Apple Watch: Sleep Tracking Without Wearing It?

The Apple Watch is a versatile device that offers sleep tracking as one of its many features. While it does not track sleep automatically, users can set up sleep schedules or manually turn on Sleep Focus to receive data about their sleep duration, sleep stages, heart rate, and respiratory rate. This data can provide insights into overall health and help users understand and improve their sleep patterns. However, it's important to note that the Apple Watch must be worn to bed to track sleep accurately, and inconsistent results may occur if the watch is not worn for at least one hour each night.

Apple Watch sleep tracking accuracy

The Apple Watch sleep tracking feature is designed to monitor and analyze sleep patterns. To use this feature, users must enable "Track Sleep" in the Health app and wear the watch for at least one hour each night. However, the accuracy of the sleep tracking data has been questioned by some users, who have reported inconsistencies and discrepancies.

To enable sleep tracking on the Apple Watch, users must first pair their Apple Watch with their iPhone during the initial setup. If pairing is done after the setup, the "Track Sleep" option can still be turned on later. Users can then adjust their wind-down and sleep goals as needed through the Health app.

While the Apple Watch provides insights into sleep patterns, some users have reported discrepancies between the watch's data and their actual sleep experiences. For example, in some cases, the watch has indicated deep sleep during periods when the user was not wearing the watch or was active on their phone. In other instances, the watch has failed to track sleep after the scheduled sleep time had ended. These inconsistencies have led some users to question the accuracy of the sleep tracking feature.

However, it is important to note that no app or watch can perfectly measure sleep stages, as they all rely on algorithms to make estimations. The Apple Watch uses biosignals and algorithms to estimate sleep stages, and its accuracy may be influenced by various factors such as BMI, sleep efficiency, and the apnea-hypopnea index. According to a study comparing 11 consumer sleep trackers, the Apple Watch exhibited high proportional bias in sleep efficiency.

Despite the inconsistencies, some users have found the Apple Watch sleep tracking feature to be useful. The watch can provide a general idea of sleep duration and patterns, and it offers personalized sleep schedules to help users meet their sleep goals and improve their overall health. Additionally, the Apple Watch has been recognized as one of the best performers among consumer sleep trackers, showing high accuracy in detecting sleep and sleep stages compared to other wrist trackers.

Apple Watch sleep tracking requirements

To track your sleep using an Apple Watch, you must wear it to bed. This option is available during setup if you've paired your Apple Watch with your iPhone beforehand. If you pair your Apple Watch after setup, you can still turn on sleep tracking later.

To receive sleep data, you must enable "Track Sleep" on your Apple Watch and wear it for at least one hour each night. If you don't wear your Apple Watch to sleep, your graph might not show any data. To view your sleep history, open the Health app on your iPhone or iPad. If you're on your iPhone, tap "Browse" at the bottom of the screen. If you're using an iPad, tap "Sidebar" to open the sidebar, then tap "Sleep".

Your Apple Watch can track how long you sleep and wake you up with an alarm. It can also track your respiratory rate, which can give you insight into your overall health. To view your respiratory rate, open the Health app on your iPhone or iPad, tap "Browse", then tap "Respiratory" and "Respiratory Rate".

You can also create personalized sleep schedules to help meet your sleep goals and improve your overall health. When you first create a sleep schedule, you can set up the following general settings: a sleep goal, whether or not to turn on Sleep Focus, which limits distractions before you go to bed, when to start winding down before bed, and sleep tracking. Sleep tracking uses your motion to detect sleep when you wear your Apple Watch to bed.

Apple Watch sleep tracking apps

To track your sleep using an Apple Watch, you must wear it to bed. You can set up sleep tracking during the initial setup of your Apple Watch if it has been paired with your iPhone. If you have paired your devices after setup, you can still turn on sleep tracking in the Health app later. To do this, open the Health app and tap Browse at the bottom of the screen, then tap Sleep. If you have Sleep saved to your Favourites list, you can access it from the Summary page in the Health app. From there, you can adjust your wind-down and sleep goal as needed.

