HBO Max closed captions can disappear, stay stuck on, or ignore the language you picked. Start with the playback menu, then tighten the device, browser, or TV setting that is blocking the caption track.
Turn Captions On Inside HBO Max
Start here because this is the main HBO Max caption control.
- 1.Start playing the show or movie.
- 2.On a phone, tablet, or computer, tap or click the screen. On a TV app, pause playback.
- 3.Choose the Audio and Subtitles icon.
- 4.Under Subtitles, choose a caption language such as English - CC.
- 5.Choose X on phone, tablet, or web, or press the remote Back button on a TV device to save it.
Check the Show or Movie
Caption availability varies by show, movie, country, and language. Open Audio and Subtitles during playback and look under Subtitles.
When English - CC or another caption language appears, select it and resume playback. When no caption language appears, open another episode or title and check Audio and Subtitles there.
If captions work on the second title, report the missing caption track for the original title to HBO Max Support with the title, episode, device, caption language, and time it happened.
Match Your Device Caption Setting
Use this when HBO Max keeps captions on after you turn them off, or refuses to show captions after you select them. HBO Max follows subtitle and caption settings set on your device.
On iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Apple Vision Pro, supported smart TVs, and streaming devices that use Apple caption settings, open Settings, then Accessibility, then Subtitles and Captioning. Turn Closed Captions + SDH on or off.
On a Mac, open the Apple menu, choose System Settings or System Preferences, then open Accessibility and Captions. Select or clear Prefer closed captions and SDH.
On Android phones and tablets running Android 11.0 or later, open Settings, then Accessibility, then Caption preferences. Use Show captions to match the caption setting you want in HBO Max. Google notes that some of these steps work only on Android 11.0 and up, so check your Android version if this menu is missing.
Refresh the Phone or Tablet App
This fixes caption problems caused by a stale session, outdated app, or damaged local app data.
In HBO Max, choose your profile and select Sign Out.
Hold the device power button until the power-off prompt appears.
Wait 10 seconds, turn the device back on, open HBO Max, and sign in.
Update HBO Max from the official store: Play Store on Android, App Store on iPhone or iPad, or Amazon Appstore on Fire tablet. Choose Update when the button appears.
Update the device software next. On Android, open Settings, then System, then Software Update. On iPhone or iPad, open Settings, then General, then Software Update. On Fire tablet, open Settings, then Device Options, then System Updates.
On Android, clear HBO Max data by opening Settings, searching for HBO Max, choosing Storage & cache or Storage, then tapping Clear cache and Clear storage or Clear data.
On Fire tablet, open Settings, then Apps & Games, then Manage All Applications, then HBO Max. Choose Force Stop, Clear Cache, and Clear Data.
As the last app refresh, delete HBO Max, reinstall it from the official app store, open it, and sign in.
Update Captions on TV Devices
TV devices often need both the HBO Max app and system software refreshed.
- 1.On Fire TV, highlight HBO Max, press Menu, choose More Info, then Update. For Fire TV software, open Settings, then My Fire TV, then About, then Check for System Update.
- 2.On Android TV, highlight HBO Max, press and hold Select, choose View Details, then Update. For device software, open Settings, then System, then About, then System update, then Check for update.
- 3.On Apple TV, open App Store, search for HBO Max, and choose Update when it appears. To restart, sign out in HBO Max, then open Apple TV Settings, then System, then Restart.
- 4.On Roku, highlight HBO Max, press Star, and check for an update. For Roku software, open Settings, then System, then System update, then Check now.
- 5.On Samsung, LG, Hisense VIDAA, PlayStation, and Xbox, update HBO Max from the device app store or app management screen, then update the TV or console software from its system settings.
Control Roku Captions Directly
Use this when HBO Max captions fail specifically on a Roku player or Roku TV. Roku has system caption controls, and some apps also expose a playback caption menu.
Press Home on the Roku remote, open Settings, then choose Accessibility. If Accessibility is not listed, choose Captions.
Open Captions mode and choose On always, Off, On replay, or On mute. The On mute option is not available on every Roku device.
During playback, press Star, choose Closed captioning, and select a caption mode. When the Roku playback menu is unavailable, use HBO Max Audio and Subtitles instead.
Fix HBOMax.com in Your Browser
Use HBOMax.com in the latest Google Chrome, Firefox, Microsoft Edge for Windows, or Safari. If captions fail in one supported browser, open HBOMax.com in another supported browser and sign in again.
Update the browser next. In Chrome, open the menu, choose Update Google Chrome when it appears, then Relaunch. In Edge, open the menu, then Settings, then About Microsoft Edge. In Firefox, open the menu, choose Settings, type update in the search box, then choose Check for updates. Safari updates when macOS updates.
Test HBO Max in a private window. Use New Incognito Window in Chrome, New InPrivate Window in Edge, New private window in Firefox, or File and New Private Window in Safari, then go to HBOMax.com and sign in.
When captions work in a private window or another browser, turn off browser extensions, disable ad-blocking software, allow third-party cookies, and clear cookies, cache, or website data in the affected browser.
Adjust Caption Style and Fallbacks
At HBOMax.com, choose your profile, open Settings, then Subtitle Style.
Adjust the caption font, color, size, and opacity.
On TV devices that include HBO Max subtitle styling, open HBO Max, choose the Settings icon, then Subtitle Style.
When HBO Max does not show Subtitle Style on your TV, use the device setting. Android TV uses Settings, Device Preferences, Accessibility, then Captions. Fire TV uses Settings, Accessibility, Closed Caption, then Text. Apple TV uses Settings, Accessibility, Subtitles and Captioning, then Style.
On supported Android devices, press the volume button, tap More, choose Live Caption, then Done. You can also open Settings, then Accessibility, then Live Caption.
In Chrome on Windows or Mac, open Settings, then Accessibility, then turn Live Caption on. On Linux, open Settings, then Accessibility, then Captions, then turn Live Caption on. On a Chromebook, open Settings, then Accessibility, then Manage accessibility features, then Audio and captions, then turn Live Caption on.
Use generated captions only as a temporary fallback while you fix the HBO Max caption track.
Check Playback and Report the Issue
This fixes caption failures that happen alongside buffering, poor quality, or playback errors.
Run an internet speed test on the same device, or on a computer connected to the same network.
For HD playback, make sure the result is at least 5 Mbps.
For 4K playback, aim for 50+ Mbps.
On Fire TV, open Settings, then Network, and press the Play button.
On Roku, open Settings, then Network, then Check connection.
On VIZIO, press Menu or the Settings button, then open Network and choose Network Test or Test Connection.
If captions still do not work, contact HBO Max Support through the Help Center Contact us option. Include the title, episode, device, app or browser version, caption language, when it happened, and any on-screen error code.
For unresolved closed-captioning problems in the United States, file an FCC accessibility complaint under Closed Captioning for programming delivered via the Internet.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why are HBO Max captions on for every show?
HBO Max follows device caption settings. Turn captions off in HBO Max Audio and Subtitles, then turn off the device’s closed-caption or SDH setting.
Why do captions work on one HBO Max title but not another?
Caption availability varies by title, country, and language. When no caption language appears in Audio and Subtitles, report that specific title to HBO Max Support.
Can I change HBO Max caption size and color?
Yes. On HBOMax.com, use Settings and Subtitle Style. On TV devices, use HBO Max Subtitle Style where available or the device caption style menu.
Do Chrome or Android Live Caption features fix HBO Max captions?
No. They create generated captions outside the HBO Max caption track. Use them temporarily, then keep troubleshooting the HBO Max caption setting.