Even though Apple Watch is one of the best smartwatches, it may sometimes encounter some technical glitches. Whether your watch is acting funny due to some error or you plan to sell or upgrade to a new watch, you will still need to unpair the watch from the paired iPhone; probably backup its data for future use, and disable the activation lock to allow it to set up again.
When you unpair the Apple Watch from the paired iPhone, the watch returns to its factory settings. Since the watch’s data is completely erased during the unpairing process, the paired iPhone will automatically create a backup of it first. This is one reason to keep your iPhone close to the watch while unpairing the Apple Watch.
While it is advisable to do so to keep a fresh backup of the Watch data, in certain circumstances, you might want to erase the watch even if you do not have the iPhone close by. In this article, we will guide you on how to unpair or erase Apple Watch using the following methods:
These guides are followed by another to help you delete your Apple Watch from your iCloud account, which is required if you’re selling the watch to someone else and they’d be pairing it to their iCloud account.
If you’re using transit cards in the Wallet app, remove the card from the Apple Watch before you attempt to unpair your watch. You can do so by opening the Watch app on the paired iPhone, tapping on Wallet & Apple Pay, and selecting Transit Cards.
Also read: How to find serial number on Apple Watch?
How to unpair Apple Watch using iPhone?
The easiest and fastest way to unpair the Apple Watch is using the Watch app on the paired iPhone. Remember to keep your iPhone and Apple Watch close to each other as you unpair them. Launch the app and follow the steps mentioned below.
- Go to the My Watch tab, located at the bottom-left corner of the screen. Then tap on the All Watches option on the top.
- Tap on the info “i” button located next to the Apple Watch you want to unpair.
- Choose Unpair Apple Watch.
- Tap Unpair (name) Apple Watch to confirm the action. If you’re using a cellular plan, you can choose to keep or remove the plan. You’ll need to call the carrier to cancel the cellular plan.
- Disable Activation Lock by entering the Apple ID passcode then tapping Unpair.
Your Apple Watch will start making the latest backup on your iPhone. Once it finishes it, the watch will unpair itself from the currently paired iPhone, delete all active Bluetooth pairings and remove any active Apple Pay cards used by the watch.
Apple Watch will then restore itself to factory reset settings. When the unpairing is done, you’ll see the Start Pairing message on your iPhone. If you want, you can set it up again.
Also read: How to change language on Apple Watch?
How to unpair Apple Watch without iPhone?
If you want to factory reset your Apple Watch and you don’t have your iPhone, you can do the process directly on the Apple Watch without using the paired iPhone. However, you still have to remove the Apple Watch from your iPhone whenever you have it. Follow the steps mentioned below.
- Open the Settings app from the app grid or list view.
- Tap on General.
- Scroll down and tap on Reset.
- Tap on Erase All Content & Settings.
- Enter your Apple Watch passcode, if prompted.
- Tap on Erase All or Erase All & Keep Plan in case you want to keep your cellular plan.
Neither will Apple Watch create a backup on your iPhone, nor will it disable Activation Lock, which means a new user will not be able to set up the Apple Watch.
If you want to allow someone else to use the Apple Watch, you’ll have to remove it from your iCloud account.
Also read: How to fix the iMessage signed out error?
How to unpair Apple Watch from iCloud account?
Log into iCloud.com and following the steps given below.
Step 1: Sign in with your Apple ID and then Passcode.
Step 2: Click on Account Settings.
Step 3: Select the Apple Watch under the section My Devices.
Step 4: Click on the cross icon, located next to the Apple Watch you want to remove. Then click on Done.
Also read: How to delete a workout on Apple Watch?
