At CES 2026 in January, Amazon teased two big Fire TV updates: a complete redesign of the Fire TV interface and a long-overdue revamp of the free Fire TV mobile app for iOS and Android.
Last week, the new user interface (UI) began rolling out in the US, bringing a cleaner look, improved layouts, and smoother performance to Fire TV. Now it’s the mobile app’s turn. Amazon has started rolling out an update that delivers the changes it previewed at CES, finally giving the Fire TV app on iOS and Android some much-needed attention.
So what’s exactly new with the Fire TV app? Until now, it was basically just a backup remote for your Fire TV. With this update, it’s a full-fledged second-screen experience.
You can now browse content and queue up shows and movies to watch on your TV right from your phone. In other words, if scrolling on your Fire TV Stick with its remote isn’t your thing, your phone can now do all the heavy lifting.
“Millions of customers use our Fire TV mobile app as a backup remote, but we knew it could do more,” Amazon explained in a blog post. “Now you can use your phone as a second screen to discover what to watch next or add a friend’s show recommendation to your watchlist when you’re away from home.”
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The new Fire TV app is an extension of your TV
Amazon made the app look like its new Fire TV UI
The main reason Amazon went back to the drawing board with its mobile app was the new Fire TV interface. As I mentioned earlier, Amazon has completely redesigned the Fire TV UI, and the biggest change is the layout. The navigation bar has moved from the middle to the top of the screen, and there’s a new home screen that lets you pin up to 20 of your most-used apps — a big jump from the previous limit of six.
Amazon describes the Fire TV redesign as delivering “a more modern design with improved layouts, rounded corners, redesigned color gradients, updated typography, and more optimized spacing.” In essence, it carries over the same design language to the revamped Fire TV app.
The new app genuinely feels like an extension of your TV — which I personally like, because it makes the whole experience feel like a seamless second screen rather than the boring companion app it used to be. It actually reminds me a lot of Roku’s mobile app, which also doubles as a backup remote and lets you browse and launch content on your TV.
As for what’s actually new, beyond the refreshed look, you can now browse the same content you see on your Fire TV, manage your watchlist, and launch titles directly on your TV. So if you get a show recommendation while you’re out, you can add it to your watchlist in the app, and when you get home, it’ll be waiting for you on your Fire TV, ready to stream.
The updated Fire TV app is now rolling out on Android and iOS in the UK, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Japan, and India. The update is already live on the US App Store, but Amazon says the new features will become available gradually “over the next weeks.” So if you update the app and don’t see any changes yet, you may need to wait a little longer. If you haven’t downloaded the Fire TV app before, you can get it for free on the App Store and Google Play Store.
As for the redesigned Fire TV interface, it’s currently limited to US users with the Fire TV Stick 4K Plus, Fire TV Stick 4K Max (2nd Gen), and Fire TV Omni Mini-LED Series. Amazon says it plans to expand the new UI to more devices and additional countries later this spring.
