Connect Pacer to Health Connect to use steps shared by compatible health apps and wearables on your Android phone.
There are two connections to complete: your wearable's app shares data with Health Connect, and Pacer reads that data. Activating Pacer alone does not connect your wearable.
Before you begin
Use the same Android phone for Pacer and your wearable's companion app.
Health Connect requires Android 9 or later and Google Play services. On Android 14 or later, it is built into Settings. On Android 9–13, install or update Health Connect from Google Play. A wearable's own app may have additional requirements. See Google's availability guide.
To find Health Connect, search your phone's Settings for Health Connect. Use your personal profile; Health Connect does not support Android work profiles.
Activate Health Connect in Pacer
- Open Pacer's Settings → Steps Data Source → Other wearables. You can also use Other wearables in Apps & Devices.
- Tap Activate Health Connect. If you see Install / Update Health Connect, complete that step, return to Pacer, and try again.
- Review the system permission screen. Allow Pacer to read Steps and the other requested categories you want to sync, then tap Allow.
- Follow any confirmation about changing your primary step data source. Pacer will use Health Connect for your steps.
- Once connected, use Add wearable to set up your device's app.
You can also start from the Health Connect entry in Steps Data Source. On its detail page, turn on Use Health Connect as Primary Data Source. This route may return you to the detail page after activation.
If access is already granted, a new permission screen may not appear. If access is missing, follow Manage Health Connect permissions.
What does Pacer sync?
The current connection reads recent activity from the past seven days. Pacer's step total uses Health Connect's aggregated steps, with eligible manually entered Pacer steps added within Pacer.
Distance can be estimated when needed; calories and activity time are calculated by Pacer. The values may therefore differ from your wearable's app.
Manually entered Pacer activities are not written to Health Connect. Eligible automatically recorded and GPS activities can be shared when you grant the corresponding write permissions.
If the device list is empty
An active Health Connect connection can have no recent wearable sources. Complete your wearable setup, then check whether its app has actually shared Steps.
Switch back to Phone
Open Pacer's Health Connect detail page and turn off Use Health Connect as Primary Data Source. Confirm Switch to Phone. Your history in Pacer is kept.
After switching, you can review Pacer's remaining permissions in Health Connect settings.
Related: Sync troubleshooting.