Kodi on Fire Stick: How to Install Kodi on Fire Stick or Fire TV

Need some help getting the latest version of Kodi up and running on your Fire TV? We walk you through the process, using adbLink, Downloader, and apps2fire. They sound more technical and complicated than they are, so just follow our guide step by step, and you’ll be streaming in no time!

Kodi is by far one of the best media center apps around. It’s free, easy to use, runs on a wide variety of devices, and it supports a ton of fantastic third party add-ons, everything from live sports to music to live TV channels. You can even download custom Kodi builds for Fire TV!

Keeping Kodi up to date with Fire TV can be a little more difficult than on other devices though, all due to the nature of Kodi installs. If you think your version of Kodi is starting to fall behind, read on for our full guide on how to install the latest version of Kodi on the Fire Stick or Fire TV. And don’t worry, upgrades will only take a few minutes!

Remember – Always Use a VPN with Fire Stick

It doesn’t matter if you’re installing Kodi 17.6 on your Fire Stick, running a sideloaded copy of YouTube on Fire TV, or just streaming a few movies you rented through Amazon, using a VPN while running your device is always a smart decision. VPNs encrypt data leaving your home network to keep traffic anonymous and secure. Without it, it’s easy for anyone to spy on your activity, including ISPs, government agencies, and even hackers.

Finding the best VPN to use with Fire TV can be challenging. You need top notch speeds to keep video quality as high as possible, but you can’t sacrifice privacy or security in the process. We’ve researched the top VPN providers to find the services that work best with Kodi and Fire TV. Our recommendation is below, and it’s the perfect solution for safe, private, and easy video streams on Fire TV.

NordVPN – Best VPN for Kodi

NordVPN has been around for almost a decade, but they’ve done anything but remain stagnant. They’ve taken in the feedback of thousands of users over the years, and have refined their offering to become the most sophisticated privacy solution on the market. And one of the more recent developments is a dedicated app for Firestick–no sideloading, jail breaking or router installations required.

What’s more, NordVPN has grown its server network to epic proportions, covering more than 5,500 nodes in 59 countries. If that weren’t enough, they also launched NordLynx–a branch of the cutting-edge WireGuard protocol–geared for speed but utterly uncompromising on your security. Shrouded by the 256-AES-GCM encryption cipher, you’ll stop third-party surveillance of your Kodi traffic–blocking out ISP tracking and throttling for good.

Connecting to an encrypted NordVPN server also has the benefit of “spoofing” your IP address to match that of the country where the node resides. With your new false digital identity, you can fool websites, apps, and Kodi add-ons into serving you streaming content which would otherwise be restricted behind geoblocks. And, rolling with a spoofed IP anonymizes your traffic, making you intensely difficult to target with the most common cyber-attacks. Backed by NordVPN’s strict no-logging policy, you can stream, download, or browse in total privacy.

Read our full NordVPN review.

Preparing Your Fire Stick for Kodi Installation

Since Kodi isn’t available to download directly from the Amazon app store, you’ll need to go through a process known as sideloading to get it installed. It isn’t as complex as you might think, but before you begin, there are a few things you should check first.

Recommended vs Nightly Builds

When you head to Kodi’s downloads page and click on the Android icon, you’ll notice several tabs at the top of the screen: Recommended, Pre-release, Development Builds. These three sections split the downloadable content into categories designed for a slightly different audience. Which one you choose depends on your specific needs.

Almost everyone will want to stay on the Recommended tab and download the latest stable version of Kodi. This may be a full release cycle behind the other tabs, but the compatibility is guaranteed, and you won’t run into any kind of crashes or other errors that might be present in pre-release or development builds. Plus, since sideloading takes more time than a quick “click and install”, you don’t want to go through a new update every couple of weeks.

Pre-release builds are semi-stable alpha and beta releases of the upcoming Kodi version. This will be a bit further ahead than the recommended “stable” build, but you can run into compatibility and crashing issues, since the software isn’t finalized. Development builds are even more cutting-edge than the pre-release builds and can be updated as often as every night.

Unless you need the absolute latest in Kodi software and don’t mind sideloading an apk file every few days, always download the recommended build for Kodi, as it’s the latest stable release.

Verify Your Kodi Version Number

If you’re installing the latest version of Kodi, you’ll first want to make sure it’s actually necessary! Large Kodi updates are only released a few times per year, at their most frequent. Follow the steps below to check the version number of your Fire TV’s Kodi installation.

