On June 9, Apple officially announced WatchOS 26, its latest version of the operating system for its Apple Watch platform. The latest version of WatchOS comes with several updates, including a big overhaul of the design, as well as smarter apps, new features, and a whole lot more.
The biggest change coming to WatchOS with WatchOS 26 is the new design. Apple is using this new design to unify the look of its operating systems across devices. So, the overall design language of iOS, WatchOS, macOS, tvOS, etc. will be very much the same. It’s actually a pretty smart move and should tie its ecosystem of products together quite nicely. In this article, we’ll go over everything you need to know about WatchOS 26. From the release date, to the public beta, to features, and anything else that’s relevant to the new software version.
WatchOS 26 Beta Schedule
With the WatchOS 26 beta, Apple plans to release everything in stages before a final release later this year. That being said, it’s unclear just how many beta releases there will be prior to the full release of WatchOS 26.
However, Apple does tend to follow a similar schedule every single year with its software releases. So, it should be possible to narrow down when to expect a new version of the beta throughout its lifecycle, leading up to the full release.
Here’s the initial beta schedule for WatchOS 26:
- WatchOS 26 Developer Beta 1 – June 9, 2025
- WatchOS 26 Public Beta – July 2025
While there are certainly going to be more beta releases than just these two, Apple doesn’t announce them until they’re available. However, since it tends to release things around the same time every year, last year’s WatchOS 11 beta release schedule provides a good look at what to expect for timing. Here’s what the schedule for WatchOS 11 beta releases looked like:
- WatchOS 11 Developer Beta 1 – Released on June 10, 2025
- WatchOS 11 Developer Beta 2 – Released on June 24, 2025
- WatchOS 11 Beta 3 – Released on July 8, 2025
- WatchOS 11 Beta 4 – Released on August 13, 2025
- WatchOS 11 Beta 5 – Released on August 21, 2025
This isn’t the complete list of beta releases for WatchOS 11. That being said, it gives a clear picture of the timeline users can expect for WatchOS 26. The releases should follow pretty closely to this schedule. Give or take a few days.
WatchOS 26 Release Date
Apple likes to keep things pretty close to the chest when it comes to the full release date for its operating systems, and it likely has its reasons for doing things this way. This means it’s unclear when Apple plans to push the full public release of WatchOS 26. The company has only confirmed that the software will be launching this Fall for all users. With that being said, we can again look to the full public release of past WatchOS versions to make an educated guess as to when WatchOS 26 will be available for everyone. Based on the schedule below, it’s highly likely that Apple will release WatchOS 26 sometime between September 15 and September 22.
| WatchOS Version | Release Date |
| WatchOS 11 | September 16, 2024 |
| WatchOS 10 | September 18, 2023 |
| WatchOS 9 | September 12, 2022 |
| WatchOS 8 | September 20, 2021 |
| WatchOS 7 | September 16, 2020 |
Which Apple Watch Models Support WatchOS 26?
Just like with iPhones and the iOS software, Apple doesn’t guarantee how many updates will be available for specific devices. To put it another way, it doesn’t guarantee that your Apple Watch model will get updates for a set number of years. However, it usually keeps its devices updated for a while, so there’s a good chance that if your Apple Watch is a fairly recent model, it’ll be supported for new versions of WatchOS well beyond WatchOS 26. Here’s a list of all supported Apple Watch models for WatchOS 26 below, as confirmed by Apple:
- Apple Watch Series 6
- Apple Watch Series 7
- Apple Watch Series 8
- Apple Watch Series 9
- Apple Watch Series 10
- Apple Watch SE (2nd Generation)
- Apple Watch Ultra
- Apple Watch Ultra 2
WatchOS 26 introduces a very slick new design language that Apple is using to unify the look and style of all of its six software platforms. This includes macOS, tvOS, and, of course, iOS. In addition to the new design, Apple is bringing in some smarter apps, some of which are new, while others are getting smarter features, thanks to integration with Apple Intelligence. Here are all the new features Apple has announced with WatchOS 26.
Liquid Glass
The new design language for WatchOS 26 and all of Apple’s software platforms is called Liquid Glass. Apple describes this as having a visual design that reflects and refracts content using real-time rendering. This new design will be adopted across several areas of WatchOS 26. This includes the Smart Stack widgets, Smart Stack hints, notifications, the control center, navigation, and in-app controls.
New Workout Features
Apple is updating its fitness features for Apple Watch with WatchOS 26 through a new app called Workout Buddy, as well as improvements to Workout Experience. Workout Buddy is a new app being made available with the new version of WatchOS that integrates Apple Intelligence. With Apple Intelligence, Workout Buddy can take the user’s workout data and use that to provide you with personalized motivation insights.
Say you’re going on a morning run, and you run for a total of 2 miles. Workout Buddy can tell you things like when you’re coming up on closing your Exercise ring and tell you how many miles you’ve run so far for that week. It can also alert you when you’ve reached a new fitness milestone, such as hitting the one-mile mark at a new, faster time. Workout Buddy can also give you motivational pep talks and congratulatory praises, such as after you reach a new milestone, to keep you going the next time you go out for that same exercise.
As for the new Workout Experience features, Apple says it’s adding new buttons to the Workout app that make it easier for users to access their favorite features. Users will also now be able to use these new buttons to access things like customized workouts or create playlists with music and podcasts for their exercise sessions. The buttons are located in each of the four corners of the app, so there’s no mistaking how to get to them. All without obstructing the main view of the app’s central features.
New Smart Stack features
The Smart Stack is Apple’s way of giving users notifications and suggestions right on the watch face, and with the upcoming version of WatchOS, the Smart Stack is becoming “more proactive.” The basis of this set of improvements is centered around what Apple is calling Smart Stack hints. Smart Stack will now look at various pieces of user data, such as sensor data, contextual data, and a user’s routines, to provide them with helpful hints and suggestions that will be immediately useful to the user. Apple says these pop up as a proactive prompt with suggestions that are actionable the moment a user sees them.
New Messaging Features
Messages on smartwatches can be a tad challenging due to how small the screens on smartwatches are. Apple is trying to make interacting with messages as easy and convenient as possible. With WatchOS 26, messaging is getting more convenient thanks to the added Live Translation capability powered by Apple Intelligence. Apple says messages can be translated into their preferred language right on their wrist. Responses are automatically translated back to the language of the sender when the user responds.
Apple is also adding some convenience for users who have English set as their preferred language. For example, Apple Intelligence will be able to make relevant suggestions to the user on how to respond. This is also based on the context of the conversation. If the person you’re talking to asks what time you’ll be home, Messages can suggest that you share a check-in when you get home.
New notification features
When Apple launched the Double Tap gesture for Apple Watch, it was a universally loved feature because it made doing certain things way easier. Apple is adding a new gesture with the latest version of WatchOS that lets you do a wrist flick gesture to interact with notifications. For example, you can use the wrist flick to dismiss an incoming notification or call. Much like Double Tap, the wrist flick is intended to give users an easy way to deal with notifications when they don’t have both hands free. In fact, this could be a lot easier to use than Double Tap if you’re out shopping and you’re carrying bags.
Download the WatchOS 26 Beta
The first developer beta for WatchOS 26 was made available today, June 9. Users can get their hands on the software to check it out for themselves if they’re interested in testing things out early. Keep in mind that this is a preview that’s intended for developers. So, there are likely to be things that may not work correctly. The public beta will be released in July. So, you won’t have long to wait if you want to use a version that’s more stable.
