Roku is one of the most popular digital media players and streaming devices. They are known for their reliability and user-friendliness. Their Enhanced remote is very thoughtfully designed.
Sometimes, you will find your Roku remote blinking green light and wonder what that means.
The blinking green light on Roku remote means that it got unpaired from the device and is now in pairing mode again.
Roku remote light blinking will continue unless it is paired again.
It can be annoying but it’s not something that can’t be fixed with a bit of troubleshooting.
In this guide, I am going to list down a number of methods you can try to fix your remote pairing problem.
Roku remote blinking green light – what it means?
There are two types of remotes that are offered by Roku:
- Standard IR remote
- An Enhanced Roku Remote.
The standard IR remote uses familiar old-school infrared technology to control the device. It has to be pointed directly at the device for it to work.
You don’t need to pair it to the device.
The Enhanced Roku remote uses a wireless network (Wifi) to connect to the device.
What’s unique about the enhanced remote is that it can be paired to your Roku device.
Once paired, you can use the remote without pointing it at the device.
These remotes have a pairing button as well as an indicator light hidden under the battery cover that helps with the Roku enhanced remote pairing.
When you press the pairing button on the back of the remote, the remote will enter pairing mode and the light will start blinking green.
The light should turn off once the remote is paired successfully.
But at times, the pairing doesn’t go as smoothly as expected and the green light blinks.
What Causes the Roku Remote to Blink Green Light Continuously?
Although it’s normal for the Roku Enhanced remote to blink green during the pairing mode, it should stop once the device is paired.
Here are a few reasons that might stop your Roku remote from pairing and cause the green light to blink continuously.
1. The Remote pairing is interrupted
As previously mentioned, the green light on a Roku remote control indicates that the remote is pairing to a Roku device, whether it’s a TV screen, a set-top box, or a Roku Streaming Stick.
As the green light starts blinking, the remote is sending and receiving signals to and from a compatible device to establish a connection.
Once the remote is paired, the remote should stop blinking.
Therefore, if the Roku remote keeps unpairing, the remote will blink continuously, trying to connect to a compatible device.
Interruptions here can be in many forms, such as:
- Physical obstacles in the way between the remote and the Roku device
- Interference with signals from devices around the house that use the same wireless frequency.
- The remote is too far apart so the two devices are not in range.
2. Problem with the batteries
Another common issue that also causes the Roku remote to blink continuously is problems with the batteries.
If the batteries are low on charge, the range of the remote is drastically reduced, and the remote may not be able to pair properly with other devices. This will cause the remote to blink continuously.
This is the most common reason, but batteries for Roku remote are easily available.
3. One of the devices is malfunctioning
If your remote is close to the Roku TV or streaming device and has working batteries but still isn’t working, there might be a chance that either your remote or your Roku device is malfunctioning.
To figure out which is the culprit, the easiest thing to do is test your remote and Roku devices with other counterparts.
For example, you can pair your Roku remote with other compatible Roku devices or use other Roku remotes to see which one isn’t working.
How to Solve the Green Light Blinking in Roku Remote
Now that you know what the blinking green light in Roku remotes means, here are all the methods that you can use to troubleshoot it.
1. Reset the Remote Pairing
Let’s start with one of the most effective solutions to fixing this problem. Sometimes, the Roku remote will unpair due to some bug or signal conflict.
In that case, all you need to do is to re-pair the Roku remote and you’re good to go. Here’s how to do it step by step.
- Start by making sure that the TV is ON
- Take the batteries out of your Roku remote
- Unplug your Roku device to kill off its power completely.
- Wait for 10 to 30 seconds.
- Plug your Roku device again and wait for the device to boot up fully until it reaches the home screen.
- Put the working batteries back into the Roku remote in the correct orientation.
- Press and hold the pairing button for 5 seconds or until the remote starts blinking green.
- After a few seconds, the Roku device should display a message saying “Pairing Remote” on the screen.
- Once the remote is paired, the message will go away, and the remote should stop blinking.
- The remote should now function properly. Test it out.
2. Replace the Batteries
Your Roku remote connects to the device over Wifi signals.
As I said above, weak batteries will lead to weak Wi-Fi signals, which will lead to unsuccessful pairing and can put the green light into an endless blinking loop.
