How to get IPTV on any screen in the house

How do I get IPTV at home? You need four things, and most UK households already own three of them. The guides above cover each device screen by screen; this page explains the part they all share, so you know what to expect, which login to use and in what order to do things.

The four things you need

• Broadband. About 10 Mbps for each HD stream and 25 Mbps for each 4K stream, with headroom for the rest of the house. A cable to the TV or stick beats Wi-Fi.
• A device. A Firestick, an Android TV or Google TV box, a Samsung or LG smart TV, an Apple TV, a phone, a tablet or a computer. One that still receives updates is better than one that does not.
• A player app. TiviMate, IPTV Smarters Pro, VLC or a player from your TV’s own app store. Players are made by other developers and carry no channels; some are free and some sell an upgrade or ask a small one-off fee.
• A subscription login. The details we send, which fill the player with 25,000+ channels and 120,000+ films and series. There is no IPTV UK Station app: the login goes into the player you choose.

The three kinds of login

Every subscription comes with the same details in more than one form, and each player asks for one of them.

Xtream login: username, password and server URL

The most common form. TiviMate calls it Xtream codes; IPTV Smarters Pro calls it Login with Xtream Codes API. You type the three details and the player fetches the channels, the films and series and the TV guide by itself. Use it wherever it is offered.

M3U link

One long web address that packs the same details into a playlist link. VLC, Kodi with the PVR IPTV Simple Client add-on and many smart-TV players take this form. Treat it like a password, because it contains yours in plain text.

MAG portal and MAC address

MAG boxes, and Formuler boxes when set up by portal, do not take a username. You send us the MAC address printed on the box, we register it on your line, and you type the portal URL we give you into the box’s settings.

Which device, which player

If you own several devices, start with the one plugged into the TV you watch most. The table shows the player we suggest first on each, the login it takes and where to find the full steps.

Two guides follow the player rather than the device: how to install TiviMate covers the playlist and the guide in detail, and the IPTV Smarters Pro setup guide explains the Downloader code and each login field. If you are still choosing a player, the best IPTV player apps compares them by platform.

Do it in this order

1. Ask for the free trial

   Request the free 24-hour trial and say which device you will use. The login arrives on WhatsApp with the guide for that device, so nothing is wasted if the first player does not suit you.

2. Install the player

   Install it on the device you watch most. On a Firestick that means the Downloader app first; we send the current Downloader code with your login, because codes change and copies circulate.

3. Enter the login

   Usernames and passwords are case-sensitive, and the server URL needs the http:// at the start and the port number after the colon. A phone keyboard, through your device’s remote app, avoids most typing mistakes.

4. Let the guide load, then set favourites

   The first load of a long channel list and its TV guide takes a few minutes. Then mark the channels you watch most as favourites, so you are not scrolling through every group each evening.

5. Test at your usual hour, then choose a plan

   Watch during the evening, on the screens you really use. If it suits your home, pick one of the subscription plans; we can often keep the trial login, so the app stays set up.

The TV guide

The TV guide, or EPG, shows what is on now and next, and opens catch-up on the channels that keep an archive. With an Xtream login, most players load it by themselves. Some players that take only an M3U link ask for a separate guide address; if yours does, ask in the WhatsApp chat. If the grid stays empty or the times are an hour out, check the device’s date, time and time zone first, then refresh the guide in the player’s settings.

If something does not work

Most first-time problems are a typing mistake in the login, a clock set wrong or Wi-Fi that drops in the evening. The IPTV help centre has the checks in order for buffering, login errors and black screens, and the WhatsApp desk can go through your setup with you at any hour.