1. Run Kodi on your current Fire TV or Fire Stick device.
2. Go to the main menu and click or tap the gear icon to enter the settings page.
3. Scroll down to the System Information icon.
4. Make sure you’re on the Summary tab.
5. The Kodi version number will be displayed in the lower right corner of the screen where it says “Build”.
6. Take this build number, then go to your PC web browser and visit the Kodi downloads page.
7. Scroll until you see the Android icon and click it.
8. Look under the “Recommended” tab for the current Kodi release. If it’s equal to what you have installed, there’s no need to upgrade.

Allow Unknown Sources

Installing software to your Fire TV device means going through the process of sideloading. The Fire TV operating system has a default setting that disables external installations by default, so in order to add Kodi to your system, you’ll need to disable it. Doing this is perfectly safe and won’t harm your device in any way. Follow the steps below and you’ll be ready to sideload in just a few seconds.

1. Go to your Fire TV’s settings page located at the top of the home menu.
2. Scroll right and choose Device
3. Move down to Developer Options
4. Set Apps from Unknown Sources to ON.
5. Accept the warning message about installing external apps.

Should You Uninstall the Old Version of Kodi First?

Unless you want to start over from a fresh install of Kodi, there’s absolutely no reason to uninstall the previous version of the software before getting the latest release. In fact, it’s better if you leave the original one installed, as this will preserve your settings, add-ons, and sources so you don’t have to configure everything again. Simply install the new Kodi over the old one, that’s it!

How to Install the Latest Version of Kodi on Fire TV

Got everything set up and ready to go? The actual installation process is a breeze once you’ve assembled all the materials. Below we’ll cover three of the main sideloading methods most people use for adding new apps to their Fire Stick and Fire TV devices. You can choose any one you like.

Method 1 – adbLink

If you have a good laptop or desktop PC on the same network connection as your Fire TV device, or if you want to sideload or manage multiple apk files with ease, using adbLink is by far your best option. This free software lets you connect to your Fire Stick to wirelessly add new programs, uninstall apps, and even browse the built-in file structure. It’s an incredible tool no Fire user should go without, especially if you sideload apps on a regular basis. Available for Windows, Mac OS and Linux.

Below are the instructions for installing adbLink and using it to sideload the latest version of Kodi on your Fire TV or Fire Stick device.

1. Switch on your Fire TV stick and turn on the connected TV.
2. Make sure “Apps from Unknown Sources” is set to ON. If you followed the preparation steps above, it will be set.
3. Go to Settings > About – Network and write down the IP address of your Fire TV Stick.
4. Visit the adbLink website on your PC and download the program.
5. Install adbLink and launch it.
6. In adbLink, click “new” next to the devices box to add your Fire TV Stick.
7. Type the IP address of your Fire TV Stick into adbLink and save the changes.
8. On your PC, visit the Kodi download page, click on the Android icon, and get the ARMV7A version of the apk. Save it somewhere easy to access, like your computer desktop.
9. In adbLink, click the Install APK button.
10. Select the .apk update file you just downloaded.
11. Click Yes when the Install APK prompt appears.
12. The new version of Kodi will install to your Fire TV Stick and be available to use in a few moments.

Method 2 – Downloader App

If you don’t have access to (or just don’t want to use) a separate PC program to sideload, the Downloader app is a fantastic alternative method. All you need to do here is get the app on your Fire TV by downloading it from the built-in marketplace, type in the URL to the Kodi apk, then install. It’s simple and easy, though typing long links using the Fire Stick remote can be something of a hassle.

Follow the steps below to use Downloader to sideload Kodi onto your Fire device.

1. Open the Amazon Appstore on your Fire TV by going to the home page and choosing Apps.
2. Browse for Downloader under the utilities category and install it.
3. While that installs, visit the Kodi downloads website on your PC.
4. Click on the Android downloads icon and stay on the Recommended tab.
5. Look at the direct link for the latest Android ARMV7A release build. It should automatically point to the latest version of Kodi.
6. Copy this URL somewhere safe. You could also take a picture using a smartphone.
7. Back on your Fire Stick, run the Downloader app.
8. Type the URL from above into Downloader’s URL box.
9. Downloader will fetch the file from the website.
10. When the download completes, choose to install and launch the apk automatically. Kodi will then be accessible from your Fire Stick at any time.

Method 3 – apps2fire

If you have a separate Android device you often use, installing Kodi to your Fire Stick via apps2fire is probably the most convenient method of sideloading around. The software simply copies Android apps from your smartphone to Fire TV, it’s that simple. You’ll need to install Kodi on your other device first, but then apps2fire will take care of the rest.

Follow the guide below to sideload the latest version of Kodi to Fire TV using apps2fire.

