I’m having a persistent pairing issue with my Forerunner 265 and iPhone that I have not been able to resolve with the standard troubleshooting steps.
I’m currently on Garmin Connect version 5.30.0.11 and iOS 26. Garmin Connect does not appear at all under Settings > Privacy & Security > Bluetooth on the iPhone.
The watch itself can show as Connected in the iPhone Bluetooth settings, but Garmin Connect repeatedly fails during setup with “Pairing Failed.” I have also received the iOS error “Cannot Add Accessory.” At other points Garmin Connect has shown “No Accessory Found.”
I have already tried removing the watch from iPhone Bluetooth, removing and reinstalling Garmin Connect, restarting both the iPhone and watch, turning Bluetooth off and back on, putting the watch into Pair Phone mode, and confirming Screen Time / Content & Privacy Restrictions are off. I have also confirmed that Garmin Connect is fully updated.
The watch was working previously, and I am trying to avoid factory resetting it because I have seen other recent reports where a reset did not resolve the issue.
The part that seems most unusual is that Garmin Connect is completely missing from the iPhone Bluetooth permissions list, despite the app being installed and attempting to pair.
Has anyone from Garmin identified a fix for this, or can Garmin support collect diagnostics from my account/device? This appears similar to several recent iOS pairing and Bluetooth permission issues being reported with the Forerunner 265/265S.
