Galaxy Watch 6 Not Pairing: Troubleshooting Guide
If your Galaxy Watch 6 won't pair with your phone, these steps resolve most connection issues.
Quick Fixes (Try First)
- Restart both devices - Watch and phone
- Toggle Bluetooth off then on (phone)
- Update Galaxy Wearable app in Play Store
- Keep devices close - within 1 meter
- Enable Location on phone (required for Bluetooth scanning)
Watch Not Appearing in App
Solutions:
- Factory reset watch:
SettingsGeneralReset - Turn off Bluetooth on nearby tablets/laptops
- Forget old Galaxy Watch pairings in phone Bluetooth settings
- Ensure watch battery above 30%
Pairing Fails at Connection
Clear app data:
Phone Settings Apps Galaxy Wearable Storage Clear cache and Clear data
Disable battery optimization:
Phone Settings Apps Galaxy Wearable Battery Unrestricted
Grant all permissions: Ensure Location, Bluetooth, and Nearby devices permissions are allowed
"Couldn't Connect" Error
- Factory reset watch
- Unpair from phone Bluetooth settings
- Uninstall and reinstall Galaxy Wearable app
- Restart phone
- Try pairing fresh
Samsung Phone Specific
- Disable Battery Saver temporarily
- Allow Galaxy Wearable background activity
- Update to latest One UI version
Non-Samsung Android
- Grant all permissions (Location, Nearby devices)
- Disable aggressive battery optimization (varies by brand)
- Enable auto-start for Galaxy Wearable
Complete Reset (Last Resort)
- Unpair watch from Galaxy Wearable app
- Factory reset watch
- Forget watch in phone Bluetooth settings
- Uninstall Galaxy Wearable, restart phone
- Reinstall app and pair fresh
Most Common Fix
Clearing Galaxy Wearable app data and granting all permissions resolves 80% of pairing issues.
See Also: How to Connect|Phone Compatibility