How to Cast a Laptop to TV with Chromecast or Fire Stick

To cast a laptop to a Chromecast, use Google Chrome’s Cast option; to cast a laptop to a Firestick, turn on Display Mirroring on the Fire TV and press Windows + K on the laptop. The two sticks use different systems, so the method depends on which one is behind your TV.

Chromecast: cast a tab or the screen

Chromecast (and TVs with Chromecast or Google Cast built in) receives video from the Chrome browser:

1. Put the laptop and the TV on the same Wi-Fi network.
2. In Chrome, open ⋮ > Cast, save and share > Cast.
3. Pick the TV. Under Sources, choose a tab or your whole screen.

Casting a single tab gives the smoothest picture and sound. Full steps are in how to cast a laptop to a TV with Chromecast.

Fire Stick: mirror with Windows + K

Fire TV sticks don’t receive Chrome casts. They use Miracast, which Windows laptops support through the wireless display feature.

1. On the Fire TV remote, press and hold Home, then choose Mirroring. (Or go to Settings > Display & Sounds > Enable Display Mirroring.)
2. On the Windows laptop, press Windows + K, or open Cast in Quick Settings.
3. Select your Fire TV from the list. Your screen appears on the TV.
4. Press any button on the Fire TV remote to stop.

The laptop must support wireless display (Miracast). Most Windows laptops do; if Windows + K finds nothing, the Wi-Fi adapter or driver may not. Macs can’t mirror to a Fire Stick without third-party apps. More on how this works in Miracast explained.

Why a stick can’t plug into a laptop

A common question is how to connect a Firestick to a laptop by plugging it into the HDMI port. It won’t work: a laptop’s HDMI port only sends video out; it can’t take a picture in. You’ll get a blank screen (nothing is damaged).

The only workaround is a USB HDMI capture card plus software such as OBS; plugging the stick into a TV or monitor is far easier. For a cable link from laptop to TV instead, see connecting a laptop to a TV, or without HDMI if your laptop lacks the port.

Lag fixes

• Use the router’s 5 GHz band and keep it close to the TV. Mirroring the whole screen needs a strong, steady signal.
• Cast from the app where you can. If the video app on the stick (YouTube, Netflix and others) has its own version, use it on the TV directly instead of mirroring.
• Fire Stick “Preparing to mirror” then fails: restart both, remove the old Fire TV entry from Windows’ Bluetooth & devices list, and try again.
• Chromecast not listed: check both are on the same network, not a guest network, and restart Chrome.

Quick answers