How to Use Siri on the Apple TV

The Apple TV has improved vastly in features and content since its inception, and is now widely regarded as one of the best quality streaming devices on the market.

The Apple TV also works seamlessly with Siri.

In this article, we show you the following:

  1. How to use the Siri Remote with an Apple TV.
  2. How to use a HomePod with Apple TV.
  3. How to ask Siri to show live TV.
  4. How to use Siri to search for content on an Apple TV.
  5. How to use Siri to control playback on an Apple TV.
  6. How to open Apps with Siri on an Apple TV.
  7. How to use Siri to play Apple Music.
  8. Other things Siri can do.
  9. Which regions support Siri on the Apple TV.
  10. How to turn Siri off on an Apple TV.

How to use the Siri Remote with an Apple TV

Hold down the Siri button on the Siri Remote, say what you want, then let go of the Siri button. For example, hold down the Siri button and say:

Top Gun Maverick.

Siri searches installed apps (compatible apps will depend on your country) and shows your viewing options or the answer to your question.

Use the Siri Remote to control your Apple TV
Use the Siri Remote to control your Apple TV

Siri on the Apple TV doesn’t give audio feedback but displays text on the screen to avoid interrupting your viewing or listening.

Tip: If you press and release the Siri button, Siri will give you ideas on what you can use it for.

How to use a HomePod with Apple TV

If you have a HomePod , just say “Hey Siri” followed by your request. Make sure you say “on the TV” at the end, though. For example:

Hey Siri, watch Severance on the TV.

Ask Siri to watch live TV on an Apple TV

Siri can also show you live TV content if installed apps support the feature in your location.

Watch BBC One live.

Watch ESPN live.

How to search for movies and TV shows with Siri

You can search content on your Apple TV by title, genre, cast, rating, age, popularity, director, and actors.

For example:

Find Star Wars.

Show me some fantasy movies.

Show me movies starring Jennifer Lawrence.

Find me popular TV shows.

Show me new releases.

Find me new movies in 4K.

Siri can find 4K movies for you
Siri can find 4K movies for you

Once you have the results of your search, you can refine them by asking:

Only ones from this year.

Only dramas.

If you’re not sure what you want to watch, you can ask Siri to offer some suggestions to you, even narrowing it down to a particular genre:

Show new movies.

Show funny movies.

Ask Siri to show you funny movies
Ask Siri to show you funny movies

How to control playback on an Apple TV with Siri

You can use simple voice commands to control content playback on an Apple TV.

Play.

Pause.

Skip backforward five minutesseconds.

Start from the beginning.

Saying ‘What did he/she say?’ will skip back 15 seconds and turn on the subtitles.

If you’re having trouble understanding what characters are saying on screen, or wish to watch in a foreign language with subtitles, try these phrases:

Turn on subtitles.

Turn on closed captioning.

Open apps with Siri on the Apple TV

Open Disney+.

Open Hulu on the living room TV.

Find cooking apps.

Go to the App Store.

Using Siri with Apple Music

If you have a subscription to Apple Music, it’s possible to search and play music via your Apple TV.

Siri can search for music using artist names, song titles, album titles, genres, and years.

Play music from Kate Bush.

Play the latest One Republic album.

Play songs from the 1990s.

Play the top dance songs.

Play the number one song from 2020.

Show Adele songs.

Ask Siri to show you songs by an artist in Apple TV
Ask Siri to show you songs by an artist in Apple TV

To control music once it’s playing:

Play the next song.

Skip this song.

Play a song by a similar artist.

Add this song to my library.

Shuffle songs.

Siri can also play a radio station or create one for you:

Play country radio.

Create a radio station based on Beyoncé.

Other things Siri can do on the Apple TV

Besides being able to search and control TV, movies, and music, Siri offers a few other valuable services.

Find My iPhone

You can use Siri on your Apple TV to check on the location of your devices if you’ve set them up using Find My. Just say something like:

Where’s my iPad?

Play a sound on my Apple Watch.

Where’s my iPhone?

Check the weather

Siri can check the weather locally and worldwide to the same extent as on the iPhone or iPad.

How warm is it today?

How’s the weather in Seattle?

When is sunrise in Berlin?

Get a weather forecast on the Apple TV
Get a weather forecast on the Apple TV

Check stock prices

Find prices for stocks and worldwide markets.

How’s Apple stock today?

How is the NYSE 100 doing today?

Check sports results

Find out the latest scores and ask for information about players and teams.

When is the next Super Bowl?

Ask Siri for sports information on an Apple TV
Ask Siri for sports information on an Apple TV

Open and search for apps and content

Open installed apps on your Apple TV.

Open Netflix.

Open Settings.

Open Photos.

Find lifestyle apps.

Find podcasts about movies.

Search YouTube for movie trailers.

Find cooking tips on YouTube.

How to turn Siri on and off on an Apple TV?

To enable or disable Siri on your Apple TV, go to:

Settings > General > Siri

Siri settings on the Apple TV
Siri settings on the Apple TV

Where is Siri available on the Apple TV?

Siri can be used on the Apple TV 4K and Apple TV (4th generation) in these countries, regions, and languages:

Australia (English), Austria (German), Belgium (Dutch, French), Brazil (Portuguese), Canada (English, French), France (French), Germany (German), Hong Kong (Cantonese), Korea (Korean), India (English), Ireland (English), Italy (Italian), Japan (Japanese), Mexico (Spanish), Netherlands (Dutch), New Zealand (English), Norway (Norwegian Bokmål), Russia (Russian), Spain (Spanish), Sweden (Swedish), Switzerland (French, German, Italian), Taiwan (Mandarin), UK (English), US (English, Spanish).

Want to discover more about using Siri, Apple’s popular virtual assistant? We’ve written a helpful collection of tutorials full of techniques for using apps, dictation, using Siri Shortcuts, and a comprehensive beginner’s guide to activating and using Siri.