3 Easy Steps To Connect AirPods To Your TV [2023 How-To]

Need help with connecting your AirPods to your TV?

Then you’ve come to the right place.

In this article, we’ll outline the steps you need to do to make that happen.

Read on to find out:

3 easy steps to connect your AirPods to your TV.
What to do if your AirPods won’t successfully connect to your TV.
If the process for connecting your AirPods to your TV varies by TV brand.
And so much more…

How to connect AirPods to TV (universal): 3 steps

#1: Turn on Bluetooth on your AirPods

To get this process started, first, turn on Bluetooth on your AirPods.

Doing this is super easy. You just need to:

Put your AirPods inside their charging case.
Open the lid of the charging case.
Press and hold the setup button on the back of the case.
Wait for the status light on the case to blink white.

“What does the white flashing light mean?”

It means your AirPods is now in pairing mode.

Note: When a device is in pairing mode, it means it’s ready to connect to another device via Bluetooth.

And you can proceed to the next step.

#2: Turn on Bluetooth on your TV

Next, turn on Bluetooth on your TV.

The process varies according to your TV’s brand.

Check this guide for help.

For a Sony TV, you can turn on Bluetooth by doing the following:

On your remote, go to Home then find Settings.
Navigate to Network & Accessories, then select “Bluetooth Settings.”
Set Bluetooth to “On.”

For a Panasonic TV, you need to:

Open your TV’s Menu on your remote.
Open Setup, then navigate to “Bluetooth Settings.”
Next, select “Bluetooth Devices” or “Devices.”

How about for a Vizio TV?

Go to Menu, then navigate to Settings on your remote.
Use the arrow buttons to select “Network.”
Finally, look for “Bluetooth.”

For other TV brands, the main difference in these steps will be the specific names of the options.

For example: on some TVs, you’ll need to go to Settings. But on others, you gotta go to Setup.

To be sure, you can check your manual.

#3: Connect your AirPods to your TV via Bluetooth

Now it’s time to actually pair your AirPods with your TV.

As with turning on Bluetooth, this can change from brand to brand.

If you have a Panasonic TV:

Go to your remote’s Menu and then select “Setup.”
Navigate to “Bluetooth Setup”, then “Devices.”
Select your AirPods.

For a Sony TV:

Go to your remote’s Settings.
Find “Remote & Accessories” or “Bluetooth Settings.”
Select “Pair accessory” or “Add device.”
Find your AirPods and select it to pair.

“What if I have a different kind of TV?”

That’s not a problem. Just use your remote to navigate to the list of Bluetooth devices on your TV.

Then select your AirPods.

That’s it, now you’re set.

How to connect AirPods to Apple TV: 3 steps

#1: Use your Apple ID

If you have an Apple TV, connecting your AirPods to it should be simple.

In fact, If you’re using the same Apple ID on your TV as on your wireless headphones.

Your AirPods will automatically connect to your TV…

So do you have an Apple ID that you just haven’t set up on your TV yet?

You can sign in with your credentials by doing the following:

Go to your TV’s Settings.
Select “Users and Accounts”, then navigate to “Add New User.”
Go to “Enter New…” and follow the on-screen prompts.

“What if I don’t have an Apple ID yet?”

Getting one’s not going to be hard. You just need to:

Go to Apple ID’s webpage.
Click or tap on “Create Your Apple ID” in the upper right corner of the screen.
Fill out the necessary fields and submit your details.

#2: Set your AirPods to pairing mode

You can also opt to manually connect your AirPods to your Apple TV.

To do this, first set your AirPods to pairing mode.

Open your charging case and put your AirPods inside them.
Keep the lid open.
Look for the setup button on the back of your charging case.
Press and release this until the status light flashes white.

#3: Pair your AirPods with your Apple TV

Finally, connect your AirPods to your Apple TV. Here are the steps:

On your TV, go to Settings.
Navigate to “Remotes and Devices.”
Select “Bluetooth.”
Find your AirPods and select it to pair.

Watch this process here:

How to connect AirPods to Samsung TV: 3 steps

#1: Check whether your Samsung TV supports Bluetooth

For a Samsung TV, the process for connecting AirPods won’t be as straightforward as with an Apple TV.

