How to use Bedtime mode on your Pixel Watch properly, and how it works

Andrew Romero | Oct 19 2022 - 8:06 am PT

The Pixel Watch follows the same recipe as many smartwatches and fitness trackers before it. One of its main features is sleep tracking powered by Fitbit. With that, there’s a setting called Bedtime mode. Here’s what you need to know about Bedtime mode on the Pixel Watch.

What Bedtime mode does

Bedtime mode on the Pixel Watch really only does a couple of things. When you turn it on, your always-on display is turned off. Along with that, tap to wake and title to wake are also turned off. The only way to wake the watch and see your watch face is to tap the crown or hit the recent button.

Bedtime mode will also turn off notifications for the time being, so you don’t wake up during the night because your watch buzzed. Besides that, Bedtime mode really doesn’t do anything else.

An important thing to note is that Bedtime mode does not need to be turned on in order to get accurate sleep-tracking results; the Pixel Watch is always monitoring to see whether or not you’re sleeping. The watch will even track your power naps if you fall asleep during the day, of course, those sleep stats won’t be as profound as deep rest overnight.

How to turn on Bedtime mode

The Pixel Watch’s Bedtime mode is incredibly easy to turn on.

How to turn on Bedtime mode for the Pixel Watch

Tap your Pixel Watch to wake it and swipe down to reveal the quick settings.
Tap the Bedtime mode icon, which looks like a moon stars.

From there, your Pixel Watch will immediately shut down the display and notify you that Bedtime mode is starting.

Can Bedtime mode be set to turn on automatically?

Since the Pixel Watch pairs seamlessly with the Pixel series of phones, you’d think that Bedtime mode on those devices would trigger on the watch as well. Unfortunately, that is not the case.

Turning on or setting a Bedtime mode schedule on your Pixel phone has absolutely no bearing on the Pixel Watch’s nighttime feature. You would think that a set schedule for automatic Bedtime mode activation on the Pixel would trigger the same instance on the Pixel Watch, but it just doesn’t work that way.

There doesn’t seem to be a reason for this, as far as we could tell. The Pixel Watch and Pixel series of devices are meant to work off of each other very well, and implementing an automatic switch to Bedtime mode on the Pixel Watch when it’s active on the Pixel 7 Pro, for instance, wouldn’t be difficult.

Even with that being the case, Bedtime mode does have its advantages, no matter how you activate it. The feature limits distractions and puts the watch to sleep so you can drift off peacefully. While turning it on via the watch is the only way for now, it’s an easy thing to do and becomes habit after a few nights.