Your Apple Watch Probably Doesn't Support watchOS 27

A three-year-old Apple Watch will no longer get OS updates.

Troov

Jun 9, 2026 - 03:16

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Your Apple Watch Probably Doesn't Support watchOS 27

Khamosh Pathak

Khamosh Pathak Freelance Writer

Experience

Khamosh Pathak is a freelance tech journalist with over 13 years of experience writing online.

An accounting graduate, he turned his interest in writing and technology into a career. He holds a specialization in user experience design from ISDI Parsons in Mumbai, where he sought to deepen his understanding of UX, consumer devices, and interplay between software and technology.

Khamosh has written thousands of how-tos and guides on every major platform (iOS, macOS, Android, and Windows). He got started writing how-tos and guides for Guiding Tech, where he also published several e-books. His work has also been seen at MakeUseOf, How-To Geek, and PCMag. He is truly passionate about brewing good coffee.

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June 8, 2026

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watchOS 27 dynamic apps launcher.

Credit: Apple

Key Takeaways

With the watchOS 27 release, Apple is adding new Siri AI, along with a new gesture, and a new dynamic apps screen. But it's dropping support for many Apple Watch models that are still in active use, and are capable or recieving new updates. watchOS 27 updates will be limited to Apple Watch Series 10, 11, Ultra 2, 3, and the SE 3.

Apple's commitment to iPhone hardware support is truly impressive. During the WWDC 2026 keynote, the company announced that iOS 27 will work on all the devices that currently support iOS 26—all the way back to the iPhone 11, released in 2019. Apple even spent extra effort to customize and speed up the OS on older devices. But the news isn't nearly so good for Apple Watch owners.

During the same presentation, Apple showed off the watchOS 27 update, which features the new Siri AI experience, including the Siri app; a new dynamic apps screen, a new single-tap gesture, and more. But what Apple did not talk about at all is what devices will support this flashy new OS.

And it turns out Apple likely left that bit out because the news isn't great: a huge chunk of currently supported Apple Watches will not make it to the watchOS 27 update shipping this fall.

watchOS 27 supported devices list.

Credit: Apple

In contrast to Apple's longstanding support for iPhones turning seven this year, much newer Apple Watches won't support the new OS. It seems watchOS 27 will only be supported on Apple Watch Series 10, Apple Watch Series 11, Apple Watch Ultra 2 and 3, and the Apple Watch SE 3. That is it. Apple is dropping support for Apple Watch Series 6 all the way to Series 9. Even the first Apple Watch Ultra model won't be supported. The 2nd Generation SE model loses support as well.

What do you think so far?

While dropping support for older devices is understandable, the Ultra 1 and Series 9 are the hardest to swallow. The Series 9 was released in September 2023, less than three years ago. With the Apple Watch, hardware iterations are slow, and an Apple Watch from a couple of years ago remains fully capable, and fast enough to perform all the tasks you're likely to ask of it.

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