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How to reset an Amazon Fire TV Stick

The main Amazon Fire TV home screen.
Phil Nickinson / Digital Trends

The Amazon Fire TV Stick is one of the best streaming devices available right now, and for good reason. It lets you stream movies and shows from the most popular streaming services, gives you access to gaming, and even lets you surf the web. However, there does come a time when you might want to reset your Fire TV device.

It doesn't really matter why you want to reset your Amazon Fire TV device; the important part is that its an easy process and should only take a few short minutes. Let's take a look.

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Difficulty

Easy

Duration

5 minutes

What You Need

  • Amazon Fire TV Stick (of any ilk)

  • Your Fire TV remote control

If you've decided to reset your Amazon Fire TV device, it's worth understanding that it means you are resetting your device to factory settings. This means it will remove all downloaded content, user settings, and in-app purchases. Before starting a reset, be sure to remove any USB drives and to back up any content you purchased from third parties.

While resetting your Amazon Fire TV Stick can solve most problems, if you're still running into trouble, it's worth taking a look at our list of the most common Amazon Fire TV Stick issues (and how to fix them). Chances are, we have details on how to fix your problem so you can stop stressing and relax with your favorite show.

The quickest way to reset your Fire TV device

Grab your remote and simultaneously press and hold the back and right directional buttons. After 10 seconds, a confirmation message will appear on screen. Either confirm or wait a few seconds to factory reset your Fire TV device.

A screen that says "Resetting your Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Max to factory defaults."
Phil Nickinson / Digital Trends

How to reset a Fire TV Stick on the console

Resetting an on the console itself is also quite easy. For what it's worth, we're showing you how to do this on an Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Max, but the process should be exactly the same for all of Amazon's Fire TV devices. Let's go!

Step 1: Grab your Fire TV remote control and scroll over to the Settings icon. (It's actually easier to just hold down the Alexa button and say "Open settings.")

The Amazon Fire TV settings screen.
Phil Nickinson / Digital Trends

Step 2: Scroll down to My Fire TV.

The My Fire TV option in the Fire TV settings.
Phil Nickinson / Digital Trends

Step 3: Choose Reset to Factory Defaults.

The "Reset to factory defaults" option in Fire TV settings.
Phil Nickinson / Digital Trends

Step 4: Confirm that you want to reset the device by choosing Reset.

A reset confirmation for Amazon Fire TV Sticks.
Phil Nickinson / Digital Trends

How to reset a Fire TV Smart TV

Step 1: Select Settings on your Fire TV

Step 2: Select Device & Software.

Step 3: Select Reset to Factory Defaults.

It's as simple as that. The Fire TV Stick (or whatever Fire TV device you're working with) will take a few minutes to actually reset, which isn't uncommon for Android-based devices. After that, you'll be ready to set up your Fire TV Stick anew.

Phil Nickinson
Former Section Editor, Audio/Video
Phil spent the 2000s making newspapers with the Pensacola (Fla.) News Journal, the 2010s with Android Central and then the…
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