Turn on VoiceOver. On Apple Watch, open the Settings app , then turn on General > Accessibility > VoiceOver. You can also use iPhone to turn on VoiceOver for Apple Watch—open the Apple Watch app on iPhone, tap My Watch, then tap the VoiceOver option in General > Accessibility. Or, use the Accessibility Shortcut. See The Accessibility Shortcut. And there’s always Siri:

Explore the screen. Move your finger around on the display and listen as the name of each item you touch is spoken. You can also tap with one finger to select an item, or swipe left or right with one finger to select an adjacent item. Swipe left or right, up or down with two fingers to see other pages. (For example, swipe up with two fingers on the watch face to see glances, then swipe left or right with two fingers to see the different glances.)

Go back. Gone down a path you didn’t expect? Do a two-finger scrub: use two fingers to trace a “z” shape on the display.

Act on an item. With VoiceOver on, use a double tap instead of a single tap to open an app, switch an option, or perform any action that would normally be done with a tap. Select an app icon or option switch by tapping it or swiping to it, then double-tap to perform its action. For example, to turn VoiceOver off, select the VoiceOver button, then double-tap anywhere on the display.

Perform additional actions. Some items offer several actions—listen for “actions available” when you select an item. Swipe up or down to choose an action, then double-tap to perform it. (For example, when you select the watch face, you can swipe up or down to choose from go-to-glances and go-to-notification-center actions.)

Pause reading. To have VoiceOver stop reading, tap the display with two fingers. Tap again with two fingers to resume.

Adjust VoiceOver volume. Double-tap and hold with two fingers, then slide up or down. Or, open the Apple Watch app on iPhone, tap My Watch, then go to General > Accessibility > VoiceOver and drag the slider.

Adjust reading rate. Open the Apple Watch app on iPhone, tap My Watch, then go to General > Accessibility > VoiceOver and drag the slider.

Turn off the display. For privacy, turn on the screen curtain so no one can see what’s on Apple Watch while you use VoiceOver. Open the Settings app on Apple Watch, then turn on General > Accessibility > VoiceOver and turn on Screen Curtain.

Turn off VoiceOver. Open the Settings app , go to General > Accessibility > VoiceOver, then tap the VoiceOver button.

VoiceOver for Setup. VoiceOver can help you set up your Apple Watch—triple-press the Digital Crown during setup. For step-by-step instructions, see Set up Apple Watch using VoiceOver.