What Icons and Symbols Mean on Apple Health App? Complete Guide

The Apple Health app is a powerful tool for tracking and understanding your well-being, but deciphering its many icons and symbols can feel overwhelming. From heart rate metrics to sleep analysis, these visual cues hold valuable insights into your health data. This guide will unlock the meaning behind every essential icon and symbol within the Apple Health app.

Summary Screen

The summary screen in the Apple Health app is a quick look at your daily health highlights. It’s designed to give you an overview of key health metrics. Let’s break down what you’ll find here, starting with sound levels:

1. Environmental Sound Levels (Noise Notifications)

This section of the summary screen keeps track of loud noises around you. This graph helps you know if you’re around sounds that could be bad for your hearing.

Vertical Blue Bars: Show the loudest sounds the app picked up. The taller the bar, the louder the sound.
Grey Dots Below: Shows the time of day to see when the loudest sounds happened.
Middle Blue Line: Represents the average sound level to see how the loud spikes compare to typical background noise.
Decibel Numbers: Sound units like (90 dB or 103 dB) tell you exactly how loud the sounds were.

Inside the Environmental Sound Levels

When you tap on the Noise Notification from the Summary screen, you’ll be taken to this section. Let’s explore what you’ll find here:

Letters Tab Icons (H, D, W, M, 6M, Y): change the time frame of the sound level data you’re viewing. H: Hours D: Days W: Weeks M: Months 6M: 6 Months Y: Year. Tapping on them lets you see sound level data for that specific time.
OK (Tick in Green Circle) Icon: environmental sound levels are within a safe range.
Info (“i” in Circle) Icon: Tapping this provides details on what different sound levels mean and when they might be harmful. If you see a yellow triangle with an exclamation mark ⚠️ instead, it means that the sound levels are loud and potentially harmful.
Notification Number: Indicates how many times the app detected sound levels exceeding the minimum range.

Weekly Highlights Graph

If you scroll down a little, you’ll find a graph that summarizes your sound exposure over the past week. Here’s what it shows:

Vertical Bars: Represents a day of the week, with the letters “W” for Wednesday, “T” for Thursday, “F” for Friday, “S” for Saturday, “S” for Sunday, “M” for Monday, and “T” for Tuesday, displayed along the bottom.

The height of each bar indicates the average sound level detected on that day. Taller bars mean louder average sound levels.

Blue Horizontal Line: Represents the average sound level for the entire week. This line serves as a baseline, allowing you to quickly compare the daily sound levels to the overall weekly average.

If a bar extends significantly above the blue line, it indicates a day with higher-than-average sound exposure.

2. High Heart Rate Notifications

In the “High Heart Rate Notifications” section of the Summary screen, you’ll see a graph that visually represents instances where your heart rate exceeded a certain threshold. Here’s what it shows:

Vertical Red Bars: Each bar indicates a specific time when your heart rate was elevated. Taller bars mean a higher heart rate.
Heart Rate Numbers: Numbers above each red bar (e.g., 130, 129, 131) represent the actual heart rate in beats per minute (BPM) at that specific time.
Horizontal Red Line (120 BPM): Represents the threshold that triggers the notification. If a red bar extends above this line, it means your heart rate exceeded 120 BPM.
Time Labels: The labels along the bottom of the graph (e.g., 02:55, 03:05) indicate the time of day when the elevated heart rate was recorded.

Pinned Health Data (Summary Screen)

The Pinned Health Data section on the Summary screen allows you to keep track of your most important health metrics at a glance. You can also customize which data appears here.

1. Activity

We have already covered this section in the Apple Fitness app, where we explained all its icons and symbols.

2. Cardio Fitness

The Cardio Fitness section provides a snapshot of your cardiovascular health. Here’s what you’ll find:

Number and Letter (e.g., 20.9 VO2 max): This number represents your VO2 max, which is a measure of how much oxygen your body can use during exercise. VO2 max is a key indicator of cardiovascular fitness.

