How to Stop Your TV From Randomly Turning Itself On or Off

You’re woken up by the sound of voices talking in the living room. You grab your heaviest frying pan and sneak in, only to find the TV on—but no one is watching! Don’t worry, it’s not a ghost. (Well, it’s probably not a ghost.) If your TV is turning itself on or off randomly, it’s probably another piece of tech interfering with your TV’s slumber. Here’s how to troubleshoot.

1. Unplug Your TV (and Plug It Into the Wall)

As with all technology, try turning it off and on again before doing anything else. Except in this case, unplug your TV completely, hold the power button down for 10 seconds, and then plug it back in to see if the problem persists. 

If you’re using a surge protector, try plugging it directly into a wall outlet to remove that as a potential variable. If it was already plugged into the wall, try another outlet—ideally one that isn’t connected to a switch. You may also want to plug it into a surge protector in this case.

2. Turn Off HDMI-CEC

(Credit: PCMag)

If I were a betting man, I’d put money on HDMI-CEC being the culprit of your power woes. Consumer Electronics Control(Opens in a new window) (CEC) is a feature that allows your devices to control each other over HDMI. For example, when you turn on your PlayStation, CEC can automatically turn your TV on and switch it to the correct input, without you having to grab your other remote.

It can be a very convenient feature when it works as intended. However, when it misbehaves, it means your TV will turn on and off from misinterpreted signals. Open your TV’s settings menu and disable CEC to see if it solves the problem. If it does, but you still want to use CEC, you’ll have to start disabling CEC on your other devices until you find the one sending out the random signal.

It may be called something different, depending on your TV’s manufacturer. Sony calls it Bravia Sync, Samsung calls it Anynet+, and LG calls it SimpLink. You may have to search around to see what the setting is called on your TV.

3. Disconnect From Wi-Fi

Ironically, the “smart” features in many TVs can often make them seem a little dumb. If your TV is connected to other smart home devices, like SmartThings, Alexa, Google Home, or Logitech Harmony, it’s possible some routine or automation is powering your TV on or off by accident. If your TV has a built-in casting ability, your phone could even be turning it on every time you try to watch a YouTube video.

Before you go hunting through each of these apps, open your TV’s settings and disconnect it from Wi-Fi for a few days—if the smart services can’t connect, they can’t send those accidental signals. If turning off Wi-Fi solves the problem, you may have to start digging through your other smart apps and devices to see if one is routinely messing with your TV.

4. Check Your TV’s Power Timer

Many modern TVs have a built-in feature that lets you turn the TV on or off at a specific time of day. If you find your TV is turning on or off around the same time like clockwork, it’s possible this was set up accidentally by a child or cat sitting on the remote. Poke around your TV’s settings to see if you can find the power-scheduling feature and ensure it’s disabled.

5. Change the Batteries in Your Remote

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If your remote is running low on battery, it could be sending out errant signals as its power fluctuates. Try swapping a new pair of batteries into your remote to see if that solves the problem. While you’re at it, give the buttons a good cleaning. If the power button is sticky from that time you spilled soda everywhere, it could be as simple as the button sticking down and turning off the TV.

6. Look for Nearby TVs

While most TVs shouldn’t interfere with one another, TVs of similar makes could easily intercept remote commands from each other if they’re close by. If you have a Vizio in the living room and a Vizio in the room across the hall, for example, your remote signals from one room could affect the TV in another. 

You might even have a neighbor using a universal remote that’s sending compatible codes to your TV next door—it’s rare, but it can happen. (I’ve even heard stories of direct sunlight streaming through a window confusing the infrared sensors and turning the TV on—though I’ve never experienced this one myself.)

7. Adjust Your TV’s Eco Mode

Many modern TVs don’t turn themselves off entirely when you press that power button. Instead, they go into a low-powered sleep state, which allows them to use many of the features described above (like turning on when someone casts a YouTube video from their phone). 

If you can’t seem to figure out the problem, you could try enabling your TV’s Eco Mode. This might have a different name for each brand, but it will essentially turn your TV off entirely when you’re done watching. A few built-in features might be lost, but it should at least give you some peace while you hunt down the problem.

You might also want to check the Eco Mode on your soundbar or other devices, as they could be sending signals to the TV when they go into sleep mode.

8. Update the Firmware

(Credit: PCMag)

Again, as with all tech, sometimes these problems are software bugs fixed by a simple update. I list this toward the bottom, however, because TV firmware updates can sometimes cause their own problems. For this reason, I only recommend updating if it’s absolutely necessary. 

If you haven’t tracked down the source of the problem, head into your TV’s settings and see if there’s a firmware update available. Some TVs may require you to install it manually using a flash drive, in which case check the manufacturer’s support site to see if they’ve released any updates for your model.

9. Perform a Factory Reset

Finally, if nothing else works, it may be time to go nuclear and reset your TV to its factory settings. Whatever setting was causing the problem should hopefully go back to its default. Just make sure that if you plan on changing your settings back, you change them one-by-one with a few days in between. This way, if the problem restarts, you know exactly which setting is the cause.

If a factory reset doesn’t work, contact the manufacturer’s support. There may be a known bug or hardware issue with your TV model, and a technician might be able to solve the problem once and for all.