OnePlus watches use standard quick-release spring bars, which makes them among the simplest smartwatches to buy bands for. There is no proprietary connector and no model-specific fitting to worry about. You need one number: the lug width.
Finding your lug width
OnePlus bands are sold by width rather than by model name. The larger OnePlus Watch models take 22mm bands, and slimmer models take 20mm.
The check takes ten seconds. Take the current band off and measure the gap between the two lugs with a ruler. You are distinguishing 20 from 22, so millimetre precision is not required.
Measure the gap, not the band. Bands are often cut a fraction narrower than the space they sit in, which is why measuring the old band gives the wrong answer about half the time.
Standard fittings are a real advantage
This is worth appreciating if you have owned other smartwatches. Apple, Fitbit and Google all use proprietary connectors, and Fitbit changes its fitting between generations, so bands rarely survive an upgrade.
With OnePlus, any 22mm quick-release band fits, whether it was made for a Samsung Galaxy Watch, a Garmin, an Amazfit or a traditional watch. That gives you access to the entire 22mm market rather than the small OnePlus-specific aftermarket, and it means a band you buy today will still be useful if you switch watches later.
Choosing a material
Silicone is the everyday default. It handles sweat, showers and swimming, wipes clean, and is comfortable enough to sleep in, which matters on a watch with the battery life to be worn around the clock.
Woven nylon is lighter and more breathable, better for long wear and hot weather, and it usually adjusts continuously rather than by hole. It holds water in the weave, so it dries more slowly after a swim.
Leather suits the OnePlus Watch well, since the round case and visible bezel give it traditional proportions. Keep it dry.
Stainless steel and magnetic mesh give the most formal finish. Mesh has the practical edge because the clasp adjusts to any position rather than to the nearest hole.
Matching the band to the case
The OnePlus Watch is a large watch. It carries substantial bands well, so a wide leather strap or a link bracelet looks proportionate rather than heavy, where the same band would overwhelm a smaller case.
That also means very slim bands can look undersized on it. If you like a delicate look, mesh is the better route than a narrow strap.
Changing the band
Turn the watch over and find the small lever on the spring bar inside the band. Slide it toward the centre of the band and lift that end away from the case.
Fit the new band by seating one side of the spring bar in its lug hole first, then sliding the lever so the pin drops into the opposite hole. You should feel it seat. Tug each half gently afterwards to confirm.
No tool needed for quick-release bands. If a band has plain spring bars with no lever, you will need a spring bar tool.
Fit and heart-rate accuracy
OnePlus watches read heart rate optically from the wrist, which needs steady skin contact. The watch should sit snug about a finger's width above the wrist bone.
Too loose and the sensor reads motion instead of pulse, which shows as a heart rate that lags behind your effort or locks onto your cadence. Too tight restricts blood flow and skews it the other way.
Because the OnePlus Watch is heavy, a loose band lets it shift more than it would on a lighter watch, so fit matters here more than average.
Care
Rinse silicone and nylon with fresh water after pool or ocean use. Chlorine and salt shorten the life of both, and residue between band and wrist causes most of the irritation people blame on the band itself.
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