5 Easy Steps To Connect Roku To A Hotspot (Updated 2023)

Your WiFi network isn’t working. Or perhaps you prefer using your cellular data. 

Either way, you want to connect Roku to your mobile hotspot. 

But you don’t know how to do it. 

Well, how about I walk you through the whole process?

Continue reading to find out: 

• How to set up a hotspot on your mobile phone. 
• An easy 5-step process to connect Roku to a hotspot.
• Must-know reasons why your Roku won’t connect to your hotspot.
• And this is just the beginning…

---

How to connect Roku to hotspot – 5 steps

---

#1: Configure hotspot on your mobile phone

Note: If you’ve already set up your hotspot, skip to #2. 

Before you can actually connect your Roku to your mobile hotspot… 

We need to set up the hotspot on your phone first.  

It’s like you can’t eat your food yet if you haven’t finished cooking it. 

But unlike preparing a fancy meal… 

Creating a hotspot can be a piece of cake. 

Just follow these easy steps to set up a hotspot on your mobile phone: 

Android phones:

Step 1: Access your phone’s settings

To do this, open the Settings app. 

You can find that on your home screen or a quick access menu. 

Step 2: Open Connections

Step 3: Press Mobile Hotspot and Tethering

Step 4: Select WiFi hotspot

Step 5: Click Configure. 

On this window, you can see the following options: 

• Band. 
• Security. 
• Password. 
• Advanced.
• Network name.      

Note: Options depend on your network carrier, phone model, and software version.

After this step, your mobile hotspot is good to go. 

Step 6: Choose a hotspot name and password (optional)

After setting up your mobile hotspot, its name and password would be set to default. 

Now, that won’t stop you from connecting devices to the hotspot. 

But, I recommend that you customize its name and password. 

Why? 

It’s because of the following benefits: 

• Added security.
• Personalized touch. 
• Easily located and accessed. 

Note: The exact steps may be different for your Android phone model. The steps above work best for Samsung mobile phones. 

iPhone: 

1. Go to Settings.
2. Open Cellular.
3. Press Personal Hotspot or Settings. 
4. Click Personal Hotspot
5. Toggle Allow Others to Join ON.  

Make sure to do this so your Roku can connect to your mobile hotspot later. 

If you don’t, your hotspot won’t be discoverable by other devices. 

#2: Connect the Roku device to your TV

As you already know, Roku devices enhance the TV experience. 

And that’s because they give users access to the following: 

• The Internet.
• Streaming services. 
• User-friendly interface. 
• Over 500,000 movies and series.

Basically, a Roku device is like a brain. 

But here’s the thing: 

It can’t function on its own. Let alone connect to your mobile hotspot. 

So, that’s why you need to connect it to a body. Something that would do the job for your Roku. 

And in this case, it would be your TV. 

“How do I connect my Roku device to my TV?”

Well, that depends on the type of Roku player you have. 

But the one thing common among them is: 

Roku players connect over an HDMI connection. 

With that said, if you have a Roku device, such as: 

• Roku Ultra. 
• Roku Express. 
• Roku Express 4K+. 

You need an HDMI cable to connect it to your TV. 

Now, attach one cable end to your Roku. And the other to your TV. 

And in case you need it, you can get a free HDMI extender from Roku here. 

But, if you have the Roku Streaming Stick… 

Then you can plug it directly into your TV’s HDMI port. 

“My TV doesn’t have an HDMI port.”

No worries, you can also connect Roku to a TV without HDMI. 

Note: If you’re connecting your Roku device to the TV for the first time. Then, you need to set up your Roku first. 

And to help you with that, you can check out this video below: 

#3: Turn your mobile hotspot ON

Configured mobile hotspot? Check. 

Connected Roku to TV? Another check. 

Now that those are out of the way… 

It’s time to turn ON your mobile hotspot. 

With that said, here’s… 

How to turn on the mobile hotspot on Android: 

Step 1: Access your Android phone’s Quick Settings. 

You can do this by swiping down the top of the screen. 

Step 2: Press the Cellular Data or Mobile Data icon.

Depending on your phone model, you may need to do this before turning on your mobile hotspot. 

Step 3: Tap the Mobile Hotspot icon. 

If it’s not available on your Quick Settings, do this instead: 

1. Go to Settings > Connections > Mobile hotspot and tethering. 
2. Press Mobile Hotspot. 
3. Toggle ON. 

Note: The exact steps and tab names vary per Android phone model.

How to turn on the mobile hotspot on iPhone

Step 1: Open Control Center. 

Do that by swiping down on the right side of your screen. 

Step 2: Tap the Cellular icon. 

It looks like a tower that has signals around it. 

Plus, it’s right beside the Airplane icon. 

Step 3: Long press the Cellular icon. 

A menu will pop up, and your iPhone will vibrate. 

Step 4: Press Personal Hotspot. 

Ensure that the hotspot says, “Discoverable.”

Note: When using mobile data and hotspot, here are some things that you should remember: 

• Using mobile data will turn off your WiFi.
• Mobile hotspots drain your battery much faster. 
• If cellular data is active, your apps will use your data plan. 

#4: Locate your mobile hotspot using the Roku-enabled TV

Note: Stay on your Cellular Data Settings for this step, and don’t lock your phone. Doing this ensures your mobile hotspot remains discoverable. With that, your Roku won’t experience any problems locating your mobile hotspot.

