Using AirPlay with Sonos speakers

You can now use AirPlay 2 with the latest Sonos speakers on your iPhone, iPad or Mac to play sound (YouTube, Netflix, Apple Music, Spotify etc) directly to your Sonos speakers. So you do not need to use the Sonos application anymore.

AirPlay 2 compatibility with Sonos speakers

The AirPlay 2 functionality is only compatible with the following Speakers: Sonos One, Play 5 2nd generation, Playbase and Beam. It will not work if you have a Play 1, Play 3, Play 5 1st generation or Playbar. For those with older speakers, here is a link explaining how to make it work with a 3rd party application. Also, this could be a good time to invest in one of the newer Sonos speakers. Grouping your old & new speakers together will make your old Sonos speakers AirPlay 2 compatible as well.

AirPlay 2 and Siri

With AirPlay 2 if you have Apple Music you can control your Sonos speakers using Siri. So, for example, you can ask Siri to play a song on your Sonos speakers, you can ask to turn the volume up or down etc…

How to get AirPlay 2 to work on Sonos

Firstly, you will need to upgrade your Sonos software to the latest version. To do this, go to the Sonos app on your iPhone and you will be prompted to “Update Now” (you could also click on More -> Settings -> Online Updates to check updates manually). Do the update and you will be able to use AirPlay 2 with your Sonos speakers.

On your iPhone or iPad

On your iPhone or iPad, you need to swipe up from the bottom of your screen to launch the control center (or from the top right on an iPhone X). Click the top right corner of the music section (for iOS 10 swipe right and select iPhone). This will list the speakers available to you. Choose your Sonos speakers from the list. Also on some apps like YouTube for example you can click on the Airplay icon at the bottom of the video to select your Sonos speakers.

On your Mac

On your Mac, click on the Apple icon on the top left of your screen and click on System Preferences -> Sound and select your Sonos speaker (it will be indicated AirPlay next to your Sonos speaker). Once you do this, all the audio you play on your Mac will be played on your Sonos speakers.

If you have any questions about using AirPlay with Sonos speakers or anything else, you can contact me here.