How to Connect Netflix to TV from Your Phone

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Grace
July 16, 2025

The Netflix app is widely available on various devices, allowing you to freely choose how to watch your favorite shows and movies. However, if you’re outside your main household, such as at a vacation home, Airbnb, or hotel, Netflix might limit your watching on TV. A quick fix for this is to connect your phone to the TV.

Here are five ways to get Netflix from your Android or iOS phone onto your TV screen. While some methods require an ad-free Netflix subscription, you’ll also find options for connecting your phone to the TV even if you’re on the Standard with ads plan.

Related:

Netflix 2nd Screen

  • Netflix Plan Required: Ad-free plans (Standard, Premium, etc.)
  • Compatible Phones: Android and iOS

The Netflix app on mobile devices supports direct casting to a larger screen via Chromecast. However, you need to subscribe to an ad-free plan. If you’re on the Standard with Ads plan, you won’t see the Cast icon on your Netflix app. To use this feature, upgrade your Netflix subscription to Standard or Premium.

Netflix 2nd Screen is how Netflix connects your phone to your TV when casting to a newer Chromecast device or Google TV with Chromecast. Your TV will launch its installed Netflix app, requiring you to sign in. Your phone acts primarily as a remote, as the Netflix app on your TV takes over the streaming process.

How to Use:

  1. Connect your phone and TV to the same Wi-Fi network.
  2. Ensure you’re logged in to the same Netflix account on both your phone and TV.
  3. Open the Netflix app on your phone and tap the Cast icon.
  4. Select your TV from the available devices.
  5. Play the title and it will now stream on your TV.
cast netflix to tv

Chromecast

  • Netflix Plan Required: Ad-free plans (Standard, Premium, etc.)
  • Compatible Phones: Android and iOS

If you are on an ad-free Netflix plan, TVs with Chromecast built-in allow you to cast directly from the Netflix app on your phone to the TV. This doesn’t require you to install the Netflix app on your TV. Or you don’t need to sign in to the Netflix TV app.

How to Use:

  1. Ensure that your phone and TV are connected to the same Wi-Fi network.
  2. Open the Netflix app on your phone. Tap the Cast icon (in the top or bottom right corner) and select your TV from the displayed devices.
  3. Play a movie or show and enjoy seamless viewing on your TV.

Note: Chromecast and Netflix 2nd Screen use the same Cast icon. The main difference is how your phone connects to your TV.

Cable

  • Netflix Plan Required: Both with Ads and Ad-free plans
  • Compatible Phones: Android and iOS

To watch Netflix content on TV from your phone, you can connect your Android or newer iPhones/iPads to the TV directly with an HDMI Type-C cable. For older iPhones, a Lightning to HDMI adapter is required. Your phone screen will be mirrored onto the TV screen. Keep in mind that when connecting your phone to watch Netflix on TV, your phone cannot be used for other tasks.

How to Use:

  1. Connect your phone to your TV’s HDMI port with the appropriate cable/adapter.
  2. Use your TV remote to select the Input Source.
  3. Open the Netflix app on your phone and play a title. Now you can enjoy the video on your TV.

Screen Mirroring

  • Netflix Plan Required: Both with Ads and Ad-free plans
  • Compatible Phones: Android and iOS

Screen mirroring allows you to wirelessly display the exact content of your phone to your TV or computer. This feature is commonly supported on both iOS and Android devices. You can use it to stream photos, videos, and audio to larger screens. What you see on your phone, you see on the TV.

However, keep in mind that when using screen mirroring to watch Netflix on your TV, your phone’s screen must remain active. It will prevent you from using your phone for other tasks.

How to Use:

  1. Open the Netflix app on your iPhone or Android and play a title.
  2. Swipe down from the top right of your phone to access the Control Center.
  3. Tap the “Screen Mirroring” icon and select your TV. It may have other names such as screen projection, wireless projection, etc.
screen mirroring android

Note: Some users have reported that Screen Mirroring Netflix content only works with certain or older phone models. If your phone cannot screen mirror Netflix to your TV, continue to the next section to explore how to download Netflix videos to MP4/MKV. Then you can Screen Mirror these local files to your TV when playing them on your Android and iOS device.

AirPlay

  • Netflix Plan Required: Both with Ads and Ad-free plans
  • Compatible Phones: iOS

AirPlay is Apple’s wireless communication protocol, allowing you to stream audio, video, and photos from your Apple devices, like iPhones, to compatible receivers. These include other Apple devices such as Macs and Apple TVs, and smart TVs from popular brands like Samsung, LG, Sony, and Vizio.

However, the Netflix app no longer supports AirPlay from iPhone, iPad, or Mac. If you want to AirPlay a Netflix show or movie to your TV, you’ll need to download the title as local files on your iPhone. While Netflix allows both ad-supported and ad-free users to download titles for offline viewing, these downloaded videos are limited to playback within the Netflix app on your mobile device. To use the AirPlay feature from your iPhone, a professional Netflix downloader like Pazu Netflix Video Downloader can help.

Pazu Netflix Video Downloader can download Netflix movies and TV shows as MP4 and MKV files on Mac and Windows. It converts Netflix content with high quality, up to 1080p, and preserves the original subtitles and audio tracks. Once downloaded, you can watch them on any compatible device or player, as well as Screen Mirror or AirPlay them to a larger screen.

Netflix video downloader

Download Netflix movies & TV shows to MP4 with HD quality.

  • Download movies & TV shows from Netflix.
  • Download videos in 1080P.
  • Preserve audio tracks and subtitles.
  • Fast downloading speed.

How to Use:

  1. Download, install, and launch Pazu Netflix Video Downloader on your Mac or Windows. Log in to your Netflix account.
    • If you’ve purchased a registration for the downloader, click the key icon and enter your code to unlock the full features. If not, you can proceed with the free trial.
  2. Click the gear icon to choose download formats, video codec, audio, subtitle languages, and more.
video settings

  1. Search for a title you want to download from Netflix. Click the Download icon next to it.
    • For a movie, the download starts right away.
    • For a TV show, all episodes are selected for download by default. Deselect any episodes you don’t need.
add movies or shows

  1. After downloading, click History to find the downloaded files.
find-downloads
  1. Transfer the downloaded Netflix videos to your iPhone. When playing the video, select the Share button > AirPlay > your TV from the available device list. Now you can enjoy the Netflix title on your TV.
airplay netflix to tv