The 17 Best Wear OS Apps of 2024

Elevate your wearable with apps to find your car, play games, check the weather, control your phone, read emails, and more

Testing and evaluating apps can be tedious, so I've done the hands-on downloading, installing, and testing to compile a list of the best Wear OS apps for you.

During my search, I kept in mind apps that I think most people like, so you'll find the best music streaming smartwatch app, an app to record audio, and more.

01
of 17

Shazam

shazam wear os app
What We Like
  • Identify unknown songs playing around you.

  • Simple and easy to use.

What We Don't Like
  • Doesn't list previously identified songs.

  • Doesn't support 'Auto Shazam' mode.

Using Shazam to identify an unknown song works like magic, but I'm always frustrated when the app doesn't open in time. Saving a few seconds with the Shazam Wear OS app might preserve your sanity like it has mine countless times. You're given the song name and the artist, and it's recorded in the phone app's library.

02
of 17

AccuWeather

Accuweather wear os app
What We Like
  • Important weather details at a glance.

What We Don't Like
  • No radar or daily forecast.

  • Can't check a different location.

AccuWeather is one of the best weather apps for your phone. The Wear OS version isn't nearly as robust as the smartphone version, but sometimes all you need are the basics. It has everything I usually look for in a weather app on just one screen, so it's easy to see the current temperature, the RealFeel temperature, and when there will be any precipitation over the next hour.

03
of 17

Easy Voice Recorder

Easy Voice Recorder wear os app
What We Like
  • Available as a tile for quick access.

  • Play back and delete recordings from your wrist.

  • Can auto-delete files after syncing to your phone.

What We Don't Like
  • Can't change a recording's title from the watch.

Easy Voice Recorder really is easy to use. It simplifies audio recordings on the go with its large record button on the first page of the app. Recordings can remain on your watch, where you can listen to them at any time or delete them automatically after they're copied to your phone. After syncing, recordings can be managed from the phone app and shared through any of your apps.

04
of 17

Google Keep

Google Keep Notes Wear OS app
What We Like
  • View the same notes on your phone.

  • Speak to create new notes.

  • Set up reminders for any note.

  • Can be integrated as a tile.

What We Don't Like
  • Can't edit text.

  • No search function.

This note-taking app is awesome if you keep things like shopping lists, reminders, or recipes in Google Keep. The watch app shows all the same notes as the phone app, in the same order.

You can't edit text, but you can check off list items, pin and archive notes, set reminders, and set a single note as a tile. There's an on-screen keyboard for creating new notes directly from your watch, but, unsurprisingly, I found that speech-to-text works well and is far easier.

05
of 17

Motivation

motivation wear os app
What We Like
  • Read powerful quotes.

  • Very simple with no distractions.

What We Don't Like
  • Can't return to the previous quote if you tap away by accident.

  • Some quotes don't fit well on some screens.

  • No way to save a quote to look at later.

This app delivers positive reminders through daily quotes. That's it! Just tap the screen to see another one. It's simple, and does have some cons, but I find myself coming back to it more than I do most apps.

06
of 17

Google Maps

Google Maps wear os app
What We Like
  • Turn-by-turn directions.

  • Pairs well with the phone app.

  • Can browse the map freely.

What We Don't Like
  • No satellite view.

  • Doesn't show traffic information.

An introduction isn't necessary for this ultra-popular app. Google Maps on your watch will show you step-by-step directions, whether driving, cycling, or walking. And browsing the map is surprisingly easy; double-tap to zoom up, or tap with two fingers to zoom out.

An indispensable feature is phone pairing. When navigation is started from your phone (which is way easier to initiate), you can have it automatically mirrored on your watch and/or vice versa.

07
of 17

YouTube Music

youtube music wear os app
What We Like
  • Download or stream music.

  • Access all your custom playlists.

What We Don't Like
  • Can't download specific songs, only whole playlists.

You don't need to carry around your phone to listen to some good music.

YouTube Music works directly from your Wear OS watch, letting you download songs for offline playback to listen without your phone or an internet connection. Or, if you do have a mobile or Wi-Fi connection, you can stream directly from YouTube. Just connect your watch to headphones or another Bluetooth device.

There's actually a lot to this app:

  • Browse through your last played songs, playlists, and subscriptions to find exactly what you're used to listening to on your other devices.
  • Smart downloads can limit how many songs to save offline so you don't max out your storage.
  • Press and hold the next button to fast-forward through a song.
08
of 17

2048

2048 wear os app
What We Like
  • Fun and easy to play from a small screen.

What We Don't Like
  • Might run off the screen on smaller watches.

  • Can't restart the game until you lose.

This is an addictive puzzle game that works decently well on a smartwatch's small screen. The goal is to merge same-number boxes to eventually create a 2048 box. All you need to do is swipe to move all the tiles in one direction. It's not perfect on my Pixel Watch due to its screen size and shape, but I can usually guess which boxes are truncated.

09
of 17

Multi Calculator

multi calculator wear os app
What We Like
  • Two calculators built into one.

  • Smart UI layout.

What We Don't Like
  • Hard-to-tap, small buttons.

I like this calculator app for Wear OS because I'm not always in a room where I can trigger Google Assistant to perform calculations. Two calculators are baked into this app to solve regular calculations and convert between currencies.