If you haven’t replaced the battery in a long time, take the batteries out and replace them with a fresh pair.
All Roku remotes use AA batteries (preferably alkaline), whether rechargeable or not.
If your rechargeable battery is out of charge, you should also take them out and recharge them.
Ideally, a good alkaline battery should last around 4 to 6 months in your Roku remote, depending on how frequently you use it.
3. Restore factory settings on the Roku device
Sometimes, your functional Roku remote might be blinking continuously because the Roku device is malfunctioning.
In that case, you might need to reset the device so that it works properly again.
Resetting the device restores factory default settings and removes any bug that is blocking the correct flow of processes.
Luckily, you don’t need the remote for that!
Instead, you can reset your Roku device by checking its back and looking for any button or pinhole with the word “Reset” written above or on it. (See the image below)
The button may be quite small, so make sure to look for it carefully or check the device’s manual.
Press and hold the Reset button for about 10 seconds or until the device’s light starts blinking. Once it’s done, set up your device again.
Once the device is reset and fully reboots, the remote should pair successfully. If you are still getting the continuous green blinking light, keep reading.
4. Home Wifi might be the culprit
Roku remotes use a 2.4 GHz frequency to connect and pair themselves with Roku devices.
It’s a pretty common band, and many other devices in our houses also use the same signal frequency, especially Wi-Fi routers and your kitchen microwaves.
Too many devices working over the same frequency may cause signal interference, which prevents the remote from pairing and puts it into an endless blinking loop.
To avoid this problem, you can simply turn your WiFi router off while pairing the remote with the device or use a modern router that uses 5 GHz waves to avoid this problem in the future.
You should also make sure that the Roku remote and the device are both within each other’s range.
The best practice here is to put the remote in a straight line of 1 foot from the device’s receiver for best results.
This also avoids low battery issues, as the range is greatly affected by battery level.
6. Pair the Remote Manually
In some cases, pairing the remote manually using the Roku device itself may prevent the green light blinking loop.
This happens when some Roku devices aren’t set up to go into pairing mode automatically when they receive a pairing signal from a remote.
To put the Roku device into pairing mode, you need another working remote to control the device, such as your Roku smartphone App.
Here’s how to do it:
- Go to the Settings menu from the home screen
- Select “Remotes & Devices”, then choose “Set up a new device”
- Select “Remote”, then “Continue”
- The TV will then ask you to press the pairing button on your remote.
- Press and hold it for 3 to 5 seconds.
The screen should show the pairing message and then the light will go away.
7. Replace the Remote or Send It to a Repair Center
If all else fails, you might want to seek the Roku support team’s help with the troubleshooting.
Roku offers agent-assisted support on its website, which you can access by clicking here and specifying your problem.
If you don’t want to go through the hassle of repairing your faulty remote, you can just get a new one.
These little accessories go pretty cheap and you can find them easily online, especially on Amazon (here is a link)
How to Use Roku Device without a remote?
An alternative way to use your Roku devices is by using the Roku app. This method will work as a spare remote control while servicing the faulty remote.
Simply download and install the Roku app on your smartphone and open it.
The app should automatically find all the Roku devices connected to the same WiFi network, allowing you to control the device with your smartphone.
I personally prefer controlling my Roku device using the smartphone App.
Especially if I have to search for something, the full keyboard on my smartphone screen is much faster and better than the onscreen keyword while using the remote.
However, each time you turn your phone screen off, the Wi-Fi gets disconnected and you have to wait for a good few seconds to reconnect when you want to use the remote app.
I don’t know if it’s a bug or just a feature in smartphones (to conserve power, maybe?), but its a bit annoying. Physical remote works faster compared to app remote.
Final Thoughts
This wraps it up for today’s guide about Roku remotes and why they blink green.
As you can see, it’s normal for the remote to blink green while pairing with a Roku device.
However, if the remote continues to blink green continuously and your device doesn’t respond, there might be an issue with your remote.
Luckily, most of these issues can be solved with the previously mentioned tricks, so try other solutions if one doesn’t work for you.
If all these methods fail to prevent your remote from blinking, your Roku remote might malfunction, and you may need professional help from the Roku support team.