But that doesn’t mean it’s going to be difficult.

To get started, first make sure that your Samsung TV supports Bluetooth.

To do that, consider this important question:

Does your TV have a Smart Remote?

If your answer is yes, then your Samsung TV has Bluetooth enabled on it.

“But I don’t have a remote.”

That’s alright, you can go to your TV’s settings and see if it supports Bluetooth.

To do this:

Get your remote and go to Menu then Settings.
Find “Sound”, then select “Sound Output.”
Check if you have the “Bluetooth Speaker List” option.

If you do, then you don’t need to worry about anything. Your TV’s got Bluetooth.

#2: Turn on pairing for your AirPods

So on to the next step.

Turn on pairing mode for your AirPods. You can do that by:

Place your AirPods inside the charging case.
Make sure to keep the lid open.
Press and release the button which is on the back of the charging case.
Wait until a white light flashes, then release the button.

#3: Connect your AirPods to your Samsung TV

And lastly, connect your AirPods to your Samsung TV.

For 2014 Samsung Smart TVs:

Menu> Sound> Speaker Settings> Sound Output> Bluetooth Headphone> Your Airpods.

For 2015 Samsung Smart TVs:

Menu> Sound> Additional Settings> Bluetooth Audio> Your AirPods.

For 2016 Samsung Smart TVs:

Menu> Settings> Sound> Expert Settings> Wireless Speaker Manager> Bluetooth Audio Devices> Your Airpods.

For 2017, 2018, and 2019 Samsung Smart Tvs:

Menu> Settings> Sound> Sound Output> Bluetooth Speaker List> Your AirPods.

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Why won’t my AirPods connect to my TV? 3 causes & solutions

#1: You have to charge your AirPods

If your AirPods won’t connect to your TV, your AirPods may be in low battery mode.

“How do I know if they are?”

You can check the battery level of your AirPods via different methods.

First, you can use your iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch:

Put your AirPods inside your charging case.
Open the lid.
Put the case near your iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch.
Check the battery level.

Also, you can use the Batteries widget on your screen.

Put only 1 AirPod inside your charging case.
On your phone’s Home screen, tap and hold on any empty space.
Select the Plus icon at the top, then find “Batteries.”
Tap on “Add Widget” then drag it to your home screen.
Check your battery levels.

If your AirPods are connected to your Mac or Apple Watch…

You can also use either one of them to check on your AirPods’ battery level.

And you can ask Siri.

Just say, “Hey Siri, how much battery do my AirPods have?”

If your AirPods don’t have enough battery to work…

You can charge them by putting them inside your charging case.

Once they have enough battery, try connecting them to your TV again.

#2: Your AirPods may need cleaning

Dirty AirPods will also have issues connecting to TVs.

Make sure that there’s no gunk in your AirPods by:

Using a lint-free cloth.
Cleaning them with disinfecting wipes.

Note: If you do use wipes, make sure your AirPods don’t get wet.

“But I thought AirPods are water-resistant.”

Yes, they are. But they’re not waterproof.

They’ll get damaged if moisture seeps into any of the openings.

#3: You need to reset your AirPods

If none of the above fixes worked, reset your AirPods.

“How do I do that?”

Step 1: Put your AirPods inside your charging case.

Step 2: Close your charging case.

Step 3: Keep them inside for at least 30 seconds.

Step 4: Open your charging case.

Step 5: Disconnect your AirPods from your iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch.

Go to your device’s Settings.
Find Bluetooth, then find Bluetooth.
Tap the “i” icon next to your AirPods.
Select “Forget this Device” then tap to confirm.

Step 6: Make sure your charging case’s lid stays open.

Step 7: Press and hold the setup button on the back of the case for at least 15 seconds.

Step 8: Wait until the status light turns amber then white.

Once your AirPods have been reset, set them up again.

Afterwards, try connecting them to your TV once more.

If it stil doesn’t work, contact your TV manufacturer for help.

And if the TV connects to other Bluetooth devices…

Contact Apple’s support.