TiviMate: Complete Setup and Settings Guide (2026)

TiviMate is the IPTV player most enthusiasts end up using once they've outgrown Smarters Pro. The interface is cleaner, the program guide scrolls faster, and the picture-in-picture preview while you're browsing channels makes the whole thing feel closer to a premium TV product than a free app.

The catch: TiviMate only runs on Android-based devices. Firestick, Android TV boxes, Nvidia Shield, Chromecast with Google TV. It does not exist on iOS or Apple TV, and there's no plan for it to. If you have an Apple TV, you want iPlayTV instead. If you have a Firestick or anything Android, TiviMate is worth a look.

This guide covers what TiviMate does, how to install it, how to load your subscription, and the few settings that turn it from "okay" into "the best IPTV interface available." Should take you about twenty minutes to set up. If you're still picking a device, our comparison of every IPTV box worth considering in Canada covers the full lineup.

What TiviMate is, and what it costs

TiviMate is a free IPTV player with an optional paid tier called TiviMate Premium. The free version handles one playlist (one subscription) and gives you everything you need to watch channels comfortably: channel list, program guide, picture-in-picture browsing, basic customization.

TiviMate Premium adds: multiple playlists, recordings, custom playlist groups, more advanced reminders, and a few other quality-of-life features. It costs around $20 per year or $40 lifetime. For most people, the free version is plenty. Premium becomes worth it if you run more than one IPTV subscription or you want recording.

Like Smarters Pro, TiviMate is just the player. It doesn't come with channels. You point it at your provider and it loads whatever you're subscribed to.

What you need before you start

An Android-based device. The Fire TV Stick 4K Max is the most common choice, but any Android TV box, Nvidia Shield, or Chromecast with Google TV works the same way.

An IPTV subscription. We'll assume you have one already (if not, our subscription plans cover both Quebec and the rest of Canada). After signing up you'll get a welcome email with either Xtream Codes credentials or an M3U URL.

About ten minutes of setup time. The actual install takes two minutes; the rest is tweaking settings to make it feel right.

Step 1: Install TiviMate

The install method depends on your device.

On Android TV, Nvidia Shield, or Chromecast with Google TV, open the Google Play Store and search for TiviMate. Install it directly. Done.

On a Firestick or Fire TV Cube, TiviMate isn't in the Amazon Appstore so you have to sideload it. Open the Downloader app (the same one we used in our Firestick IPTV setup guide), type aftv.news/tivimate in the URL bar, hit Go, and follow the prompts to install the APK. If you don't have Downloader installed yet, set it up first by following the steps in the Firestick guide.

When TiviMate finishes installing, open it. The first launch shows a brief welcome screen. Click through.

Step 2: Add your IPTV playlist

TiviMate opens to a screen asking you to add your first playlist. Pick whichever format your provider gave you.

For M3U URL, paste the link from your welcome email. It's usually a long URL that includes your credentials.

For Xtream Codes, enter:

• Server URL (from your email, including http:// and the port number)
• Username
• Password

Hit Next. TiviMate connects, loads your channels, and starts pulling the program guide. First load takes thirty seconds to two minutes depending on how many channels your subscription includes. After that everything caches and loads instantly.

Once the playlist is in, TiviMate drops you into the main interface and you're ready to watch.

Step 3: Tour of the interface

The TiviMate layout is more compact than Smarters Pro. The home view shows your channel list on the left, a large preview of the currently selected channel on the right, and the program info underneath the preview.

Press OK on a channel to start watching. Press OK twice to bring up the full program guide grid. Use the directional pad to navigate left and right across time, up and down across channels.

Two things to notice right away:

The mini-EPG shows up automatically when you hover on a channel in the list. You can see what's playing now and the next few shows without leaving the channel you're already watching.

The picture-in-picture preview plays the currently focused channel as a thumbnail while you scroll through the list. This single feature is the main reason power users prefer TiviMate. You can browse channels without committing to one.

Step 4: Settings worth changing

The defaults are good but a few tweaks make TiviMate noticeably better.

Open Settings (the gear icon in the side menu).

Playlists, tap your playlist, EPG. Set EPG refresh to every 12 hours. Default is more frequent and wastes bandwidth.

Playback, set the playback engine to whichever runs smoothest on your device. The two options that matter:

• Native player uses the least CPU. Best on Firestick and lower-power Android boxes.
• IJK player handles more codecs and stream formats. Best if you get audio sync issues or specific channels won't play with Native.

