Apple will unveil watchOS 27 during its WWDC 2026 keynote on Monday, June 8, and a handful of new features have been rumored already.
The first developer beta of watchOS 27 should be available immediately following the keynote, and a public beta typically follows in July. The update should be released to all users with a compatible Apple Watch model in September.
Below, we recap watchOS 27 rumors so far.
Improved Heart Rate Tracking
In his Power On newsletter this week, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said watchOS 27 will include improvements to heart rate tracking, but he did not elaborate.
New Modular Watch Face
watchOS 27 will add new watch faces, including a variant of the "Modular Ultra" watch face that is currently exclusive to the Apple Watch Ultra, according to Gurman.
New Apple Intelligence Features
On watchOS 26, the following Apple Intelligence features are available on an Apple Watch when it is paired with an iPhone 15 Pro or newer:
- Workout Buddy
- Live Translation in Messages
- Notification Summaries
When it announced the dates for WWDC 2026, Apple promised to unveil "AI advancements" across its platforms, and it can be reasonably assumed that watchOS 27 will include some additional Apple Intelligence features powered by the iPhone.
New Satellite Features
Apple Watch Ultra 3 has built-in satellite connectivity, enabling Emergency SOS, Find My, and Messages via satellite without any reliance on an iPhone.
iOS 27 will reportedly include up to five new satellite features, and the following two would likely extend to watchOS 27:
- Apple Maps via satellite
- Photos support for Messages via satellite
Amazon last month announced plans to acquire Globalstar, the satellite company that powers Apple's satellite features on the iPhone 14 and newer and the Apple Watch Ultra 3. In turn, Amazon announced that it has signed an agreement with Apple to provide satellite connectivity for current and future iPhone and Apple Watch features.
Stability Focus
Apple is largely focused on "stability, performance, and smaller refinements" for watchOS 27, rather than on major new features and capabilities, according to Gurman. This suggests that the update could include many bug fixes.
