How to use your iPhone as a Roku remote
A Roku remote is a small plastic thing that lives under a cushion. Your iPhone is in your hand. Roku Remote uses the control interface Roku builds into every TV and streaming player, so your iPhone can do what the physical remote does — and a few things it cannot, like typing with a real keyboard and sending the TV's sound to your headphones.
There is no account, no pairing code and no setup on the TV. Both devices need to be on the same Wi-Fi network; that is the whole requirement.
Set it up in about a minute
- Switch your Roku TV or streaming player on, and make sure your iPhone is on the same Wi-Fi network as it — not a guest network, and not mobile data.
- Open Roku Remote and allow it to find devices on your local network when iOS asks. Without that permission the app cannot see your Roku at all.
- Wait a moment while the app looks around the network, then tap your Roku in the list. It is named the way you named it on the TV — “Living Room”, say.
- You are on the remote. Swipe on the touchpad to move around the Roku's menus and tap to select, or use the arrow keys if you prefer them.
- Try the power key and the volume keys to confirm the TV is listening. If nothing happens, see the two troubleshooting guides below.
What is on the remote screen
- A touchpad you swipe and tap, or a classic D-pad with arrows and OK — whichever you choose in Settings.
- Power, volume up and down, and mute.
- Instant replay, rewind, play/pause and fast forward for whatever is on.
- Type, which opens your iPhone's keyboard and sends what you write to the TV.
- Inputs, for switching between HDMI sources and back to the Roku home screen.
- Listen, for private listening through your headphones.
- Sleep, for switching a Roku TV off later.
- A Channels tab with everything installed on the Roku, searchable, so you can open an app without walking the TV's menu.
Which Rokus it works with
Roku TVs from any of the brands that make them — TCL, Hisense, Sharp, Philips, Onn, RCA and the rest — and Roku's own streaming players: Express, Premiere, Streaming Stick, Streambar, Ultra. The app talks to the Roku's software, not to a particular model.
A few things depend on the device rather than the app. The sleep timer can only switch off a Roku TV, because a streaming player has no screen to switch off. Private listening needs a Roku whose software offers it, which most do but a few of the oldest players do not.
FAQ
- Do I need the original Roku remote to set this up?
- No. Nothing has to be entered on the TV and there is no pairing code. If the TV is already set up and on your Wi-Fi, the app finds it.
- Does it work over mobile data, or away from home?
- No. Roku Remote talks to your Roku directly over your own network, the same way the physical remote talks over infrared or Wi-Fi Direct. Away from that network there is nothing to reach.
- Will it work on an iPad?
- Roku Remote is built for iPhone and runs on iOS 18 or later. It will run on an iPad in iPhone compatibility mode, but the layout is designed for a phone in your hand.
- Can I control two Rokus?
- Yes. Add as many as you like and switch between them by tapping the name at the top of the remote.
Roku Remote is an independent app and is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by Roku, Inc. Roku is a trademark of Roku, Inc.
The remote you never lose
Roku Remote gives your iPhone a touchpad, a keyboard for searching and signing in, your channels, private listening through your headphones and a sleep timer. It finds your Roku on your Wi-Fi — no account, and nothing through our servers.
Coming soon to the App Store for iPhone.