The best smart TV speaker for most UK living rooms is the Sonos Ray, because it's the only sub-£300 option that adds Wi-Fi streaming and Sonos multi-room grouping on top of a genuine sound upgrade over a TV's built-in speakers. A smart TV speaker is a compact, single-bar unit that connects to your television over HDMI ARC or optical and, unlike a basic soundbar, layers in app control, Wi-Fi audio streaming, or voice-assistant compatibility. If you just want clearer dialogue and a plug-and-play setup with no app required, the Bose TV Speaker or Yamaha SR-C20A are simpler and cheaper. Budget mainly dictates the choice: expect to pay from around £229 for a compact bedroom bar up to £1,999 for a hi-fi-grade system with full Dolby Atmos.
What makes a TV speaker "smart"?
A smart TV speaker adds features beyond basic HDMI ARC playback — typically Wi-Fi connectivity for streaming services, app-based control and EQ, multi-room grouping with other speakers in the same ecosystem, or support for AirPlay 2 and Google Cast. Not every product marketed as a "TV speaker" includes these: the Bose TV Speaker, for example, is Bluetooth and HDMI-only with no app or Wi-Fi tier, while the Sonos Ray and KEF XIO both connect to your home Wi-Fi and slot into a wider multi-room system. If you already run a multi-room speaker setup, picking a TV speaker from the same ecosystem means the TV becomes just another zone you can group into the rest of the house.
Does a smart TV speaker need a subwoofer?
No — every model in this list has a built-in subwoofer or bass driver, so none require an external sub to produce usable bass for TV and film dialogue. The Yamaha SR-C20A uses dual passive radiators, the Bose TV Speaker and Sonos Ray both use down- or forward-firing bass drivers in the same enclosure, and the Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus and KEF XIO add a dedicated bass channel within their multi-driver arrays. A separate wireless subwoofer (like the Sonos Sub Mini) is an optional upgrade for deeper bass on action films, not a requirement to get the speaker working.
The best smart TV speakers UK 2026
| Model | UK price | Channels | Wi-Fi / app control | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sonos Ray | from around £149–£279 | 2.0 | Yes — Sonos app, AirPlay 2 | Multi-room integration |
| Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus | around £200–£250 | 3.1 | No — HDMI/Fire TV remote only | Budget Dolby Atmos |
| Bose TV Speaker | from around £189 | 2.0 | No — Bluetooth/HDMI ARC only | Simple plug-and-play |
| Yamaha SR-C20A | around £229–£244 | 2.1 | No — Bluetooth app for EQ only | Bedrooms and small rooms |
| KEF XIO | around £1,999 | 5.1.2 | Yes — Wi-Fi 6, AirPlay, Google Cast | Premium hi-fi sound |
Prices vary by retailer and change frequently with sales — treat the figures above as a guide rather than a fixed price.
Sonos Ray
The Sonos Ray is the pick for anyone who already owns, or plans to buy, other Sonos speakers. It's a compact 2.0-channel bar with two tweeters and two mid-woofers, and while it doesn't support Dolby Atmos, its onboard EQ and Sonos' Trueplay room tuning give it a fuller sound than its size suggests. Because it connects over Wi-Fi rather than only Bluetooth, it can be grouped with other Sonos speakers for whole-home audio, and supports AirPlay 2, Spotify Connect and Tidal Connect for music playback independent of the TV. It connects to a TV over optical only, not HDMI ARC, which is worth checking against your television's ports before buying.
Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus
The Fire TV Soundbar Plus is the strongest budget pick for Dolby Atmos support. It moved from a basic 2.0-channel design in its predecessor to a 3.1-channel layout with a built-in subwoofer, three full-range speakers, three tweeters and two woofers, plus support for Dolby Atmos, DTS:X and a dialogue-enhancer mode. It isn't Alexa voice-enabled despite the Fire TV branding, but owners of a Fire TV-powered television can control it with the same remote via HDMI-CEC.
Bose TV Speaker
The Bose TV Speaker is the simplest option here if you don't want an app or a Wi-Fi setup at all. It's a 2.0-channel bar with two angled full-range drivers and a dedicated dialogue mode that lifts voices without needing to adjust volume constantly. Connectivity is HDMI ARC, optical (cable included) or Bluetooth for phone audio, and HDMI-CEC means your existing TV remote can control its volume. It has no Wi-Fi tier and no smart-speaker features, so treat it as a straightforward audio upgrade rather than a smart-home device — Bose's Bass Module 500 or 700 can be added later for more low end.
Yamaha SR-C20A
The Yamaha SR-C20A is the best fit for a bedroom, home office or small second TV. At 600mm wide it's noticeably more compact than the other bars on this list, built around two 46mm full-range drivers and a 75mm upward-firing bass driver rated at 100W total, with dual passive radiators for low-end support. Connections cover HDMI ARC, two digital optical inputs, a 3.5mm aux and Bluetooth 5.0, and a companion app handles EQ and a dedicated Clear Voice mode. There's no Wi-Fi streaming tier, so it's best suited to a straightforward TV-and-Bluetooth setup rather than a multi-room system.
KEF XIO
The KEF XIO is the premium choice for anyone prioritising music and film sound quality over affordability. It's a 5.1.2-channel system rated at up to 820W peak power, supporting Dolby Atmos, DTS:X and Sony 360 Reality Audio, with a frequency range of 37Hz–20kHz. It connects to a TV via HDMI eARC and streams over Wi-Fi 6 with AirPlay and Google Cast support, though it has no built-in Alexa or Google Assistant — voice control is limited to streaming from their respective apps. At around £1,999 it's a significant step up in price from the rest of this list, aimed at buyers who'd otherwise consider a separate AV receiver and speaker set.
How we picked these speakers
Each product's specification is drawn from the manufacturer's own listing or product documentation, cross-checked against independent reviews for real-world performance where the manufacturer page didn't cover a detail (such as connectivity limitations). We didn't include products still awaiting UK release, and we excluded standard multi-piece soundbar-and-subwoofer bundles that fall into a separate best smart soundbar category rather than the single-bar "TV speaker" format covered here. For a head-to-head between two of the biggest names in this space, see our Sonos vs Bose soundbar comparison.
Which smart TV speaker should you buy?
If you're already invested in a Sonos or Apple ecosystem, the Ray is the easiest recommendation because it slots straight into multi-room grouping and AirPlay 2. If Dolby Atmos on a budget matters more than smart features, the Fire TV Soundbar Plus gets you there for less than the Ray's full price. For a small room where simplicity wins, the Yamaha SR-C20A or Bose TV Speaker both do the job without an app to manage — and if sound quality is the only thing that matters, the KEF XIO is the standout, at a price to match.
