April 28, 2025

Apple has the best ecosystem, and AirPlay is how it allows material to be shared and streamed from one device to another. You can transfer any type of anything, including audio, video, photographs, and other files, from your mobile device and cast it to the latter if you own an iPhone and an AirPlay-compatible device. But sometimes the feature might disturb your activities and you want to turn it off. In this write-up, we will discuss How to turn off airplay on iPhone, and Mac.

How To Turn Off Airplay?

1.Newer Models 

The methods for turning off airplay on newer iPhone and ipads are really easy. 

  • Method 1 – Via Control Center

  • Open your iPhone’s Control Center by swiping down from the top-right corner of the screen. 
  • Long-press on the media playback widget which shows music controls.
  • This will expand the options to show a tile labeled “AirPlay”. Tap on the AirPlay icon.
  • In the pop-up menu, select “Turn Off AirPlay”.

This will disable AirPlay streaming from your Control Center. It’s the fastest way to toggle it off if you need to quickly stop video or music from being streamed to other devices.

  • Method 2 – Through Settings App

  • Open the Settings app and select “General”. 
  • Then you need to scroll down and select the Airplay option. 
  • After that you need to switch off the setting that says transfers to homepod. 
  • Also toggle off “Handoff” if you want to disable that feature.
  • Exit Settings when finished.

Knowing how to turn off airplay through settings app will permanently disable AirPlay from the main Settings menu. It also prevents any accidental streaming.

  • Method 3 – Via Siri Voice Command 

  • Activate Siri by saying “Hey Siri”. 
  • Say “Turn off AirPlay”. 
  • Siri will respond by confirming AirPlay has been disabled.

This offers a hands-free way to quickly disable AirPlay without navigating menus. It’s useful if you’re driving or otherwise unable to manually change the settings.

2. Older Models 

Now if you have an older iPhone model and you want to know how to turn off airplay, it requires a few more steps compared to newer iPhones. Here is how to disable it:

  • Open the Settings app on your iPhone. Scroll down and tap on the “General” option.
  • Next, tap on “Restrictions” which is typically located towards the bottom of the General settings menu.
  • You will be prompted to enter your passcode or use Touch ID to access the Restrictions settings. Enter your passcode here. 
  • In the Restrictions menu, scroll down to the “Allowed Content” section. Look for the “AirPlay” option and toggle it off. 
  • Exit back to the Settings menu. AirPlay should now be disabled and blocked from streaming content from your iPhone. 

With these steps completed, your older iPhone will no longer allow AirPlay streaming to other devices.

3. On Mac

So, how to turn off airplay on Mac? The methods for Mac are not as easy as it is for iphone and ipad. 

  • Method 1 – Using The Menu Bar Icon
  • Click on the AirPlay icon in the menu bar at the top of your screen. It looks like a triangle pointing up. 
  • In the drop-down menu, deselect any devices that are checked for AirPlay streaming. This will uncheck and disable them.
  • Now click on “Turn AirPlay Off” at the bottom of the menu. 
  • AirPlay is now fully disabled on your Mac. The menu bar icon will appear dimmed or greyed out to indicate it is off.

This is the fastest way to turn off AirPlay from the dedicated menu icon and stop any media from streaming.

  • Method 2 – Through System Preferences

  • Click on the Apple icon in the top left corner and select “System Preferences”.
  • Click on “Displays” or “Sound” depending on your needs.
  • In Displays, deselect “Show mirroring options in the menu bar”. 
  • In Sound, go to the “Output” tab and deselect any AirPlay devices listed.
  • Close System Preferences when finished. AirPlay is now disabled.

System Preferences offers more robust control to restrict AirPlay through audio and video settings.

  • Method 3 – Using a Terminal Command 

  • Open Terminal (found in Applications > Utilities).
  • Type: sudo defaults write /System/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.apple.coremedia.iosurface EnableAirPlay -bool NO
  • Press enter. Type in admin password if prompted. 
  • Restart computer to apply the changes. 

If you are looking for how to turn off airplay on Mac permanently, This terminal command will help you do that. It also offering a technical option for maximum control.