5 simple ways you can instantly speed up your Fire TV Stick

• Clear the cache
• Check for a software update
• Restart your Fire TV Stick
• Turn off Device Usaga Data collection
• Disable autoplaying videos
• Looking ahead

When it comes to streaming devices, there are plenty of options, with the big players being Roku, Apple, Google, and Amazon. The main streaming stick I use every day is a Fire TV Stick 4K Max, and one of the biggest reasons is that, for the performance and features you get, the price is hard to beat — the 4K Max, in particular, often goes on sale for as low as $40.

That said, while my Fire TV Stick 4K Max is usually pretty speedy, it slows down occasionally, with apps taking longer to open or the user interface suddenly lagging. Luckily, fixing a slow Fire TV Stick is easy. If you notice yours slowing down, it doesn’t mean you need to rush out and buy a new device. Most of the time, just a minute or two in the settings menu is enough to get things moving smoothly again.

Here are five simple ways I speed up my Fire TV Stick 4K Max when it slows down, and these tips work on any Fire TV device — whether it’s the Fire TV Stick HD, 4K Select, 4K Plus, or a Fire TV.

Clear the cache

The quickest way to speed things up

The first thing I do when I notice my Fire TV Stick slowing down is clear the cache. If you’re not familiar with cache, it’s temporary files that apps store on your device to quickly access data and run more smoothly. The types of data stored in cache include image thumbnails for shows and movies, your watch history, search history, login details, and update files. Every time you open an app on your Fire TV Stick, it uses the cache to quickly store and retrieve information, which in turn helps performance.

But since every app on your Fire TV Stick has its own cache, if you have many apps on your device, that data can add up. While cache generally makes apps faster, too much of it can eventually slow things down. Clearing it helps free up storage and keeps your Fire TV Stick running smoothly. Here’s how to do it:

1. Open the Settings menu on your Fire TV. You can do this by pressing the gear icon on your remote or navigating to Settings on the Fire TV homepage.

2. Under Settings, select Applications.

3. Select Clear All Application Caches.

4. A prompt will appear on your screen indicating how much storage space you will free up. Press Confirm to complete clearing the cache.

Check for a software update

System updates often have performance optimizations and bug fixes

Another easy way to speed up your Fire TV Stick is to keep it up to date. Amazon frequently releases software updates for its Fire TV devices, which usually include bug fixes and performance improvements. These updates are similar to the ones you see on your phone or PC. Keeping your device updated ensures it has the latest bug fixes and performance optimizations, keeping things running smoothly.

Your Fire TV Stick automatically checks for updates, but there’s always a chance an update hasn’t been downloaded yet, which has happened to me a few times. Here’s how to check for an update on your Fire TV:

1. Open up the Settings menu on your Fire TV.

2. Navigate to My Fire TV > About.

3. Under About, select Check for Update.

4. If an update is available, you’ll have the option to install it and restart your Fire TV Stick to apply it.

Restart your Fire TV Stick

Give your Fire TV Stick a fresh start

If you’ve cleared the cache, your Fire TV Stick is up-to-date, and it’s still running slowly, one of my go-to fixes is the tried-and-true method of simply restarting the device. It may sound basic, but a restart resets all its processes and apps running in the background. If a lingering glitch or issue is slowing things down, a fresh boot of the Fire TV operating system — and any apps you use — could fix it.

Even if your Fire TV Stick is working fine, it’s generally a good idea to restart it every now and then, especially if it’s been powered on for a while. This helps clear temporary files and gives the device a clean start. There are three ways to restart your Fire TV Stick: the simplest is to unplug the power cord and plug it back in. But if your Fire TV Stick is tightly tucked behind your TV and not the most accessible, you can also restart it using your remote. Here’s how:

1. Open the Settings menu on your Fire TV.

2. Navigate to my Fire TV.

3. Select Restart.

Alternatively, to restart your Fire TV, press and hold the Select and Pause/Play buttons on your remote for about five seconds.

Turn off Device Usaga Data collection

Protect your privacy and improve performance

Next up is something you might not even realize your Fire TV Stick is doing all the time: collecting data about what your usage. Anytime you use your Fire TV Stick, Amazon collects data on what the operating system is doing, which it says is for “marketing and product improvement purposes.” Anytime you open a streaming service, Amazon also collects data on that, allowing the company to “collect information relating to the frequency and duration of your use of third-party apps.”

If you don’t want Amazon tracking this data for privacy reasons, you can easily turn it off. Additionally, doing so stops these background processes from continuing to collect data, which can help free up system resources and improve performance. Here’s how to turn off Device Usage Data and Collect App Usage Data on your Fire TV:

1. Open the Settings menu on your Fire TV.

2. Go to Preferences > Privacy Settings.

3. Toggle off Device Usage Data.

4. Toggle off Collect App Usage Data.

Disable autoplaying videos

Free up system resources and clean up the Fire TV home page

I really like the Fire TV user interface, but one thing I don’t like about it is that, by default, the home screen has a banner at the top that sometimes plays videos automatically, like ads or trailers for shows and movies. Not only can this be annoying, but it takes up system resources to queue up and play those ads on your Fire TV.

Luckily, Amazon lets you disable autoplaying videos on the Fire TV home screen entirely, freeing up system resources and preventing future jump scares from an ad suddenly playing on your TV. Here’s how to turn off not only autoplaying videos, but also autoplaying audio, on your Fire TV:

1. Go to Settings menu on your Fire TV.

2. Navigate to Preferences > Featured Content.

3. Toggle off Allow Video Autoplay.

4. Toggle off Allow Audio Autoplay.

Looking ahead

In addition to trying any of the tips above to speed up your Fire TV Stick, it’s worth noting that Amazon recently announced a complete redesign of the Fire TV user interface (UI), which should improve performance. Amazon says that by redoing the underlying code, Fire TV devices could see a 20 to 30 percent performance boost. This redesign is rolling out in February, starting with the Fire TV Stick 4K Plus, Fire TV Stick 4K Max (2nd Gen), and Fire TV Omni Mini-LED Series. It will roll out to more Fire TV devices in the spring. To learn more about this Fire TV UI redesign, you can check out my other Pocket-lint story here.