How to Use Apple AirTags to Find Your TV Remote

Losing your TV remote is one of the most frustrating things that can happen when you’re settling down to watch your favorite show. And if you have children, you likely know this problem all too well.

Fortunately, with the simple addition of an Apple AirTag to your setup, you can keep track of your TV remote and, when it goes missing, use the FindMy app on your iPhone — or voice commands to Siri via a HomePod or HomePod Mini, to easily find your remote.

In this article, we will explore how to use Apple AirTags to keep track of your TV remotes.

Firstly, you need to ensure that your TV remote has a some way to attach an Airtag to it. This isn’t something that comes out of the box, so to speak, so if your remote doesn’t have a hole or other natural attachment point, there are a number of third-party remote covers that are specifically designed to hold an AirTag.

Apple TV Remote AirTag Attachment

For example, if you use an Apple TV, this simple remote case available on Amazon lets you attach an AirTag to the remote. Why Apple didn’t include the ability to track the Apple TV Remote’s location in the remote itself is a mystery to us, but this is a simple workaround.

This is the Apple TV AirTag remote case we use, and we love it! It have a nice feel in your hand and hold the airtag securly. Best of all, it’s super affordable. We have these on both Apple TV remotes in our home, and use the FindMy app to find the remotes literally every day.

Amazon Fire TV Remote AirTag Attachment

Just because you aren’t using an Apple TV doesn’t mean you can’t use an AirTag to keep track of your remote.

This Amazon Fire TV Stick Remote AirTag Case is what we use in the rooms where we’re using Amazon fire sticks for our TVs. It’s cheap, hold the Airtag securely and generally does the job. One downside is it makes the remote sit a bit awkwardly due to the bulge from the AirTag, while the Apple TV remote case above has a sleeker design. But for the functionality it provides, this is a minor downside.

Attaching an AirTag to Other TV Remotes

If you use a remote other than an Apple TV or Amazon Fire TV remote, don’t worry, there are still plenty of options for you.

First, there are a number of options for attaching an AirTag to, well, anything. These stick-on silicone AirTag cases are great for this use case or any other where the device or item you want to track doesn’t have a natural place to attach the AirTag.

Of course, eventually that stickiness is going to fail, and potentially leave a messy residue on your remote. So if that’s something that’s going to bother you, search around Amazon for an AirTag holding remote case that works with your specific remote.

Setting up an AirTag

Like so many other Aple products, setting up an AirTag is a delightful experiences. To set up your AirTag, you will need to have an iPhone or iPad running on iOS 14.5 or later. Open the Find My app on your iPhone or iPad and select the “Add” button at the bottom of the screen. You will be prompted to place your AirTag close to your iPhone or iPad to initiate the pairing process. Follow the instructions on the screen to complete the setup process.

Finding Your Remote Using Find My

Now, every time you misplace your remote, you can use the Find My app on your iPhone or iPad to locate it. Open the Find My app and select the “Items” tab at the bottom of the screen. You will see a list of all your connected AirTags. Select the AirTag attached to your TV remote and select the “Play Sound” button. Your remote will emit a loud sound that will help you locate it.

If you are unable to locate your remote using the “Play Sound” feature, you can use the Find My app to view the last known location of your remote. This feature works by showing you the location of your remote on a map when it was last connected to your iPhone or iPad. You can use this information to retrace your steps and find your remote.

The sky is the limit on what you can do with Apple AirTags. We even have them in the trunk of all our vehicles, so we can easily find them in a parking lot. But of all the use cases we’ve seen for these little devices, finding your lost remotes has to be the most useful!