To silence an Apple Watch, press the side button to open Control Center and tap the Silent Mode button (the bell). It turns red when the watch is silenced. You can also go to Settings › Sounds & Haptics on the watch and turn on Silent Mode. You’ll still feel taps on your wrist.
How to silence your Apple Watch from Control Center
Apple lists Silent Mode as a Control Center option in its Use Control Center on Apple Watch guide.
- Press the side button (the flat button below the Digital Crown).
- Tap the Silent Mode button (a bell).
- Press the side button again to close Control Center.
Tap the bell again when you want sound back.
How to silence Apple Watch in Settings
These steps come from Apple’s Adjust volume and haptics on Apple Watch guide.
- Open the Settings app on your Apple Watch.
- Tap Sounds & Haptics.
- Turn on Silent Mode.
You can do the same from your iPhone: open the Apple Watch app, tap My Watch, then tap Sounds & Haptics.
Quick ways to hush one alert
- Cover to Mute: Rest your palm over the watch face for three seconds to mute an incoming call or alert. It’s on by default. Apple explains it in Use gestures for notifications and alerts.
- Wrist flick: Quickly turn your wrist over and back to mute a call or dismiss an alert.
Stop the taps too
Silent Mode turns off sounds but keeps haptic taps. To turn off the taps, go to Settings › Sounds & Haptics and set Haptics to Off. To silence everything for a while, turn on Do Not Disturb or a Focus from Control Center.
Related: how to silence your iPhone.
Matthew Burleigh has been writing tech tutorials since 2008. His writing has appeared on dozens of different websites and been read hundreds of millions of times.
After receiving his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Computer Science he spent several years working in IT management for small businesses. However, he now works full time writing content online and creating websites.
His main writing topics include iPhones, Microsoft Office, Google Apps, Android, and Photoshop, but he has also written about many other tech topics as well.