How to Hide TV Wires

Create a clutterless and cord-free entertainment center with these five clever tips on how to hide TV wires.

Get Ready to Organize

TV wires: are they dangling around your entertainment system into one giant disorganized and cluttered mess? You're meant to be focusing on your new favorite show, movie or video game on that new 8K television—that mess shouldn't be hanging in your peripheral vision during your time off.

Instead of looking like a jumbled collection of cords, discover how to hide TV wires seamlessly with our helpful guide. Here are some easy tips on how to hide TV wires to keep your home entertainment system tidy.

5 Clever Tips: How To Hide TV Wires

How to Attach TV Wires to the Back of Furniture

This one is designed with renters in mind: one way to hide cords is by attaching them to the back of your nearby furniture. There are many available products designed for jobs like these such as damage-free strips and hooks. These clips are easy to apply without causing damage or stripping paint from furniture finishes. Take a clip and press it in for 30 seconds, allowing the sticky side to set along the side of your TV stand. You won't be breaking into the wall and you won't need to have a chat with your landlord.
How to Feed Wires Along the TV Stand

This time, you're running the TV wires along the stand, not behind the furniture. If you have a stand-mounted TV, you can feed TV wires through and alongside the stand itself. You can even create your own DIY built-in wire storage if you don't want to see the tangled cables and wires at all. Check sites like Pinterest for inspiration.
How to Hide TV Wires in Plain Sight

For wall-mounted TVs, the obvious black cords are unsightly and can even be distracting. That one long black line running from your 4K TV down to the outlet? No, thank you. But hiding wall-mounted TV wires presents a real challenge. One of the easiest options is to conceal them with wire covers. These wire concealing kits offer plastic tracks that you can mount directly to the wall, keeping the cords out of view. Here are some basic steps to hide TV wires successfully with a wire cover:
1. Measure the distance from the floor to the base of the TV screen. Using a hacksaw, cut the length of your wire cover.
2. Screw and mount the raceway base in place, following the kit's directions. Now, you'll lay the TV wires inside the channel.
3. Last, snap the custom-cut cover in place to hide the TV wires.
4. Most cord covers come in standard neutral colors, such as white or gray. But these colors can sometimes stand out even more depending on your wall color.
Thankfully, you can apply the same paint color as your wall to disguise the plastic track. Just be sure to use a latex-based paint to adhere to the plastic parts.
How to Hide TV Wires Behind a Wall

For the most seamless solution, you can pass TV wires through the wall with a code-friendly wall kit. This works best for a wall-mounted TV, which allows you to hide the cord with a recessed cable plate. In order to properly drill a hole for your TV , here are some basic steps to follow:
1. Before starting this project, make sure all outlets and wire boxes are code-compliant.
2. Remove the TV or rotate by an adjustable arm.
3. Using a stud finder, locate two open areas in the wall, in which you'll place the two outlets. One area should be behind the wall-mounted TV. The other should be behind the shelf that holds your video components.
4. Check for any other wiring behind the drywall before drilling any holes. Your stud finder should be able to pick up any additional wires.
5. Mark the two outlet locations on your wall and then cut the chosen spots with a drywall saw. Make sure the two wire boxes for your outlets fit in each hole and then tighten the wire boxes to the wall.
6. Feed the TV wires through the wall and into the two wire boxes. Please note that this should be done only with wall-safe cables, as most building safety codes don't allow bare power wires to be run through walls.
7. Once the wires are in place, you can connect your cords to the outlet. Pro tip: check the side of your outlet to see where exactly the cords should go.
8. Once all of your cords are properly in place, screw the outlets into place.
This makes for a sophisticated look, and even appears like a wireless TV setup!
How To Hide TV Wires: Cover With Baseboard Channels

Another way to keep these out of sight is to use baseboard channels. Baseboard channels keep your TV wires, ethernet cable and HDMI cables tangle-free. This is practically a must-have, especially if your entertainment setup is positioned far away from the cable outlet, which has the potential of becoming a tripping hazard. Hollow, molding-like plastic baseboard channels can hide these lines neatly. They can also be easily applied using a peel-off adhesive backing that mounts to your existing baseboard. After your baseboard channel is attached, you simply run your TV wires or ethernet cables through the hollow channel. Like cable concealers, these base channels can be painted or stained to match whatever molding you already have in your home.

Expand to a Cord-Free Entertainment Center

One way you can guarantee a wire-free entertainment center is to learn how to mount a TV on a wall. As you first set up your home entertainment system along with the TV, stereo speakers and any wires, set yourself up for success from the beginning. That way, you can have a clutter-free and seamless style. Use the directions outlined in our guide to learn how to hide TV wires as you mount to complete the process all at once.