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TV keeps going back to the home screen? Causes and fixes

Nefarius Apps14 min read

A TV that keeps going back to the home screen usually has one of four causes, and the moment it happens tells you which one. If it happens only when you turn on the TV, it is a startup setting: many TVs open the home screen by default. If it happens at random in every app and input, the TV gets a command from somewhere: a dirty or stuck remote button, another remote, a phone app or an HDMI device. If it happens in one app only, that app has a problem. If it happens in every app, update and restart the TV.

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Why does a TV keep going back to the home screen?

The home screen is the TV's own menu of apps and inputs. Samsung calls it Smart Hub, and LG, Google TV and Roku TVs call it Home. A TV shows it for three reasons. A setting tells the TV to start on it. The TV gets a Home or Back command, or a signal from a connected device. Or the app that you watch stops, and the TV shows the home screen again.

Before you change a setting, find out when the problem happens. The table gives the first check for each case.

When it happensProbable causeWhat to do first
Only when you turn on the TVThe startup setting of the TVChange the power-on screen setting
At random, in apps and on HDMI inputsA remote, a phone app or an HDMI device sends a commandRemove the batteries from all remotes, then test
In one app onlyA problem in that appUpdate the app, clear its cache or install it again
In every app, but HDMI inputs stay onThe network or the TV softwareTest the network, then update and restart the TV
When the TV goes to the home screen, and where to look first.

It goes to the home screen when you turn on the TV

This is a setting, not a fault. Many TVs open the home screen each time that they turn on. On most models, you can change it.

Samsung TVs

Samsung says that the Smart Hub home screen is the default screen, and that some models have it on by default. To turn it off:

  1. Press Home on the remote.
  2. Open Settings.
  3. Select General or System. The name depends on the model.
  4. Select Start Screen Option or Startup Settings.
  5. Turn off Start with Smart Hub Home.
  6. Restart the TV.

Samsung also says that some models do not let you turn off this setting.

LG TVs

On LG TVs from 2023 and 2024, you can set the power-on screen to Home or to the last input. Older models have a setting that LG calls Home Auto Launch. LG gives these paths, each from Settings, then All Settings:

webOS version (year)Path from All SettingsSetting
webOS 23 and 24 (2023 and 2024)General, System, Additional settings, Home settingsPower On Screen
webOS 6.0 and 22 (2021 and 2022)General, System, Additional settings, Home settingsHome Auto Launch
webOS 5.0 (2020)General, Home SettingsHome Auto Launch
webOS 4.5 (2019)General, Additional Settings, Home SettingsHome Auto Launch
Where LG puts the power-on screen setting, by webOS version.

To see the webOS version of your TV, press Mute on the remote three times. LG gives three conditions for the setting. It works only when you turn on the TV with the remote. The power button on the TV can open a different screen. And Quick Start must be on, or the setting may not work. LG also says that some models have a fixed startup screen.

Roku TVs

TCL says that a TCL Roku TV shows the Home screen by default when it turns on. To change it, press Home, then open Settings, System, Power and Power On. Select the input that you want, and press OK.

It jumps to the home screen at random: find what sends the command

If the TV leaves an app or an HDMI input while you watch, and nobody touched a remote, the TV probably got a command. A remote, a phone app or a connected device can send it. Test them in this order.

Test the remotes

Samsung's remote guide says: "If it seems like it's pressing buttons by itself, your remote's buttons may actually be dirty." A Home, Back or Exit button that sticks can send the TV to the home screen again and again. Do this test to find the remote:

  1. Connect a phone remote app to the TV. You need it to use the TV during the test.
  2. Find all the remotes that can control the TV. Include the remotes of a streaming device, a cable box, a soundbar and a universal remote.
  3. Remove the batteries from all of them.
  4. Use the TV for as long as the problem usually takes to come back.
  5. If the problem does not come back, put the batteries back in one remote.
  6. Use the TV again. If the problem comes back, that remote is the cause.
  7. Do steps 5 and 6 for each remote.

Include the remotes of other TVs in the house. A remote for another TV of the same brand can control your TV too. Our guide to one remote that controls two TVs explains why, and how to stop it.

