My paired Apple Watch never shows up in Xcode, so the Developer Mode toggle never appears on the watch (Settings > Privacy & Security). The paired iPhone works perfectly, and I build and install to it every day.
Setup
Mac: macOS Tahoe 26.6, Xcode 27.0 (watchOS 27 SDK and platform installed)
iPhone 15 Pro Max, Developer Mode ON, shows as connected in xcrun devicectl list devices over USB
Apple Watch on watchOS 26.x, passcode set, unlocked, on wrist
Free personal team (also tried a second free Apple ID; both are signed in to Xcode)
Symptom
xcrun devicectl list devices lists the iPhone and an iPad, never the watch
Devices and Simulators shows no watch under the iPhone
No ~/Library/Developer/Xcode/watchOS DeviceSupport folder has ever been created
Unified log on the Mac shows no CoreDevice / remotepairing activity for the watch at all. It looks like the Mac never hears from it.
Network
No router. The Mac gets internet from an iPad over USB and re-shares it over Wi-Fi (macOS Internet Sharing). iPhone and watch are joined to that network. I also tried the Mac and phone on the iPhone's Personal Hotspot. VPN is off and the firewall is off.
Already tried, no change
Unpaired the watch and paired again (restored from backup)
iPhone: Settings > Developer > Clear Trusted Computers, re-trusted, xcrun devicectl manage pair
Accepted the "Trust this computer" prompt on the watch after a restart
iPhone Developer Mode off, restart, on, restart
Signed out of and back in to Xcode accounts; accepted the latest agreements
Restarted the Mac, iPhone and watch; waited 5+ minutes with the Devices window open each time
Bluetooth and Wi-Fi on everywhere; watch and Mac on the same Wi-Fi
Is there a way to force Xcode to discover the watch through the iPhone, or a log predicate that shows why the watch is never offered? Any pointers appreciated.
0
0
26