However, some users have reported inconsistencies and inaccuracies with Apple's native sleep tracking. For example, the Apple Watch may not track sleep data after a pre-set sleep schedule has ended, even if the user is still sleeping. Additionally, the watch may sometimes indicate that the user is sleeping when they are not wearing the watch.

There are several third-party apps available on the App Store that offer sleep tracking. These include:

• SleepWatch: Tracks sleep sounds, provides personalized coaching, offers smart alarms, and provides in-depth sleep reports.
• AutoSleep: Tracks sleep duration, sleep rating, heart rate, deep sleep, REM sleep, sleep apnea, sleep blood oxygen, respiration rate, environmental noise, sleep analysis, sleep fuel, bedtime, readiness, temperature, sleep consistency, and lights-off time.
• Pillow: A third-party app that can automatically track sleep outside of a set sleep schedule.

Apple Watch sleep tracking benefits

The Apple Watch has several benefits when it comes to sleep tracking. Firstly, it allows users to measure and track their respiratory rate. With sleep tracking turned on, the watch automatically measures and records the number of times the wearer breathes in a minute. This data can be viewed on the Health app on the iPhone or iPad.

Another benefit of the Apple Watch's sleep tracking feature is the ability to create personalized sleep schedules. Users can set a sleep schedule and a wind-down period before bedtime. During the wind-down period, the Apple Watch and iPhone will not send any notifications unless the user chooses to receive them. This can help users develop a consistent sleep routine and improve their overall health.

The Apple Watch also provides detailed sleep data, including the time and percentage spent in different sleep stages such as REM, core, and deep sleep. This information can be viewed on the watch itself or in the Health app on the iPhone, where more detailed data is available. Users can compare their sleep data over days, weeks, and months to identify trends and areas for improvement.

While the Apple Watch does require the user to wear it to bed for accurate sleep tracking, the introduction of the Apple Watch Ultra has improved battery life, making it more convenient for overnight wear. Additionally, the watch band can be adjusted for comfort during sleep.

Although some users have reported inconsistencies in sleep tracking data, the Apple Watch provides valuable insights into sleep patterns and can help users understand their sleep habits and make improvements for better overall health.

Apple Watch sleep tracking setup

To set up sleep tracking on your Apple Watch, you must first pair it with your iPhone. You can then set up a sleep schedule with a sleep goal, wind-down time, and bedtime and wake-up times.

To pair your Apple Watch with your iPhone, open the Watch app on your iPhone, tap the My Watch tab, then tap Sleep. Then tap Track Sleep with Apple Watch to turn on this setting.

To set up a sleep schedule, go to Settings > Focus > Sleep to set up the Focus mode and wind-down time. In the Allow Notifications section, tap People and select the contacts allowed to reach you or send notifications while you sleep. Tap Apps to decide which apps should be allowed to send notifications. From the Customize Screens section, set the screen that appears during the night to minimize any distractions should you wake up and look at your watch or phone. Under Schedule, select a wind-down time to help you prepare for bed, along with a bedtime and wake-up time for the morning (with or without an alarm).

You can also create multiple sleep schedules—for example, one for weekdays and another for weekends.

To view your sleep history, open the Health app on your iPhone or iPad. If you're on your iPhone, tap Browse at the bottom of the screen. If you're using an iPad, tap the sidebar to open it. Tap Sleep. If you have Sleep saved as a favorite, you can access it from the Summary page in the Health app. The bar graph is set to D for daily by default. Tap W at the top of the chart to view your sleep history for the past week, M for the past month, or 6M for the past 6 months.

If you feel the built-in Sleep feature isn't robust or flexible enough, you can use a third-party app to track your sleep. As long as you’re running watchOS 6 or higher, your Apple Watch has a dedicated App Store.

Frequently asked questions