iOS 26 + watchOS 26 Notification Issue: Notifications Disappear on apple watch only

Question

Level 1

13 points

iOS 26 + watchOS 26 Notification Issue: Notifications Disappear on apple watch only

Since updating to watchOS 26, I've been experiencing a persistent and frustrating issue with notifications disappearing from my Apple Watch!

The Problem:

Before watchOS 26: Notifications would remain in the Watch Notification Center all day until I manually tapped "Clear All."
Now: They are instantly cleared from the watch when the phone is unlocked, even though they remain visible in the iPhone's Notification Center.

What I've Tried

Restarted both the Apple Watch and iPhone.
Checked all Notification Settings and Watch Mirroring Settings.
Confirmed both devices are running the latest software updates.

Has anyone else experienced this exact behavior since the watchOS 26 update, or does anyone know a specific setting that controls this "clear on unlock" function?

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Apple Watch Ultra

Posted on Sep 29, 2025 12:26 AM

Reply

Answer 1

efeigl

Level 1

8 points

Oct 16, 2025 11:08 AM in response to StephenLP

I spoke with Apple Support and they told me that for some reason the update turns off some users iMessage Send & Receive. So, go to Apps > Messages > Scroll to iMessage and choose your Send & Receive. That completely fixed the issue I was having.

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Answer 2

OMRiBoi Author

Level 1

13 points

Oct 6, 2025 11:39 PM in response to OMRiBoi

I've noticed that my Apple Watch seems to only show new notifications as they arrive. Once a notification is considered "overdue" or has already settled into the history of my iPhone's Notification Center, it no longer appears or is synced to the watch.

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Answer 3

Dec 1, 2025 7:52 PM in response to sneekyjojo

I am having the same issue where for some reason my watch gets notifications after my phone. The whole point of the watch is to be notified and for your phone to not vibrate instead every time. I’ve removed the watch and added it back and that seemed to help for a short period of time.

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Answer 4

Zunexx

Level 1

8 points

Oct 10, 2025 4:54 AM in response to OMRiBoi

My issue is the watch doesn’t stay connected. When I go to Bluetooth, it says it’s no longer connected.

the only way to reconnect it is to unpair, then repair the whole thing which is very very annoying

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Answer 5

Oct 16, 2025 8:52 AM in response to OMRiBoi

No, you're not. I realized this on my Apple Watch several days ago, obviously this issue is on from a little longer. And yeah it's so frustrating, I also thought I was the only one experiencing it. Maybe they will fix it in the next updates. I did a mistake updating to iOS 26, but I dit it only on my iPhone and my Apple Watch and not on my MacBook and iPad.

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Answer 6

xitonix

Level 1

8 points

Oct 24, 2025 3:04 PM in response to OMRiBoi

In my case, I feel the vibration on my wrist and see the red dot at the top, but no notification appears. Sometimes, if I raise my wrist several times, the notification eventually shows up — but most of the time, it doesn’t. It’s really frustrating. I’ve tried toggling the settings on and off multiple times, and even restarted both my phone and my watch, but nothing has worked.

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Answer 7

Ksauer55

Level 1

8 points

Oct 25, 2025 10:27 AM in response to OMRiBoi

I have somewhat similar issue but cannot find anything else about it anywhere. Ever since the update my Apple Watch stops receiving notifications from my phone every day and a half. The only fix is a hard restart of my iPhone. My watch is pretty much pointless at this point.

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