Vizio TV Channels Missing? Easy Steps To Get Them Back!

If your Vizio TV channels missing and you have trouble getting them back, you’re one of the lucky ones because we’ve got a solution for you! Here, you will learn why channels go missing and several ways to get them back.

If you’re short on channels on your Vizio TV, there is a high possibility that there is something wrong with the input. Another occasion where you could lose Vizio channels are problems with your subscription plan for instance so make sure to check on that.

One way or another we will get your channels back so let’s start with the possible reasons first.

Why Vizio TV Lost Channels?

Before facing the problem, you must first discover what might be messing with your Vizio channels list.

There are many occasions where users switch subscription plans with their TV provider and they gain or lose a decent amount of channels.

To save you some brainstorming here is a list of all possible reasons for your channel loss:

1. Your input may have been hidden

If your TV input has been hidden on your Vizio TV, you may lose a significant amount of unknown channels until further notice.

2. Renamed input

If your channel’s input has been accidentally renamed, for instance, you might choose the wrong one and still lose an unknown amount of channels.

3. Source device not powered on

If your source device is having issues and cannot transmit to your Vizio TV correctly, you will still lose some of the channels that the device provides your TV with.

4. Cord not connected

If the cord hasn’t been connected correctly both to your Vizio TV and source device, you might be experiencing unknown channel loss.

5. TV connected to incorrect input

If your Vizio TV has been connected to the wrong HDMI source, you might be choosing the wrong source and lose channels.

6. Problems with TV plan

If you’ve changed your TV plan recently and agreed to different terms and conditions, there might be a difference in your channels list.

Those were the most commonly reported issues for missing or unknown channels on your master list.

But keep in mind that if there is something wrong with your subscription plan or it has expired, no wonder your channels will be missing.

With all that in mind, you can now start excluding each cause until you’re left with the true reason. Shall we get started?

How To Fix Vizio TV Channels Missing?

Before you start troubleshooting, go to your Vizio TV menu and carry out channel searching.

Make sure to select the Full Scan, and hopefully, the channels you’re missing will be discovered and inserted into your master list.

If there were no new channels discovered and you’re missing quite a lot of them, then there is something wrong and you can start with our first step.

Step #1 Check If Input’s Hidden

Sometimes, without knowing, you could hide the input that provides your TV with all the channels in your subscription.

In fact, this happens so often that users are constantly complaining about something wrong with their input.

This is why we’ve developed this list to check if your Input is hidden and if it is, how to show it again.

1. On newer models of Vizio, grab your remote and press the menu button.
2. After entering the Vizio menu, choose the system.
3. Next, click on hide input from the list.
4. You will now see a list on which you should make sure all inputs are pinned with the visible label.
5. Highlight the input that contains all of your channels after checking them and click the OK button on your Vizio remote.
6. You will now see a list of options to hide from the input list label and set it to visible configuration.

This way, you will make sure that the source containing all of your channels is not hidden.

Even if it was hidden by some accident, you must not worry anymore because now you’re certain it is always visible to all users of this Vizio TV.

Step #2 Check If Input Has Been Renamed

Many select the wrong input as a consequence of renaming.

Sometimes whenever you subscribe to a different TV plan, for instance, the input that contains your channels might be under a different name, but the old one that used to contain them will still be there.

To check if it has been renamed, instead of HDMI 1 for example, you may see the name of the device connected to it, such as Playstation, Xbox, and so on.

You must check which input is your channel cable and select it from now on.

Step #3 Troubleshoot Source Device

If the device that has been provided to you by your TV manufacturers in order to watch channels has issues, you may have missing channels or no channels at all.

In such cases, users will usually lose all channels provided to them by that device until further notice.

All you have to do here is make sure everything is working correctly with your source device. You can try power resetting your device by unplugging it from the wall outlet and set it aside for about 5-10 minutes.

Furthermore, you can try disconnecting all external devices from your TV and try scanning from channels over again. If nothing helps, let’s move on.

Step #4 Check Cord

Sometimes after establishing your configuration, you may have found yourself asking “why is my Vizio TV showing no signal?”.

This is probably because you left the cord not plugged all the way in or there is something wrong with it.

Whenever technicians come to establish their TV, they will probably do it by themselves, but you are still obligated with the task to make sure everything is connected correctly.

After all, if there is hardware damage that you can’t deal with, you can always call them for assistance.

Note: Make sure that the cord is not twisted or under pressure, especially if it passes through a door corner.

Step #5 Factory Default

By performing a factory reset all data, channels and personal settings will be permanently gone.

This is exactly what we’re targeting with this step. Make sure to save everything that you might want to restore after the reset is done.

Here is how to perform a factory reset on a Vizio TV:

1. Take the remote and press the Menu button.
2. Go to System.
3. Choose Reset & Admin.
4. Select Reset TV To Factory Defaults.
5. Insert your PIN (the default credentials are “0 0 0 0”).
6. Wait for the TV to turn off.
7. Carry out the setup procedure.

Once ready perform a FULL SCAN and hopefully, your missing channels will be there this time around.

Step #6 Problems With Subscription Plan

If your TV plan has recently expired and you signed up for a new one, the new terms and conditions of this plan might be different than your old one.

What we are trying to say here is you might gain and lose particular channels and usually you won’t be informed of that, except if you read the whole agreement notes.

Simply check which channels you are missing approximately and call your TV providers to talk to them.

They will explain to you in detail what has gone differently in your plan and you will get to know a little better what channels you are not in possession of anymore.

To wrap things up, we can conclude that sometimes you can lose particular channels without even being informed. In case of a change in your plan or hidden/renamed input.

You might have a damaged cable or your TV has outdated firmware. Regardless of what the issue is, you should NOT be missing a channel so don’t hesitate to seek further assistance from Vizio if nothing works for you.

Read Next: How to Connect Soundbar to Vizio TV?

Bottom Line:

Now that you know why are Vizio TV channels missing, you can easily troubleshoot the issue following our steps

. We really hope that you’ve learned something new today and if our post was helpful you would love our blog where there is a solution for everyone!