Wear OS is ditching its old look for a flashy Material 3 Expressive makeover

What you need to know

• Wear OS 6's Material 3 Expressive brings bold new visuals and smoother animations that blend with your mood.
• UI now hugs the curved edges, and there's a cleaner 3-slot layout along with dynamic theming.
• Creative watch faces are also incoming, with photo-based designs and smoother transitions that unlock new customization.

Today at its I/O 2025 developer conference, Google introduced the latest update to Wear OS meant to carry smartwatches into a new era. Wear OS 6 brings a wave of changes, including bold designs, smoother motions, and some extra battery life to keep your watch going longer.

Wear OS 6 is coming in hot with Material 3 Expressive, a new design that blends style and smarts, as per Google's blog post. It brings dynamic theming to the table, so your watch face and apps can shift colors to match your vibe.

The round display is getting some real attention too, with UI elements that wrap around the edges and layouts that make every quick glance worth it.

Battery bonus

This update is giving your battery some love too. Wear OS 6 promises up to 10% more juice compared to Wear OS 5, so your watch keeps ticking longer without constantly hunting for a charger.

Developers can now play with new Jetpack libraries (Wear Compose Material 3 and Wear ProtoLayout Material 3) to weave these new designs into their apps.

Tiles are getting a major facelift, too. A new 3-slot layout (title, main content, and a bottom slot) keeps the interface clean, while dynamic theming ensures your tiles blend seamlessly with your watch face.

Also new is what Google calls "Edge Buttons." It hugs the sides of the screen, maximizing space on a 1.2-inch display.

Creative watch faces incoming

Wear OS 6 also unlocks new tools, like animated transitions and support for photo-based designs. Plus, a fresh API makes it easier to build watch face marketplaces, so expect even more creative options soon.

The update also introduces enhanced media controls, including fast-forward, rewind, and playlist access. And in a nod to younger users, Google is expanding its lineup with Galaxy Watch for Kids, a phone-free way for little ones to stay connected safely.

For developers, the Wear OS 6 emulator is now live in Android Studio, along with codelabs and design kits to kickstart projects. Users, meanwhile, can look forward to the full rollout later this year.