How to enable subtitles on your Roku device

Roku subtitles are impressively robust

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

Quick steps

Quick steps

Rokustreaming sticks and devices are among the best around when it comes to offering an all-in-one collection of the best streaming subscription services out there.  Their low cost and relative ease of use makes them both available and accessible to an incredibly wide variety of audiences.

Thebest Roku streaming devicesare also notable in their options for user accessibility, especially so when it comes to options for subtitles. If you need an all-encompassing subtitles solution when watching movies and shows on thebest streaming servicesavailable on Roku, rest assured that your device has you covered in that regard.

But how do you enable subtitles on your Roku device, and what settings are available to you? That’s what we’re going to delve into in this Roku guide. Read on to find out how to enable subtitles on Roku, and how to tailor them to suit your needs.

Tools and requirements

Tools and requirements

How to enable subtitles on your Roku device

Boot up your Roku device on your TV. When you’re at the home dashboard, use your remote to scroll down to theSettingsmenu, and click eitherOKor hitRighton your remote’s directional pad.

Then, scroll on down toSubtitles,and once again clickOKorRighton the directional pad, and you’ll be taken to the rather robust Subtitles menu.

Before toggling the various subtitles settings, we’ll first need to enable them. To do so, highlightSubtitles modeand clickOK,then select theOn alwaysoption. This will enable Roku’s own subtitles mode across all streaming apps.

Once that’s enabled, feel free to back out of the Settings menu and check out one of your favorite apps to see if the subtitles have appeared. It’s worth noting, however, that some apps may override Roku’s subtitles settings with their own.

Get the best Black Friday deals direct to your inbox, plus news, reviews, and more.

Sign up to be the first to know about unmissable Black Friday deals on top tech, plus get all your favorite TechRadar content.

In cases like this, it’s best to check subtitle settings on a per-app basis, which should hopefully allow you to tailor your subtitles as close to Roku’s options as possible.

Roku subtitles – what settings can I adjust?

Roku’s subtitles options are impressively robust, and offer a variety of different settings that allow you to tailor your subtitles just how you need them. Handily, all subtitle options within the settings menu feature a preview window, to show you exactly how you subtitles will appear on-screen. The following is a list of options available to you, and a brief description as to what each of them does:

More Roku guides

Just bought a Roku? Learnhow to connect a Roku streaming stick to your TVfor the first time.

Once that’s done, consider reading up onhow to connect a Roku streaming stick to your Wi-Fi.

Want to learn more about your Roku’s secrets? Our guide on how to access5 secret Roku menusis for you.

Rhys is TRG’s Hardware Editor, and has been part of the TechRadar team for more than two years. Particularly passionate about high-quality third-party controllers and headsets, as well as the latest and greatest in fight sticks and VR, Rhys strives to provide easy-to-read, informative coverage on gaming hardware of all kinds. As for the games themselves, Rhys is especially keen on fighting and racing games, as well as soulslikes and RPGs.

The Apple TV 4K just got even more interesting for projectors in tvOS 18.2

Amazon just dropped the Fire TV Stick HD, and it comes with a nice surprise in the box

NYT Strands today — hints, answers and spangram for Sunday, November 10 (game #252)