Setup & pairing
How to find a lost TV remote: the remotes your phone can make ring
Nefarius Apps10 min read
To find a lost TV remote with your phone, the remote must have a finder built in. Of the TV and streaming remotes in this guide, four kinds have a finder that plays a sound, as their makers document. They are the Google TV Streamer Voice Remote, Roku voice remotes with a speaker, Amazon's Alexa Voice Remote Pro and the onn 4K Pro remote. You start the sound from a phone app, with your voice or with a button on the box. An iPhone can also locate Apple's Siri Remote (2nd generation) or later. The remotes that come with Samsung and LG TVs have no finder that their makers describe. For those, search the room and use your iPhone as the remote while you look. When you find the remote, stick a tracker on it.
Can your phone find your TV remote?
Your phone cannot find a remote by itself. It sends a request to the TV or streaming device that the remote is paired with. That device then tells the remote to play a sound through its own speaker. So the finder works only when three things are true:
- the remote has a speaker and supports the finder
- the remote is still paired with the device, which is switched on
- the remote has charge and is in range
Roku's lost remote finder works on "any Roku voice remote with a built-in speaker". The remote does not play the sound if its batteries are dead or too low. It also stays silent if it is out of range of your wireless network. To check your remote, Roku says to look for small speaker holes on the back. If your remote has no speaker, nothing can make it ring.
Apple's Siri Remote works differently. It does not play a sound. Your iPhone shows how close you are to it instead.
Which TV remotes can ring?
The table lists the remotes whose makers document a finder.
| Device | Remote that can be found | From your phone | Other ways | How long it sounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Google TV Streamer, Chromecast with Google TV | Google TV Streamer Voice Remote | Google Home app | Button on the back of the Streamer; "Hey Google, where's my remote?"; the Google TV settings | 30 seconds |
| Roku player or Roku TV | Roku voice remotes with a built-in speaker | Roku app: Ping Remote | Finder button on Roku Ultra; Find Remote in a Roku TV's Inputs menu; "Hey Roku, where's my remote?" | Up to 60 seconds |
| Fire TV, Echo Show | Alexa Voice Remote Pro | Fire TV app: Remote Finder (not with an Echo Show) | "Find my remote" to any Alexa device | Up to 5 minutes |
| Apple TV | Siri Remote or Apple TV Remote (2nd generation) or later | Control Center: Apple TV Remote, then Find | None | No sound; the iPhone shows far, near and here |
| onn 4K Pro | The remote that comes with it | No phone method documented | Button on the front edge of the box | 30 seconds |
| Samsung and LG TVs | No finder described by Samsung or LG | None | None | None |
How to make each remote ring
Start with the phone method, because your phone is probably in your hand.
Google TV Streamer
Google's Find My Remote works with the Google TV Streamer Voice Remote, paired with a Google TV Streamer or a Chromecast with Google TV. To trigger it from an iPhone:
- Go to the room where the TV is.
- Open the Google Home app.
- Tap Home, then All devices, then select the TV.
- Tap Settings, then Find my remote, then Play sound.
The remote plays a sound for 30 seconds. Press any button on the remote, or tap Cancel in the app, to stop it.
On a Google TV Streamer, you can also press the button on the back of the box briefly. Google says this works only with the Google TV Remote. A voice assistant speaker or display also works: say "Hey Google, where's my remote?". With a Chromecast with Google TV, Google says you must use the voice assistant or the Google Home app. Google's page doesn't name the remotes that come with TVs that have Google TV built in, such as Sony, TCL or Hisense sets.
The TV menu has the same option: All settings, then Remote Accessories, then Find My Remote, then Play sound. Google says this route needs "a physical or in-app remote aside from the Voice Remote". A phone remote app that controls Google TV can open that menu. How to control an Android TV or Google TV from an iPhone explains how to pair one.
Roku
Roku's finder works with voice remotes that have a built-in speaker, such as the Roku Enhanced Voice Remote and Roku Voice Remote Pro (2nd edition). To trigger it from the free Roku app:
- Tap the Devices icon in the navigation bar.
- Tap your Roku device to connect to it.
- Tap the three dots next to the device, then select Ping Remote.
The remote plays a sound for up to 60 seconds. Press any button on it to stop the sound.
You can also use the Roku app as a remote. Go to Settings, Remotes & devices, Remotes, select your remote, then select Find remote. Some players, such as Roku Ultra, have a finder button on the top or side.
A TV that runs Roku OS has the finder in its Inputs menu, which you open with the TV's own controls. Press the TV's control button to open the menu. On some models, it is the middle button, the joystick or the INPUT button. Press it again until Find Remote is highlighted. Roku says some of its TVs have only a power button, so this doesn't work on every model. When it works, you don't need a phone.
On a Roku Voice Remote Pro, you can say "Hey Roku, where's my remote?". This works only if hands-free voice was on when the remote went missing.
Fire TV
Amazon documents its remote finder for the Alexa Voice Remote Pro, paired with a compatible Fire TV or Echo Show. The remote must be within 30 feet (10 m) of that device, and the device must be on. To trigger it:
- Open the Fire TV app and connect to the same Fire TV as the remote.
- Tap the Remote Finder icon in the Remote tab.
Amazon says the Remote Finder icon isn't available if the remote is paired with an Echo Show.
