Tell time on Apple Watch

You can see the time on the watch face, feel the time as taps on your wrist, and hear the time spoken aloud. You can also ask Siri or see 24-hour time.

See the time

Raise your wrist. The time appears on the watch face and in the top-right corner of most apps.

To glance at the watch face and time without having to raise your wrist, use Always On.

Ask Siri

If you turned on Raise to Speak, simply raise your wrist and say “What time is it?”

Feel the time as taps on your wrist

When Apple Watch is in Silent mode, it can tap out the time on your wrist with a series of distinct taps.

Go to the Settings app on your Apple Watch.
Tap Clock, scroll down, then tap Taptic Time.
Turn on Taptic Time, then choose a setting—Digits, Terse, or Morse Code.
- Digits: Apple Watch long taps for every 10 hours, short taps for each following hour, long taps for every 10 minutes, then short taps for each following minute.
- Terse: Apple Watch long taps for every five hours, short taps for the remaining hours, then long taps for each quarter hour.
- Morse Code: Apple Watch taps each digit of the time in Morse code.

You can also configure Taptic Time on iPhone. Go to the Apple Watch app on iPhone, tap My Watch, go to Clock > Taptic Time, then turn it on.

Note: If Taptic Time is disabled, Apple Watch might be set to always speak the time. To be able to use Taptic Time, first go to Settings > Clock, then turn on Control With Silent mode under Speak Time.

Hear the time

Go to the Settings app on your Apple Watch.
Tap Clock, then turn on Speak Time.
Hold two fingers on the watch face to hear the time.

Apple Watch can also play chimes on the hour. In the Settings app on Apple Watch, tap Clock, then turn on Chimes. Tap Sounds to choose Bells or Birds.

See 24-hour time

Go to the Apple Watch app on your iPhone.
Tap My Watch, tap Clock, then turn on 24-Hour Time.

Helpful?

Apple Watch User Guide