While the Apple Watch is widely recognized for its health and fitness tracking capabilities, it also serves as a powerful tool for boosting productivity and getting work done efficiently. This is particularly beneficial for individuals who find themselves easily distracted by their iPhone.
Although the Apple Watch includes essential built-in productivity features like Reminders and Calendar, a wealth of third-party applications offers enhanced functionality designed to significantly improve your daily output. These apps allow you to manage tasks, capture ideas, maintain focus, and even optimize your sleep, all with a quick glance at your wrist.
Todoist
Todoist stands out as an excellent task management app for your Apple Watch, allowing you to stay organized without needing to pull out your iPhone. It enables you to create, manage, and organize tasks into projects, mark them as complete, and set reminders. Tasks can be added quickly using voice commands or the watch's keyboard.
This app is ideal for those who prefer a quick glance at their wrist for things like checking a grocery list or jotting down a note, minimizing phone-related distractions. You can also keep tabs on your daily task progress directly from your Apple Watch face, choosing to display your next task or the percentage of tasks completed for the day.
Todoist offers a free version, with a premium subscription available for $4 per month. This unlocks additional features such as custom task reminders, an AI assistant, and a calendar layout.
Drafts
Given the absence of a native Notes app on the Apple Watch, Drafts fills this gap perfectly, offering a digital notepad experience without requiring your phone. You can capture notes using voice commands, the watchOS Scribble feature, or the on-screen keyboard.
Your Drafts inbox seamlessly syncs from your iPhone, displaying the total number of drafts and flagged notes, ensuring quick access to important information. The app defaults to a blank note, providing an immediate space to jot down ideas and maintain your thought process without interruption. Notes can be organized into folders or kept as a free-flowing canvas.
Drafts is free to use, with a $1.99 monthly subscription unlocking additional functionalities like themes and the ability to send emails directly to the app.
Focus
Focus is an excellent productivity timer for those who prefer to tackle tasks one at a time. The app helps you break down your work into manageable "Focus Sessions," encouraging sustained concentration on the task at hand before moving to the next.
By using your Apple Watch for these sessions, you can significantly reduce distractions from your phone. A quick glance at your wrist reveals the remaining time in your Focus Session, allowing you to quickly return to work. Focus also prompts you to take essential breaks between sessions to maintain energy and concentration.
The app is available for $7.99 per month.
AutoSleep
AutoSleep is one of the most popular Apple Watch apps for sleep tracking, and for good reason. It provides comprehensive insights into your sleep quality, heart rate, and consistency, helping you understand how long it takes to fall asleep and the overall efficiency of your rest.
The app presents all this data through a clock view with "sleep rings," offering a quick, intuitive overview similar to the Watch's Activity Rings. This allows you to easily assess if you're getting adequate sleep or if adjustments are needed. AutoSleep also generates a "readiness" score, estimating your mental and physical preparedness for the day based on your sleep, much like the Oura Ring's approach. It can even suggest optimal bedtimes to help you catch up on sleep.
Access to AutoSleep is available for a one-time fee of $5.99.
Streaks
Streaks is an ideal app for cultivating good habits and tracking your progress. Each day you complete a task, your "streak" extends. Miss a day, and your streak resets, providing a powerful incentive to maintain consistency. You can track up to 24 habits, from flossing your teeth and practicing a new language to eating healthy.
The app also accommodates tasks that don't occur daily. For instance, you can set a goal to walk to work Monday through Friday, hit the gym three times a week, or avoid junk food on weekends. A quick glance at your Apple Watch allows you to see which tasks still need completion, monitor your progress, and mark tasks as done.
Streaks is available for a one-time fee of $5.99.
Fantastical
