The TV guide (EPG) is a separate data file from the channels themselves. That single fact explains almost every guide problem: your streams can be perfect while the guide is empty, wrong or one country behind. So do not touch the playlist, your login or your subscription — work down this list instead, and check the guide again after each step.
What the EPG actually is, and why it breaks on its own
A live IPTV stream is a single continuous feed. A TV guide is a huge schedule file — typically 7 to 14 days of programme titles, times and descriptions for thousands of channels — that the app downloads separately, stores in its own database, and refreshes on its own timer.
- Empty guide, working channels → the schedule file failed to download or has not been loaded yet.
- Guide one or two hours off → a time-zone setting, not a data problem.
- Guide showing yesterday/today mixed up → a stale cached copy that never refreshed.
- Guide on some channels only → those channels are missing from the guide file or named differently.
Step 1 — Force a full refresh, then wait
Nothing else works until the app has actually pulled the file, so start here every single time.
- Open the app's settings and find the EPG / TV guide section (in TiviMate and XCIPTV it sits next to the playlist settings).
- Choose the option to update / reload the guide — not just "refresh channels".
- Leave the app open for several minutes. A full guide for a large channel list is tens of megabytes; on a weak connection the first import can take a while, and closing the app cancels it.
- Do not open a channel while it imports — playback competes for the same connection.
If the progress indicator sits at 0% and never moves, the source itself is unreachable — go to step 2.
Step 2 — Point the app at the right guide source
Apps accept two kinds of guide: the one that arrives with your playlist, and an external XMLTV file. Most guide problems are a mismatch between the two.
- Provider guide (from the playlist) — the simplest and usually the correct choice. If your playlist came with a guide address, use that.
- External XMLTV file — only needed when the provider sends none, or when you want a specific country's official listings.
Set the guide in the same profile as your channels, and make sure the address is copied without spaces and with its full port number, exactly as you did for the login. Then repeat step 1 and let it import.
Step 3 — The time zone, the single most common "wrong programme" cause
If the guide is populated but the programme playing is not the one shown, this is nearly always a clock offset.
- Check the device clock first. A TV or stick with the wrong date or a manual time setting shifts the entire guide. Set it to automatic/network time and reboot.
- Set the guide offset in the app. Most players have an "EPG time shift" or "offset" setting in minutes or hours. If every channel is one hour early, add one hour — the pattern across all channels is the diagnostic.
- One specific channel off by hours means that individual channel's feed is published in another country's time zone. That is a source issue, not something your app can fix.
Step 4 — Channel names must match the guide
A guide is matched to channels by name or by channel ID. When a provider names a channel "beIN SPORTS 1 HD" and the guide calls it "beIN Sports 1", the app cannot pair them and leaves that row blank.
- Blank rows for a handful of channels → a naming difference. Some players include a manual "assign EPG to channel" tool; use it for those few channels.
- Blank rows for a whole group → that group is missing from the guide file entirely. Report the group to support so it can be added at the source.
- Regional duplicates — many packages carry several feeds of the same channel for different countries. Confirm you are looking at the guide row that matches the feed you are watching.
Step 5 — Clear the cache when the guide refuses to update
Apps keep the guide in a local database. Once it grows stale or corrupt, the app keeps showing the old copy and stops asking for a new one.
- Clear the app cache (Android and Fire TV: Settings → Apps → your player → Clear cache). On a stick or TV box, clear cache, not data — data removes your login.
- Free up storage. A full device cannot write the new guide, so it silently keeps the old one.
- Reboot the device, then repeat step 1 and give the import time to finish.
- Update the app — guide handling improves often between versions, and old builds break against new guide formats.
If the guide is still empty after cache-clear and a full import, ask support to confirm the guide source is live for your package. That check takes them seconds and saves you an evening.
The guide checklist, one glance
| Symptom | Most likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Guide completely empty | Guide file never downloaded | Steps 1–2 |
| Empty on one group of channels | Naming mismatch or group missing at source | Step 4 |
| Everything one hour early or late | Time zone / clock offset | Step 3 |
| Shows yesterday's programmes | Stale cached guide, no refresh | Step 5 |
| Stops updating after a week | Refresh timer or storage full | Step 5 |
| One channel always wrong | That feed is published in another time zone | Source-side, not fixable locally |
New to the app as a whole? The 24-hour free trial gives you a working playlist and guide to practise on before you commit to a plan.
Frequently asked questions
Because the guide is a separate file from the streams. The channels come from your playlist; the guide is a schedule file the app downloads and stores on its own. An app that has never finished that download plays channels and shows no guide at all.
Almost always a clock offset. Set the device to automatic network time and reboot, then use the app's EPG time-shift setting if every channel is out by the same amount. If only one channel is wrong, that channel's feed is published in a different time zone.
From under a minute on a fast connection to several minutes for a large channel list. Leave the app open while it imports — closing it cancels the download and the guide stays empty.
No. Clear the app cache, free some storage, reboot and force one full guide refresh. Reinstalling only helps when the app's database is genuinely corrupt, and it costs you your login details.
Yes, most players accept an external XMLTV file. It is worth doing only when your provider sends no guide, and channel names must match between the two lists or the rows stay blank.