Here's a tip I found by accident: if you swipe the calculator keyboard, you'll find advanced options like fractions and trigonometric functions. The app also stores a history of results you can return to.

10
of 17

Find My Parked Car

find my parked car wear os app
What We Like
  • Switch between map and satellite view.

  • Leave a note for context.

  • Find your car with Google Maps.

What We Don't Like
  • Phone app is hard to use.

I bet you can guess what this app does. If you routinely leave your car behind to travel by foot, you've probably run into a few instances where you had to really think about where you left it when it's time to leave. This Wear OS app will pin your location to a map you can look at later to locate your car. You can browse the map manually or trigger Google Maps for turn-by-turn locations back to your parking spot.

If you get the smartphone app, you can turn on automatic parking detection so you don't have to drop the pin manually. It also lets you take a picture of the area to view the photo from your watch.

11
of 17

Breathing Zone

Breathing Zone wear os app
What We Like
  • Forces you to focus on your breath.

  • Customizable options.

What We Don't Like
  • Can't turn off vibrations.

This is a great Wear OS app if you're like me and forget to take deep breaths. Focus on the animated orb as you follow the on-screen directions to breathe in and out. If you want to close your eyes while using this app, you can turn on voice guidance that tells you when to inhale and when to exhale.

The settings let you change the pace, edit the duration of the focused breathing session, and switch up the app's colors.

12
of 17

Remote Control for Roku

remote control for roku wear os app
What We Like
  • Solid replacement for a Roku remote.

  • Finds your Roku automatically.

What We Don't Like
  • Isn't available as a tile.

Lost your Roku remote? Maybe you're just too comfortable to get up for it. Either way, this remote control app for Roku is indispensable.

And don't worry, despite being an app, it's actually quite capable. Your standard arrow keys and OK button are included on the first screen, and if you swipe to the right, you'll get a home button, play/pause, audio controls, and more. There's even a screen in this Wear OS app that provides shortcuts to launch all your Roku apps. It's really nice.

13
of 17

Outlook

Microsoft Outlook wear os app
What We Like
  • Works with any email account.

  • Switch between multiple accounts.

  • Well-optimized for small screens.

  • Calendar tile is available.

What We Don't Like
  • No email tile.

Microsoft Outlook is a great email client that supports more than just Microsoft email accounts. You might think using email on a smartwatch screen is difficult, but I found that this Wear OS app does a decent job displaying messages and calendar events.

It supports suggested replies, voice-to-text, reply all, mark as read/unread, and other normal email client functions, so it's all very straightforward. You can't create new messages from your wrist or access the trash folder, but it's hard to argue that those are necessary functions for a watch app.

14
of 17

SimpleWear

simplewear wear os app
What We Like
  • Quick access controls for lots of functions on your phone.

  • Available as a tile.

What We Don't Like
  • Lengthy setup procedure.

  • Must install a companion app to toggle Wi-Fi on/off.

  • Media controls don't always work.

SimpleWear is the only app that makes my watch really feel like an extension of my phone. You can control all sorts of smartphone functions without ever picking up your phone. Lock the screen, enter Do not Disturb mode, trigger the flashlight, silence the ringer, control media playback, and more.

15
of 17

Water Drink Reminder

Water Drink Reminder wear os app
What We Like
  • Recommends a drink target based on your weight.

What We Don't Like
  • Requires the phone app.

  • Can't fix mistakes from the watch app.

This app can help if you struggle to drink enough water throughout the day. Tell it each time you drink water and exactly how much you drank so that it can keep tabs on it for you. You'll get reminders throughout the day to consume more if you haven't reached your target.

The Water Drink Reminder Wear OS app is a companion app to the full version that runs on your phone, so you need to use the phone app to change your drink target and reminder settings and to view your drink log and report.

16
of 17

Scores Widget

Scores Widget wear os app
What We Like
  • Lets you force a refresh to confirm scores.

  • Really easy to use.

What We Don't Like
  • Sometimes has connection issues.

With Scores Widget, a glance at your watch is all it takes to check real-time scores for your favorite teams. Loads of leagues are supported, including NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL, NCAA Football, NCAA Basketball, WNBA, MLS, World Cup, English Premier League, and more.

17
of 17

TIMEFLIK Watch Face

TIMEFLIK wear os app
What We Like
  • Lots of unique watch faces.

  • Lists popular and new options.

What We Don't Like
  • Sometimes slow and unresponsive.

  • Not everything is free to use.

  • Must make a user account first.

  • Doesn't work on all watches.

A new watch face can make your Wear OS smartwatch feel brand new. TIMEFLIK has tons of options to pick from. I especially like the categories that list popular and newly added watch faces. There's a lot to choose from here, but if you want something unique, you can get the phone app to design a watch face that fits you perfectly.

FAQ
  • Can I install apps directly on my watch?

    Yes. Press the power button > Play Store > search for the app > tap the Install checkmark to install the app. Note: You might see different apps depending on which phone is paired with the watch.

  • How do I change watch faces on WearOS?

    Tap and hold on your watch face. After a moment, the watch face library will appear. Swipe to see the different ones available. Manufacturers might have libraries of faces only available to their version of the watch, so if you see a cool watch face on your friend's watch, it might not be available unless you have the same exact watch.

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