Graph: The graph next to the VO2 max number visually represents your cardio fitness level. It shows how your VO2 max compares to the average for your age and gender.

The bars in the graph indicate your current VO2 max range.
The position of the pink colored bar within the graph indicates whether your cardio fitness is low, average, or high.
The date next to the “Cardio Fitness” title shows the last recorded date.
Red Dot: A red dot on the graph represents the most recent recorded VO2 max value.

This section helps you understand your cardiovascular fitness level and track changes over time.

Inside Cardio Fitness (Graph)

When you tap on the “Cardio Fitness” section, you’ll see a more detailed graph illustrating your VO2 max over time. Here’s what it shows:

Vertical Axis (Right Numbers): Represents your VO2 max values.
Horizontal Axis (Bottom Numbers): Represents time intervals. Depending on the selected time frame (D, W, M, 6M, Y), these numbers could indicate days, weeks, or months.
Red Dotted Line: Represents the minimum level of VO2 max that you should have.
Red Number: Represents the minimum VO2 max based on your age range.
Red Circle (Rightmost Point): Indicates your most recent VO2 max measurement.

3. Steps

The Steps section provides a quick overview of your daily step count. Here’s what you’ll find:

Step Count Number: The number (e.g., 855 steps) represents your total step count for the current day.
Small Bar Graph: Represents your step activity throughout the day.
Orange Bar: Represents your most recent tracked steps. The height of the bars indicates the number of steps taken.
Time Above the Graph: The time next to the Steps title shows the last recorded time.

Note: Beyond this, there are numerous more health data tabs, each with its detailed graph. While the units and specific metrics may vary (think sleep duration, heart rate variability, etc.), the core visual representation remains consistent. You can analyze these graphs just as we’ve demonstrated, focusing on the axes, lines, and data points to understand your health trends.

Highlights Section

The Highlights section on the Summary screen provides quick insights into specific aspects of your health. It presents data in a condensed format, allowing you to review key metrics.

Heart Rate: Sleep

This highlight focuses on your heart rate during sleep. Here’s what the graph shows:

Red Bars: Represent your heart rate during different periods of your sleep. The height of the bars indicates your heart rate at those times. Taller bars mean a higher heart rate.
Grey Bars: Maybe it represents the periods of time that the Apple Watch was not able to record the heart rate.
Time (Bottom Numbers): Indicate the time range during which your heart rate was recorded.
MIN and MAX Numbers (White Dot Inside Red Bar): Indicate the lowest and highest heart rates recorded during your sleep session.

Inside the Heart Rate Tab

When you tap on the “Heart Rate” section, you’ll see a more detailed graph displaying your heart rate data. This graph provides a detailed view of your heart rate over time. The blue bars that appear for a few seconds highlight the specific data related to sleep. The red bars cover the whole daytime period. Here’s what it shows:

Blue Color Part: Represents the heart rate data that is currently highlighted in the highlights section.
Red Bars: The red bars in the graph represent your heart rate readings at different points in time throughout the day.
Vertical Axis (Right Numbers): Represent your heart rate in beats per minute (BPM). This axis allows you to see the range and fluctuations of your heart rate.
Horizontal Axis (Bottom Numbers): Indicate the time of day. This axis helps you understand when your heart rate is at different levels.

You’ll also find a Respiratory Rate: Sleep graph, which functions similarly to the Heart Rate: Sleep graph. The only difference is that it displays breaths per minute instead of beats per minute (BPM).

Note: After approximately 4 seconds, you’ll notice that the graph’s display changes from a solid blue section to a red bar representation. You’ll observe a similar change in other sections of the Summary screen as well.

And there you have it, folks! We’ve decoded those graphs, icons, and symbols. Now, you can confidently navigate your health data, understand the insights at a glance, and take a more informed approach to your well-being. If you’re curious about the symbols in other apps, then don’t forget to check out our other icon-explanation guides below!