Unable to pair a Bluetooth device with Sonos

This article covers what to do if your phone, tablet, or computer can’t pair with your Sonos product using Bluetooth. Your device may show an error message such as “Connection Unsuccessful” in its Bluetooth settings when it can’t make a successful connection with Sonos.

Make sure Sonos is in Bluetooth mode

When pairing with Sonos for the first time, your Sonos product needs to be in Bluetooth discovery mode. The status light on your portable Sonos product will flash blue when in Bluetooth discovery mode. You can find instructions on how to do this in our article about using Bluetooth on Sonos.

Reduce the distance between Sonos and your Bluetooth device

Bring your Bluetooth device and your Sonos product closer together to make sure they’re able to connect with each other. Connection strength over Bluetooth is affected by the distance between devices.

Move Sonos and your Bluetooth device to a different room or location

If you think something nearby is interfering with the Bluetooth signal, you can relocate your Sonos product and your Bluetooth device to a different area and try pairing again.

Forget previous Bluetooth listings

If you’re trying to pair a Sonos product with a Bluetooth device that it’s been paired with before, you may need to forget the previous Sonos device listing before it will connect again. To do this, open your device’s Bluetooth or Connected Device settings, select your Sonos product from the list, then choose Forget or Remove.

Check the power

Your Sonos product won’t be available for a Bluetooth connection when it’s in sleep mode or powered off. If the status light is off on your portable speaker or headphones, press the power button to wake it up or connect it to power to turn it back on if it’s run out of battery.