By Klaus Jakobsen, developer of A Decent Remote 
Search for “LG TV remote app free” and most of what comes back is free for three days, then billed by the week. The genuinely free one is LG’s own, and it works. Here is what it asks for, how to set it up, and when something lighter is quicker.
What is the best free LG TV remote app?
LG ThinQ, made by LG Electronics. It costs nothing, there is no trial clock, and it runs on iPhone and Android. Once your TV is registered, its card in the app opens a remote with a pointer, arrows, OK, volume, channels and inputs. LG says a webOS 3.5 or newer TV can be switched on and off from it. Older sets can only be switched off.
What you pay instead is set-up:
- An LG account. LG’s page says to sign in with one for the initial setup.
- On iPhone, iOS 18 or newer, according to its App Store listing.
- A big app. The listing shows about 800 MB, because ThinQ is built for LG’s fridges, washers and air conditioners, and the TV remote is one feature among them.
If you have one LG TV, an Android phone and no strong feelings about accounts, use ThinQ and stop reading. Most apps called “LG remote” in the store are not LG’s. The real one is called LG ThinQ and lists LG Electronics as the developer. LG’s old TV Plus app has been folded into it. What the other apps charge is set out in the no-subscription list.
How do I set up LG ThinQ as a free LG TV remote?
- Switch the TV on and put your phone on the same Wi-Fi as the TV.
- Install LG ThinQ and sign in with your LG account, or create one.
- Tap Add a Device, choose TV from the product list, then pick your TV.
- Some TVs show a PIN on the screen while you register. Type it into the app.
- Tap the TV’s card to open the remote.
If the TV asks you to confirm something and your remote is gone, the lost LG remote guide shows how to press it with the joystick under the logo or a USB mouse.
Is there a free LG TV remote app for Android?
Yes, and it is the same one: LG ThinQ, from Google Play. On Android, LG also lets ThinQ switch the TV on over Bluetooth, which an iPhone cannot do. For most Android owners that makes it the better answer today.
Our own app is iPhone only for now and is not on Google Play. The Android version is being built now. Leave your email and you get one message the day it is on Google Play.
When is a different LG remote app better than ThinQ?
ThinQ wins on price, on Android and on anything tied to LG’s other appliances. A separate remote app is quicker in a few plain situations:
- You do not want an LG account just to change the channel.
- It is not your TV. In a rental or at a parent’s, ThinQ wants the TV added to your account. A Decent Remote asks the TV once and keeps no account.
- You have other brands. ThinQ only knows LG. A Decent Remote covers thirteen brands in one layout.
- Your iPhone is older than iOS 18.
- You want the remote to be the first screen, with a touchpad pointer and your iPhone keyboard for the TV’s search box.
If none of those apply, ThinQ is the better deal.
How do I pair A Decent Remote with an LG TV?
It runs LG webOS TVs (2014 and newer) from an iPhone over Wi-Fi.
- Put the iPhone on the same Wi-Fi as the TV, with the TV on and showing a picture.
- Open the app. LG TVs on the network appear in the list. Tap yours.
- The TV shows a request to allow the connection. Accept it with the Magic Remote, the joystick under the LG logo, or a USB mouse. A few sets show a number instead: type it into the app.
- Press any key. The approval is stored, so later connections are silent.
Nothing appears on the TV? One setting can block phones before you start. Look for LG Connect Apps under Network in the TV’s settings. Some models call it Mobile TV On or Mobile App, under General. The model number guide shows how to read your TV’s year. It also covers the 2012-2013 NetCast sets, which use a key shown on screen instead.
The app is free for your first 50 button presses, then paid, with no ads and no account.
What does a free LG remote app not do?
- Voice search. A Decent Remote has no voice button, so spoken search stays with the Magic Remote.
- Type inside every app. The iPhone keyboard works in the TV’s own search. Inside streaming apps LG restricts text input, so you navigate with arrows there.
- Wake a TV that lost its network. Power-on from our app needs Turn on via Wi-Fi enabled first, under TV On With Mobile in the TV’s General settings. The path changes between webOS versions. After a power cut the TV needs one press of its own button first.
- Work without a network. Both apps need the phone and TV on the same Wi-Fi, and a guest network can hide the TV.
There is one free route with no app at all. On a recent LG with AirPlay, the Control Center remote gives you pause and arrows, though not inputs or app launch.