Guide

How to type channel numbers on YouTube TV

YouTube TV has no built-in way to type a channel number. Here is what you can do today, and how NumberTV adds it.

The short answer

YouTube TV’s channel guide is built for scrolling, not typing, so it has no number pad. On an Android TV or Google TV device you can add one with the NumberTV app: install it from Google Play, allow its Accessibility permission, then type the channel number and YouTube TV changes channel.

Why YouTube TV has no channel numbers

Cable boxes gave every channel a fixed number, and many viewers still know their channels that way. YouTube TV’s guide works differently: you scroll through a list of channels or search for one. That is fine for browsing, but slow when you already know exactly where you want to go.

Viewers who grew up with cable ask about this often. YouTube TV does not offer a way to type a number in its guide.

What you can do in YouTube TV today

  • Shorten the guide. YouTube TV lets you reorder and hide channels in the live guide, so the ones you watch most sit at the top.
  • Search or use your voice. Search for a channel by name.

Both help, but neither lets you type a channel number.

How to type channel numbers with NumberTV

1

Install the app

Get NumberTV from Google Play on your Android TV or Google TV device ($15, one time).

2

Allow the permission

Turn on the Accessibility permission when the app asks. It uses it to enter the number you type into YouTube TV.

3

Type the number

Open YouTube TV and type the channel number. YouTube TV changes to that channel.

To confirm: real screenshots from a TV for each step, and Girish’s exact steps.

NumberTV is independent and not affiliated with or endorsed by Google or YouTube.

Honest limits

  • NumberTV is built for Android TV and Google TV. We have not tested other devices, so we cannot promise they work.
  • You need a YouTube TV subscription.
  • The NumberTV remote with physical number keys is not in stock yet. Join the waitlist.

Next: the setup guide or the compatibility check.

Related guides

NumberTV setup guide

From buying the app to typing your first channel.

Compatibility check

Three quick questions, one honest answer.

The NumberTV remote

Number keys, volume, mute and TV power in one remote.