How long is the Google Pixel Watch 3's battery life?

Pixel Watch 3 41mm and 45mm with Buds Pro 2
(Image credit: Andrew Myrick / Android Central)

How long does the Pixel Watch 3's battery life last on a single charge?

Best answer: Google claims the Pixel Watch 3 can last up to 24 hours on a single charge with the always-on display enabled, and up to 36 hours in Battery Saver mode. Android Central's own testing yielded better results, with our reviewers getting more than a day — sometimes two days — of battery life.

Everything else you need to know about battery life and charging on the Pixel Watch 3

Battery life on the best smartwatches depends on a variety of factors, from usage habits to the number of GPS workouts tracked on a daily basis. Regardless of how you use the Pixel Watch 3, you should get at least a full day of usage on a single charge. Google's official support document explains that the Pixel Watch 3's battery life will last up to 24 hours on a single charge with the always-on display turned on. The company tested battery life based on the median Pixel Watch user's usage habits, and with a mixture of talk, data, standby, and use of other features.

To get the most battery life out of your Pixel Watch 3, you'll want to enable Battery Saver. This setting will disable the always-on display and a few other features, but will keep tilt-to-wake active. In exchange, the Pixel Watch 3 will last up to 36 hours on a single charge. To turn on Battery Saver, tap the Settings app on your Pixel Watch 3, press Battery, and flip the Battery Saver toggle.

In our Pixel Watch 3 review, Android Central's resident wearable expert Michael Hicks consistently got up to 48 hours with fairly intensive use, including the always-on display and at least one activity tracked.

The Google Pixel Watch 3, charging close to 100%

(Image credit: Michael Hicks / Android Central)

Other testers at Android Central had less stellar battery life experience, but still found the Pixel Watch 3 to last longer than the Pixel Watch 2. This could be partially related to Wear OS 5's efficiency improvements.

Charging speed will vary slightly between the Pixel Watch 3 (41mm) and the Pixel Watch 3 (45mm). The former has a 307mAh battery, while the latter has a 420mAh battery. It'll take the smaller Pixel Watch 3 about an hour to reach 100%, while the larger model takes 80 minutes to reach full capacity.

Battery life and charging was a significant downside of early Pixel Watch generations, and while it still isn't outstanding, the Pixel Watch 3 will last a full day on a single charge — even with heavy use — and charges relatively quickly.

Brady Snyder
Contributor

Brady is a tech journalist for Android Central, with a focus on news, phones, tablets, audio, wearables, and software. He has spent the last three years reporting and commenting on all things related to consumer technology for various publications. Brady graduated from St. John's University with a bachelor's degree in journalism. His work has been published in XDA, Android Police, Tech Advisor, iMore, Screen Rant, and Android Headlines. When he isn't experimenting with the latest tech, you can find Brady running or watching Big East basketball.