watchOS 26 Adding a Smaller Yet Useful New Watch Face Setting - MacRumorsOpen MenuShow RoundupsShow Forums menuVisit ForumsOpen Sidebar
Skip to Content

watchOS 26 Adding a Smaller Yet Useful New Watch Face Setting

by

watchOS 26 is adding a new "Show Data When Locked" setting to the Apple Watch.

Apple Watch Ultra 2 Complications
MacRumors contributor Steve Moser discovered the new setting within the code for the first watchOS 26 beta, and a Reddit user has seemingly found it in action, but we have yet to figure out where it is exactly. Leave a comment if you know.

The new privacy setting allows you to toggle on or off the ability to view data in the little "complications" that appear on select watch faces.

There is one exception: Apple says data from the Health app will never be visible in complications when an Apple Watch is locked, regardless of the toggle's position.

This is one of the many smaller but useful quality-of-life improvements in watchOS 26 that Apple did not announce during its WWDC 2025 keynote.

watchOS 26 will likely be released in September.

Related Roundup: Apple Watch 11
Buyer's Guide: Apple Watch (Caution)

Popular Stories

Apple Watch Series 10 Jet Black Touch ID

Apple Watch Series 12 and watchOS 27: What to Expect Later This Year

Friday May 8, 2026 2:07 pm PDT by
While not too much has been reported about the next Apple Watch models, there are a few rumors about potential design changes and watchOS 27 features. Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4 models are expected to be released in September, and we have outlined some of the key rumored hardware and software changes below. A new Apple Watch SE is not expected this year, as that model was...
Read Full Article • 60 comments
Apple Watch Series 10 Jet Black Touch ID

Next Apple Watch Models Unlikely to Add Touch ID, Focus on Battery Life

Monday May 11, 2026 3:41 am PDT by
Apple is prioritizing larger batteries and more advanced health sensors over fingerprint authentication for the Apple Watch, according to a new claim from a prominent Chinese leaker. In a new Weibo post, Instant Digital pushed back on recent speculation about biometric recognition coming to Apple's wearable lineup, claiming instead that the company remains content to let users unlock their...
Read Full Article • 80 comments
TMRS 194 Apple Chatbot Thumb

The MacRumors Show: Gemini Announcements and Apple Watch Series 12 Rumors

Friday May 15, 2026 7:30 am PDT by
On this week's episode of The MacRumors Show, we discuss Google's latest wave of announcements for Android and Gemini, the newly announced Fitbit Air, and Apple Watch Series 12 rumors. Subscribe to The MacRumors Show YouTube channel for more videos The centerpiece of Google's announcements this week was Gemini Intelligence, Google's new umbrella platform for AI across phones, watches, cars,...
Read Full Article • 6 comments

Top Rated Comments

F
FlashBIOS
13 months ago

Modular Ultra, I believe!
Bah (but thank you)! And just for the Ultra. I hope 26 brings something similar to the table for the other watches.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
M
munpip214
13 months ago

There is one exception: Apple says data from the Health app will never be visible in complications when an Apple Watch is locked, regardless of the toggle's position.
I get where they are coming from, but at the same time I really don’t care if someone sees how many calories I burned so far today. I would much rather be able to see it regardless of if I’ve unlocked. If they’ve got the setting, then just let us use it.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jz0309 Avatar
jz0309
13 months ago
My watch is always unlocked when I wear it, so how many instances are there with folks wearing their watch locked?
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MacBeard Avatar
MacBeard
13 months ago

My watch is always unlocked when I wear it, so how many instances are there with folks wearing their watch locked?

My mother constantly walks out the door in the morning, forgetting to unlock her watch until she tries to pay for something. Would that count?
Occasionally, if I'm in a particular rush, I'll accidentally forget to unlock my watch when I'm leaving the house, and only notice halfway to work. My mother also takes it off pretty often, like when she's cooking, and will forget to unlock it after putting it back on.

I would appreciate a feature that will vibrate/ding if it notices movement while being locked. Additionally, if it's ignored and is away from its paired iPhone, it could send a notification via Find My.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
FSMBP Avatar
FSMBP
13 months ago

My watch is always unlocked when I wear it, so how many instances are there with folks wearing their watch locked?
I didn't see where it said when the user is wearing it...When I take off my watch for a quick shower/bath, it would be nice to see the info when it's off.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
S
svish
13 months ago
Nice to see this change. Very small but indeed it will be useful. Looking forward to trying it out later this year once I update my Series 10.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Read All Comments