Smartwatches make it easy to stay connected wherever you are. If you're looking for some more powerful features beyond notifications and fitness tracking on your smartwatch, installing third-party apps will make the most of the capabilities of your watch and help you stay connected and be productive, and much more.

Let's take a closer look at some of the best apps for Wear OS smartwatches by category.

Productivity Apps for Wear OS

Want to stay on track with your schedules? We recommend downloading these apps on your smartwatch, so you can stay organized and manage tasks better.

1. Todoist

Todoist is an excellent solution if you're looking for an uncomplicated task management app. It is a simple-to-use productivity app that allows you to create tasks and get things done efficiently.

With Todoist, you can get a clear view of your schedule, add tasks, and organize them in your inbox. To set it up, you'll need to sign in using your phone or your Google account and follow the on-screen instructions to connect it to your smartwatch. The app can be accessed on smartphones as well as desktop devices, so you can access your lists at all times.

Download: Todoist (Free, subscription available)

2. Microsoft Outlook

Microsoft Outlook can help you keep track of your emails, meetings, and tasks. You can reply directly to emails and view important notifications right from within the smartwatch app.

It also includes a calendar feature that can be used to manage your personal and business tasks while on the move. As with Todoist, the app syncs seamlessly across all of your devices, so you can keep up with schedules, appointments, and more.

Download: Microsoft Outlook (Free)

3. Samsung Voice Recorder

The Samsung Voice Recorder app is a convenient way to record important voice notes, interviews, or audio messages on the go. This dictaphone app has a simple interface that makes using it super easy.

To use the app, simply tap the start/stop button on the screen, and speak into your smartwatch microphone. The app will then save all of your recordings to your device's storage so that they can be played back later at any time. The app supports a speech-to-text feature as well.

Download: Samsung Voice Recorder (Free)

Health and Wellness Apps for Wear OS

Smartwatches are great at helping you keep up with your fitness routines. With these apps, you'll be able to monitor your general health and wellness habits more closely.

4. Calm

Calm is a guided meditation app that helps you to be mindful, focus, and feel good. It's the perfect app for anyone who wants to build a meditation practice or deepen their existing one. You can use the app as a tool for getting through stressful moments, like an important meeting or exam.

Calm includes relaxation techniques for dealing with stressors like anxiety and depression, and also offers techniques for improving your sleep quality.

Download: Calm (Free, subscription available)

5. Sleep Cycle

With Sleep Cycle, you'll get a range of customizable alarms and other features to manage your sleep routines better.

Once you've downloaded the app on your smartphone and smartwatch, you'll need to connect your watch and start setting up your profile. Next, we recommend setting up a schedule for when you want your alarm to go off. You can also adjust the types of notification you'd like to receive—sounds or vibrations.

The premium version of the Sleep Cycle app comes with several features beyond these basics. If you're interested in sleep analysis—which provides statistics on how well you slept or whether there were any issues—you'll want to upgrade so that you can get access to these insights.

Download: Sleep Cycle (Free, subscription available)

6. Lifesum

Lifesum is more than just a calorie counter tool. It's an easy-to-use app for anyone who wants to monitor their wellness habits effectively. The app is geared towards helping you lose or maintain weight by giving you recommendations on nutrition, diet plans, and logging details of your food intake that can help you make better lifestyle choices.

To get started, you'll need to sign up for an account first. While some features are available in the free version, you'll need to upgrade to a paid version to access most of them.

Download: Lifesum (Free, subscription available)

Habit-Tracking, Notes, and Reminders Apps for Wear OS

Habit-tracking apps help you build healthier habits and stay consistent with them. Reminder apps allow you to stay organized and on time. Here are some apps we recommend for you to help you navigate your day better.

7. Google Keep

Need to jot down a quick shopping list, or an idea for a new project? You can save lists and notes to Google Keep on your watch. With a simple design and easy-to-use interface, you can take quick notes and add reminders with the minimum of fuss.

You'll simply need to download the Google Keep app and use the same account login credentials to sync your lists and reminders across multiple devices.

Download: Google Keep (Free)

8. Water Minder

Water Minder is an easy-to-use reminder app to help you stay hydrated. To get started, fill in your details such as your name, gender, and weight details.

The app will calculate the recommended daily fluid intake for you based on your inputs, and then remind you to drink throughout the day. You can also select from a range of suggested intake amounts or add your own inputs.

Download: Water Minder (Free, in-app purchases)

Customization Apps for Wear OS

Do you ever get bored with the same old look for your watch? There are several apps available that can improve and enhance your smartwatch experience. Let's take a closer look at some of these apps.

9. Facer

Facer is a great customization app for your smartwatch. It has a huge selection of watch faces to choose from. Depending on the watch face, you can change color schemes and images or use one of their design templates.

You can also add and customize complications (little icons) to your watch face that gives you access to various features like weather forecasts, music controls, calendar events, and more.

The watch faces are separated into categories based on their design and themes. Whether you want something simple or something more complex, there's an option for every occasion.

Download: Facer Watch Faces (Free, subscription available)

10. Launcher for Wear OS

Launcher apps allow you to change layouts and themes to personalize your watch experience. Launcher for Wear OS is an easy way to customize the look and feel of your smartwatch menu.

To set up the app, you'll need to grant the necessary permissions first. You can easily organize your apps in a list or grid view, and long press an app to open the available options to mark it as a favorite or hide the app.

Download: Launcher for Wear OS (Free, premium version available)

Weather and Navigation Apps for Wear OS

To help you stay on top of the weather, there are several great apps that you can use with your smartwatch. You can also get a navigation app like Google Maps or Waze. Let's take a look.

11. Google Maps

Google Maps is a must-have smartwatch app that can help you find directions and navigate easily in real time with just a few quick taps.

The app can be particularly useful when you are trying to find an address or store, or directions in an unfamiliar area. You can also use it as a way to navigate while driving or walking around town without needing to use your phone.

Download: Google Maps (Free)

12. Weather Radar

Weather Radar is a helpful app for those who are interested to keep up with the latest weather updates. The app provides users with a variety of different features including:

• A quick overview of temperature, pressure, UV index, and other conditions for a location.
• An hourly forecast that tells you what to expect in terms of temperature and precipitation throughout the day.
• A weekly forecast, so you can plan well ahead of an upcoming event or trip.

Download: Weather Radar (Free)

The Best Wear OS Apps

While the overall smartwatch experience is still rather limited, even the most basic of smartwatches have enough functionality to make them useful. And if you're looking for a way to jumpstart your smartwatch experience, check out these essential apps listed above—they're sure to help you get the most out of your new gadget.