Galaxy Watch Faces: How to Change Them and Where to Find More
To change a Samsung Galaxy Watch face, press and hold the current face, swipe to the one you want and tap it — or pick one under Watch faces in the Galaxy Wearable app on your phone. Beyond the faces Samsung ships, new designs come from Google Play or from a gallery app that sends faces to the watch over Bluetooth. Any Galaxy Watch from the Watch4 onward runs Wear OS and can use them; Watch Lux needs Wear OS 6 or later.
Which Galaxy Watches can use Wear OS faces
Samsung changed the software under its watches in 2021, and that line decides everything about which faces a Galaxy Watch can install.
| Models | Software | Faces available | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Galaxy Watch4 and every model since | Wear OS (One UI Watch) | Built-in faces, Google Play watch faces, gallery apps | Check the Wear OS version — gallery apps set their own minimum |
| Galaxy Watch3, Watch Active2 and earlier | Tizen | Built-in faces and faces made for Tizen only | Cannot install Wear OS faces or Wear OS apps |
Change the face on the watch itself
- Press and hold the current watch face. It shrinks into an edit view with the neighbouring faces visible on either side.
- Swipe left or right — or turn the bezel on models that have one — to move through the faces already on the watch.
- Tap the face you want. It becomes the active face straight away.
- To add one that is not in the carousel, keep swiping to the end and tap the add button. You will see the full list of installed faces to choose from.
- To edit a face, tap Customise under it in the edit view to change its colour, style and complication slots, then back out to the face — changes save as you go.
The Galaxy Wearable app does the same job from your phone — see the phone question below. Menu names shift a little between One UI Watch releases, but the long-press, swipe and tap pattern has stayed the same on every Wear OS Galaxy Watch.
Add a Watch Lux face to a Galaxy Watch
- Install Watch Lux from Google Play on the Android phone your Galaxy Watch is paired with.
- Browse the catalog. Start with this week's new collection or jump straight into a category.
- Tap a face and send it. The phone passes it to the watch over the Bluetooth connection they already share; keep the watch nearby while it transfers.
- Wear it. The face appears in your carousel alongside Samsung's own, and you switch to it the same way — press, swipe, tap.
What Wear OS 6 changed on Galaxy Watch
Samsung ships Wear OS 6 as One UI 8 Watch. It arrived on the Galaxy Watch8 series and has since reached many earlier Wear OS Galaxy watches as an update, so check your own model in Settings rather than assuming. The change that matters for faces is the Watch Face Format: faces are described declaratively and drawn by the system, instead of each face running its own code. That makes detailed faces cheaper on battery, and it is why newer face apps, Watch Lux included, list Wear OS 6 as their minimum.
If a face you liked has vanished from Google Play, this transition is the usual reason: faces built the old way are being retired in favour of the new format.
Watch Lux is free to download on both stores. Pro unlocks the full catalog, with pricing shown in the store you install from.
Download on the App Store GET IT ON Google PlayWhere do Galaxy Watch faces come from?
There are three places. Samsung ships a set of faces on every Galaxy Watch, and you can recolour and rearrange them. Additional faces are published on Google Play, which you can browse from the watch or from the Galaxy Wearable app on your phone. And gallery apps such as Watch Lux keep a whole catalog on your phone and send the face you choose across to the watch.
The built-in set is the one most people never leave, and it is better than its reputation — the faces are well made and deeply customisable. What it does not do is change. Anything new has to come from Google Play or from an app, and that is where the variety lives.
A single Play listing usually installs a single face. A gallery app works the other way round: you install one app and pick from hundreds of designs inside it. Watch Lux has 500+ original faces across 13+ categories, and you can browse the full gallery in a browser before installing anything.
Which Galaxy Watch models can use Wear OS watch faces?
The Galaxy Watch4 and every Galaxy Watch released since then run Wear OS, so they can use Wear OS watch faces. Older models — the Galaxy Watch3, the Watch Active2 and earlier — run Samsung’s previous Tizen software and cannot. Individual apps then set their own minimum Wear OS version on top of that; Watch Lux needs Wear OS 6 or later.
To see what yours runs, open Settings on the watch, then About watch and Software information. Samsung labels its software "One UI Watch" with its own version number; the Wear OS version it is built on is listed alongside it.
Can you change your Galaxy Watch face from your phone?
Yes. Open the Galaxy Wearable app on the phone your watch is paired with and tap Watch faces. Tap any face in the list and it becomes the active face on your watch within a few seconds. Tap Customise on the same screen to change colours, styles and complications with the bigger phone display, which is far easier than editing on the watch.
The phone route is also the easier way to see everything at once. The watch shows faces one at a time in a carousel; Galaxy Wearable lays them out as a grid, including the ones you have downloaded, so it is the quickest place to tidy up faces you no longer use.
Can you use your own photo as a Galaxy Watch face?
Yes. Samsung includes a photo face among the built-in designs. Select it in the Galaxy Wearable app, tap Customise, and choose pictures from your phone’s gallery; they are copied to the watch and shown behind the clock. Recent versions let you add several photos and switch between them with a tap on the screen.
The exact name and options of the photo face vary between One UI Watch versions, so look for it in the Galaxy Wearable face list rather than by a fixed name. A photo face is still a stock face with your picture in it; for a designed face with its own clock styling and artwork, you need a face from Google Play or an app.
What are the best Galaxy Watch faces?
The best face is the one that suits how you use the watch, and three kinds tend to win. Dark faces with black backgrounds, because Galaxy Watch screens are OLED and leave black pixels switched off. Minimal faces, because they read instantly at a glance. And one expressive face you actually enjoy looking at, kept in the carousel for evenings and weekends.
A simple way to build that set: one from the dark and OLED faces for everyday battery life, one from the minimal faces for work, and one from the live and animated faces or the luxury-style dials for when the watch is as much jewellery as tool. Long-press to switch between them in a second.
We would rather you judge the catalog than take our word for it — which is why the free faces, which rotate weekly, need no subscription.
Does Watch Lux work on a Samsung Galaxy Watch?
Yes, on any Galaxy Watch running Wear OS 6 or later, paired to an Android phone on Android 8.0 or later. You install Watch Lux from Google Play on the phone, pick a face, and it is sent to the watch over Bluetooth. Each new face you send replaces the previous Watch Lux face on the watch; Samsung’s built-in faces are left untouched.
The phone does not have to be a Samsung. Galaxy Watches pair with other Android phones through the Galaxy Wearable app, and Watch Lux works the same way on either. What does not work is an iPhone: Galaxy Watches with Wear OS need an Android phone, and Apple Watch faces cannot be moved onto a Galaxy Watch in any case — the formats have nothing in common. Our guide to Wear OS watch faces explains that split in full.
Do Galaxy Watch faces cost money?
The faces Samsung ships on the watch are free, and many faces on Google Play are free too. Others are paid, either as a one-off purchase for a single face or as part of an app with a subscription. Watch Lux is free to download with a set of free faces; Pro unlocks the full catalog, with pricing shown on Google Play.
One thing to know before paying: Google Play and the App Store are separate stores with separate plans. A Watch Lux purchase on Google Play does not unlock anything on an iPhone, and the reverse is also true.
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