The Best Applications For Your Galaxy Watch

With a Samsung Galaxy Watch you can enjoy hands-free freedom like never before. With so many incredible watch apps available at the touch of a button, we're here to give you the full low-down so you can stay effortlessly connected whatever the occasion. Whether you're looking to answer calls, monitor your health, stream music or pay for your morning coffee*, your Galaxy Watch has an app for it. Read on to discover more about our top app recommendations for your Samsung smartwatch.

*Requires Samsung Galaxy smartphone with Android 8.0 or above. Available with participating networks, banks and merchants.

What app do I need for my smartwatch?

The latest Samsung smartwatches, including the Galaxy Watch7 and Galaxy Watch Ultra, need to be paired with your smartphone to enable you to sync and manage apps across both devices. Getting started is easy. Simply download the Galaxy Wearable app to your smartphone to manage and monitor your smartwatch features and any apps that you have installed.

It is also possible to use your Galaxy watch without needing to connect it to a phone. Once it has been connected to your Wi-Fi network, you’ll be able to browse and download apps on your smartwatch screen.

Please note: The Galaxy Fit, Fit2, and Galaxy Watch4 series cannot be used without a phone.

Best applications for Samsung Galaxy Watch

There is an incredible selection of apps available to download to your Galaxy Watch from the Galaxy and Google Play Store. Whether you’re looking for fitness, lifestyle or entertainment apps there’s something for everyone. Check out some of our top recommendations for Samsung Galaxy watch apps below.

1. Samsung SmartThings

The SmartThings app brings one of the largest open ecosystems straight to your Samsung Galaxy smartwatch. With over 150 million users worldwide, SmartThings lets you connect, automate and manage 1000s of devices on one easy-to-use app. Install it on your Galaxy Watch to check the status of different parts of your smart home, adjust the lights or up the thermostat all from your wrist. To discover more about the incredible Samsung ecosystem, check out our Samsung SmartThings page.

2. Spotify

As one of the most popular music streaming services, Spotify can keep you motivated when you’re out pounding the streets or relaxing after a long day at work. Spotify with Samsung lets you play, pause and skip music and podcasts. You can even save your favourite playlists to your watch so you have them ready to listen to at a moment's notice.

3. Camera Controller

You can now use your Galaxy Watch to take videos and photos remotely on your Galaxy smartphone with the Camera Controller app. It’s perfect for capturing awesome group shots or insta-worthy selfies from a distance. You can preview your video, set a timer and even check the results after taking a photo.

4. Samsung Pay

You won’t have to worry about not having your card next time you're out shopping with the Samsung Pay app on your Galaxy Watch. You can pay with your Samsung smartwatch anywhere you see the contactless symbol, just like you would do with your smartphone, physical credit or debit card. Find out more about turning your smartwatch into a digital wallet here.

What app do I use to track my fitness on my Galaxy Watch?

Galaxy Watches are optimised to not only track your fitness but to give useful insights into your overall health and wellbeing, helping you to put your best foot forward every step of the way. With so many fantastic apps available on your Galaxy Watch we explore our top recommendations to support the comprehensive health features that are already available:

1. Samsung Health

You have everything you need and more when it comes to fitness tracking with Samsung Health. It’s been exclusively optimised for Galaxy Watches and contains everything you need in a fitness app to enhance your fitness and wellbeing. You can see stats, track steps and even achieve your fitness goals in a fun and interactive way by linking with friends and family. What's more, Samsung Health is part of the Galaxy Ecosystem which means you can access it on different devices including your watch, phone and Samsung Smart TV.

2. Strava

If you’re a fitness junkie you’re likely to already have an active Strava account, and with Wear OS you can now record and log real time information right on your Galaxy Watch. The app records many activities, from runs to swims to bike rides and measures your vital stats so you can quickly monitor your progress. You can even connect with friends and sports clubs to share your progress.

3. Map My Run

Map My Run is a comprehensive app developed by Under Armour that lets you choose from over 600 activities, including running, cycling and gym workouts. The app has everything you need to stay on track whether you are just starting out on your fitness journey or are a seasoned runner. There are customisable training plans, coaching tips and with a community of over 60 million athletes, there’s a lot of support to help you achieve your fitness goals.

4. Swim.com

Swim.com is a great app if you love swimming. Optimised for Wear OS, your Galaxy Watch Ultra records your swims automatically, detecting your stroke type, stroke count and progress towards your workout challenge. The newly designed interface lets you quickly log and track swims and you can even add your own workouts and share them with other users. Feeling competitive? There are even global leaderboards, so you can see how you compare with other swimmers.

Is there a sleep tracking app for Galaxy watch?

State-of-the-art Galaxy Watches come with innovative Samsung Health and sleep analysis pre-installed, so you’ll have everything you need to build better sleep habits*. Thanks to its intelligent software, your Galaxy Watch tracks and monitors your sleep throughout the night so you can get valuable insights about how you’re actually sleeping. Whether you’re looking for a personalised sleep score, blood oxygen monitoring**, snore detection*** or sleep coaching, you’ll have everything you need to set you on the path to bedtime bliss. You can find out more about Samsung Health and sleep tracking on your Galaxy watch in our ‘ How to get the most from Samsung Health’ guide.

