How to connect a Chromebook to a TV

While Chromebooks are generally considered lightweight machines, many use them for most of their online tasks. In many cases, you might even want to display it on a larger screen, especially considering many can have smaller displays. Here are a few ways to connect your Chromebook to a TV.

Editor’s note: We formulated these steps using an ASUS Chromebook Plus CX34 running ChromeOS version 134.0.6998.198. Some menus and settings may slightly differ depending on your device and software version.

How to connect a Chromebook to a TV using HDMI

A wired connection is the best way to connect your Chromebook to a TV. TVs mostly use HDMI for wired connections, so that’s likely your only option. You also need to check whether your Chromebook has an HDMI port. If it does, you can use a standard HDMI cable.

If your Chromebook doesn’t have an HDMI port, you will need a USB-C hub with an HDMI port or a USB-C to HDMI cable. There’s another alternative. Some monitors and TVs support USB-C connections for video input. These are still very rare, though. Regardless, the steps are the same as using an HDMI port or hub.

How to use your Chromebook on a TV via HDMI:

1. Connect the HDMI port to your TV and the Chromebook. Use a dongle if needed.
2. On your Chromebook, launch the Settings app. You can find it by clicking the time on the bottom right corner via the Settings gear icon, or via search.
3. Go into the Device tab in the left pane.
4. Click on Display. Your TV will be listed here.
5. You can now adjust your TV settings by clicking on the TV name. If you want to mirror the Chromebook screen on the TV, you can check the Mirror Internal Display checkbox. Otherwise, it will work as an extended display.

How to connect a Chromebook to a TV wirelessly

Connecting your Chromebook to a TV wirelessly isn’t ideal, but it can help if you don’t have a compatible cable. There are two ways to go about it, and both require you to have a casting device. To cast your Chromebook screen to a TV, you will need a Google Cast device, such as an Android TV or a Google Chromecast attached to your TV. Alternatively, you can use an Amazon Fire TV device. The Chromecast and Fire TV procedures are similar but have a few differences.

Connect Chromebook to a TV using Chromecast

Google Cast is Google’s casting protocol. To connect a Chromebook to a TV via Chromecast, both of your devices need to support it. Some TVs have the feature built-in, but those that don’t will require you to hook up a Chromecast device via HDMI. Note that you will need your Chromebook and your TV/Chromecast connected to the same Wi-Fi network.

How to connect a Chromebook to a TV using Chromecast:

1. On your Chromebook, click on the time in the bottom right corner
2. Click on the Cast screen option.
3. Select your TV or Chromecast device.

To stop casting, click on the time again and click on Casting screen. Then, select Stop.

By the way, you can also do this from the Chrome browser. Launch Chrome and click on the three-dot menu button. Go to Cast, Save, and share > Cast… and select the TV or Chromecast device you want to cast to. You can also go into Sources to select whether you want to Cast tab or Cast screen.

Connect Chromebook to a TV using Fire TV

This method on the Chrome OS side of things is the same as above, but a few extra steps are needed to enable screen mirroring on your Fire TV device. Here are the steps to cast Chromebook to TV using Fire TV.

How to connect a Chromebook to a TV using Fire TV:

1. On your Fire TV, go into the Settings.
2. Select the Display & Sounds option.
3. Scroll down to Enable Display Mirroring and select it.
4. Your Fire TV device will enter mirroring mode, and your TV screen will display a confirmation of the same.
5. Now, you can follow the same steps in the previous section to connect your Chromebook to Fire TV.

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