You can also say "Find my remote" to any Amazon device with Alexa, the Alexa app or the Fire TV app. Amazon says the remote can take up to 30 seconds to start ringing. It rings for up to five minutes, or until you press one of its buttons. On a Fire TV smart TV, the finder works with the screen off only if Voice Commands When TV Screen is Off is on.
Apple TV
An iPhone can locate an Apple TV Remote or Siri Remote (2nd generation) or later. Apple says the iPhone needs iOS 17 or later, and the Apple TV needs tvOS 17 or later.
- Open Control Center on your iPhone.
- Tap the Apple TV Remote.
- Tap the device list, then tap Find next to your lost remote.
- Walk around and follow the prompts.
The circle on the screen grows, and the text changes from far to near to here as you get closer.
onn 4K Pro
Walmart's onn 4K Pro streaming box has a remote finder button. PCWorld's review says that you press a button on the front edge of the box. The remote then chimes "for 30 seconds or until you interact with it". We found no documented way to trigger it from a phone.
If your remote has no finder
Samsung's support page for a lost remote suggests a replacement from Samsung's parts website, a universal remote, or your phone as the remote. It mentions no way to make the remote beep. We found no finder in LG's support pages either.
Without a finder, a careful search is the only way. Start where the remote was last used: between and under the seat cushions, under blankets, and on the floor below the sofa. Then check each place you went to after you watched TV, and ask everyone in the house. Under furniture, a phone flashlight helps.
Use your iPhone as the remote while you look
A phone remote app lets you keep watching while you search, or while you wait for a replacement. The TV must be on the same Wi-Fi network as your iPhone, and it usually must be on.
Tivi, a universal TV remote app for iPhone from Nefarius Apps, controls Samsung, LG, Android TV and Google TV sets over Wi-Fi. It needs no account. The free version runs the full remote on one TV: the arrow pad and OK, volume, channels, playback, home and back. Tivi cannot make a remote ring. If the TV is off, Turn On TV can wake a Samsung or LG TV that Tivi has connected to before. The TV's own setting for turning on over the network must be on. How to use your iPhone as a TV remote walks through the setup.
Tivi doesn't control Roku, Fire TV or Apple TV. For those, use the Roku app, the Fire TV app or the Apple TV Remote in Control Center. They are the same apps that trigger the remote finders above.
If the remote stays lost, what to do when your TV remote is gone covers the TV's own buttons, HDMI-CEC and replacement remotes. It also explains the first pairing on a Samsung, which needs a press of Allow on the TV itself.
Do remote finder apps work?
Apps that promise to find your TV remote can only trigger the finder that is already built into the remote and its device. They cannot make a remote without a speaker ring. One example on the App Store, Find TV Remote by Kraftwerk 9, says so in its own listing: "The app works only with remotes that support a built-in sound-based remote finder feature." The listing also says that the remote must be paired with the TV or streaming device. Its battery must not be empty.
As of October 2026, that app lists a $14.99 yearly subscription and says it contains advertising. For the remotes that support a finder, the free apps in the table above do the same job.
Stop losing it: add a tracker
If your remote can't ring, give it something that can. A small Bluetooth tracker stuck to the remote lets your phone find it next time.
Chipolo makes thin finders for this. It says its CARD and CARD Spot "are credit-card thin Bluetooth finders that you can stick onto any remote control with a flat surface". The CARD Spot works only with Apple's Find My app, and the regular CARD works with the Chipolo app. An AirTag also works with Find My. Apple says you can tap Play to hear a series of chimes that help you find it.
The short version
Your phone can find a TV remote only if the remote has a finder, has charge and is in range. Check the table for your remote and the free way to trigger its finder. Samsung and LG remotes have no finder that their makers describe. Search the sofa and use your iPhone as the remote meanwhile. Add a tracker when the remote turns up.
Common questions
Do Samsung TV remotes have a tracker?
Samsung doesn't describe one. Its lost-remote page mentions no way to make the remote beep. Search by hand, use your phone as the remote meanwhile, and stick a Bluetooth tracker on the remote when it turns up.
Can I find my remote if its batteries are dead?
No. The remote needs power to play the sound. Roku says its remotes stay silent if the batteries are dead or too low. The Find TV Remote app also lists a charged battery as a requirement.
Is there a free app to find my TV remote?
Yes, if your remote has a finder. For Google, Roku and Fire TV remotes, the Google Home, Roku or Fire TV app triggers it. An iPhone's Control Center finds a Siri Remote. Check the table above for your remote. A paid app can't do more, because no app can make a remote without a finder ring.
Why won't my Chromecast remote ring?
Google's Find My Remote names only the Google TV Streamer Voice Remote, not the remote that came with the Chromecast with Google TV. If you use a Streamer Voice Remote with your Chromecast, trigger the finder from the Google Home app or a voice assistant.
Sources
- Google (2026). Use Find My Remote for your Google TV Streamer Voice Remote.
- Roku (2026). How to find your Roku remote using the lost remote finder feature.
- Amazon. Find Your Alexa Voice Remote Pro.
- Apple (2024). If you lost your Apple TV remote.
- PCWorld (2024). Walmart Onn Google TV 4K Pro review: This is a great streamer.
- Samsung. Find a replacement remote control for your Samsung TV, Smart Monitor, or projector.
- App Store (2026). Find TV Remote, by KRAFTWERK 9 LTD.
- Chipolo. Remote finder.
- Apple (2026). Use AirTag and Find My to keep track of your personal items.