Can You Remote Play While Someone Else Watches TV? Yes – Here’s How
Yes. Remote Play streams your PS5/PS4 session to another device — your phone, laptop, Deck or Portal — while the TV itself is free. The trick is embarrassingly simple: the other person switches the TV to a different HDMI input (cable box, streaming stick, another console). Your game keeps running on the PlayStation; they watch whatever they want. Everyone wins.
Why This Works
Remote Play takes over your PlayStation user session, not the TV. The console doesn’t care which HDMI input the TV is showing — it keeps rendering your game and streaming it over the network. The TV is just a display; once the other person switches it away from the PS5’s input, your stream is unaffected.
Do It in 3 Steps
- Start your remote play session first from your device (setup guide if you haven’t registered yet).
- Hand over the TV remote. The other person switches the TV input to their cable box / Fire Stick / Apple TV / whatever.
- Wake the console remotely next time so nobody has to touch the TV at all — see wake & sleep your PS5 remotely.
The Limits (Read Before You Promise Anything)
- The console can’t do two things at once. While your remote session runs, the PS5 can’t play a Blu-ray, run Spotify on the TV, or broadcast — Sony reserves the console for the active session. The other person needs their own source (a separate HDMI input), not the PlayStation.
- HDMI-CEC auto-switching. Some TVs jump back to the PS5 input when the console wakes or sends a signal. If that happens, turn off HDMI-CEC / “device link” in the TV’s settings (exact menu name varies by TV brand — check your TV manual).
- Audio. Your game audio goes to your streaming device, not the TV — the other person hears only their own show. If the TV is still on the PS5 input you’ll hear the game from the TV speakers too; switch the input and it’s gone.
- One session at a time. Only one remote play session per console — you can’t have two people streaming two different games from one PS5.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can someone watch Netflix on the TV while I remote play?
Yes, if the TV has Netflix on a different input or a separate streaming stick. They switch the TV away from the PS5’s HDMI input; your remote session keeps running on the console unaffected.
Will they hear my game audio?
No — once the TV is switched to another input, its speakers play that input. Your game audio goes to your phone, Deck, laptop or headphones.
Why does the TV keep switching back to the PS5?
That’s HDMI-CEC: the TV auto-switches to whichever device ‘woke up’. Disable HDMI-CEC (sometimes called device link, Anynet+, Bravia Sync) in the TV settings and the TV will stay where you put it.
Can the PS5 play a Blu-ray while I remote play?
No. The console is occupied by your remote session and can’t run a disc, Spotify, or a broadcast at the same time. The other person needs a non-PlayStation video source.
Can two people remote play different games from one PS5?
No — one console, one remote session at a time. A second player would need a second console.