*Compatible Smartphone required.
**3 SpO2 is defined as saturation of percutaneous oxygen. Normal levels in humans are measured at approximately 95-100%. Factors like vigorous exercise, the amount of oxygen in the air, your elevation, and various health conditions can all result in lower readings.
***For best results in detecting and recording snoring, place your smartphone on a stable surface near your head with the bottom of the smartphone pointed to your head.

What is the best golf app for Samsung watch?

Golfing with a Galaxy Watch? No problem! There are lots of incredible apps that can help secure you a great golf round and potentially even get that all important handicap down. Here’s a selection of the best golfing apps for your Samsung watch.

1. Smart Caddie

GOLFBUDDY: Smart Caddie is the must-have golfing app for the latest Samsung Galaxy Watches. It is synched with over 40,000 golf courses worldwide. Each course is surveyed, satellite and aerial mapped to provide accurate distances and views of the green. There’s a useful guide for course targeting, shot tracking and scorecard inputting. You can even personalise your screen with the choice of four themes

2. Golf GPS Rangefinder

This free app is one of the best and most accurate Golf apps available in the Play Store for your Samsung Galaxy Watch. It’s intuitive and easy to use, with over 40,000+ courses worldwide. There's satellite views and aerial flyovers readily available to help improve your golf game. The optional Golf Pad TAGS software enables you to track your game automatically and gives you actionable insights like shot dispersion, strokes gained and course strategy. You can download Golf GPS Rangefinder from the Play Store.

3. Hole 19

With over 43,000 courses, Hole 19 is a comprehensive golf app that is optimised for Samsung Galaxy Watches with Wear OS. There’s no need to spend your money on expensive range finders, with Hole 19 you’ll find accurate GPS yardages for each hole along with handicap and stats tracking. It keeps your rounds stored in one place for quick and easy scoring. You can even join in with live leaderboards and compare your round with the ‘Share with Friends’ option.

How to add an app to Samsung watch

To get the most from your Galaxy smartwatch, you’ll want to ensure you have all your favourite apps ready to access at a moment's notice. Maybe you can’t go for a run without your motivational Spotify playlist or need a bit of Calm meditation to send you to sleep at night. Installing your most loved apps is simple, just follow the steps below:

Installing apps on your Galaxy smartwatch:

1. Swipe to the Apps screen
2. Tap Play Store icon
3. Search for your desired app
4. Tap Install to begin downloading it to your smartwatch
5. Tap Open
6. Your downloaded app will also be available from the Watch’s Apps screen

Installing apps using a Galaxy Watch3 or Galaxy Watch Active 2:

1. Open the Galaxy Store app on your watch
2. Tap Allow if permission is requested
3. Search at the top of the screen for your desired app
4. Tap Install
5. Tap Open
6. Find your downloaded app in the watch’s Apps screen

Install Galaxy Watch apps using your phone:

To begin you’ll need to check that your watch and phone are connected via Bluetooth. You can find out more information in our 'Getting started and setting up your Samsung Galaxy Watch’ support page or follow the steps below:

Pairing your Galaxy Watch with your Android phone

1. Download the Galaxy Wearable app from the Play Store
2. Open the Galaxy Wearable app
3. Tap Start the Journey and select Galaxy Watch
4. Your phone will search for your Galaxy Watch. Once it finds it, you will need to tap OK on both devices
5. Review and Accept the terms and conditions
6. Once the pairing process is complete, you’ll be guided through the How to Use feature.

Pairing your Galaxy Watch with your iOS phone

1. Download the Galaxy Wearable app from the iOS App Store
2. Open the Galaxy Wearable app
3. Tap Start the Journey and select Galaxy Watch
4. Your phone will search for your Galaxy Watch. Once it finds it, you will need to tap Connect and then Pair
5. Review and Agree to the options and tap Done
Your watch will now be paired with your iOS phone.

Using the Galaxy Wearable app, you can easily download apps straight to your Galaxy Watch by simply following the steps below:

1. Open the Galaxy Wearable app on your connected phone
2. Swipe and tap:
a. Store (Galaxy Watch4),
b. Galaxy Store (Galaxy Watch3 and Galaxy Watch Active2)
c. Discover > Find more in the Galaxy Store > Watch (previous watch models)
3. Search for your desired app
4. Tap install
5. It will be automatically installed on your watch

Please note:
- These features are not available on the Galaxy Fit
- The latest Galaxy smartwatch models (from 2021 Galaxy Watch4 onwards) have Google software installed in them so you can install an app straight from the Play Store on your phone and it will automatically install on your watch.

To find out more about getting the most from your Samsung Galaxy Watch please check out our ‘ Best smartwatch for Fitness Fanatics’.