I'm blocked trying to run/debug an app on a physical Apple Watch. The iPhone connects to Xcode perfectly over USB and is fully trusted, but the paired Watch never shows up in Xcode, and because of that the Developer Mode toggle never appears on the watch itself.
Environment
Mac: MacOS 26.4
Xcode: 26.5
iPhone: iPhone 17, iOS 26.4 — connected to Mac via USB, trusted
Apple Watch: Ultra 3, watchOS 26.3
Developer Mode: enabled on iPhone
Watch is paired and working normally in the iPhone Watch app
What happens
In Xcode → Window → Devices and Simulators, only the iPhone ("Brian") shows under Connected, with its installed apps listed correctly. The paired Apple Watch does not appear under it or as a separate entry.
On the watch, Settings → Privacy & Security has no Developer Mode item. I understand this only surfaces after Xcode successfully connects to the watch, so I believe the missing Xcode connection is the root cause.
When I first connected the iPhone via cable, a Trust prompt did appear on the watch and I accepted it.
What I've already tried
Enabled Developer Mode on iPhone (toggled off/on, with restarts)
Connected iPhone via USB and confirmed Trust on both iPhone and watch
Restarted Mac, iPhone, and watch multiple times
Confirmed Bluetooth and Wi-Fi are on across all three devices
Kept the watch unlocked and on my wrist, close to the iPhone and Mac
Despite this, the watch never appears in Xcode and the Developer Mode toggle never surfaces on watchOS.
Questions
Is this the known Xcode 26 / watchOS 26 tunneling/discovery regression, or is something else going on in my setup?
Is there an Apple-supported way to force Xcode to re-discover a paired watch without unpairing it from the iPhone?
Has any specific combination of macOS / Xcode / watchOS versions reliably resolved this for anyone?
Any guidance appreciated. Happy to file a Feedback Assistant report and share the ID if useful.
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