One thing that surprised me about the 2020 Chromecast with Google TV is its remote. From the pictures, I thought I’d hate it, but, after actually using it, it isn’t so bad. I’m not a fan of the button placement, but it fits nicely in the hand and has an interesting look. The Chromecast remote does work with the Fire TV, with some major caveats that I’ll get into, and at only $19.99, some may consider it as an alternative to the $29.99 Fire TV remote. Here is an explanation of what does and doesn’t work on the Chromecast remote when using it with a Fire TV, Fire TV Stick, or Fire TV Cube, as well as instructions for how to pair the two together.

Once paired to a Fire TV, the only buttons on the Chromecast remote that work are the Home, Back, Directional (up/down/left/right), and Select buttons. Even if you first configure the TV power, volume, and input buttons on the remote using a Chromecast, those buttons stop working as soon as you pair it to a Fire TV. The voice button, Netflix button, and YouTube button also do not work with a Fire TV.

At this point, you might be thinking why even bother trying to use this remote on a Fire TV when so many buttons don’t work, and I don’t blame you. I’d personally recommend waiting for a Fire TV Stick to go on sale and buy it just for the remote, since it’ll probably be less expensive that way than buying the standalone Alexa Voice Remote because that remote hardly ever goes on sale. If you can’t wait for a sale, you can always consider getting the old non-Voice Fire TV Stick remote, which should be cheaper than even the Chromecast remote and works with every Fire TV, Fire TV Stick, and Fire TV Cube model. Lastly, you could always just use the Fire TV Remote App on a mobile phone to control your Fire TV, but be sure to never factory reset your Fire TV because you need a physical remote to complete the initial setup process.

If you do want to use the Chromecast remote with a Fire TV, here is how to pair it. Note that, to pair the Chromecast remote to a Fire TV, you will need some way to control your Fire TV. If you don’t have a physical Fire TV remote that works, you should either use the Fire TV Remote app or a USB keyboard connected through an OTG cable.

1. On the Fire TV, go to Settings > Controllers & Bluetooth Devices > Other Bluetooth Devices. Be sure not to select Amazon Fire TV Remotes from this menu, because that is only for pairing offical Fire TV remotes.
   
2. Select “Add Bluetooth Devices” and then immediatly hold down the Home and Back buttons on the Chromecast remote until a white light begins to pulse at the bottom of the remote. Once the light on the Chromecast remote begins to pulse, release the buttons and you’ll see “Chromecast Remote” appear on the Fire TV.
   
3. As soon as “Chromecast Remote” appears on the Fire TV, select it with your original remote. After selecting it, you should see a message in the lower right that says “Chromecast Remote is now connected” and you’re all set.