Try Native first. If you hit problems on certain channels, switch to IJK.

Interface, turn on Channel logos in list. Makes scanning the channel list much faster. Also turn on Show channel numbers if your provider numbers their channels meaningfully.

General, enable Boot on startup. When your device powers on, TiviMate launches automatically.

Panel, adjust the timeout to your taste. The on-screen channel info bar disappears after a few seconds by default. If you find it disappearing too fast, bump it up to 8 or 10 seconds.

Step 5: Build a favorites group

TiviMate's free version doesn't let you create custom channel groups, but it does let you mark channels as favorites. Go to a channel, press the menu button on your remote, pick Add to favorites. The Favorites category appears at the top of your channel list and contains every channel you've starred.

For most people, a list of 15-30 favorites covers everything they actually watch. Build that list once and TiviMate becomes drastically easier to use.

If you upgrade to Premium, you unlock custom groups that let you organize channels into themed lists (sports, news, kids, French, English, whatever you want). Premium subscribers should set this up next.

Step 6: Picture-in-picture and split-screen tricks

The picture-in-picture feature is one of TiviMate's signatures. When you're browsing the channel list, the focused channel plays in a small preview window. You can resize this preview in Settings, Panel, Preview size.

Some people prefer the preview small and unobtrusive. Others crank it up so they can effectively watch one channel while browsing another. Pick whatever works for you.

On devices that support it (Nvidia Shield, higher-end Android TV boxes), TiviMate also supports a proper split-screen mode where two channels play side by side. Firestick doesn't support this. Don't worry if you don't see the option.

Step 7: Recording and catch-up (Premium and provider-dependent)

If your IPTV subscription that supports catch-up is set up, TiviMate handles it automatically. Channels that have catch-up available show a small icon in the guide. Navigate back in time on the guide and press OK to watch a program from earlier in the day or week.

Not every subscription includes catch-up. If you don't see the icon, your provider isn't offering it on that channel.

TiviMate Premium also adds local recording. You can record a live program to local storage and watch it back later. Recordings are stored on the device, so make sure you have enough free space if you plan to record long programs. A 1-hour HD recording is roughly 2-4 GB.

Common problems and quick fixes

TiviMate won't load my channels after install. Check the playlist credentials. Most common: missing http:// in front of the server URL, or a typo in the username or password. Re-enter them carefully.

Channels load but won't play. Switch the playback engine. Native to IJK or vice versa. One of them almost always fixes it.

Program guide is wrong or empty. Pull up Settings, Playlists, your playlist, EPG, Refresh. If still empty, the EPG source might not be embedded in your M3U. You may need a separate XMLTV URL. Ask your provider's support if they offer one.

App keeps freezing on slow devices. Lower the preview size or turn off the picture-in-picture preview entirely. Older Firesticks can struggle with the preview running while you scroll.

Wi-Fi causes constant buffering. Run a speed test on the device. Under 20 Mbps next to the TV at peak hours means the network is the issue, not TiviMate. Move the router, add a mesh node, or switch to Ethernet.

TiviMate versus Smarters Pro

A lot of people ask which is better. Honest answer: they're close, but they're different.

TiviMate is better for: faster interface, cleaner design, picture-in-picture browsing, power users who want a more polished feel.

Smarters Pro is better for: cross-platform (runs on Apple TV and iPhone too), simpler setup for total beginners, more familiar layout if you're coming from cable.

If you're on Android-based hardware and you watch IPTV regularly, switch to TiviMate. If you bounce between an Apple TV and a Firestick, Smarters Pro keeps the experience consistent across both. There's no wrong answer.

We covered Smarters Pro setup in detail in our IPTV Smarters Pro complete guide if you want to compare directly.

What good looks like once it's all set up

You turn on the device. TiviMate launches automatically and lands on your favorites list. You scroll through twenty channels you actually watch, with the picture-in-picture preview playing whichever one your cursor is on. You hit OK on a channel and you're full-screen with no buffering. The program guide is current. Switching channels feels instant.

The whole thing feels less like an app and more like a TV. Which is the point.

For most Canadian Android-device users running a paid IPTV subscription, TiviMate is the right choice. Get it set up once and the interface stays out of your way for years.

If you run into anything our support team can help with, we're there. For most setups, this guide is everything you'll need.

*Besoin de la version française ? Lisez TiviMate : Guide complet de configuration et réglages (2026).*