phone than feel taps
Cycling	Cycling routes	You follow the route on a handlebar-mounted phone

Many people turn off only the two driving switches. A tap on the wrist is more useful on foot or on a bike, where you may not want to hold your phone, than in a car that already shows and speaks every turn.

How to Stop Directions That Are Running Now

Turning off Turn Alerts changes future behavior. If a route is active and your watch keeps prompting you, end the route.

End the route on the Apple Watch

1. Open the Maps app on your Apple Watch so the current route is on the screen.
2. Tap the button that opens the route controls.
3. Tap End Route.

Apple’s guide for watchOS 10, watchOS 11, and watchOS 26 describes it this way: while viewing a route, tap the button, then tap End Route. The watchOS 27 guide no longer lists the step, so the button may look different or sit in a different corner on your watch. On watchOS 9 and earlier the option was labeled End.

End the route on the iPhone or in CarPlay

If you started the directions on your iPhone, end them there. In CarPlay, Apple says you can say something to Siri like “Stop navigating,” or select the estimated time of arrival display at the bottom left and choose End Route. In Maps on the iPhone, look for the same End Route option on the route card.

Once the route ends, the turn alerts stop. Apple also notes that ending a route in Maps is what lets the watch go back to the clock face when Maps is set to return to the app.

How to Stop the Watch From Reopening Maps

Some apps can bring you back to where you left off when you raise your wrist. Apple calls this Return to App, and Maps is one of the apps that supports it, along with Music, Podcasts, Timers, Workout, and a few others. If you would rather see the time than a map during a route, turn it off for Maps.

1. Open the Settings app on your Apple Watch.
2. Tap General.
3. Tap Return to Clock.
4. Scroll down and tap Maps.
5. Turn off Return to App.

You can make the same change on your iPhone: open the Watch app, tap My Watch, tap General, then tap Return to Clock. On the same screen you can choose how soon the watch returns to the clock face from an open app: Always, After 2 minutes, or After 1 hour. Apple covers both options in its display settings guide, and there is more detail in our guide on how to set Apple Watch to return to the clock or last used app.

You can also press the Digital Crown at any time to go back to the clock face without ending the route.

How to Silence Turn Tones but Keep Directions

If the taps are fine and only the tones bother you, leave Turn Alerts on and use Silent Mode. Apple states that turn sounds do not play when Apple Watch is in Silent Mode.

1. Press the side button on your Apple Watch to open Control Center.
2. Tap the Silent Mode button.

You can also turn it on from the iPhone: open the Watch app, tap My Watch, tap Sounds & Haptics, then turn on Silent Mode. Silent Mode mutes alerts, notifications, and sound effects on the whole watch, not just Maps, and you still receive haptic taps. Apple adds that alarms and timers still sound while the watch is charging. Our guide on how to silence an Apple Watch walks through the other quiet modes.

Do Not Disturb goes further. Apple describes it as the mode that prevents sound and haptic notifications, and you can turn it on for an hour, until you leave a location, or until an event ends. Apple’s guide does not say whether Do Not Disturb also blocks Maps turn alerts during an active route, so treat Turn Alerts as the dependable switch for that. The full comparison is in Apple’s guide to silencing notifications for extended periods.

How to Turn Off Maps Notifications on Apple Watch

Notifications are separate from turn alerts. If Maps sends banners to your watch that you do not want, change how the app notifies you.

1. Open the Watch app on your iPhone.
2. Tap My Watch, then tap Notifications.
3. Tap Maps.
4. Tap Custom.
5. Choose Notifications Off. To keep them without the sound or the pop-up, choose Send to Notification Center instead.

By default, the apps on a watch you set up for yourself mirror the notification settings on your iPhone, which is why you have to tap Custom before the other choices appear. Apple lists these options in its notification settings guide, and says the available options can vary by app. For other apps, see how to turn off notifications on Apple Watch.

How to Confirm It Worked and Undo It

The simplest check is to look at the setting again. Go back to the Watch app, tap My Watch, tap Maps, and make sure the switches you turned off are still gray. The next time you start a route in one of those modes on your iPhone, the watch should stay quiet.

