Many people are fans of Netflix original content but it’s also an inexpensive streaming service, where you’ll always find something good to watch when you’re done surfing on Youtube. But, when the Netflix app won’t load on your Roku, it’s a bit of a problem, here’s what you want to do to fix it.
As a general rule you should unplug your Roku, wait for 1 minute, then turn back on. After that open Netflix again. For a sound issue, you want to unplug your home theater system, and use the TV speakers. Or check your receiver is on the correct input setting.
There are some additional settings and things to do for each issue below. Read on, to see what to do step by step for all of the issues you can have with Netflix on your Roku.
Roku Netflix Won’t Load/Open
Each Roku is a bit different whether you have the Roku streaming stick, express, premier, ultra, or any other model. When your Netflix simply won’t load or open here’s what to do.
Unplug your Roku and let it rest for 1 minute. After that plug it back in and wait for it to load. Then open Netflix again. If that didn’t fix it you should Deactivate and Reactivate your Netflix App. You can find that option in the Settings from the Roku Home screen.
There are two categories of Roku devices:
- The Roku 1
- All of the other Roku devices.
How to identify the Roku 1
It has a black square box about the size of a napkin. You plug it into the back of your TV and into the power supply. But, it can also plug into your home theater system using an HDMI cable.
Copyright article owner is ReadyToDiy.com for this article. This post was first published on April 14, 2021.
It has a big white number 1 on the top of the black square device. A Roku 2 will have a big white number 2 on the top of it. If you don’t have a Roku 1 the following settings will work for you.
For the Roku 1
For the Roku 1 you want to:
Go to the Roku Home screen > Move the cursor of the Netflix App and click the star key on your Roku remote > Select ‘Remove Channel’ > Press remove channel again to confirm it.
Next you’ll want to do the following:
Go to the Roku Home screen > Select Streaming Channels > Select Movies & TV > Select Netflix > Add Channel > Go to Channel > Then sign into your Netflix account.
These steps will work for most people but if you still have issues and need to try the other steps involved click here. It’s the official help document from Netflix for a Roku, and provides detailed instructions for other less common fixes you need to do to get it working again.
For all Roku models except the Roku 1
Roku Home Screen > Settings > Netflix Settings > Deactivate this player > Yes.
After that open Netflix again like you normally would and it will ask you some questions again to reactivate it.
Roku Will Not Play Netflix
Sometimes you open up a TV show or movie on Netflix and nothing happens. It doesn’t load, doesn’t play any video, and doesn’t play any sound. A Roku will play Netflix really well most of the time, however, when it will not play here’s how to get Netflix working again:
As a general rule when your Roku will not play Netflix it means your internet connection isn’t connected. Verify that your internet is working on your smartphone or laptop. Go to a webpage like Youtube.com and see if it loads. If it works fine then you’ll want to close Netflix and open it again.
When your internet isn’t connected you can’t stream any video. Test out another app on your Roku such as Youtube to see if you can watch a video. If you can it means your internet is working fine and there’s a problem with the Netflix app.
I’ve covered all the fixes you’ll want to try to the two types of Roku models above under the section “How to identify a Roku 1. Scroll up the page to find it and follow the step by step instructions for either a Roku 1 or every other type of Roku model.
Roku Netflix Keeps Crashing/Freezing
Another issue that can happen with you Netflix is that it will crash – which is where Netflix will close all by itself, or the whole application will freeze, and you can’t select anything. This can happen with Netflix on any device but for a Roku here’s what you’ll want to do to get it working again:
As a whole the issue is related to your Netflix app, and you want to close it down, and reopen it again. If you can’t exit out of Netflix then unplug your Roku, and plug it in again. It can happen from time to time, but if it happens a lot you’ll want to do some additional steps.
Restarting your Roku will work most of the time. But if it doesn’t you’ll want to uninstall Netflix and reinstall it again. On a Roku you can’t uninstall Netflix like a computer or smartphone and to remove it you need to remove it ‘as a channel’.
To remove the channel, and re add Netflix again you go to the home screen of your Roku. The exact step by step instructions for how to do each of the steps is provided at the top of this article under the heading “How to identify a Roku 1”.
You’ll need to follow those instructions step by step to get it working again.
Roku Netflix Keeps Buffering
You may load up a TV show or movie onto Netflix and it will take forever to load. And is typically a sign that your internet is not working, or someone is using a lot of bandwidth.
You’ll want to check that someone isn’t downloading an update, or trying to stream using the same Wi-Fi connection. Other times your modem might need to be reset or replaced. To fix it you first want to unplug your Roku and plug it in again, and then check your internet connection is working 100%.
When Netflix is buffering it means the internet is running slow or not at all. You can check the speed on your internet by using the website Speedtest.net.
It’s a free tool that will test your download and upload speed. And will help you identify if your internet is running correctly.
If you think there’s a problem with your internet you can call your internet service provider and have them check your internet connection over the phone.
Roku Won’t Play Sound on Netflix
You might have a home theater system with surround sound. Or, you might just use your TV speakers. Either way, here’s how to get the sound working on the Netflix app on your Roku.
As a whole you’ll want to first try playing another movie or TV show. If another TV show or movie works it means that the TV show or movie you were trying to watch is broken. And you should report the problem to Netflix so they can fix it. Otherwise it’s an issue with the speaker settings.
You can check if your speaker system is the problem by unplugging your speakers/home theater system. That will make the sound come out of the speakers built into your TV. If the sound works fine on your TV speakers, then you’ll need to make sure your speaker system is set up correctly.
To do that it’s best to read the manual for your home theater or speaker system to make sure you’ve followed all the steps to set it up correctly. And it’s set to the right input.
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ReadyToDIY is the owner of this article. This post was published on April 14, 2021.