Last Updated on April 11, 2019 by Husain Parvez
Want to unlock the potential of your streaming device and learn how to install YouTube TV on FireStick TV? Here’s everything you need to know about YouTube’s very own premium internet TV service and how you can unofficially bring it to your Amazon Fire TV.
Ever since the internet became a widespread phenomenon and affordable for most households across the country, the entertainment industry has been pushing to go online. Cutting the cord and bringing the power of streaming content has changed the way we enjoy media, and service like YouTube has played a crucial role in it. Thanks to plenty of premium entertainment streaming services like Netflix, and even private cable brands such as Comcast opting to go online, the wireless entertainment solution is finally here.
However, if you enjoy your favorite TV shows and movies on the big screen through Amazon Fire TV, chances are that you don’t get to experience YouTube the way it is intended to be on the big screen. Due to the beef between Google and Amazon, there is no officially supported YouTube app for Amazon Fire TV. There is the option to watch YouTube on Amazon Fire TV devices through the web version that can be accessed through Silk Browser. But even this bypass method does not give you access to YouTube TV, the internet-based wireless live TV service.
What is YouTube TV?
Back in 2017, Google introduced the YouTube TV entertainment service across a few select regions in the United States as a standalone service that brings live TV streaming. Offering cable-free live TV anywhere at any time, you get the ability to stream more than 60 different channels on your mobile phone or on the big screen. The best features include your very own cloud-based DVR system which allows unlimited storage, and the support for 6 users at once.
Comprising a collection of all the popular premium subscription TV channels, you get the no-commitment contract to start off at just $40/month with YouTube TV. What makes YouTube TV useful is that it is compatible with a wide range of devices, which includes Android TV, Apple TV, Roku, and a wide range of Smart TVs. Despite the widespread device support, YouTube TV does not seem to extend the same for millions of Amazon Fire TV devices out there.
How to Install YouTube TV on FireStick TV
Despite the beef between Amazon and Google, when it comes to offering the software on the Amazon Fire TV Stick, the company sticks to Android. Running a different flavor of Android, the Fire TV Stick pack FireOS, which does not include the Google Play Store. This cuts you off from the millions of Android TV compatible apps out there, which includes the YouTube TV app as well.
Since each and every Amazon Fire TV device is running Android OS at its core, there is the ability to sideload apps in the form of APK files. Thanks to a feature called Unknown Sources that is built into the system, you can manually flash APK files directly on the Amazon Fire TV. To do so, all you need to do is fetch the latest APK file of YouTube TV online, install it on the Amazon Fire TV by enabling the Unknown Sources feature, and you’re all set.
Step 1: Enable Unknown Sources
Similar to how the process works on your Android mobile phone, you need to enable the Unknown Sources feature on the Amazon Fire TV before you can sideload the YouTube TV APK file. This process is fairly simple since the feature is tucked away in the Settings of the system itself, which can be easily accessed and enabled.
- Turn on the Amazon Fire TV and use the navigation keys on your Alexa Remote to scroll down to the Settings
- On the Settings screen, press the right-arrow key to scroll and select the Device option you see.
- Now go ahead and find the Developer options
- Select the option that reads Apps from Unknown Sources on the screen.
- Choose the Turn On button when the option pops up, and you’re all set.
Now that you have the Unknown Sources option enabled, you can move on to the next step on how to install YouTube TV on FireStick TV device.
Step 2: Download ES Explorer
Now that you have the means to install APK files on your Amazon Fire TV up and running, it is time to fetch the APK file for the YouTube TV app. The easiest way to move and install an APK file to your Amazon Fire TV device is through the use of ES File Explorer. One of the most popular file manager apps available on Android, the ES File Explorer is officially supported by Amazon Fire TV, making is the right tool for us to use here.
- On your Amazon Fire TV, scroll to the Apps section and press the Search
- Type in ES File Explorer in the search bar and press the Download button right below the app screen.
- Download the ES File Explorer on your Android mobile phone from the Google Play Store (Download Link).
Once you have the ES File Explorer app installed on both, your Android device and your Amazon Fire TV Stick, make sure that they are both connected to the same Wi-Fi network. This is important to make sure that you are able to transfer the YouTube TV APK file from your mobile device to your Amazon Fire TV in the next step.
Step 3: Download and Install the YouTube APK File
With the ES File Explorer installed and set up, you can now go ahead and fetch the YouTube APK file from the internet.
- Download the YouTube TV APK file on your Android device using the download link given here.
- Open the ES File Explorer app on your Android phone and grant the required permissions asked.
- Navigate to the folder where you have downloaded the YouTube APK file.
- Press and hold the YouTube APK file, tap on More and select the Send option to shoot out the file to the Amazon Fire TV.
- Turn on the Amazon Fire TV device and make sure that the ES File Explorer app is open to receive the APK file.
- You will see a confirmation box on the Amazon Fire TV screen, so press OK to receive the YouTube TV APK file.
- Now using the navigation keys on the Alexa Remote, select the YouTube APK file and press the Install
- Wait while the installation process completes, after which you will be able to see the YouTube TV app icon on the main screen of your Amazon Fire TV device.
Final Words
That’s all there is to it! You can now enjoy the live TV service of YouTube TV unofficially on your Amazon Fire TV. Albeit the controls aren’t designed for navigation using the Alexa Remote, but we can confirm that it seems to work okay. Apart from learning how to install YouTube TV on FireStick TV using the sideload method we have heighted above, you can use the same steps to enable Unknown Sources on your Amazon Fire TV and install all kinds of other unsupported Android apps and use them on the big screen.
Are you excited to unlock the true potential of your Amazon Fire TV and enjoy cord-free cable TV live through the YouTube TV service? If you need help setting things up or have any query regarding it all, just ask away in the comments section and we’ll surely respond.
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So when I launch the YouTube TV app after following your steps, I get a message saying YouTube TV won’t run without Google Play Services which are not supported by your device. Any help for this one?
I have the ES explore running on my Tv. Is there a particular section I need to be on? i e “apk” or “+” It is on the same network as my Android phone.
I have open the EX explorer on my phone and clicked on “APK” and the file I want to transfer is shown there, the Youtube APK file. If I long press the file nothing happens!
What am I doing wrong?
Thanks