8 Ways to Fix Apple Watch Not Counting Steps Correctly

Do you walk 10k steps every day? It must be rewarding to see the step count on your Apple Watch. However, it would be frustrating if your Apple Watch tracks fewer or more steps than you’ve walked. Users have reported that their Apple Watch is not counting steps correctly. Don’t worry, though. Here are simple ways to ensure your walkathon isn’t interrupted.

Accuracy is one of the most important factors in a fitness tracker. Health enthusiasts rely on this data to analyze their health metrics. This is why your watch tracking steps accurately is essential. So, if your Apple Watch misreports your step count, follow the fixes below.

There could be reasons why your Apple Watch fails to record steps. Maybe the sensor on the back is dusty or you wore your Watch too loosely. There could also be a pairing issue between your iPhone and Watch causing tracking problems. Additionally, a change in walking pace could affect step count accuracy.

How to Fix Apple Watch Not Counting Steps Correctly

After discussing the reasons why your Apple Watch may have step-tracking issues, we will now provide solutions to this problem.

1. Clean the Rear Sensors

The Apple Watch automatically detects if you’re wearing it using the sensors on the rear. Dirty sensors can prevent the watch from detecting your skin, causing it to assume that you’re not wearing it. As a result, your footsteps may not be counted accurately or at all.

Therefore, it’s important to regularly clean the back of your Apple Watch as it accumulates sweat and dirt over time. Simply use a soft microfiber cloth to gently rub the rear of your watch. Cleaning the sensors can resolve the issue of the Apple Watch step counter not working.

2. Restart Your Apple Watch

When in doubt, restart. It’s a fix that has been followed for ages and is an effective cure for most basic software issues. So, if your Apple Watch isn’t tracking your footsteps correctly, start the solution hunt with a simple restart.

Press and hold the Side button on your Apple Watch for a few seconds. Swipe the Power Off slider to the right to turn off the watch. Then, wait a few seconds and long-press the Side button again to turn it back on.

Restarting did not work? Check if you’re wearing the Apple Watch firmly. The watch uses accelerometer and gyroscope sensors to track your steps. If the watch is loose, it may misreport your step count.

4. Connect the Watch to the iPhone

If your Apple Watch isn’t properly tracking your step count, it may be due to sync issues. To sync your Apple Watch to your iPhone, enable Wi-Fi and Bluetooth on your iPhone. Verify the status of Bluetooth and Wi-Fi by accessing the Control Center. If they’re not turned on, simply tap on the toggles to connect your Apple Watch to your iPhone.

5. Select the Correct Wrist

Apple’s Health app requires you to specify which wrist you would wear the watch on. Wearing the Apple Watch on the incorrect wrist may lead to inaccurate step counting. However, you can easily change the wrist orientation in a few simple steps. Here’s how:

Step 1: Open the Watch App and go to the General section. Tap on Watch Orientation.

Step 2: Select the correct wrist orientation.

As mentioned previously, changing your walking pace can interfere with step counting. Calibrating your Apple Watch can assist in achieving a more accurate pace, enhancing step tracking.

To calibrate your Apple Watch for better step tracking, please follow these steps:

1. Open the Settings app on your iPhone.

2. Scroll down and tap on Privacy & Security.

3. Select Location Services.

Ensure Location Services is turned on by going to Settings and toggling the switch. Scroll down to System Services and tap on it. Turn on the toggle for ‘Motion Calibration & Distance’.

To calibrate your Apple Watch, go to an outdoor location with clear skies while wearing your watch. If you have the Series 1 Apple Watch, bring your iPhone with you. Open the Workout app and choose either an outdoor walk or run.

After completing your workout, reset the calibration data. Open the Watch app on your iPhone and go to Privacy. Tap on ‘Reset Fitness Calibration Data’ to finish the calibration process.

The Apple Watch tracks your activities based on height, weight, etc. If you’re wondering what the nexus is, we have an explanation. Your stride length is important to calculate the distance you’ve walked. Height and weight directly influence one’s stride length.

Follow the steps below to ensure accurate data input on the Health app, which can impact step counting on your Apple Watch.

Entering accurate personal data has proven beneficial for some users, and may help you too.

Step 1: Open the Health app on your iPhone. Tap on the icon with your initials in the top-right corner. In the pop-up, select Medical ID.

Close Other Apps

Third-party tracking apps can cause issues with step tracking on your Apple Watch. This is particularly true if you’re using a third-party app to monitor your activity. To resolve this problem, simply close any third-party apps that you have running on your Apple Watch.

If the previous steps didn’t work, take your watch to Apple. Their professionals can diagnose and fix any hardware or software issues, including the step tracker problem.

Watch Your Step

If you want an accurate step count, it’s important to be consistent with your step goals. To fix an Apple Watch that’s not counting steps correctly, wipe the gunk off the rear sensors with a soft microfibre cloth. This should instantly resolve the issue.

The other fixes mentioned above should also make sure that your watch accurately records your steps. If none of these solutions work, you can take your Apple Watch to the professionals at Apple.