Here’s why your Netflix subtitles keep turning on – Troubleshooting

There’s nothing more frustrating than having the subtitles on when you don’t want them. Well, maybe dealing with a low quality Netflix resolution when you’re paying for 4K. But your other half, little brother or whoever else leaving the subtitles on comes pretty close.

As if dealing with someone else continuously turning the subtitles on when you’re not watching Netflix isn’t enough, it can happen randomly too. And if you hate immediately-preceding-event spoilers as much as I do, then you’ll want to know how to get rid of them for good.

So, let’s look at why your Netflix subtitles keep turning on, and what you can change to ensure they’re turned off and don’t keep coming back on again.

Netflix subtitles keep turning on

The reason why your Netflix subtitles keep coming on is that your saved preferences are that you want subtitles. To get rid of this, you’ll want to watch an 18+ film or TV show for a few minutes with the subtitles off. This should save your subtitle preferences.

If you launch Netflix when you’ve been watching shows that have age ratings on them, sometimes your preferences may not save. This means that you’d need to go back into your subtitle options every time you re-open the app, which isn’t plausible.

We all know that Netflix uses a fair amount of data to download. So if you’re using this data or even on your wifi, you want to have a good experience. Let’s look at the different methods you can use to get rid of those subtitles.

Make sure you’re watching a show for adults

The most likely scenario if you’re continually having to turn the subtitles off when you watch Netflix is that this happens when you’re watching kids TV shows. If it’s not, then skip ahead to the next part.

But in most cases, it’s likely that your Netflix subtitles keep turning on because the preference settings aren’t being saved when you turn them off. If you’re watching kids shows or in a kids account when you turn off the subtitles, then this won’t actually be saved as your preferred option.

So, the best way to fix this is as you’ve likely guessed. Make sure that you watch a film for grown ups and go ahead and change your subtitles. Doing this when you’re watching a teen or older TV show or film will ensure that the settings are saved within your account.

I say watch a film for grown ups – make sure that you watch a film that’s for over 18s. As well as this, you’re going to want to leave the film running for a few minutes. If you log out too early, then it may not register within your account.

This way, when you log back into to watch a film or TV show, kids or not, it should have saved your preference of having no subtitles whatsoever.

Check no-one is using your account

netflix-account

Although no-one wants to hear it, the second most likely reason that subtitles keep turning on in your Netflix account is that someone else is using it too.

The good news is that it’s very easy to determine if someone else has actually accessed your account. You can do this by simply going into the recent streaming activity of your account. Here, you’ll be able to see the locations where someone has watched your Netflix.

It’s very likely that if someone is watching your account, you know who they are. Make sure to check with your parents or your ex whether they’re sneakily still using it.

In some rare cases, someone you don’t know may have access to your account. If you think this may have happened, then you can sign out of all devices except the one that you’re using.

Then, go ahead and change your password to something else. You’ll want to choose a password that’s twelve characters in length and a mix of letters, numbers and symbols to stop anyone getting access in the future.

Turn subtitles off in another device

If you’re having this problem when you’re watching Netflix on your smart TV, then the issue may actually be with the age of your app. Older models of smart TV aren’t capable of updating the app, and unfortunately, this subtitle issue occurs in many older TVs.

leave-subtitles-on

In this scenario, you’ll want to simply log in with your mobile or a laptop and do as above. Start a film, turn the subtitles off and wait a few minutes. Netflix will then register your preference for no subtitles.

This means that the next time you go ahead and log into your smart TV, the subtitles won’t automatically come on. Most smart TVs shouldn’t have to do this, but if you can’t find another fix, then this should do the trick.

Uninstall and reinstall the app

For the most part, the above fixes should able to sort out your subtitle problem. But if none of the above has worked, then there is one more thing that you can try.

Many people find this problem on their smart TV or within their web browser. But if you’ve encountered it on your phone or tablet, then you should go ahead and uninstall the app. Then, proceed to reinstall it again afterwards.

This can work on a smart TV too, but it’s much less likely. It’s also worth trying if you’re having subtitle trouble and you’re watching on some sort of streaming device, like Apple TV or an Amazon Fire stick. Making sure the app is updated can work too, and this will be done automatically if you re-install it.

Doing this will give you a completely fresh version of the Netflix app to use. And with this should come no subtitles, as this is the Netflix default setting. So, there’s no reason why this shouldn’t work, although preferences are meant to be saved at account level and not device.

Xbox & console users – Read this

The reason I say that subtitles are saved at account level is that this is the case if you’re using a phone or tablet that doesn’t have its own settings. But, you can try turning subtitles off on the device that you’re using.

You should try this method if you’re watching Netflix on a gaming console, like your Xbox. It’s a pretty well known problem for Xbox users, as the subtitles are actually saved onto your console as opposed to the account.

You can also do this within your console settings on an Xbox or Playstation. Here, you should be able to change the subtitle appearance too, as well as play around with any other subtitle settings.

So, simply going into your Xbox settings and making sure that subtitles are turned off there is the solution for many gamers out there.

Conclusion

It’s clear to see that in most cases, there actually isn’t a real fault with the software that you’re using. It’s much more likely to be down to the setting preferences that Netflix use within their app – you can usually change this quite easily.

In some cases, it might prove to be a little more difficult to resolve. But between logging out all connect devices and deleting your whole app, there’s definitely a solution out there for your issue.

Also Read: Netflix Party on iPhone: What is it and how to do it?

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About Melissa

Hey! I'm Mel, I write the occasional article for Spacehop, amongst other things. I love meeting new people and chatting, so if you have any questions don't hesitate to ask.

1 thought on “Here’s why your Netflix subtitles keep turning on – Troubleshooting”

  1. I’m pretty sure its caused by other profiles that are turning it on and it keeeps it on accross all profiles. Its a rediculous and stupid design flaw. I’m suprised Netflix developers never noticed and tried to fix the problem. It really shouldn’t be that hard to make prefrances seprate of each profile. I share a friends Netflix and it has like 3 or 4 other people on it(most of them we don’t live with) so when they want to watch something with subtitles & I wind up having to turn it off when I want to watch with subtitles off. Its frustrating AF. I also don’t want to be the asshole that messes with other peoples profile prefrances.

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