Lost your Roku remote?

Lost the Roku remote? Your phone replaces it over Wi-Fi — D-pad, volume, inputs, typing — with no hardware to buy. First, every Roku device — Select, Plus and Pro Series TVs, the sticks, the Ultra — answers on the same Roku ECP port, so one app covers the house.

Don't tear the couch apart. Your phone controls Roku over Wi-Fi in under 30 seconds.

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No 2-tap paywalls · No credit card · Basic controls free forever

Universal TV Remote App — control your Roku TV from your iPhone

4.8 ★

App Store

FREE

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16+

TV brands

Roku hardware map

Which Roku TV you have — and how it takes commands

Roku is both an operating system it licenses to other TV makers and, since 2023, a TV brand of its own. Every one of these speaks the same control protocol — the External Control Protocol, plain HTTP on port 8060 — which is why a Roku player and a Roku-made TV behave identically to a phone app.

Roku TV model lines, the operating system each one runs, how it is reached over the network, whether pairing is required, and where the on-set button is.
Model line / series	TV operating system	How it is controlled over the network	Pairing	On-set button
Roku Select Series TV	Roku OS (2023 onward)	Roku ECP — HTTP on port 8060, found by SSDP	None on most units	Single button, underside or rear
Roku Plus Series TV	Roku OS (2023 onward)	Roku ECP — HTTP on port 8060, found by SSDP	None on most units	Single button, underside or rear
Roku Pro Series TV	Roku OS (2024 onward)	Roku ECP — HTTP on port 8060, found by SSDP	None on most units	Single button, underside or rear
Roku Streaming Stick / Streaming Stick 4K	Roku OS	Roku ECP — HTTP on port 8060, found by SSDP	None on most units	None — it is a stick; use the TV’s own button for power
Roku Ultra	Roku OS	Roku ECP over Wi-Fi or wired Ethernet	None on most units	Reset pinhole on the housing

Roku-made TVs are sold under the Roku name only in North America; elsewhere Roku OS reaches you through a licensee such as TCL, Philips or Sanyo.

Reaching the menu with no remote

One button, and it does two different things

There is no button path into the network menu: Roku expects a remote or a phone. If the TV was never on your Wi-Fi, plug in Ethernet or a USB keyboard to get through first-time setup, then switch to wireless.

Known Roku failure mode

The app finds nothing, or finds the TV but the buttons do nothing

What helps: Set Control by mobile apps to Enabled. If discovery itself is failing, the cause is usually the router: SSDP is multicast traffic, and AP isolation, guest networks and some mesh setups drop it. Put phone and TV on the same SSID, or enter the Roku’s IP address by hand.

Complete Roku TV Remote Replacement

Every function of your lost Roku TV remote — volume, navigation, HDMI switching, app launching — now on your iPhone over Wi-Fi.

Free

No trial
No subscription

★★★★★

4.8

App Store
170+ ratings

Auto-Discovery. Zero Config.

Free wireless remote replacement iOS app for Roku OS. Connects over HTTP REST (Roku ECP) (port 8060) via SSDP auto-discovery. No pairing code required — connection is instant. Complete replacement for a lost Roku physical remote — D-pad, volume, input switching, and media controls. No subscription, no credit card.

How it works

Control Your Roku TV Without a Remote

Step 1

Power On Your Roku

Press the physical button on your Roku TV chassis, or unplug and replug your Roku streaming stick to reboot it.

Step 2

Download the App

Get the Universal TV Remote app for free. No credit card, no sign-up required.

Step 3

Join the Same Wi-Fi

Make sure your phone and Roku device are on the same home Wi-Fi network.

Step 4

Select Roku and Control

The app auto-discovers your Roku. Tap to connect and instantly navigate channels, volume, and streaming apps.

FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Specific answers for Roku TV users — including which Roku lines run which system.

Does this app work with all Roku devices over Wi-Fi?

Yes. Our app uses Roku's official External Control Protocol (ECP) which is available on all Roku streaming devices (Roku Express, Express 4K+, Streaming Stick 4K, Ultra 4K+) and all Roku TVs from brands including TCL, Hisense, Philips, and Sharp. The device must be on Roku OS 9.2 or later (2019+) and on the same Wi-Fi network as your iPhone. ECP is enabled by default — no configuration needed on the Roku side.

My Roku is off and the remote is lost — how do I turn it on?

Roku streaming sticks and boxes must be powered on externally: the Streaming Stick is powered by the TV's USB port (turn on the TV using its physical button), and the Roku Ultra and Express use a dedicated power adapter — disconnect and reconnect it to reboot. For TCL Roku TVs, use the physical button on the TV chassis (usually on the rear center or left side) to power on. Once Roku OS loads, open the app to connect.

Can the app do private listening like the Roku Enhanced Remote Pro?

Yes. Private listening streams the TV's audio directly to your iPhone's headphone jack or Bluetooth headphones while muting the TV speakers — the same feature offered by the Roku Enhanced Voice Remote Pro (model RCAL7R). It works on all Roku streaming devices and Roku TVs that are connected to the same Wi-Fi network as your iPhone. Activate it from the Now Playing screen inside the app.

Does Roku have its own remote app for this TV?

The official Roku app. Roku publishes its own mobile app, and on a Roku-made TV it is the natural first stop. What it will not do is control the Samsung in the next room — every brand outside Roku OS needs a different protocol entirely.

Where is the button on the Roku TV itself, and can it reach the settings menu?

Roku TVs ship with a single button, usually on the underside of the panel or on the rear near the ports — manufacturers keep moving it, so check your own set. With the TV off a short press powers it on; with the TV already on, a short press opens the Input List rather than doing nothing, and a long press turns it off. There is no button path into the network menu: Roku expects a remote or a phone. If the TV was never on your Wi-Fi, plug in Ethernet or a USB keyboard to get through first-time setup, then switch to wireless.

Why would a remote app fail to find my Roku TV?

Roku has a switch that governs exactly this. Settings → System → Advanced system settings → Control by mobile apps decides whether your Roku will accept keypress commands from anything other than its own remote, and Roku’s developer documentation states that from Roku OS 14.1 it has to be set to Enabled for certain ECP keypress commands to land. Set Control by mobile apps to Enabled. If discovery itself is failing, the cause is usually the router: SSDP is multicast traffic, and AP isolation, guest networks and some mesh setups drop it. Put phone and TV on the same SSID, or enter the Roku’s IP address by hand.