How to Manage Subtitles for HBO Max [All Major Devices]

HBO Max has one of the easiest menus to use for turning subtitles on and off. It works equally well on most devices and this article provides an in-depth guide to some of the most popular streaming gadgets available.

Additionally, HBO Max offers a suite of customization options to make your reading and viewing experience more enjoyable. Of course, this article will cover them as well.

How to turn HBO Max subtitles on or off

The good thing is that enabling and disabling HBO Max subtitles is the same across all available streaming devices. All you have to do is navigate to the CC icon, select it, and you're good to go.

However, there are a few things you need to know about different streaming gadgets, mobile devices, and TVs. Also, HBO Max is not available on all streaming gadgets and smart TVs.

Managing Subtitles on a Firestick Device

HBO Max only recently became available on Amazon's Firestick. But fortunately, it already has all the features of subtitles. Enabling subtitles on HBO Max is easy.

All you have to do is press play on the title you want to watch, then do this:

1. press the menu button on your Firestick remote, it looks like three horizontal stripes.
2. Then click Subtitles and audio.
3. Finally, select the language in which you want to see the subtitles.

Of course, you can also click on the down direction of the remote control, select the subtitle and select the language that appears (English CC for example).

Once you have successfully enabled your subtitles, return to your video by pressing the menu button again.

You can, of course, change your subtitles to make them work better for you as well.

Manage subtitles on a Roku device

Roku is another device new to HBO Max, but of course it still offers the option of subtitles.

Similar to the Firestick instructions above, enabling subtitles for your favorite HBO Max shows on Roku is simple.

1. Press play on the title you want to watch, press the star button on the Roku remote.
2. Now click on Subtitles and activate your subtitles.
3. Click the Back button at the top left of your remote to return to your show.

Alternately.

1. Click it home button on your Roku remote to display the main menu.
2. Then scroll down and click on Settings.
3. From there, scroll down and click on Reduced mobility.
4. So choose legends fashion, Preferred subtitle language, or Subtitle style to change your subtitles, turn them on and off, or change their appearance.

Manage Subtitles on an Android or iPhone

One of the best things about mobile devices is the ability to take your favorite shows with you. Of course, you must first download and install the app on your mobile device. Once installed, it's easy to navigate from there.

Once you find the movie or show you want to watch, hit the play button and follow these instructions:

1. During playback, tap the screen (no matter where you tap), then select the CC icon that appears.

2. This action instantly turns subtitles on or off. Note that they are disabled by default. You will notice the CC The icon in the lower left corner will change from black and white to purple and black when your subtitles are on.

As you can see, the mobile app version of HBO Max does not offer any subtitle customization options. In order to change the closed captioning options, you will need to visit a web browser.

Manage HBO Subtitles on PC or Mac

There's still no desktop app for HBO Max, but the service's web client is hard to compete with. Therefore, launch your favorite browser, connect to the streaming service and search for the content you want to play.

1. While the video is playing, hover your mouse over the video to display the basic menu.

2. You should be able to see the CC next to or just above the video timeline.

3. Click it to enable or disable subtitles. Here you can access more subtitle settings if you want to change the font size or style.

Managing HBO subtitles on a Smart TV (Samsung, LG, Panasonic, Sony, Vizio)

When it comes to streaming HBO Max through your smart TV, there are some limitations. First, the service/app is available on Samsung TVs, models from 2016 onwards. In addition to that, you can also install the service on most Android TVs, including Sony.

The following sections describe the options for each of the TV brands listed.

Samsung

Using HBO Max subtitles on a Samsung TV is a walk in the park.

1. All you have to do is pause the playback, navigate to the CC with your remote control and activate or deactivate the subtitles.
2. With that out of the way, you might want to make sure you have subtitles enabled on the TV itself. Launch Samsung Settings, go to Reduced mobility, and select Subtitle settings. Beside Legend, there is a green circle indicating that the subtitles are activated.

If you want to turn them off, select Legend and turn off subtitles – the green circle will turn gray.

LG

At the time of writing, LG TVs were among those that didn't support HBO Max. This despite the fact that Google Play Movies and TV is available with the brand. But is there a way to play HBO Max content on your LG without buying a streaming dongle?

