How to track water on Apple Watch

2026-10-30

Apple Watch has no built-in way to log a drink, so you need a water app that runs on the watch itself. The best setup lets you raise your wrist, turn the Digital Crown to pick an amount and tap once, with a complication on your watch face showing how far you are from your goal. A good watch app also works when your iPhone is in another room.

Why your wrist is the best place to log water

The hardest part of tracking water is not knowing what to drink; it is remembering to log it. Your watch is already on your wrist when you fill a glass at the sink, refill a bottle at the gym or order a drink at a café. Logging there takes a few seconds and doesn't pull you into your phone.

That matters, because consistency beats precision. A log with a few small rounding errors is far more useful than a perfect log you abandon after a week. If you want to know what you are aiming for, start with how much water you should drink a day.

What to look for in a watch water app

A real watch app, not just notifications mirrored from the iPhone.
Fast amount selection. The Digital Crown is ideal: no tiny buttons.
Complications and Smart Stack widgets, so your progress is on the watch face.
Independence. It should log without your iPhone nearby and sync later.
Sync with the iPhone app, so both show the same total.
Siri support for hands-busy moments.

Install the app on your watch

Apple's guide to downloading apps on Apple Watch gives two routes:

From the watch: open the App Store on Apple Watch, search for the app, tap Get, then double-click the side button when asked.
From the iPhone: open the Watch app, go to My Watch, find the app under available apps and tap Install.

If the iPhone version is already installed, the watch app often appears on its own. Water Tracker can be installed either way, and it does not need the iPhone app to work.

Log a drink with the Digital Crown

In Water Tracker, the main screen shows a ring that fills with water and a + button with the amount underneath.

Open Water Tracker on your watch.
Turn the Digital Crown to change the amount. If you count in glasses, it moves in whole glasses (one to four). If you count in milliliters or ounces, it moves in 50 ml steps (about 1.7 fl oz) up to one liter.
Tap the + button. The ring fills, and you feel a tap on your wrist when you reach your daily goal.

Tapped by mistake? Use Undo at the top of the screen. Scroll down to the second page to see the Last 7 days and your streak.

The amount starts at your glass size, so for most drinks it is simply: open, tap, done. A useful habit: set your glass size (in the iPhone app's Settings) to the glass or cup you use most, so the default is right without turning the Crown.

Put your progress on the watch face

Complications

Apple's steps for adding complications:

With the watch face showing, touch and hold the display, then tap Edit.
Swipe left all the way to the end.
Tap a complication slot, then turn the Digital Crown to choose Water Tracker.
Press the Digital Crown to save.

Water Tracker offers a circular gauge, a corner gauge, a rectangular view and an inline line of text, depending on what the face supports. Beyond showing progress, a complication is the fastest way into the app: tap it, tap +, and you have logged a glass in two taps.

Smart Stack

You can also add the widget to the Smart Stack: from the watch face, turn the Digital Crown up or swipe up, scroll to the bottom, tap Edit, then add Water Tracker. It is a good option if you prefer a clean watch face.

Use Siri on your wrist

When your hands are busy, raise your wrist and say "Hey Siri, log water in Water Tracker". Siri logs one glass and tells you how much is left. Ask "How much water did I drink in Water Tracker?" to hear your progress. More phrases and ideas are in Siri, Shortcuts and the Action Button.

Without your iPhone

Water Tracker for Apple Watch works on its own. If you go for a run with only your watch, drinks you log are saved on the watch and sync with your iPhone automatically when the two are back in touch. The totals on both devices then match.

One detail: reminders are scheduled by the iPhone app, and iPhone notifications appear on your watch when the phone is nearby. On a phone-free run you won't get water reminders, so plan your drinks around the run instead; hydration before, during and after exercise has the numbers.

Make it a habit

Pick one complication slot and keep it there. Seeing the gauge many times a day is a reminder in itself.
Log at the moment you pour. It takes two seconds on the watch, and you won't forget.
Use the bottle size for refills. On the iPhone, the bottle button logs 500 ml (about 17 fl oz); on the watch, turn the Crown to the amount your bottle holds.
Let reminders go quiet. Water Tracker stops reminding you once you reach your goal, so the watch doesn't buzz for no reason in the evening.

Bottom line

To track water on Apple Watch, install a water app that runs on the watch itself, set your glass size once, and put a complication on your favorite face. From then on, logging is a glance and a tap: turn the Crown if you need a different amount, tap +, and keep going. Water Tracker does this for free, with no account and no ads, and keeps your watch and iPhone in sync.

This article is general information, not medical advice. If you have a health condition, are pregnant or take medication, ask your doctor how much you should drink.