Email Notifications Missing on Apple Watch, How-To Fix

In the watchOS 5.1.1 update, there’s a nasty Apple Watch email bug that’s affecting a limited number of users. For those affected, it’s not possible to find or read emails through the wearable device. Email Notifications go missing on Apple Watch. No doubt, Apple will fix this problem with a future watchOS update. Until then, there’s a workaround you can use to resolve the issue.

What’s the Issue?

A small number of Apple Watch users see the message “No Mail Account. Setup a new account on your iPhone” when accessing the Email app. Users are unable to access any email notifications on the Apple Watch.

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Try These Tips First

Before starting the workaround shown below to bring emails back to Apple Watch, try these two possible solutions first.

Background App Refresh

1. First, go into the Watch app on your iPhone under My Watch. Tap General > Background App Refresh.
2. Toggle Background App Refresh to the Off position, then turn it back On.
3. Restart your Apple Watch, by pressing and holding the side button until you see the Power Off slider. Drag the slight from left to right.
4. Once the watch turns off, press and hold the side button again until you see the Apple logo.
5. Once Apple Watch reboots, see if your emails have returned.

Reboot Both Devices

You can also consider restarting both your iPhone and Apple Watch at the same time. After both devices reboot, see if emails once again work on Apple Watch.

The Workaround

Before the introduction of a watchOS update that squashes this annoy bug, use the following workaround for resolution. This fix creates a custom notification for emails.

To do so, first follow these steps on iPhone:

1. On your iPhone, you must first unpair your Apple Watch.
2. In the Settings app, tap Mail > Notifications and make sure the Allow Notifications toggle is in the On position.
3. Tap your email account. Turn on all three alert styles, including Lock Screen, Notification Center, and Banners.
4. Leave Banner Style: Temporary.
5. Tap Sounds and under Vibrations, select one option from the list of standard vibrations, such as Accent, Heartbeat, or Quick.
6. Re-pair your Apple Watch and restore from backup.
7. In the Apple Watch app under the My Watch tab, tap iPhone. Make sure Mirror my iPhone is selected at the very top of the screen.

Finally, on Apple Watch:

1. Push the Digital Crown and tap on the Settings app.
2. Under Sounds & Haptics, make sure the Haptic Alerts toggle is On and select Prominent.

This workaround should resolve the email issue on your Apple Watch until an official bug fix is released.

Two Other Alternatives

If you’d like to ditch the official Email app for Apple Watch (and iPhone), there are two third-party solutions worth considering: AirMail and Microsoft Outlook. Both solutions have been available for Apple Watch since right after the wearable device first launched in 2015.

An Apple Design Award Winner, Airmail remains one of the most popular third-party email apps for Apple device owners. The iOS app supports 3D Touch, fast document previewing, high-quality PDF creation, and more. There’s also snooze, interactive push notifications, and much more. Airmail also offers iCloud sync, which allows you to match your email experience across multiple Apple devices. There’s also an Airmail Apple Watch complication.

AirMail works with Google, iCloud, Exchange, Yahoo, Outlook, AOL, IMAP, and POP3 emails.

Microsoft’s email application has long been a popular choice for iPhone owners. The Apple Watch version of the app offers your inboxes and upcoming calendar appointments. You can also respond to an email with ease using voice dictation or with a canned response. For your wrist, you can delete or archive emails, flag them as important, and much more. Like the Airmail app, Microsoft Outlook for Apple Watch includes complications.

Outlook works with various email systems, including Hotmail, Exchange, Outlook. Gmail, Yahoo, iCloud, and more.

Hopefully one of these solutions will fix your email problem on Apple Watch. Let us know below which solution you used to get your emails again.