LG TV Won't Turn Off? Fix in Seconds!

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If your LG TV won’t turn off, the most common cause is a fault in your TV’s remote, and in particular dirt or grime under the buttons which is stopping the power button from working.

But I’ll go through all possible causes of your TV not shutting off below, and I’m confident that we can get your TV fixed in only a few seconds.

Why Won’t My LG TV Turn Off?

LG TV Will Not Turn Off	Cause
Remote Has Stuck Power Button	Grime or dirt in your remote can block the power button from working.
LG Magic Remote Needs Re-Pairing	Re-pairing your LG Magic remote with your TV can get it fully working again.
Software Glitch	Power cycling your TV can fix any software glitches that stop the power button from working.
Power Cord Damage	A damaged power cord or connector in your TV can cause intermittent power that causes your TV to not appear to shut down properly.

What to Do If Your LG TV Won’t Turn Off

1. LG TV Won’t Turn Off With Remote

If you’re relying on your remote control to switch your TV off, make sure that it is fully working, with no stuck buttons.

If you’re using an IR remote, you can check that it is actually sending an IR signal by using a phone or digital camera, as infrared is not visible to the human eye.

Activate the camera on your phone, or a live view mode on your digital camera and point your remote at your camera. Press a button and you should see a light appear in the IR emitter of your remote.

Note that not all models of iPhone will be able to see the infrared beam, as they filter out IR signals. If you have to use an iPhone, then first check that you can see infrared by using a remote that you know is working.

If you don’t see an IR beam, then try removing the batteries, holding down the power button for 10 seconds to drain any residual power, then forcefully mash every button on the remote, slapping it against your palm a few times.

You might have to repeat this several times.

You will also need to put quite a bit of force into pushing the buttons. Don’t be afraid of damaging your remote – as long as you are only hitting it against your hand and only using your fingers to push the buttons it will be fine.

Over time, your remote’s buttons can begin to stick, and just like with a computer keyboard there is a limit to how many simultaneous button pushes the remote will recognize.

So, one or more buttons stuck in the “on” position can prevent other buttons on the remote from working.

You can try taking your remote apart and cleaning it properly if you think it’s necessary. This is a very quick and easy process, which you can follow in the video below.

This might seem like an obvious point, but it also always pays to try changing your batteries, preferably first trying them in an appliance that you know works, so that you can confirm that they hold charge.

Modern LG remotes use Bluetooth or WiFi Direct to connect to your TV, and these can be blocked by RF interference.

For more on this, check out my linked article on what to do if your LG TV remote isn’t working.

You can also soft reset your LG Magic remote:

First check your remote is getting power from its batteries by pressing any button. The Power button should light up.
Press and hold the Home and Back buttons at the same time for at least 5 seconds to de-register your remote. Your TV should say that “Remote registration is disconnected.”

Make sure your phone has Bluetooth switched on.
Start scanning for new Bluetooth devices on your phone.
Press the central scroll wheel on your remote and check if your phone sees the remote as a new Bluetooth device with the name LGE MRXX. Your remote should also re-register with your TV.

You might also want to download the LG TV Plus app to your phone (for Android and Apple). This connects to your TV over WiFi, and should let you switch it off.

If this does not work, you should skip to power cycling and resetting your TV in the steps below.

2. Check Your TV’s Buttons Work

There will also be a power button somewhere on your TV itself. This may be hidden along the bottom or side of the TV.

Hold this down for a good 10 seconds and see if this switches off your TV.

If both this button and the remote do not work, there is likely to be some software issue with your TV which you can fix by power cycling.

3. Power Cycle your LG TV

With modern electronics, it’s possible that your LG TV will not turn off because of something stuck in its flash memory.

Power cycling your TV will clear out any issues with non-permanent memory and reset your main board without losing your personal settings.

This is quick and painless and won’t cause you to lose any of your saved settings.

Switch off and unplug your TV.
Hold down the physical power button on the TV for at least 15 seconds.
Wait for at least 30 minutes for any residual power to drain from the TV’s capacitors (which are capable of storing charge for several minutes).
Plug your TV back in and try switching it on. You should see a red light blinking if you have been successful.

lg tv power button — The LG TV power button is often on the side of the TV

Make sure you do wait for the full 30 minutes before plugging your TV back in – you would be surpised how long the components within your TV can hold charge, and you want to make sure it has fully reset.

Although this seems a very basic step, don’t overlook it because in the vast majority of cases a simple soft reset fixes most issues.

4. Check for Power Cord Damage

For anything to do with TVs not turning off, you need to confirm that the power cord itself isn’t damaged.

In particular, look for kinks and knots in the power cable, which can damage the copper wires both mechanically and from increasing the electrical resistance, which generates heat, causing damage that may not necessarily be obvious.

Because of potential damage within the cable that you cannot see due to the protective sheath, it can be a good idea to use a new power cable, if you have one or can borrow one.

Also, be sure to carefully look at the power connector on your TV to confirm that the port is free from corrosion, dirt and dust.

5. Factory Reset Your LG TV

Returning your TV back to its factory settings is a more extreme step, as it will delete any personalization features, downloaded apps or connected devices, but it’s always worth a shot when other methods haven’t worked.

To factory reset an LG Smart TV:

Press the Home button on your remote and go to All Settings.
Then General.
And System (or skip to the next step on older models).
Choose Reset to inital settings.
Follow the on-screen instructions and hit Confirm.
Enter your PIN, which by default is 0000 (four zeroes) or 1234 for some models.
Then select Restart in the popup.

To reset an LG TV without the remote:

Hold down the TV’s Power Button for 10 seconds, which will be underneath the screen on on the side.
Use the Vol + or – or Channel + or – to scroll to Menu.
Go to All Settings.
Then General.
And Reset.
Follow the on-screen instructions and hit Confirm.
Enter your PIN, which by default is 0000 (four zeroes) or 1234 for some models.
Then select Restart in the popup.

If you have changed your LG TV’s PIN and can’t remember what it is:

Press the Home button on your remote and go to All Settings.
Then Support.
Go to Advanced Settings.
Then Safety.
And Reset Password.
On your remote, press Channel Up twice, then Channel Down once, followed by Channel Up once.
Put 0313 in the box.
Then 0000.
Then choose a new PIN that you can remember.

LG TV Support and Warranty

You can check your warranty information direct with LG.

Unfortunately, warranties typically only last a year unless you have already paid to extend it.

Because TV problems can occur at any time, if your TV is under one year old, return your TV under warranty and get it fixed.

You can use the LG support site to help diagnose your problem, but if you are at this stage, then you are better off calling them direct on:

850-999-4934 or 843-243-0000 (Mon. – Sun., 8am – 9pm EST)

You can also email them directly, or even email the president of LG customer care!

Even if LG won’t fix your TV, they might still offer you a discount off a future model if you pester them hard enough! This is always worth a try in my experience.

My LG Won’t Turn Off: Conclusion

Remote control problems are the most common cause of LG TVs that will not turn off.
Try removing the batteries from your remote and mashing the buttons to get any grime or muck out that could be stopping the buttons from working. You can take your remote apart if necessary.
Power cycling your TV is always a good step to take when you have a software glitch, like the physical power buttons on your TV not working.
Factory resetting your TV is a final step if you cannot figure out why it is not turning off.

I’m confident that these steps will fix your TV, although the later steps do require a bit more effort than the earlier ones.

If you need any further help, then I suggest contacting LG support directly, or post a comment below and I’ll see what I can do to help.

And if you’ve tried all of these steps and still can’t get your TV to work properly, then it may be worth looking at one of the most highly rated new TVs.