1. On a separate Android device from your Fire TV, install apps2fire. Make sure it’s the official one developed by Koni, not one of the copycats.
2. Install or update Kodi on the same Android device. There’s no need to visit the Kodi download website, just use the Google Play store.
3. Run apps2fire and let it create a list of your local installs.
4. When the scan is complete, slide the menu left and tap Setup.
5. On your Fire TV, go to Settings > About – Network and write down the IP address.
6. Back in apps2fire, enter your Fire TV’s IP address and tap “Search Fire TVs”.
7. Go to the Local Apps tab and scroll down to Kodi.
8. Tap the icon, then select “Install” when the window opens.
9. After a moment, Kodi will upload to your Fire TV and install. This can take a few minutes depending on the speed of your home Wi-Fi.
10. After a few moments, apps2fire will notify you when the install is complete. Now run Kodi on your Fire TV and you’re set!

Adding Content to Your Kodi Device

Once you’ve got Kodi on your devices, it’s time to add some content. Kodi is a media center app first, meaning its main purpose is organizing and managing movie and music files. This means you can add content on your PC and stream it directly to your Fire TV Stick in seconds. It’s an easy and no-hassle way of watching movies anywhere in your house, and you don’t even need to be a tech genius to set it up.

How to add your own movies to Kodi:

1. Go to Kodi’s main menu and click “Videos” section.
2. Select “Files”. A list of your added video directories will appear. To add more, just click “Add videos…”
3. A video source window will pop up. Choose “Browse” and select the folder you want to add.
4. Pick a unique name for the folder and click “OK”
5. The “Set Content” window will open. Click “This directory contains” and tell Kodi what type of files are in the folder (movies, TV shows, music videos).
6. Content specific options will appear in the window. Set them as you see fit, or leave them at their default state.
7. Click “Ok”. Kodi will ask to refresh the directory and perform a scan on the video content.
8. Go back to Kodi’s main menu and click “Videos”
9. The folder(s) you added will be displayed under Media sources.

Setting Up UPnP

One of the lesser-known features about Kodi is that you can set the software to stream videos from one device to another. It only takes a second and you don’t even need to install any add-ons, just flick a few buttons and you’re ready. This is perfect if you have a large media library on your computer but want to watch shows on your tablet, laptop, or even smartphone.

Note: The following steps are for Kodi v17 “Krypton”. For older versions the options may be located in different menus. For best results you should update Kodi to Krypton right away. If you can’t, see the guides on the official Kodi wiki for instructions on using UPnP on older releases.

How to use UPnP (Universal Plug and Play) streaming on Kodi:

1. Install Kodi on the same device where you store your videos, usually your PC or laptop. We’ll call this device the server.
2. Go to Kodi’s main menu on your server and click the gear icon at the top.
3. Select the “Service Settings” icon.
4. Go to the UPnP/DLNA tab.
5. Switch on the “Share my libraries” option at the top.
6. On your second device, the Fire TV, open Kodi and go to Videos > Files > Add Videos…
7. Choose “Browse” in the window that pops up.
8. Scroll down to “UPnP Devices”
9. You’ll see your PC server listed there. Open it and click “OK”
10. Name your video source something unique and click “OK”
11. To stream, simply run Kodi on your PC server then connect through your Fire TV device by going to the “Videos” tab and selecting the source.
12. Play the video on your PC and it will appear on your TV via the Fire TV Stick!

The limitation of Kodi’s UPnP service is that you can only share stored content on your server, not live streams. This really isn’t a problem, as if you can access Kodi and the internet on both of your devices, it’s much faster to just stream the movie you want from the source instead of sending it through your network twice over.

Troubleshooting Guide – What to Do if Kodi is Not Working on Firestick

There are various problems that can occur when using Kodi on a Firestick. Sometimes, these are issues that can be resolved within Kodi or in the settings of the Firestick itself. Other times, it might be a problem related to your internet connection or something a bit more obscure. In this guide, we are going to go through some of the most common problems Kodi Firestick users have reported to us and outline the steps you need to take to resolve the problem.

Problem 1 – Content Streamed on Kodi is Always Buffering

Perhaps the most common issue that Kodi Firestick users report is that when trying to stream content, their connection is slow, it doesn’t run smoothly and is always buffering. These problems are invariably caused by slow internet connection speeds rather than Kodi itself.

Therefore, the first step to take is to visit a site which checks your connection speed. Speedtest.net is the one we usually use. On the home page, hit the Go button and the site will tell you how fast your connection is. Your connection speed will differ depending on what internet package you have, but if it is slower than expected there are a few things you can do to try and improve it.

