Zapp / Vizio
Vizio TV remote app for iPhone
Control a Vizio SmartCast TV from your iPhone over Wi-Fi: pair with the PIN on screen, switch inputs by name. Every button free, no subscription.
One payment of $9.99. Never a subscription.
iPhone and iPad · iOS 17 or later
How it connects
Vizio’s SmartCast televisions take commands over your local network. Zapp pairs with the TV the way SmartCast asks: the television shows a four-digit PIN, you type it on the phone once, and Zapp remembers the pairing.
What you have to do once
- Put the iPhone and the television on the same Wi-Fi network.
- Open Zapp and choose the Vizio it finds, or add it by IP address.
- Type the four-digit PIN shown on the TV screen. That happens once.
Which Vizio TVs it works with
Vizio smart TVs with SmartCast, which is most Vizio televisions sold since 2016. Older Vizio sets with VIA “Internet Apps” are not supported.
Free and Pro on Vizio
| Feature | Included |
|---|---|
| The remote keys SmartCast accepts: power, volume, mute, channels, the D-pad, Home, Back, Menu, Info, Exit and playback | Free |
| Switching inputs by name, with the labels your TV uses | Free |
| One-tap shortcuts to popular streaming apps | Pro, $9.99 once |
| Your iPhone’s side volume buttons turn the TV up and down while the remote is open | Pro, $9.99 once |
Pro is one payment, never a subscription. What Pro unlocks on every brand.
Beyond the remote screen
Free on Vizio, as on every TV: a Home Screen widget for this TV, Control Center and Action Button controls (iOS 18), the remote on the Lock Screen and in the Dynamic Island while it’s open, Siri for pause, mute, volume and turning the TV off, and the Apple Watch app with the Digital Crown as the volume knob.
If the Vizio isn’t found or won’t respond
- Check the iPhone and the TV are on the same Wi-Fi network, not a guest network, and that no VPN is running on the phone.
- On the iPhone, Settings → Privacy & Security → Local Network: make sure Zapp is switched on. Without it no app can see the TV.
- The PIN only appears while the TV is on. If it disappears before you type it, choose the TV in Zapp again for a new one.
- If Zapp doesn’t find the TV, add it by IP address: the TV’s Network menu shows it under Network Information.
- For the Power key to turn the TV on, switch on Quick Start mode in the TV’s System → Power Mode settings.
What it will not do
- No keyboard and no voice typing: SmartCast doesn’t let an app type into the TV.
- No number pad, colour keys or Guide key, because SmartCast has no command for them.
- SmartCast can’t say which apps a TV has, so an app shortcut the TV lacks simply doesn’t open.
- No waking from standby over the network. With the TV’s Quick Start mode on, its network stays up in standby and the free Power key turns it on; with Quick Start off, nothing can.
Saying this plainly is the point: a remote app that promises what it cannot deliver wastes your evening and earns a refund. If the answer above is no, it is genuinely no.
Questions
Can I use my iPhone as a Vizio TV remote?
Yes, as long as the iPhone and the Vizio are on the same Wi-Fi network. Put the iPhone and the television on the same Wi-Fi network. Open Zapp and choose the Vizio it finds, or add it by IP address. Type the four-digit PIN shown on the TV screen. That happens once. After that the whole button remote is free.
Does it work without Wi-Fi?
No. Zapp talks to the Vizio over your home network, and an iPhone has no infrared, so no iPhone app can control a TV without one. With no router, a second phone’s hotspot that both the TV and your iPhone join can stand in, if that hotspot lets devices on it see each other.
Is there a subscription?
No. The whole button remote is free on every TV you own. On Vizio, one optional payment of $9.99 adds: one-tap shortcuts to popular streaming apps; your iPhone’s side volume buttons turn the TV up and down while the remote is open.
What does Zapp not do on Vizio?
No keyboard and no voice typing: SmartCast doesn’t let an app type into the TV. No number pad, colour keys or Guide key, because SmartCast has no command for them. SmartCast can’t say which apps a TV has, so an app shortcut the TV lacks simply doesn’t open. No waking from standby over the network. With the TV’s Quick Start mode on, its network stays up in standby and the free Power key turns it on; with Quick Start off, nothing can.