You can stop videos and audio playing on the Fire TV home screen, and you can reduce how much the stick tracks you, but you cannot remove the promoted banners entirely on a normal setup. The two settings that matter are in the Featured Content and Privacy menus.
Quick answer: Go to Settings > Preferences > Featured Content and turn off video autoplay and audio autoplay. Then review Settings > Preferences > Privacy Settings. Promoted content will still appear, but it will be static. Menu names vary a little between versions.
How do you turn off the autoplay videos?
- From the home screen, open Settings (the cog).
- Choose Preferences.
- Select Featured Content.
- Turn off Allow Video Autoplay.
- Turn off Allow Audio Autoplay.
You should now land on the home page without trailers starting. If you cannot see these options, you may be on a version that words them differently, so look for anything mentioning autoplay or featured content.
Which privacy settings reduce ads?
Under Settings > Preferences > Privacy Settings you will usually find switches such as Device Usage Data, Collect App Usage Data (called something similar on newer versions) and Interest-based Ads. Turning them off limits what the stick reports back and how adverts are targeted. You may see a warning that some features could be affected. Our Fire TV Stick setup guide covers these and the other first-time settings.
Settings > Preferences > Data Monitoring is not present on every version.
Updates can switch some options back on, so check them again after a major update.
Can you remove the banner ads completely?
Not with Amazon's own settings. The sponsored banners and promoted rows are part of the home screen, and the toggles above change how they behave but do not remove them. Any page claiming a setting that hides every advert is overselling.
What about the remote's app buttons?
The coloured or logo shortcut buttons on the remote open particular services, whatever your home screen settings are. Whether you can change them depends on the remote and the software version. Do not expect a home screen setting to affect them.
Should you use a third-party launcher?
A third-party launcher replaces the home screen with one you control. It can cut the clutter, but there are trade-offs:
- It usually needs an app installed from outside the Amazon Appstore, which works only on Fire OS models. Newer sticks running Vega OS cannot do this.
- Updates to Fire OS can break it or switch the default back.
- Only install a launcher from its developer's official page. Beware of "modded" or "premium unlocked" versions.
- You need to know how to undo it if something goes wrong.
For most people, turning off autoplay and limiting data collection is enough.
If that didn't work
If videos still play after you have switched the options off, note:
- Your stick model and the software version (Settings > My Fire TV > About).
- A photo of the Featured Content screen showing the toggles' current state.
- Whether it happens right after a restart or after an update.
Then restart the stick and check the toggles again.
If you have found a setting that quietened your home screen further, tell us which model and software version you are on so others can try it.