Best Free Roku Apps in 2026: 10 Expert Picks Beyond Pluto and Tubi

Let me introduce you to a little acronym: QOL, or quality of life.

Whether your Roku is brand new out of the box or you've had it for years, it's really easy to just plug it in and start streaming. It works great without much thought, but I can show you 10 things you can do right now to make your experience faster, cleaner, and overall just better.

I call these QOL upgrades. While I’m testing these on my Roku Ultra, most of these tips apply whether you’re on a Roku Stick, a Roku Ultra, or a Roku TV.

Grab your remote, follow me, and let’s dive in.

On this page:

• Turn off autoplay video ↓
• Customize your home screen ↓
• Set up TV controls ↓
• Use voice search prompts ↓
• Enable Fast TV Start ↓
• Check display settings ↓
• Adjust bandwidth saver ↓
• Limit ad tracking ↓

Autoplay video ads on the home screen drive me absolutely nuts. I find them incredibly annoying and distracting when I'm just trying to find something to watch.

To shut these off, head over to the left-hand menu and navigate to Settings > Accessibility > Autoplay video. If it says "on," toggle it to off.

This simple change ensures that when you're back on the home screen, those ads on the side stay quiet and still.

Your Roku home screen doesn't have to be a cluttered mess of recommendations you never asked for. Depending on your software version, you can hide specific recommendation rows to keep the focus on the apps you actually own.

I personally like to change my tile size to "smaller" in the Settings > Home screen menu. This allows me to fit more channels on a single screen so I don't have to scroll nearly as much to find what I want.

If you aren't using a dedicated Roku TV, you probably have to keep two remotes nearby — one for the Roku and one for the TV's volume and power. You can actually merge these functions by going to Settings > Remotes & devices and selecting your active remote.

Select Set up remote for TV control to begin the process. You have two primary options here: CEC or IR.

CEC is generally slicker because it works through the HDMI cable without needing line-of-sight, though IR is a more reliable backup for older TVs. Once finished, your Roku remote can handle both your TV and the device itself.

Typing with a TV remote is a slow, painful process, but voice search has gotten significantly better over the last decade. You can search by actor, title, or genre simply by pressing and holding the microphone button on your remote.

If you want a refresher on which commands actually work, go to Settings > Help > Voice help. It provides a list of prompts that will help you understand how to navigate the interface without ever touching the D-pad.

This tip is a game-changer specifically for Roku TV owners. If you find it annoying to wait for your TV to boot up every time you hit the power button, you need to enable this setting.

Navigate to Settings > System > Power to find the Fast TV Start toggle. Just keep in mind that it does consume a little more power while the TV is off, since it's staying in a low-power standby mode. However, the trade-off is a TV that turns on instantly.

Most users simply accept the automatic display setting Roku chooses during setup. While this is usually fine, I’ve found that hardware or cable limitations can sometimes trick your Roku into defaulting to a lower resolution than your TV can handle.

Go to Settings > Display type and play around with the options. Make sure you have updated cables and hardware that allow you to watch at the level your TV is capable of. If you want to downgrade your video for some reason, you can also do that here.

Raise your hand if you’re guilty of falling asleep while watching TV on a too-frequent basis. If that’s the case, the Bandwidth Saver is an essential tool to keep you from hitting your data cap while you're catching Z's.

This setting lives in Settings > Network > Bandwidth saver. If you haven't touched the remote in four hours, a message will pop up asking if you're still watching. If you don’t respond, it shuts off the stream.

While four hours is frankly a really long time, it's a good safety net to have on if you tend to walk away from the TV.

If the idea of Roku tracking your viewing habits to serve you relevant ads creeps you out, you can take control of your privacy. Go to Settings > Privacy > Advertising to adjust these preferences.

You can uncheck Personalize ads or reset your identifier. If you shut this off, you’ll simply get randomized ads on your home screen instead of ones based on your history.

Personally, I don't mind it that much because every once in a while I see an ad that really speaks to me, but the choice is entirely up to you.

One of my favorite things about Roku is how simple the layout is, but you shouldn't settle for the default order of your apps. To move an app, highlight it and press the Star (*) button on your remote.

Select Move app to put your daily drivers — like YouTube or Netflix — at the very top of the list so you don't have to hunt for them later. You can also push old apps you refuse to delete down to the bottom, where they stay out of the way.

If you have a Roku Ultra or an upgraded remote, look for the 1 and 2 buttons. You can program these to be personal shortcuts. Just long-hold the number button while inside an app (like Spotify or MLB) to set it.

If your connection feels iffy or you're experiencing lag, there’s a simple physical fix. Do not keep your Roku device trapped directly behind your TV if you can help it. Metal and glass create interference between the Roku and your router.

For Roku Ultra users, this is easy because it’s a tabletop device. If you use a Streaming Stick that plugs directly into the back of the TV, I highly recommend spending a few bucks on an HDMI extender cable.

It doesn't have to be huge — even a six-foot cable gets the device out from behind the TV's shadow. It’s a cheap upgrade that can make those annoying connection issues virtually disappear.