Using a smartwatch on Android
Steps & Beasts does not pair with your watch. On Android we read steps from Health Connect, the on-phone store Android uses to share health data between apps.
Your watch never writes to us directly. The manufacturer’s app on the phone is the missing link.
Get set up
If your watch’s companion app writes steps into Health Connect, we pick them up automatically. If it does not write them there, we cannot see the watch - only the phone’s own step sensor.
On Android 14 and newer, Health Connect is built into the phone.
- Open Settings.
- Go to Security and privacy → Privacy controls → Health Connect. On some phones this lives under Settings → Apps → Health Connect.
On Android 13 and older, install Health Connect from the Play Store and open it once.
Then give Steps & Beasts permission to read steps:
- In Health Connect, open App permissions.
- Tap Steps & Beasts.
- Allow Steps (Read).
You can also grant this from the permission screen inside Steps & Beasts.
Connect your brand
Do this in the manufacturer’s app - not in Steps & Beasts. Always allow Steps (Write) for that app. After you connect it, open Health Connect → Data and access (or Browse) → Steps. You should see today’s steps attributed to the companion app. If they are there, we can read them.
Menu names move around when apps update. If a label below does not match, search for “Health Connect” inside the companion app.
Menu names move around when apps update. If a label below does not match, search for “Health Connect” inside the companion app.