Tech Reference

What the red dot on an Apple Watch means, and how to get rid of it

A man with an Apple Watch on his wrist. The red dot at the top of the Apple Watch is highlighted.
The red dot will appear at the top of your Apple Watch's face. DenPhotos/Shutterstock; William Antonelli/Insider
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If you own an Apple Watch, you know how convenient the device can be for keeping you connected even when you're away from the phone. But with so much going on inside, it has to cram a lot of information onto a tiny screen. That means that some of your Apple Watch's symbols and buttons can be confusing to the untrained eye.

One of the most commonly confusing symbols: The red dot at the top of your Watch's face.

What does the red dot on your Apple Watch mean? 

The red dot that appears at the top of your Apple Watch's home face means that you have unread notifications. It'll appear whenever you have a notification, and only goes away once you check them.

Luckily, it doesn't take much work to check your notifications. Swipe down from the top of your Apple Watch's screen to open the notification page, and then swipe back up to close it. You don't even need to open any of the notifications — just checking this page will erase the red dot.

To get rid of a notification, swipe your finger to the left over it, then tap the X icon. You can also scroll to the very top of the notifications page and tap Clear All.

How to turn off the red dot on your Apple Watch

If you don't want that red dot to appear whenever you have notifications, you can disable it via the Watch app on your iPhone. 

Open the Watch app and make sure that My Watch is selected at the bottom of the screen. Then tap Notifications, and toggle off the Notifications Indicator.

You can re-enable this feature at any time by toggling the button back on.

The Notifications page in the iPhone's Watch app.
You can disable the red dot with the Notifications Indicator.  Jennifer Still/Insider

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Jennifer is a writer and editor from Brooklyn, New York, who spends her time traveling, drinking iced coffee, and watching way too much TV. She has bylines in Vanity Fair, Glamour, Decider, Mic, and many more. You can find her on Twitter at @jenniferlstill.
ExperienceWilliam joined Business Insider in 2019 to help found Tech Reference, a vertical dedicated to answering the internet’s most common questions about the gadgets they buy. In that role, he helped grow the vertical into a powerhouse that attracted over 20 million pageviews a month. He also wrote and edited one of Business Insider’s most successful stories: How to take a screenshot on Windows.William later became one of Business Insider's lead consumer tech reporters, writing roundups and reviews about gadgets ranging from smartphones to gaming PCs. He also established key industry contacts at brands like Apple, Google, Nintendo, and more. He’s also cited on the Wikipedia page for Among Us, an honor above all others.William’s work for Business Insider has included reviewing the best gaming laptops, publishing previews of new Nintendo games and consoles, and comparing Apple’s latest releases so readers know what’s worth their money. Across all assignments, he’s been praised for his depth of knowledge and research skills.In addition to his work at Business Insider, William’s writing has appeared in outlets like The Guardian, Polygon, Thomson Reuters’ Context, and more. He's also a regular guest on TV stations like CBS and NBC, where he provides expert analysis on AI, consumer tech, and Silicon Valley moguls.Why you can trust WilliamWilliam believes the goal of journalism should be to tell the truth, not sell products. In his reviews, William never hesitates to call out a product’s flaws, but he also has no issue complimenting features that genuinely add value.When reviewing a product, William doesn’t test it in a vacuum. He tries to incorporate each product into his daily routine to get a better sense of how it’ll work for the everyday user. And when writing, he focuses on reader comprehension. He’s talented at explaining complicated concepts in ways that all readers can understand, without losing depth or nuance — or his distinctively engaging voice.Expertise
  • Artificial Intelligence (AI)
  • Consumer Technology (Laptops, PCs, video games and gaming consoles, smartphones, more)
  • Social Media (TikTok, X, Meta, more)
  • Internet Culture (Memes, influencers, viral trends)
  • Disinformation
EducationWilliam graduated from the State University of New York at Geneseo in 2018. There, he studied English, communications, and adolescent education, alongside reporting news for the university’s radio and TV stations.Outside workWhen he’s not reporting, you can usually find William biking through Central Park, playing video games, or at home listening to music and writing fanfiction. He’s also a co-manager of the New York Mandolin Ensemble, one of NYC’s premier string orchestras.You can contact him at w.antonelli322@gmail.com, visit his official website at williamantonelli.com, or follow him on Twitter @DubsRewatcher and BlueSky @wantonelli.bsky.social.