Now, let’s get right into it. 

5-step guide to finding your mobile hotspot using your Roku-enabled TV: 

Step 1: Access your Roku’s Homescreen. 

To do that, simply follow: 

1. Power your TV ON. 
2. Go to your TV’s Source. 
3. Switch the TV’s output to HDMI.

Step 2:  Go to Roku’s Settings. 

Press the Down button on your remote until you see Settings on the left side panel. Then, hit OK.

Step 3: Open Network.

You’ll see this first on the Settings list. Simply press OK. 

Step 4: Select Set up Connection. 

Step 5: Choose the Wireless option. 

Your Roku will start looking for a wireless connection. 

Don’t worry. This process won’t take a while. 

Shortly after, you’ll see your hotspot’s network name. 

#5: Enter your hotspot’s password

Saw your hotspot’s name?

Use your remote to select it. 

And then press the OK button on your remote. 

After that, you’ll see a pop-up menu where you’ll enter the network password. 

Note: Passwords are case-sensitive. That means you have to ensure you know which characters are in capitals and not. 

And that’s why personalizing your hotspot’s network name and password is handy for this step. 

After putting in the correct password, your Roku would connect to your mobile hotspot. 

“I can’t connect to my hotspot.” 

In this article, I’ve provided a troubleshooting process below. Simply scroll down and see whether they work for you. 

Read also: Can You Use Roku On A Non-Smart TV? 4 Answers

Can I connect Roku to a hotspot without WiFi?

You can connect Roku to hotspot without WiFi. 

See, WiFi is the technology that connects devices to the Internet wirelessly. 

And that’s possible through wireless connections, a.k.a WiFi networks.  

Now, the thing is, a mobile hotspot is a type of WiFi connection. 

How so? 

It’s because devices can connect to the mobile hotspot through WiFi technology. 

Plus, these tethered devices can access the Internet.

Although, the hotspot uses your mobile data for that to happen. And not your typical Internet plan from a provider.   

With that said…

Your Roku can connect to your hotspot without WiFi simply because a hotspot is WiFi. 

But I recognize that WiFi and the Internet are used interchangeably. 

Still, your Roku can connect to the hotspot without the Internet.  

---

Why won’t my Roku connect to hotspot?

---

Your Roku won’t connect to hotspot because of unsupported hotspot settings. For instance, your connection’s set to 5 GHz. Also, you could have a congested hotspot broadcast channel. Or, you have outdated Roku firmware. Otherwise, your hotspot or Roku’s glitching.

#1: You have a 5 GHz hotspot connection

There are 2 types of wireless connections: 

5 GHz and 2.4 GHz. 

The former provides a faster Internet speed. 

But, it’s not compatible with all devices. 

That’s the case for your Roku, too. It doesn’t support a 5 GHz connection. 

And yet, mobile hotspots often have a default 5 GHz band setting. 

That’s why you need to change your hotspot’s band to 2.4 GHz. So, you can connect your Roku to it. 

How to change band setting to 2.4 GHz:

iPhone: 

1. Open Settings. 
2. Press Personal Hotspot. 
3. Toggle Maximize Compatibility ON.

Android: 

1. Go to Settings. 
2. Click Connection & Sharing. 
3. Tap Portable Hotspot.
4. Press Set up Portable Hotspot.
5. On the AP band, switch 5 GHz to 2.4 GHz. 

Alternatively, you can contact your cell provider to manually change your data band. 

#2: Congested hotspot broadcast channel

Hotspots, like all WiFi networks, send out signals on different channels. 

And that’s for efficient Internet data transfer. 

But here’s the thing: 

Different WiFi networks’ signals can interfere with each other. 

As a result, the hotspot becomes congested and unstable. 

And that’s why you can’t connect your Roku to it. 

But fortunately, you can change WiFi channels to less congested ones. So you can avoid problems like this. 

And those channels are: 

• Channel 1.
• Channel 6. 
• Channel 11.

With that said, contact your cell provider to change your hotspot’s broadcast channel. 

#3: Outdated Roku firmware

Roku’s firmware needs to be upgraded every once in a while. So that it can: 

• Fix bugs. 
• Run smoothly.
• Have more features. 

Otherwise, the device will often encounter problems. And that includes apps like Spotify, Netflix, and Disney Plus not working on Roku. 

With that said, outdated software can cause hotspot connectivity issues as well.

So, here’s…

How to update your Roku’s firmware: 

1. Go to Settings > System.
2. Press System update.
3. Select Check Now.
4. Update the software if it’s available.  

#4: Hotspot or Roku malfunction

Any of the previous tips didn’t do the trick? 

Then your devices could be simply malfunctioning. 

And the best way to deal with that? 

Restart your devices. 

But not just any restart. Like you just don’t turn OFF and ON your phone and TV. 

“Then what do I need to do?”

You must power cycle your phone and your TV. 

The name of the process can be overwhelming. 

But it’s effortless. And yet, it’s effective. 

How to power cycle your phone and TV:

Phone: 

1. Shut down your phone. 
2. Wait for 2-3 minutes. 
3. Turn your phone ON. 

TV: 

1. Turn OFF your TV. 
2. Unplug the power cable from the socket. 
3. Wait for 3-5 minutes. 
4. Power ON your TV. 

If that didn’t solve your problem, contact Roku at: 

• Website. 
• +1-888-270-6412.
• +44-800-041-8324.