How to turn off a Chromecast device [2023]

There’s no denying that Chromecast is one of the most improved casting devices on the market. I remember first using the first generation of Chromecast when they first arrived a few years ago, and I was severely disappointed. The playback was choppy, to say the least.

Fast forward a few years and nowadays they’re much better than they were previously. and they’re one of the easiest ways to quickly cast between your devices. The newest generation of Chromecast device is pretty impressive too.

However, there’s one thing that bugs many people; just how do you turn a Chromecast off? Well, that’s what we’re going to be exploring today.

How to turn off Chromecast

The answer is that there’s actually no way that you can turn your Chromecast off with the device itself. There is, strangely enough, no off button that you can use on the Chromecast. For this reason, the best way for you to turn it off is by simply unplugging it from your television.

Probably not the answer that you were looking for unfortunately, but this is the way that the Chromecast was designed. Unlike a Fire stick, it’s not made to automatically go into sleep mode when you’re not using it.

It stays on permanently and never sleeps. Though the truth is that across an entire year, it still uses very little energy in comparison to other devices you may use with your TV (like your set top box or Playstation). So, there’s really very little need to turn them off.

Having the ability to turn off your Chromecast is something that many people look for – it is just habit for many people to want to turn off all their electrical devices when they stop using them. But, this isn’t something you need to worry about with Google Chromecast.

Do I need to keep my Chromecast plugged in?

So as there’s no off button on a Chromecast, it begs the question – is it okay for you to leave it on all the time, then? Well, yes, that’s actually not going to be much of a problem. And whilst leaving your Chromecast plugged into the back of your television is fine, it really won’t make much difference if you go ahead and unplug your Chromecast either.

There has been a few different studies into how much energy your Chromecast will use if you leave it plugged in, and it adds up to less than £1 or £2 per year.

Comparing this to an Xbox which will on average use £10-20 even with you turning it on and off, you can easily see the difference. So, you don’t need to worry about your Chromecast using a great deal of electricity either.

How to Disable Chromecast on your Device – Notifications

Now, whilst you can’t turn your Chromecast off completely, there is something you can do about the notifications that you might be getting on your phone.

If you want to go ahead and turn off the notifications that you’re getting in your Chromecast, you’ll need to go into the Google Home app on your device.

Here, you’ll need to find your device and go into the Settings. Then, scroll down to the Let others control your cast media toggle. This needs to be off if you want to prevent your device getting notifications.

Now, if you want to disable your Chromecast completely then you’ll need to do one of two things. The first option, like I’ve already mentioned, is to go ahead and unplug your Chromecast.

The second option is for you to go into your Google Home, and again head through to the Settings on your device. Here, you’ll find the option to Stop Mirroring; this will disable your Chromecast from connecting to your device.

How to stop casting

Another thing that people often aren’t sure about is just how to stop casting when it is in use. Although it is fairly easy for you to set everything up, it is not quite as clear for you to actually end the cast.

You can do this by simply going to the Chromecast icon, which you can find at the top of your screen, and pressing it. Then, it should come up with the option for you to stop casting.

You can also do this in a few other ways – you could simply turn off the TV, or you can take the Chromecast out of the HDMI port. Either way, it is quite easy for you to turn your Chromecast off.

Do other streaming sticks stay on?

So, we know that you can’t turn your Chromecast off, but is this the case for all streaming and casting devices, or is Chromecast an anomaly?

If we compare it to two of the other most popular streaming devices in the UK – the Fire stick and the Now TV stick, which is powered by Roku – then you can’t turn these devices off either.

Why? Well, they automatically go into sleep mode when you stop using them for a little while. So, you don’t really need to worry about having a button to turn these kinds of devices off, as there’s really no need.

However, on other devices like the Fire stick, it’s definitely a little more apparent that you can put the device into sleep mode very easily. This is probably why there’s such confusion with turning your Chromecast off.

Conclusion

In conclusion, you don’t actually need to worry about turning your Chromecast off when it’s not in use. You can simply leave it plugged into the back of your television, even when you’re not using it.

And for those who want to be super energy conscious, then if you must turn the Chromecast off, then you’ll need to go ahead and unplug it. This is the only way to turn the Chromecast off if you want to do so.

We may see the ability to switch the device off with new generations of the streaming device, but turning off the power source is the only way until then.

Avatar of Jon
About Jon

Hey, I'm Jon. I'm an engineer by trade, so it makes sense that I'm obsessed with anything technology related! On the weekends, you can find me playing around with my computers or fixing something around the house. Feel free to leave a comment if you want to get in touch.

Leave a Comment

Previous

How to check resolution on a Samsung TV

Best HDMI Splitters | Watch 4K on multiple TVs

Next