As an Apple user, I was recently frustrated by the fact that I couldn’t figure out how to lock and unlock my iPhone with my Apple Watch. I was determined to find a solution, so I dug into the issue and did some research and testing to see if it was possible. Through my journey, I found a few solutions that worked and I’m here to share my experience and knowledge with you. In this blog post, I’m going to explain how to lock and unlock your iPhone with your Apple Watch.
| Action | Steps | Considerations and Alternatives |
|---|---|---|
| Lock iPhone with Apple Watch | 1. Unlock iPhone | Not as convenient as locking iPhone directly |
| 2. Apple Watch shows “Lock iPhone” message | Useful for safety reasons | |
| Unlock iPhone with Apple Watch | 1. Go to iPhone Settings | Requires wrist detection feature enabled |
| 2. Navigate to Face ID & Passcode | Apple Watch must have passcode enabled | |
| 3. Enter passcode and enable Unlock with Apple Watch option | ||
| 4. Ensure Apple Watch is nearby, on wrist, unlocked, and with passcode enabled | ||
| 5. Wake iPhone and look at it | ||
| 6. Apple Watch displays “User’s iPhone Unlocked by this Apple Watch” message | ||
| Lock iPhone Remotely | 1. Go to iCloud.com | Use Lost Mode for remote locking |
| 2. Access Find My iPhone and enter Apple ID | ||
| 3. Select All Devices, then pick your iPhone | ||
| 4. Click on Lock or Lost Mode and follow instructions to lock iPhone | ||
| 5. To disable Lost Mode after locating iPhone, go back to iCloud.com, select device, click on Lost Mode, then Stop Lost Mode |
Table of Contents
How to Lock Your iPhone with Apple Watch
To lock your iPhone using your Apple Watch, you first need to unlock it. Once you do unlock it, your Apple Watch should then show an automated message saying “Lock iPhone.”
This is basically the only case when you can lock your iPhone with an Apple Watch. For this reason, it’s not as convenient as simply just locking your iPhone directly.
Nevertheless, the lock feature could be useful for safety reasons. For instance, if someone unlocked your iPhone while wearing a mask, you’ll be immediately notified. You can then re-lock the phone before any intruder accesses your content.
How to Unlock Your iPhone with Apple Watch
Unlocking your iPhone with the Apple Watch could be more useful. You could be wearing a face mask or sunglasses and your iPhone wouldn’t be able to pick up on your Face ID.
To start, go on your iPhone and access Settings. Then, navigate to Face ID & Passcode and tap in your passcode. Go down until you find the Apple Watch option and swipe the toggle to Unlock with Apple Watch.
Complete these steps if you have more than one Apple Watch. Now, when you want to unlock it, make sure your Apple Watch is nearby, on your wrist, unlocked, and has a passcode enabled.
All you have to do is wake the iPhone and look at it. The watch should then display the message, “User’s iPhone Unlocked by this Apple Watch.”
Under that notification is another message “Lock iPhone.” Tap it if you want to immediately lock the phone after unlocking it.
Read more: does Apple Watch work if iPhone is dead?
What to Consider Before Unlock iPhone with Apple Watch
Before you complete the steps above, you also want to make sure that your wrist detecting feature is enabled in your Apple Watch.
You’ll simply need to go to the Settings on the watch and select Passcode. There, you’ll have the option to turn the Wrist Detection feature on or off.
Another thing worth considering is that you need to have a passcode enabled for your Apple Watch. To make one, you just need to go to Settings>Passcode>Enable Passcode.
In addition to this, you can also enable a passcode on your Apple Watch through your iPhone. You just need to open the Apple Watch app, go to My Watch, then select Passcode. Next, turn the feature on and input your new Passcode.
Read more: Can I use Apple watch with a Pixel Phone?
Is There Another Way to Lock Your iPhone Remotely?
If you lost your iPhone, the first thing you want to do is lock it to keep any intruders out. Luckily, you don’t have to only rely on the Apple Watch for this feature, especially since it only works if your iPhone is near you. Instead, you could use Lost Mode to lock your iPhone from far distances.
Firstly, go to iCloud.com and access Find My iPhone by entering your Apple ID. Afterward, select All Devices then pick your iPhone. You may not see the option to tap on All Devices. This usually means that the device is already selected.
If you want to change it, tap on the name of the selected device, then you’ll see the Devices List. Afterward, pick a new device and click on Lock or Lost Mode. Then the following instructions should direct you to lock your iPhone.
Once you’ve located your phone, you can turn off Lost Mode by going back to iCloud.com and clicking on your device. Next, select Lost Mode followed by Stop Lost Mode.
To Conclude
Can you lock your iPhone with your Apple Watch? Simply put, you can, but it may not be as convenient as you’d hope. To lock your iPhone, you’d need to first unlock it through your watch by holding the phone to your face.
That way, the message Lock iPhone would appear. That being said, the main reason you’d want to lock the phone through your watch could be so that you don’t have to hold your phone in the first place.
Now, while the unlock feature is highly useful, especially if you’re wearing something obscuring your face ID, the locking mechanism may seem counterproductive.
