The latest Apple Watches are the guides to your day, delivering notifications, tracking workouts, offering instant on-wrist access to apps, and more. But sometimes, you don’t want it dinging, lighting up, or even vibrating with a constant stream of updates. Thankfully, there are several ways you can put your Apple Watch on silent mode.

How to mute your Apple Watch

If you want to outright mute your Apple Watch, you can do this from the Control Center.

1. Press the Side button on your Apple Watch to open the Control Center on watchOS 10. If you’re on watchOS 9 or earlier, swipe up from the bottom of the screen.
2. Tap the Silent Mode button (tiny Bell icon). It will turn red to indicate it’s on.
3. Through this method, you'll still receive haptic notifications, but the Apple Watch won’t make noise when you get a notification.

How to turn off Apple Watch Haptic alerts

Haptic alerts provide a slight vibration to let you know you've received a notification or update. You can turn this off or lower the volume of audible alerts.

1. Open the Settings app on the Apple Watch.
2. Scroll down to Sounds & Haptics.
3. Tap Haptic Alerts on the right to turn it on (it will turn green).
4. You can also use the Alert Volume slider to adjust the volume level if you want it to be quieter.
5. Alternatively, from your iPhone, open the Watch app.
6. Select the My Watch tab (if it isn’t already selected).
7. Scroll down to Sounds & Haptics.
8. Follow the same instructions in steps 3 and 4 to turn Haptics Alerts on or adjust the alert volume slider from your iPhone.

How to turn off haptic alerts with the Digital Crown

If you don’t want haptic alerts when you adjust the Digital Crown, you can change the settings.

1. Open the Settings app on your Apple Watch.
2. Scroll down and select Sounds & Haptics.
3. Scroll down to Crown Haptics and tap it on the left to turn it off (it will turn gray). You can do this from the Sound & Haptics Settings menu in the Watch app on your iPhone as well.

How to turn on Do Not Disturb

To temporarily halt all notifications on your Apple Watch, turn on Do Not Disturb. Note that once you put your connected iPhone into Do Not Disturb mode, the Apple Watch will automatically enter it, too. The same will happen to the iPhone when you turn on Do Not Disturb on the Apple Watch.

1. Press the Side button on your Apple Watch to open the Control Center on watchOS 10. If you’re on watchOS 9 or earlier, swipe up from the bottom of the screen.
2. Tap the Do Not Disturb button (the tiny half-moon icon).
3. This will bring up a series of options, including Do Not Disturb, Sleep, and Driving. Select Do Not Disturb.
4. Select Do Not Disturb.
5. It will ask if you want it On until you turn it off, On for one hour, On until tomorrow morning, or On until I leave. Select the desired option.
6. The half-moon will light up blue to indicate that the Apple Watch is in Do Not Disturb mode. Tap it again to turn it off.

How to turn on Theater Mode

Theater Mode is an interesting option with Apple Watch that not only silences notifications (haptics will still work) but also prevents the Wake Screen or Wrist Raise feature from working. This is ideal for content creators who don’t want the Watch lighting up while they’re recording a video or people who are, you know, in the movie theater.

1. Press the Side button on your Apple Watch to open the Control Center on watchOS 10. If you’re on watchOS 9 or earlier, swipe up from the bottom of the screen.
2. Tap Theater Mode (the icon with two face masks).
3. The first time you use this mode, you’ll see a summary of what Theater Mode does. Tap Theater Mode again.
4. The icon will turn orange to confirm that it’s on.
5. When you manually wake up the screen, you’ll also see the little Theater Mode icon at the top.
6. Reverse the steps to turn it off.

How to silence an incoming alert

What happens if you’re in a meeting and you forgot to silence the Apple Watch? You can quickly silence a notification with a feature called Cover to Mute. This used to be in the Sounds & Haptics menu but has since moved to a new location.

1. Open the Settings app on your Apple Watch.
2. Scroll down to Gestures.
3. Tap Cover to Mute so it turns on (it will turn green).
4. Now, whenever you place your hand over the Watch, it should immediately silence a notification, like an incoming call.
5. You can also do this from the iPhone. Go to the Watch app on your iPhone.
6. Select the My Watch tab (if it isn’t already selected).
7. Select Gestures.
8. Follow step 3, now using your phone.

Final thoughts

There are many reasons you might want to put Apple Watch on silent. If you’re in a meeting or in class, you don’t want the Apple Watch to make constant noises, which can distract you and others. If you have a model like the new Apple Watch Ultra 2, you might want to silence it while you are concentrating on training in a sport. The process is the same whether you have an older Apple Watch or a new one with watchOS 10.

I keep my Apple Watch on silent most of the time and rely mainly on haptic feedback for notifications. I also always put my Apple Watch into Do Not Disturb mode before I head to bed. This prevents notifications from waking me up or disturbing my sleep. Your set alarm will still work in the morning.

It’s quick and easy to put your Apple Watch on silent when necessary. This ensures that the Watch serves you well versus becoming a distraction. Using Control Center from the Watch itself is the quickest and simplest way to go, but as this guide demonstrates, there are many other options you can use, too.