Every change in this guide is a plain switch, so undoing it means flipping the same switch back:

• Turn Alerts: turn the mode back on in the Watch app under My Watch > Maps.
• Return to App: turn it back on under Settings > General > Return to Clock > Maps on the watch.
• Silent Mode: tap the Silent Mode button in Control Center again.
• Notifications: in the Watch app, tap My Watch > Notifications > Maps, then choose Allow Notifications or go back to mirroring your iPhone.

It is worth turning the alerts back on before a trip somewhere unfamiliar, especially for walking, where a tap before each turn lets you keep your phone in your pocket.

Troubleshooting

There is no Maps entry in the Watch app

Scroll further down the My Watch tab. The app list comes after the general settings, and Apple’s instruction is to scroll down to the apps. If there is an Apps row, open it. If Maps is still missing, the app may have been removed from the watch. Apple says built-in apps can be restored by downloading them again from the App Store on the iPhone or the watch.

The watch still taps after you turned off the switches

• Check that you turned off the right mode. Driving and Driving with CarPlay are separate, and turning off one leaves the other on.
• Check whether the route was started from the watch. Directions you start in Maps on the watch itself are shown on the watch.
• End the current route and start it again so it picks up the new setting.
• Check which app is giving directions. Turn Alerts belongs to Apple Maps. A different navigation app has its own settings and its own notifications.
• Restart the watch and the iPhone if the setting looks right but the behavior has not changed.

The taps are too strong, not unwanted

If you want to keep turn alerts but soften every tap, open Settings on the watch, tap Sounds & Haptics, and look at Haptics. Apple lists three intensities: Default, Prominent, and Off. This applies to wrist taps from every app, so choosing Off also removes the taps for messages and calls. See Apple’s guide to adjusting volume and haptics, or our guide on Apple Watch vibration strength.

A route keeps showing at the top of the watch face

Apple Watch shows app activities in progress as Live Activities on the watch face and at the top of the Smart Stack. To change when and how they appear, open Settings on the watch, tap Smart Stack, then tap Live Activities. Ending the route removes it as well.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I turn off Maps turn alerts from the Apple Watch itself?

Apple’s instructions for Turn Alerts use the Watch app on the iPhone, under My Watch > Maps. The watch has its own list of app settings under Settings > Apps, but Apple says some settings can only be changed in the Watch app on the iPhone, so the iPhone is the reliable place to look.

Will turning off Turn Alerts stop directions on my iPhone?

No. Turn Alerts only chooses which travel modes send alerts to the watch. Maps on the iPhone, and on your car’s screen through CarPlay, keeps showing and speaking the route as usual.

Can I keep alerts for walking but not for driving?

Yes. Each travel mode has its own switch. Leave Walking and Cycling on and turn off Driving and Driving with CarPlay.

Can I delete the Maps app from my Apple Watch?

Apple says you can remove an app from the watch by pressing the Digital Crown, touching and holding the app, and tapping the remove button, but it also notes that not all apps can be removed. Apple’s organize apps guide does not say which group Maps falls into. Turning off Turn Alerts is a smaller change that solves the wrist-tap problem and is easy to reverse.

Should I turn off Location Services to stop Maps?

That is a much bigger change than this problem needs. Apple says Location Services must be on to use Maps, and that privacy settings such as Location Services are shared between the iPhone and the watch, so turning it off affects far more than turn alerts. If you still want to review it, see how to turn off Location Services on iPhone, or for one app.

Does the Driving Focus stop Maps alerts on the watch?

The Driving Focus silences or limits text messages and other notifications while you drive, and Focus settings are shared between the iPhone and the watch. It is not a Maps setting, though, and Apple says Maps keeps giving turn-by-turn directions on the iPhone while the Driving Focus is on. To stop the wrist taps specifically, use Turn Alerts. To set up the Focus, see how to turn on the Driving Focus from Control Center.

Next Step

Start with the two driving switches under Turn Alerts, since those remove the alerts most people find redundant. If the watch still shows the map every time you raise your wrist, turn off Return to App for Maps as well.