How to Reset Firestick to Factory Settings – 2 Easy Methods

Has your once quick and trustworthy Fire TV Stick lost its speed? Or has the screen gone blank? If that is the case, you might want to reset Firestick to factory settings. This will require just a few clicks and is a quick process.

As a brief warning, you might want to keep in mind that when you reset your device, it will revert back to its original settings. This means that it will go back to the condition it was in when you first bought it. There are still plenty of reasons you might want to do this, and we’ll cover what it entails in more detail below. In the following article, we’ll show you what steps you need to take to reset Firestick to factory settings.

When Should You Reset Firestick to Factory Settings?

A factory reset can sometimes help you to fix a variety technical issues, and and in some cases it is even the last/only thing that can save you. A factory reset is a common troubleshooting technique on almost any device you use, from mobile and desktop devices to any kind of smart or electronic equipment.

The Fire TV Stick also offers this option as there are several issues that can either be only fixed by a factory reset or it is just the more convenient fix for the user.

Here we will discuss the most common scenarios where you might want to reset Firestick to factory settings.

Running Out of Storage

The Fire TV Stick is a streaming device, so you may wonder why would you ever have a problem with storage? Unfortunately, this issue can happen on your Fire TV Stick as well. The basic and 4K versions of the device only have around 8GB of storage, and the Fire TV Cube has 16GB. Once the operating system is installed, you are left with only around 5GB of usable storage.

5GB of storage can get filled up very quickly, as you can download applications to the device, or save some key files. And, whether or not you realize it, the system is constantly filing away bits of cached data for later use.

When you reach the storage limit, your device will ask you to remove something, but if you can’t figure out what to delete, it can be more convenient for you to start over with a clean slate and reset Firestick to factory settings.

Slow Performance

This is something we all know is inevitable when we buy a new device. Everything goes smoothly until the device gets older, it gets filled with files and extra data, then suddenly your Firestick starts to run slow. In most cases, restarting the device should be enough help. In the case of Fire TV Stick, you can unplug your device and plug it back in to do a quick restart.

If that does not help, it is often time to reset Firestick to factory settings. Restarting the device can help to delete temporary files, but it will not solve more complicated issues. Issues can be caused by faultily installed apps, issues with registration, and a host of other little problems. You can reset Firestick to factory settings to give your hardware a fresh start and that should solve a lot of these issues.

Unresponsive Device

It can happen to any device, an error occurs for whatever reason, and your device can freeze up. If that happens, you should first try to wait and see if the device wakes up. Then you should try to unplug and plug in your device.

If that does not solve the issues and your Firestick is still unresponsive, you should try to reset Firestick to factory settings as it might be the best or only way to resolve your problem.

What are the downsides?

Performing a factory reset fixes a lot of issues, but it may not always be a pleasant experience. In this section, we will walk you through the disadvantages and inconveniences that you might face when you reset Firestick to factory settings.

Deleted Apps

Since there were no apps installed on your Firestick when you bought it, a factory reset will obviously remove all your previously installed apps. Before you reset your device to factory settings, you should think about how much time it will take you to download all the official or unofficial apps you installed to your system.

All told, this is a relatively minor inconvenience when the alternative is buying a whole new Firestick, but it takes some time to deal with and it’s better to know going into it.

Disabled ADB

ADB is a command-line tool that allows you to change system settings. It is particularly useful for people who want to alter their device by jailbreaking Firestick.

The factory reset will temporarily disable his option, although you can easily put the setting back once the reset Firestick to factory settings is complete.

Initial Setup Process

The initial setup process will have to be done again. The process also forces you to install the newest software updates, which can be a problem if you are interested in jailbreaking your device.

It’s good to have your system software up to date, so this may be a good thing in the long run if you haven’t updated in a quite a while. However, the amount of time it takes can be a little annoying, especially if you don’t have a good WiFi connection to your Firestick.

Re-Enabled Updates

Factory reset also re-enables automatic updates of your system. If you previously disabled this option in the system settings, you should disable it once again after you finish your reset Firestick to factory settings process.

Important: When you’ve managed to reset Firestick to factory settings and you are ready to get back to streaming, it important that you’re browsing safely. The most important step you can take is to make sure that you’re using a safe, fast VPN.

There are already companies and government agencies collecting your browsing data, and it’s not as difficult as you’d think for hackers to do the same. You can make your browsing safe and anonymous through a VPN, which means you can be sure that no one is looking in on your activity.

As a bonus, there are tons of side benefits to using a VPN, like unlocking region restricted content on streaming services like Netflix, Hulu, and YouTube. Watch anything from anywhere! Check out our how to install a VPN on anything guide for a little extra help on the technical end of things.

How to Reset Firestick to Factory Settings

So now you might wonder how to actually reset Firestick to factory settings. For this, you have two options, either through settings in your Firestick menu or by a remote control shortcut. Please keep in mind that resetting your Fire TV Stick will also reset all of the personal data and settings stored on your Firestick.

Reset Firestick to Factory Settings via Menu Settings

• As the first step, you’ll want to go to Settings on your Fire TV. You can either find it on top of the page or by pressing the home button on your remote until the screen dims, and the Setting option pops up.
• Next, find the My Fire TV section.
• Once you’ve clicked on it, you can scroll down until you find Reset to Factory Defaults.
• If you’re asked to enter your pin, you should do so. You’ll only be prompted to do this if you’ve set up on pin on your Firestick.
• Then click on Reset and wait for a few minutes.

Do not unplug your device while it is resetting, otherwise, you’ll have to restart the process. After a while, it will restart, and you can configure the Fire TV Stick to your liking once again.

Reset Firestick to Factory Settings via Remote Control

If you can’t reset your device via Settings, you can do it using your remote. 

• First, switch on your TV and your Fire TV Stick.
• Then press and hold the back button and the right directional button of your remote for a minimum of 10 seconds or until a message pops up on the screen.
• The pop up will give you the option to reset Firestick to factory settings.

As with the other factory reset option, wait for a few minutes and do not unplug the device while it is resetting. Then, set it back up in the way you like it.

Conclusion

A factory reset is usually your last resort to fix an issue in any device. The same goes for the Fire TV Stick. However, if you come across any of the scenarios that we described, it may be your best option to proceed and reset Firestick to factory settings.

It would be best if you also considered the downsides that we described in our tutorial to make sure you want to proceed as it can be a lengthy process to get all your apps back on to your system, and you may also lose some valuable data.

Performing the factory reset is very easy. You can follow the tutorial that we created, so you don’t get lost in the process. We hope this helped! Let us know if you had trouble in the comments.