When you find the remote, clean its buttons, put in new batteries or replace it. For a TV that changes the source or the volume by itself, Samsung gives two more steps. Disconnect the TV from the wall outlet while it is on. Then clean the touch controls on the bezel of the TV with a microfiber cloth. Samsung says that if the problem starts again with new batteries, the remote needs replacement.

Check phones and apps on your Wi-Fi

A phone remote app sends the same commands as a remote, over your Wi-Fi network. A person in your house can have a remote app that is connected to the TV. A tap in that app can send the TV to the home screen.

  • When a remote app such as Tivi first connects to a Samsung, LG, Android TV or Google TV set, the TV asks you to approve it. Samsung shows a prompt on the TV, and the others show a code. After that, the phone can connect again without a prompt when it is on the same Wi-Fi. A Samsung TV keeps a list of the devices that you allowed. Our article on Samsung's allow-this-device prompt shows where to find that list and how to remove a device.
  • Roku says that apps can control a Roku device from the same wireless network if the device permits commands over the network. The setting is in Home, Settings, System, Advanced system settings, External Control, Network access. Roku says that if you turn off the setting, no apps will work with your device. After that, you need a Roku remote to change the setting again.

To test, ask each person in the house to close their TV remote apps for one day. If the problem stops, find the phone that sends the commands. On a Samsung TV, also remove the devices that you do not know from the device list.

Check HDMI devices

HDMI-CEC lets devices on HDMI control each other. Samsung calls it Anynet+, and LG calls it SIMPLINK. Samsung says that when you start playback on a connected device, the TV can turn on and change to the input of that device. LG says that a connected device, for example a set-top box, a soundbar or a game console, can change the input of the TV. The device can do this even when it is in standby. Thus a connected device can change the input of the TV while you watch an app.

To test, turn off HDMI-CEC for one day:

  • Samsung: open Settings, All Settings, Connection, External Device Manager, and turn off Anynet+ (HDMI-CEC). On older models, External Device Manager is under General.
  • LG, 2021 and 2022 models: open All Settings, General, Devices, HDMI Settings, and turn off SIMPLINK (HDMI-CEC). On 2020 models, the setting is in Connection, Device Connection Settings. On 2019 models, it is in Connection, HDMI Device Connection Settings. On other models, look for SIMPLINK (HDMI-CEC) in the HDMI settings. LG's SIMPLINK guide gives these paths.

If the problem stops, turn on HDMI-CEC again. Then disconnect the HDMI devices one at a time to find the device.

For an LG TV that changes the input by itself, LG gives two more steps. Turn off Quick Start+, so that the TV turns off completely and does not stay in standby. On 2023 to 2025 models, it is in All Settings, General, System, Additional Settings. Then delete the connection history. On 2021 to 2025 models, it is in All Settings, General, External Devices, Delete Connection History. LG also says that the power-on screen setting may not work when Quick Start is off.

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It happens in one app: fix the app

If the TV exits only one app and goes to the home screen, start with that app. LG's guide to apps that crash says: "If the issue occurs only in a specific app, it is likely a problem with the app itself." Do these steps in order, and try the app after each one:

  1. Update the app. On a Samsung TV, open APPS from the home screen to look for updates.
  2. Clear the cache of the app. The table below gives the path.
  3. Delete the app, and install it again. On an LG TV, press and hold OK on the app to delete it.
  4. If the problem continues, contact the company that makes the app.
TV or devicePathSource
Samsung TVSettings, All Settings, Support, Device Care, Manage Storage, select the app, View Details, Clear CacheSamsung Australia
Chromecast with Google TV or Google TV StreamerProfile icon, Settings, System, Storage, Internal shared storage, Cached data (clears the cache of all apps)Google
Other Google TV devicesSettings, Apps, See all apps, select the app, Clear dataGoogle
Fire TV (TCL)Settings, Applications, Manage Installed Applications, select the app, Clear CacheTCL
Where to clear the data of an app, by device.

Clear Cache and Clear Data are different. Google says that when you clear the cache, you stay signed in to your apps. TCL says that Clear Data may remove your login information, preferences and app settings. Thus try Clear Cache first, and sign in again after Clear Data.

Also check the network. LG says that when apps freeze or do not open, the cause is often an unstable network connection. To test, connect the TV to the hotspot of your phone. If the app works there, LG says that the TV is not the cause: check your Wi-Fi router or your internet service.

