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Use Bluetooth headphones with your Amazon Fire TV

Learn how to pair headphones, speakers and other Bluetooth devices to Amazon's streamers.

Rick Broida Senior Editor
Rick Broida is the author of numerous books and thousands of reviews, features and blog posts. He writes CNET's popular Cheapskate blog and co-hosts Protocol 1: A Travelers Podcast (about the TV show Travelers). He lives in Michigan, where he previously owned two escape rooms (chronicled in the ebook "I Was a Middle-Aged Zombie").
Rick Broida
2 min read
Watch this: Pair Bluetooth headphones with an Amazon Fire TV box

Last week, Amazon announced some updates for its Fire TV and Fire TV Stick streaming devices, including hotel-friendly sign-in for the latter and support for Bluetooth devices for the former. Update: A more recent update added the same Bluetooth capabilities to the Fire TV Stick.

Let's talk Bluetooth. That update means you can now enjoy private listening with your favorite pair of Bluetooth headphones, a feature that was previously limited to the Roku 3 (which relies on wired headphones plugged in to the remote).

You can also pair a Bluetooth speaker, which could come in handy if you're using your Fire TV box with, say, a projector that lacks speakers of its own. Or if you just want better or closer sound than what your TV speakers can deliver.

If you've ever paired a pair of headphones or a speaker to your smartphone or tablet, the process is fairly similar. Even so, here's how to make it happen with your Fire TV:

Step 1: Power up your Bluetooth device and put it in pairing mode.

Step 2: Turn on your TV or projector and switch to the input that accommodates your Fire TV.

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Rick Broida/CNET

Step 3: In the Fire TV's main menu, scroll down to and select Settings > Controllers and Bluetooth Devices.

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Rick Broida/CNET

Step 4: Select Other Bluetooth Devices.

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Rick Broida/CNET

Step 5: Wait for your headphones or speaker to appear in the Discovered Devices list. Once it does, select it and wait for pairing to complete.

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Rick Broida/CNET

And that's it! Now your Fire TV's audio will get routed to the paired device. If you want to disable the connection, just turn the device off.