Starting in 2022, LG started including AirPlay 2 support. This means you'll be able to cast your iOS device's screen directly to the TV – and it's the only way to watch HBO Max on LG. . At least until there is native support.

If you decide to try this hack, enabling and disabling subtitles is done on your smartphone as described earlier. And no, you won't lose any image quality.

Panasonic

Since Panasonic runs on a proprietary Smart TV OS, HBO Max is not supported. However, there is an option to mirror your Android or iOS smartphone screen.

1. For this to work, the phone and TV must be on the same network.
2. Then you need to press the APPLICATIONS remote control button and choose Mirroring.
3. Now go to Settings menu of your smartphone and choose Screen mirror.
4. There should be a VIERA model number of your TV, tap on it, then tap Okay on the Panasonic remote control and make sure YES is selected.

What is annoying is that you may have to wait for some time before the connection is established. And of course you set the subtitles via your smartphone.

Sony

As mentioned, Sony smart TVs run on Android and you can download and install HBO Max from the Play Store.

1. After logging in and choosing the content to watch, just select the CC icon in the playback window.
2. You may also need to enable subtitles on the TV, press the home button on the remote, then select Settings.
3. Then enter the Digital configuration menu.
4. On this, select Configuring subtitles and make sure the option is enabled. In the same menu, you can change subtitle display preferences such as text and font size, style, color, etc.

Vice

Yes, Vizio is one of those brands that does not work on Android, so you cannot install the HBO Max app on the TV. However, the TV maker was quick to reveal a hack. According to their official website, you can enjoy HBO Max content via Apple AirPlay or Chromecast.

For the purposes of this article, we will explain AirPlay.

1. Launch HBO Max on your iOS device and play a movie or TV show.
2. Then press the AirPlay icon – it is located in the upper right corner of the screen.
3. Tap on your TV from the pop-up menu and you're good to go. To remind you, you change the subtitle settings via the smartphone or tablet.

Additional FAQ

Despite the accessibility quirks, HBO Max is still one of the most promising streaming services out there. The following FAQ section covers useful subtitle customizations and some playback issues you might encounter.

Can I change the subtitle language?

To make one thing clear, the availability of HBO Max subtitles depends on the original language of the content. So, Studio Ghibli movies will be in Japanese and native titles will be in English. The Latin content section on the platform follows the same logic – Spanish audio, English subtitles.

That said, some subtitles are available in two or more languages. You should be able to choose the input language from the CC menu, and this also applies to audio. The languages ​​you can choose are usually Spanish, English, Portuguese, Japanese, etc.

The subtitles keep coming back. What can I do?

Persistent subtitles can be annoying, but there's a quick fix.

1. First, determine if the CC button in playback is enabled or not.
2. Next, go to HBO Max settings, select Reduced mobility, and enter the Subtitles and subtitling menu.

If the subtitles are also disabled there, you will need to check your TV or streaming gadget settings. The idea is to disable subtitles wherever you can so they no longer appear. But you may also need to exit and re-enter the streaming service for the changes to take effect.

Can the text size be adjusted

There is no option to increase text size only in HBO Max, but there may be one on your streaming dongle and other devices. For example, the Accessibility menu on a Mac has a subtitle customization menu, and you can choose large text.

A similar feature is available on Windows 10 and should affect all subtitles played on that computer. If that doesn't do the trick, there's always an option to increase the font size on HBO Max.

Can the font size be changed?

You can choose from six tiny to extra-large font size settings. You access it from the main Settings menu. When streaming via TV or a supported streaming gadget, closed captioning appears at the top of the screen.

Use the arrow keys on your remote to navigate to closed captioning and press the OK key to confirm your selection.

My subtitles are not syncing properly. What can I do?

As long as you're using native subtitles, there's no need to worry about synchronization. But if that happens, pause the playback and then play it again to see if the temporary pause helps. You can also try disabling and then enabling the subtitles to make them speed up.

If that doesn't work, quit the HBO Max service and then restart your streaming device. When using the web client, restart your browser and clear its cache before playing the video again.

Maximize your subtitles

Ultimately, you're just a few taps or clicks away from turning HBO Max subtitles on and off. The service is still young and you can expect further improvements to enhance your viewing experience.

Have you ever used any of the HBO streaming services? What is your experience with HBO Max? Give us your two cents in the comments section below.