Watch Zones for Virtual Security Guard

A Watch Zone is a feature for Virtual Security Guard¹ that lets you set a specific zone that you want guards to monitor when Virtual Security Guard is armed. By setting a Watch Zone, you can define the area that agents monitor, such as your front porch or walkway within an existing Motion Zone. By creating a Watch Zone, you can ensure critical areas on your property receive special attention while reducing unnecessary notifications and helping agents respond to critical events faster.

When Virtual Security Guard is armed and a person is detected inside of a Watch Zone, a professional monitoring agent will review the event. Your camera will still detect and record motion outside of the Watch Zone, but agents won’t monitor those areas unless motion is first detected in a Watch Zone.

Note:

• As of September 16, 2025 Property Zones will no longer be supported.
• Watch Zones require a compatible Ring Home Standard or Premium plan and at least one device enrolled in Virtual Security Guard.

  Learn more about Ring Home Plans.

How does a Watch Zone work?

What is the difference between a Watch Zone and a Motion Zone?

How to Create a Watch Zone

You can set up a Watch Zone in the Ring app or at Ring.com. Before you start, make sure your app is up-to-date.

In the Ring app

1. Open the

   ☰ menu

   on the top right.
2. Tap on the

   Settings icon

   .
3. Tap on the

   Monitoring or SOS tile.
4. Tap on

   Virtual Security Guard

   .
5. Tap on

   Watch Zones

   .
6. Tap on

   Edit Zone

   in the top right of the Virtual Security Guard enrolled Camera.
7. Tap on the suggested zone and drag each point to fit the desired area.
8. Tap

   Save

   in the top right of the screen.

On Ring.com

1. Click on

   Account

   and select

   Control Center

   .
2. Click on

   Virtual Security Guard

   .
3. Click on

   Watch Zones

   .
4. Review the suggested zones or edit as needed.
5. Click

   Confirm All

   to save all zones.

Note: Draw Watch Zones around specific areas that matter most, like a walkway or porch, instead of your entire yard. This helps monitoring agents focus only on important activity.

How Watch Zones work with other settings

Watch Zones and Privacy Zones

A Privacy Zone is an area in your camera's field-of-view that you define as off-limits (e.g. another property or private area). The Ring app won't display anything in that area in Live View, and that area won't be video recorded. Privacy Zones appear as black rectangles in the Ring app and on video. Privacy Zones will also appear as black rectangles on devices that have Watch Zones, and Privacy Zones will not be monitored by an agent.

Watch Zones and Birds Eye Zones

On select Ring devices, you can set up Bird's Eye Zones as an aerial map of your property to show the path a visitor takes. If you have a Bird’s Eye Zone, make sure that your Watch Zone covers the same area, as motion outside of this area will be ignored.