Apple has not shipped the watchOS 27 public beta yet, but it is listed as coming soon on beta.apple.com, with availability expected sometime in July 2026. If you want to be ready the moment it drops, there are a few things worth sorting out in advance. This guide walks you through everything you need to do, from checking compatibility to making sure your backup is current before you pull the trigger.
The watchOS 27 public beta brings the Dynamic App Grid, a unified Find My app, and other changes already confirmed in the developer betas. Enrollment is free at beta.apple.com, but your Apple Watch needs to be compatible and paired to an iPhone running iOS 27 or later. One step below carries a warning that is easy to overlook and impossible to undo, so read through before you start.
- Confirm Your Apple Watch Is Compatible. watchOS 27 supports the Apple Watch Series 9 and later, the Apple Watch Ultra 2 and later, and the Apple Watch SE 3. The Series 6, Series 7, Series 8, the original Apple Watch Ultra, and the Apple Watch SE 2 are not supported, so the public beta will not be available on those models. Apple corrected an early compatibility page error that mistakenly omitted the Series 9; the Series 9 is fully supported.
- Make Sure Your Paired iPhone Is Running iOS 27. watchOS 27 requires a paired iPhone running iOS 27 or later, specifically an iPhone 11 or later, or an iPhone SE (2nd generation or later). If your iPhone has not yet updated to iOS 27, enroll it in the iOS 27 public beta first or wait for the stable release, because the Watch beta will not install without a compatible paired iPhone.
- Back Up Your iPhone Before Doing Anything Else. Apple Watch data is stored within your iPhone backup, so a current iPhone backup is your only real safety net. Back up to iCloud or to your Mac or PC via Finder or iTunes before you enroll, not after, because once the watchOS beta is installed there is no path back to watchOS 26. Apple Watch cannot be restored to a previously-released OS version once a beta is on the device, and that restriction applies to the public beta just as it does to the developer beta.
- Enroll in the Apple Beta Software Program. Go to beta.apple.com on your iPhone or a computer, sign in with your Apple Account, and accept the program agreement. Enrollment is free. Once the watchOS 27 public beta is available, your paired iPhone will be able to pull the update through the Watch app without any additional steps.
- Open the Watch App on Your iPhone and Navigate to Software Update. Open the Watch app, tap General, then tap Software Update. Once the public beta is live and your iPhone is enrolled, the watchOS 27 beta will appear here. Tap Download and Install to begin.
- Prepare Your Apple Watch for the Installation. Before the update will install, your Apple Watch must be placed on its charger, connected to Wi-Fi, and have a battery level of at least 50 percent. If any of those conditions are not met, the installation will not proceed, so put the watch on its charger and leave it there for the duration of the update.
- Note the Siri AI Limitation Before Deciding to Install. Siri AI, the headline feature of watchOS 27, is not yet active in the current betas, and Apple has said the integration is coming later this year. Using Siri AI on Apple Watch will also require a paired iPhone that supports Apple Intelligence, meaning an iPhone 15 Pro or later. If Siri AI is the main reason you want watchOS 27, you will be waiting regardless of whether you install the beta now or the stable release in September.
Once installed, the most immediately visible change is the Dynamic App Grid, which surfaces five apps based on context and usage patterns, with Siri at the center. The three separate Find Devices, Find People, and Find Items apps have been replaced by a single unified Find My app with a map-centric layout, and Walkie-Talkie has been removed entirely with no option to restore it. Those are the confirmed changes as of beta 2; the stable release in September will include additional features not yet present in the betas.
