The Tech
Grandkid

The Tech Grandkid · thetechgrandkid.com/guides/tv-captions/

Turn on captions so you can read what people say on TV

For: Roku, Fire TV, Apple TV, Samsung TVs and streaming apps

Last checked October 14, 2026 against official help from Roku, Amazon, Apple, Samsung and Netflix. Written for Roku, Fire TV, Apple TV 4K with tvOS 27 and Samsung smart TVs.

Captions put the words people say on the bottom of the screen. They help when voices are hard to make out or you need the volume low.

This page is for you if

  • It's hard to follow what people are saying
  • You want the words shown at the bottom of the screen
  • Captions show in one app but not in another

Good to know first

Do the step for the box or TV you watch on. Some apps, like Netflix, have their own caption setting. If captions show in one app but not another, use the last step in that app. Captions only appear when the show or channel includes them.

Do these steps

  1. Roku

    Press Home on the Roku remote. Go to Settings, then Accessibility, then Captions mode, and choose On always. If you don't see Accessibility, choose Captions instead.

  2. Fire TV

    Start playing a show. Press the Menu button on the remote. Choose Subtitles, then pick an option to turn them on. Press Menu again to go back to the show.

  3. Apple TV

    Open Settings. Go to Accessibility, then Subtitles and Captioning. Turn on Closed Captions and SDH.

  4. Samsung TV

    Press Home and open Settings. Choose General, then Accessibility, then Caption Settings. Select Caption to turn it on. The menus can differ by model and year.

  5. Netflix and other apps

    Start the show. On a TV, press up or down on the remote. On a phone or computer, tap or click the screen. Choose Audio & Subtitles and pick the subtitles you want.

Good to know

  • On a Samsung remote, press and hold Mute for a shortcut menu that includes Captions. If the remote has no Mute button, press and hold the Volume button.
  • To make captions bigger on a Roku, go to Settings, Accessibility, Caption style. On an Apple TV, go to Settings, Accessibility, Subtitles and Captioning, Style.
  • For other TVs and streaming boxes, search the maker's help pages for "captions".

Check it with the source

We wrote these steps from these official pages. If your screen looks different, the official page is always right.

Still stuck?

Tell Buster what you see, in your own words.

Ask Buster something else

Or email us at [email protected]. Never send us a password or a code.

Other fixes people need