It happens in every app: update and restart the TV

If the TV goes to the home screen in every app, the TV software is the probable cause. Sony has a page for this problem on its BRAVIA 3 TVs: "The screen switches to Home or a previous app when I start watching TV". Sony's fix is a software update. If you cannot update the TV, Sony says to do a power reset:

  • Press and hold the Power button on the remote for about 5 seconds, or until Power off shows. If Cancel and Restart show, select Restart.
  • Or turn off the TV, and disconnect the power cord for two minutes. Then connect it again.

Other brands give similar steps:

  • Samsung: Samsung's page on app problems says to turn off the TV, disconnect it from power for 30 seconds, and connect it again. To update the software, open Settings, Support, Software Update.
  • Google TV: Google's troubleshooting page gives Settings, System, About, System update, and then Settings, System, Restart.

Owners report software causes too. In a 2023 Reddit thread, owners of a Hisense U8G said that the problem started after a firmware update. In January 2026, the owner of a Philips Android TV stopped a loop in which the home screen crashed again and again. In the Google TV Community thread, they uninstalled the home screen app (Android TV Home) and cleared its data and cache. They also turned off automatic app updates. They reported that the TV worked after that. These are user reports, not statements from Hisense, Philips or Google.

Do a factory reset only as the last step. LG says that a reset deletes all account settings and installed apps, and Google says that it erases all data on the device. Two owners in the threads that we read said that a reset did not stop the problem. One had a Hisense TV, and one had a Toshiba Fire TV.

Use your iPhone as the remote while you test

The remote test leaves you with no working remote for some time. A phone remote app lets you use the TV during that time.

Tivi, a universal TV remote app for iPhone from Nefarius Apps, finds the TVs on your Wi-Fi. It controls Samsung, LG, Android TV and Google TV sets and needs no account. Commands go from the phone to the TV on the local network, so Tivi works when the remotes in the room have no batteries. It has the Home, Back and navigation buttons that you need to move between apps and menus.

Connect Tivi before you remove the batteries. On the first connection, a Samsung TV asks you to allow the phone. Select Allow with the TV's remote. LG, Android TV and Google TV sets show a code that you type in Tivi. The guides for Samsung, LG and Android TV or Google TV give the full steps. If no remote works at all, read what to do without a TV remote.

Tivi has limits:

  • The phone and the TV must be on the same Wi-Fi network.
  • The free version gives the full remote on one TV.
  • Tivi finds Roku devices but does not control them, and it does not control Apple TV.

The short version

Look at when the TV goes to the home screen. If it happens only when you turn on the TV, change the startup setting. On a Samsung TV, it is Start with Smart Hub Home. On an LG TV, it is Power On Screen or Home Auto Launch, and on a Roku TV, it is Power On.

If it happens at random, remove the batteries from all remotes and put them back one at a time. Then check the phone apps on your Wi-Fi, and turn off HDMI-CEC for a test. If it happens in one app, update the app, clear its cache or install it again. If it happens in every app, check the network, update the TV software and restart the TV. Do a factory reset only as the last step.

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Common questions

Why does my TV keep going back to the home screen while I watch Netflix?

If only Netflix does it, the app is the probable cause. Update the app and clear its cache. If that does not help, delete the app and install it again. If other apps do it too, test the network and update the TV software.

Can a phone on my Wi-Fi send my TV to the home screen?

Yes, if the phone has a remote app that is connected to the TV. The app sends the same commands as a remote. A remote app such as Tivi needs your approval once on a Samsung, LG, Android TV or Google TV set. The TV shows a prompt or a code. Roku devices accept commands from apps on the same network when the External Control setting permits it.

Will a factory reset stop my TV from going back to the home screen?

Sometimes, but do it last. LG and Google say that a reset deletes your apps, accounts and settings. A reset does not fix a stuck remote button or an HDMI device, and it sets the power-on screen back to its default.

Why does my TV go to the home screen instead of the HDMI input?

When you turn on the TV, many models open the home screen by default. On an LG TV from 2023 or 2024, set Power On Screen to the last input. On a TCL Roku TV, select the input in Settings, System, Power, Power On. If the TV leaves the HDMI input while you watch, a connected device can be the cause. Turn off HDMI-CEC for a test.

Sources

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