Orange dot on a Samsung Galaxy Watch face: what does it mean?
On older (Tizen) Samsung Galaxy Watch models it means you have unread notifications.
What Samsung says
- Samsung Galaxy Watch — Unread notification (Tizen models). Unread notifications are shown with one dot at the 9 o’clock position, however many are waiting. The dot is orange for regular notifications and red for urgent ones. It shows on the always-on watch face as well.
Source: Samsung Developer: System Icons (One UI Watch for Tizen, watch-face design guide) (checked 2026-09-29)
- What it looks like
- A small solid orange dot at the left edge of the watch face, at the 9 o’clock position.
- Shown by
- Samsung Galaxy Watch
- On other watches
- Apple Watch shows unread notifications as a red dot at the top instead. An orange microphone on an Apple Watch means the microphone is on.
- On a phone
- Orange dot or orange square at the top of a phone screen — what it means on an iPhone, Samsung Galaxy or Pixel.
Icons to compare
Sources
Each meaning above is taken from the watch maker’s own guide, fetched and read on the date shown. The drawing is ours; the real icon on your watch may be drawn a little differently and can change with software updates.
- Samsung Galaxy Watch — Samsung Developer: System Icons (One UI Watch for Tizen, watch-face design guide). Covers: Tizen-based Galaxy Watch models (Galaxy Watch, Watch Active2, Watch3, Gear S3); the page does not cover the newer Wear OS models; not dated on the page. Checked 2026-09-29.