The Solutions

• Unplug the router: The first thing to do is to unplug and then reconnect your router. This will often improve connection speeds from the router as the settings and connections reset.
• Unplug the Firestick: Another possible solution is to unplug the Firestick from the power supply, leave it for a few moments, and then reconnect it again and restart it. If there is an issue with the Firestick connection itself, this can sometimes resolve it.
• Clear the Cache: One final thing which might help is to clear the cache on the Firestick itself. This can be done by going to Settings > Applications > Manage Installed Applications > Kodi > Clear Cache. Be sure not to hit Clear Data as this will delete all your content on Kodi too.

• Improve your router/internet connection: If this doesn’t improve your speed, there are two other possible solutions. Either your router is unable to cope with the internet speeds you have available, in which case you will need to invest in a new one. Or you will need to upgrade your internet deal to get faster speeds from your ISP.

None of these solutions is guaranteed, but more often than not, one of them will make a difference.

Problem 2 – Firestick Overheating

The Firestick is a small device but it has a surprising amount of power. As a result, it can sometimes generate quite a bit of heat, as the device itself has no inbuilt heat dispersion or cooling mechanism to help itself. If your Firestick does overheat, it can affect its performance or in extreme circumstances stop the device working altogether. It is a surprisingly common problem especially if you live in a warm climate, but fortunately, there is a very simple solution.

The Solution

Firstly, you need to ascertain if your Firestick is overheating or not. The simple, low-tech way to do this is to touch it. If it feels hot, you will need to find a way to cool it down. The best way to do this is by directing a small fan at the Firestick while it is switched on. You can buy one of these online for next to nothing and nowadays, you can even get a USB fan that can be plugged into your computer or even your TV. Turn on the fan, point it at the Firestick and within a few minutes it should have cooled down and will begin functioning as usual again.

Problem 3 – Firestick Is Losing Its Network Connection

Another problem (not to be confused with Problem 1 in this guide) is Firesticks dropping their network connections altogether. If you are using Kodi at the time, this will mean either the stream you are watching will stop or you will be clicking on links or menu items within an add-on and they just won’t work. The cause of this problem is usually related to the size of the Firestick.

Basically, in order to keep the Firestick compact and portable, Amazon has had to compromise on some of the components. One such component is the Wi-Fi receiver. As a result, the Firestick only has a limited Wi-Fi range and losing the network connection is far from unusual.

The Solution

Depending on the cause of the loss of network connection, there are a few possible solutions you could try which should fix this problem.

1. Move your Firestick closer to your router or vice versa – If the problem is being caused by the router being out of range of the Firestick, a simple solution is to move the two devices closer together.
2. Move anything that might be blocking the signal – While Wi-Fi signals can pass through objects, they can also weaken the signal, which can some cause connections to be lost. Try to ensure that there is nothing between your router and the device which could be blocking the signal.
3. Is your Firestick or router overheating – As noted above, it is quite easy for a Firestick to overheat. But the same is true for a cheap router too. The solution suggested previously, of directing a small fan towards the Firestick, will work equally well for either device.
4. Buy a new wireless router – If nothing else works, you might need to buy a new router. They do not last forever and new routers typically have a better signal than older models. This doesn’t have to be a big expense either. A decent new router can be picked up for under £20 from most tech websites these days.

Problem 4 – Kodi App Not Working Properly

The final common issue many of our readers have encountered is for the Kodi Firestick app to stop functioning properly. Some glitch or other is causing the app to not respond to your interactions correctly whether by not opening menu items or failing to open links. This is as common on the Firestick as it is on any other device. Unfortunately, the limited functionality of a Firestick means that rather than run a troubleshooter or using another solution, the quickest and easiest thing to do is to reinstall the Kodi software.

The Solution

The reinstallation method for Kodi is a simple one as you can see from the seven simple steps below. The method given assumes you have already changed the settings on the Firestick to accept apps from unknown sources and also already installed a downloading tool, such as Downloader. If this is not the case, you will be better off following our full guide on How to Install Kodi on Amazon Fire TV Stick.

1. Open Downloader.
2. Enter the following URL exactly: https://kodi.tv/download, then click
3. On the webpage that opens, scroll down to the bottom and click on the Android
4. Select the ARM 32-Bit link under the Release heading.
5. Once this file has downloaded, click on Install in the pop-up box.
6. A black Kodi page will open. You will need to click All and then Install.
7. The Kodi app should now have reinstalled onto your Firestick. You will find it listed under the heading “Yours Apps & Games”.

Conclusion

Kodi is an incredible piece of software that works as an unofficial alternative to Netflix and a replacement for dozens of other popular pieces of software. It runs like a dream on Fire TV, as well, so once you get it installed and start streaming, you’ll be hooked!

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