Why is my Vizio not responding to the remote?

The usual causes are weak batteries, a stuck button, a blocked sensor or a TV that has hung. Replace the batteries, then unplug the TV from the wall for 60 seconds and try again. If the remote still does nothing, it is probably the remote itself.

Why did my Vizio remote stop working all of a sudden?

Sudden failures are almost always power: batteries that died, a remote that got wet or dropped, or a TV that froze. The phone-camera test splits the cases. A flicker on the camera means the remote still sends and the TV is not listening; no flicker means the remote is the problem.

Why are the buttons on my Vizio remote not working?

If every button fails, check batteries and the TV first. If only some do, usually the ones you press most like OK or volume, the contacts under those buttons are worn out, and the remote will keep getting worse. Use your phone for the dead buttons and plan on a replacement.

Why is my new Vizio TV remote not working?

Pull the plastic tab from the battery compartment and check the battery direction. A Bluetooth voice remote (the one with a microphone button) also has to be paired with your TV, and a replacement made for a different Vizio series may simply not match your set. Match the XRT number printed on your original remote.

Can I control my Vizio from my iPhone if the remote is broken?

Yes, on SmartCast and VIZIO OS TVs from 2016 onward. The TV displays a PIN on screen when the app asks to pair, you type it into the app, and that is the whole setup. No button on the original remote is involved.

Which Vizio TVs can't be controlled from a phone app?

The 2010 to 2015 sets that run VIZIO Internet Apps, called VIA or VIA+. They have no network control at all, so no app can pair with them. A lowercase i or d right after the screen size in the model number (E500i-B1E, M501d-A2R) marks one of these sets.

Can I type on my Vizio with the phone keyboard?

Not with A Decent Remote today. It sends the arrows, OK, volume, input, numbers and app shortcuts to a Vizio, but it cannot type into search boxes or Wi-Fi password fields, so those still mean moving around the on-screen keyboard with the arrows.

Vizio TV Remote Not Working? Fix It or Use Your iPhone

The Vizio is on, the remote does nothing, and the buttons on the TV are somewhere behind it. Most of the time the cause is a two-minute fix. When it isn’t, your iPhone can take over the TV tonight, without the broken remote.

Is my Vizio remote dead, or is the TV not responding to it?

Three suspects, in the order that wastes the least time:

Batteries and stuck buttons. Take the batteries out and put them back, or swap in fresh ones. Then look for a button that is jammed down: a stuck Volume or Input key can make the whole remote look dead.
The camera test. Most Vizio remotes are infrared. Point yours at your iPhone’s front camera, hold a button and watch the screen. A white or purple flicker means the remote is sending. A flicker with no reaction from the TV points at the TV. No flicker means batteries or a dead remote. The voice remote with a microphone button is Bluetooth, so the camera test can’t clear it.
The TV itself. A hung TV ignores every remote. Unplug it from the wall (standby is not enough), wait 60 seconds, plug it back in and try again. If the remote only works from a foot away, something is blocking the TV’s sensor, or the batteries are low.

With more than one Vizio in the house, a remote in another room can also be steering the wrong set. Take the batteries out of the others to rule it out.

Why is my new Vizio remote not working, or only some buttons?

A new remote that does nothing is usually one of three things: the battery tab is still in or the batteries are the wrong way round, it is a Bluetooth voice remote that isn’t paired with this TV yet, or it was made for a different Vizio series. Listings that say “fits Vizio” don’t fit every year. Match the part number, which starts with XRT and is printed on your original remote.

If only some buttons have stopped, usually OK, volume or the arrows, the contacts under them are worn. That remote won’t recover, so use the phone for the dead buttons.

How do I re-pair or reset a Vizio remote?

A plain infrared remote has no pairing. Resetting it just means resetting the TV’s side:

Take the batteries out of the remote.
Unplug the TV from the wall, wait 60 seconds, and plug it back in. Let it finish starting.
Put the batteries back in (fresh ones if you can’t remember when they were last changed) and press a button from close to the TV.

A Bluetooth voice remote does pair, and the menu and button combination depend on the remote and the TV’s model year, so check the manual for your exact model before trying combinations from a forum. There is a shortcut though: control the TV from your phone first (next section), open the TV’s settings with Menu, find the voice remote entry and add the remote again. Your phone navigates the menu the broken remote can’t.

How do I control my Vizio from my iPhone while the remote is down?

Vizio is the easy case. Many TVs make you accept a prompt with a button on the remote. A Vizio SmartCast TV shows a PIN by itself, and you type it on the phone, so there is nothing to accept on the TV.

Turn the TV on with its own power button. Vizio puts the buttons on the back or underside of the set, usually in a lower corner (where they are, by brand).
Put your iPhone on the same Wi-Fi network as the TV. If the TV isn’t on Wi-Fi, or you changed routers, start with why a TV doesn’t show up.
Open A Decent Remote. It scans the network and lists your Vizio within a few seconds. Vizio’s pairing service can sit on either of two network ports depending on the firmware, and the app checks both.
Tap the TV. A PIN appears on the TV screen. Type it into the app. The pairing is saved, so you only do this once.

From there the phone does power, a volume slider, mute, the arrows, OK, back, home, menu, input, channels and numbers, and it opens Netflix, YouTube, Prime Video, Disney+, Hulu, Paramount+, Peacock, Tubi, Plex and Apple TV. The full pairing guide has the rest.

Four honest limits:

Power on from the couch depends on the TV’s power mode. If the app can switch the TV off but not on, set the power mode to Quick Start instead of Energy Save. The app can only note the TV’s network address while the TV is on, so pair with it switched on.
No typing. The phone keyboard doesn’t type into a Vizio’s search boxes or password fields yet.
VIA and VIA+ sets (2010 to 2015) can’t be paired. The app tells you so on screen. A lowercase i or d after the screen size in the model number marks them. For those sets a replacement remote is the only answer.
Android. A Decent Remote is on iPhone today. The Android version is being built now. Leave your email and you get one message the day it is on Google Play.

Vizio also makes its own free phone app, which is a fair backup to install alongside.

Is a replacement Vizio remote worth it?

As a backup, yes. A basic infrared replacement costs about $8 to $12, which is cheap insurance for the day the phone is flat or the Wi-Fi is down. Match the XRT number on your old remote, or on the page for your TV model. For a VIA set from 2010 to 2015 it is not a backup but the only fix.

As the daily driver on a SmartCast TV, the phone does more: a volume slider, app shortcuts, and one app for the other TVs in the house. If SmartCast is stuck on its loading screen instead, see SmartCast not loading.