How to install a Connect IQ watch face on your Garmin

Install, step by step

Get the Connect IQ Store app. It is Garmin's second phone app, separate from Garmin Connect: search "Connect IQ" in the App Store or Google Play, install it and sign in with the same Garmin account your watch uses.
Make sure the watch is connected. The Connect IQ app shows your device at the top. If it shows as disconnected, open Garmin Connect once so the Bluetooth link wakes up.
Find the face and tap Install. Search by name, or browse the watch faces category; the store only shows faces compatible with your model. Paid faces show a price instead of Install; the card checkout adds under a minute (how buying works).
Let it sync. The face transfers over Bluetooth in a few seconds to a minute. Your watch switches to the newly installed face automatically.
Adjust the settings. Data fields, colors and goals are configured from the phone: in the Connect IQ app tap your device, then My Watch Faces, then the face, then Settings. Full walkthrough: watch face settings are on your phone.

Switching between installed faces

Installing does not delete anything; every face stays in the carousel. On touchscreen models, hold the watch face and swipe through to pick one. On button-only models, hold the up button, choose Watch Face, and scroll. Garmin's built-in faces and your Connect IQ faces live in the same list.

Two phone-free alternatives

Newer watches (Venu 3, Fenix 8 and similar) carry a small on-device Connect IQ store: open it from the apps list, browse, and install straight from the wrist over the phone's connection. And the Garmin Express desktop app manages faces over a USB cable, which suits watches that are not paired to any phone.

When the install refuses

Three causes cover nearly every failed install. The watch is not actually connected: open Garmin Connect, wait for the green connected state, retry. The watch is full: older models fit a limited number of Connect IQ apps, so remove faces you no longer use (in the Connect IQ app, or on the watch under Settings, then Apps) and retry. Or the store shows the face as incompatible: the developer simply has not built it for your model, and no workaround changes that, which is why we list supported models plainly on our face pages.

If the face installs but then shows a triangle with IQ! instead of drawing, that is a crash, not an install problem: the IQ! error guide covers the fix sequence.

Frequently asked

Do I need my phone to install watch faces?

Almost always, yes: the Connect IQ Store app on the phone is the normal route. Two alternatives exist: newer watches have a small on-device Connect IQ store you can browse from the wrist, and the Garmin Express desktop app installs faces over USB from a computer.

Does installing more faces slow the watch down or drain battery?

Installed but inactive faces just sit in storage; only the active face runs. Storage is the real limit: older watches fit a limited number of Connect IQ faces, and a refused install usually means it is time to remove ones you no longer use.

The face installed but looks wrong or shows a triangle with IQ!.

IQ! means the face crashed on your model, which is a known and usually fixable situation. Restart the watch, update the face, reinstall it, and if it keeps happening tell the developer your exact model. Our IQ! error guide walks through all of it.

Can I install a face on two watches?

Yes, if both watches support the face. Free faces install anywhere; paid faces are tied to your Garmin account, so both of your watches can run one purchase.

How do I go back to my old watch face?

Hold the watch face (or press and hold the up button on button-only models) and pick any face from the carousel, including Garmin’s built-in ones. Installing a new face never deletes the old ones.

Last verified: 2026-07-18 · Connect IQ app (Android + iOS) + Fenix 8; the install flow we test with every release of our faces