Can You Turn Off AutoPlay in HBO Max? Nope!

HBO Max, a premium streaming site, offers a wide choice of the latest and greatest movies and TV shows for you to enjoy. Like many other streaming sites, HBO Max also provides a selection of features designed to make life as a viewer simpler. One such feature is the Autoplay function.

While some love this feature, not everyone enjoys it. If you find yourself wanting to turn off this function, you’re in the right place. In this article, we discuss HBO Max and whether you can turn off Autoplay on the platform.

Can You Turn Off Autoplay on HBO Max?

HBO Max offers the latest movies and trending TV series, making it easy to catch up on your favorite shows. Better still, you can stream the app on various devices, including iOS devices, Android devices, Apple TV, PCs, Amazon Fire, and Samsung Smart TVs.

The offerings of the platform don’t end there.

HBO Max provides users with an array of additional features that allow you to streamline your viewing experience. For example, you can download shows for viewing offline or remove items from your “Continue Watching” reel.

HBO Max Autoplay

Another of HBO Max’s features to streamline user experience is Autoplay.

Watching TV has evolved and no longer requires waiting a whole week to see the next installment of a show. Instead, streaming platforms offer an entire season or two of the latest TV series, encouraging binge-watching. A feature like Autoplay adds to the experience by removing the need to do anything other than watch. The Autoplay function allows a new episode of your show to begin automatically, usually a few seconds into the credits of the previous episode.

While Autoplay may be helpful for some, it can be frustrating for others.

For example, if you fall asleep while the show is playing, you’ll have to rewind or hop back to find the episode that was playing when you dozed off. Not only is this frustrating, but it is also time-consuming. If you are watching on a device that uses paid data since this could also end up racking up your charges.

Turning Off Autoplay

Other streaming platforms such as Netflix and YouTube have an Autoplay function too. These platforms also offer the option to switch the feature on and off. So if you would prefer to proceed to the next episode manually, you can. While most streaming platforms have Autoplay set as a default, the ability to turn the function off leaves viewers with a sense of control.

Unfortunately, HBO Max does not offer the same functionality.

If you search the streaming site’s help page about turning off Autoplay, you are given the following message “No, Autoplay can’t be turned off. Instead, you’ll need to pause or stop video playback before the next episode begins.”

Essentially, as an HBO Max user, you will need to stop the next episode of your show from Autoplaying manually by pressing “Pause” or “Stop” on your remote.

If you don’t stop your show when your episode finishes, there are other frustrations you may encounter.

For example, HBO Max does not come with a “Forward” button. If you fell asleep during the middle of an episode, you will need to scrub through it to navigate back to the point you left off. Scrubbing is time-consuming as most people don’t note the time stamp on the episode right before they nod off. And, if you advance past the point you last saw in the program, you may see a spoiler.

Another feature HBO Max omits is a “Next Episode” button. This leaves you with two choices. You can watch until the end of the episode and wait for the next one to begin. Or, you can scrub through the credits and then wait for Autoplay to take over. Unfortunately, there is no quick way to move between episodes.

Autoplay Glitches

There have been a few glitches with HBO Max’s Autoplay feature, and some users found the Autoplay function doesn’t work at all. Instead of automatically playing, the currently watched episode would finish and then jump back to the beginning of that same episode. Then, when viewers tried to play the installment that followed, the HBO Max site would crash.

HBO Max advised viewers it was aware of the glitch and moved to resolve the issue, reverting to the Autoplay feature as it was initially. However, viewers still have no option to turn the function off.

If you find your HBO Max Autoplay feature is not working correctly, there are a couple of ways to fix it. The first is to restart the device you are using to stream the platform. Another option is to reinstall your HBO Max app. Here is how to do the latter on an Android device:

1. Locate the HBO Max app on your device.
   
2. Press and hold the app icon to call up the “Options” menu.
3. Tap “Uninstall” to remove HBO Max from your device.
   
4. Navigate to the Google Play Store and download the HBO Max app.
   
5. Once installed, sign in to your account.

If you are running HBO Max off an iOS device, these are the steps to follow for reinstalling the app:

1. On your “Home” screen, find the HBO Max app.
   
2. Press and hold the app icon until the “Selection” screen appears.
3. Choose the “Remove App” option.
   
4. Follow the on-screen prompts that follow to remove the app from your device.
5. Once the app is removed, launch the App Store and find the HBO Max app.
6. Download and install the app onto your device
   
7. Sign in to your account.

If your problem with the Autoplay continues, contacting the HBO Max Help Center is your best bet. Speaking to the customer support team and providing them with your account information will allow them to assist you directly and resolve the problem faster.

Autoplay Is Here to Stay, for Now

Autoplay is a feature that, in most instances, is helpful for most viewers. However, sometimes it can cause frustration, especially if you often fall asleep while watching. HBO Max has yet to come out with an update that allows you to disable this function, so, for now, you will need to make the most of the feature.

Have you attempted to disable your HBO Max Autoplay function before? Did you find a method that worked? Let us know in the comments section below.