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- You can connect your laptop to a TV using either a wired (with an HDMI cable) or wireless connection.
- You can use an inexpensive Chromecast device to "cast" your Windows laptop to a TV.
- If you have an Apple TV, it's easy to use AirPlay to send your MacBook's display to your TV.
If you need a bigger display for your laptop, you can always buy a separate monitor. But you might also be able to use a big screen that you likely already own: your TV. It doesn't take much work to connect your laptop to a TV, and it's a great way to upgrade that tiny screen into a full-fledged entertainment suite for movies and games.
The best gaming laptops pair especially well with the best TVs, since many midrange and high-end TVs support modern gaming features like 4K resolution, 120Hz screens, high dynamic range (HDR), and variable refresh rates (VRR).
Here's how to connect your Windows or Mac laptop to a TV with a wired or wireless connection.
How to connect your laptop to a TV
You can connect your laptop to a TV using a wired HDMI connection or a wireless connection. But to use either method, you'll need certain equipment.
Using an HDMI cable with a Windows laptop or MacBook
The most straightforward way to connect your laptop to a TV is by using a wired HDMI connection. To do this, you'll need an HDMI cable. If you own any game consoles or computer monitors, there's a good chance you already have one (or even several) laying around.
Just make sure you're using an HDMI cable that's certified for the necessary bandwidth you need to display your desired resolution and refresh rate. An 18Gbps HDMI cable is fine for 4K at 60Hz, but you'll need a 48Gbps HDMI cable to transmit 4K at 120Hz.
To connect the two, plug the HDMI cable into your laptop's HDMI port, and then plug the other end into an open HDMI port on your TV. These ports are also certified to support specific bandwidths, so some laptops and TVs may only be compatible with certain display settings. Once connected, both your laptop's audio and video should transfer over to the TV automatically.
Some laptops, especially MacBooks, don't have an HDMI port. If this is the case and your laptop has a USB-C port, you can get a USB-C-to-HDMI adapter.
Depending on how you want to use the TV — you can use it as a second monitor, or simply mirror your laptop's screen — you might need to change your laptop's display output settings for resolution and refresh rate. You can do this on a PC by right-clicking a blank spot on your desktop and selecting Display settings, and on a Mac by opening the System Preferences app and selecting Displays.
Using a wireless Chromecast connection with a Windows laptop or MacBook
If you don't want to deal with cables, you can connect your laptop to a TV wirelessly. Some TVs have built-in wireless support for external displays while others may require you to use an extra device, like a Chromecast. Chromecasts are tiny streaming dongles that plug into your TV's HDMI port, letting you stream media from your laptop or mobile device to your TV.
1. Plug in the Chromecast's power cable and connect it to one of your TV's open HDMI ports. Make sure you've already set it up using the Google Home app on your iPhone or Android, and that it's connected to the same Wi-Fi network as your laptop.
2. Open Google Chrome on your laptop and click the stacked three dots in the top-right corner.
3. Click Cast… and let the browser find your Chromecast. Once it appears in the list of devices, select it.
Google; William Antonelli/Insider
Whatever you're currently looking at in Google Chrome should appear on your TV within a few moments. Remember that this works over Wi-Fi, so the more speed and bandwidth your internet has, the stronger the connection between your two devices will be.
And though casting is a good way to browse the web, watch videos, or play games through your browser, it's not a great option for playing games that you have installed on your laptop. The Chromecast does let you mirror apps other than Chrome, but they tend to suffer from more lag.
Using your TV's built-in wireless connection with a Windows laptop
Many TVs now support a wireless connection to a Windows laptop without the need for a Chromecast. If your TV has a wireless mode built in, you can connect to it using your laptop's native casting or screen mirroring features directly through Windows 10 or 11. Just make sure both your laptop and TV are powered on and connected to the same Wi-Fi network.
On Windows 10 you simply need to click on the Action Center at the bottom right of your screen and select "Project." You can then click on "Connect to a wireless display." If your TV is supported, it will show up in the list and you can then click on it to establish a wireless connection.
On Windows 11, the process is similar but you need to right click a blank spot on your desktop and then select "Display settings." In the new window that pops up you can select "Multiple displays" to bring up a drop down menu. Click on "Connect a wireless display." If your TV is supported it will show up as an option for you to connect to.
Using a wireless AirPlay connection with a MacBook
The AirPlay feature on your MacBook allows you to broadcast your screen and audio to any TV that has built-in AirPlay support. AirPlay is supported on many modern TVs from popular brands like LG, Samsung, Sony, and Vizio.
If your TV doesn't have AirPlay built in, you can hook up an Apple TV device to your display to enable AirPlay support.
1. Turn on your AirPlay-compatible TV or Apple TV and make sure that it's connected to the same Wi-Fi network as your MacBook.
2. On your MacBook, click the Control Center icon in the menu bar at the top of the screen. It should be placed right next to the date and time.
3. Click Screen Mirroring, and then select your TV model or Apple TV when it appears as an option.
Apple; William Antonelli/Insider
4. If a four-digit code appears on your TV, enter it on your MacBook.
You can then choose whether you want the TV to mirror your MacBook's screen or act like a second monitor.
You should also open your Apple TV's Settings app, select Video and Audio, and then select Match Content. In this menu, turn on both Match Dynamic Range and Match Frame Rate. This makes it so the Apple TV stream will match your laptop's normal color range and refresh rate.
Just note that the Apple TV can only support refresh rates up to 60Hz. Even if you have a high-powered gaming laptop with a 165Hz screen, any game you play through the Apple TV will only run at up to 60 frames per second.