Hi! “Android TV account setup confusing” is one of those issues where everything looks simple on-screen, but there are a few different systems involved (Google Account, TV profiles, Wi-Fi, and sometimes 2-Step Verification). The safest way is to figure out where it gets confusing before you try anything that could sign you out of apps.

Quick clarifier so I don’t assume the wrong flow:
• Are you setting up the TV for the first time (new device / after reset), or
• Are you trying to add a Google account later (Settings → accounts), or
• Is it just one app (YouTube / Play Store) that won’t sign in even though the TV has an account?

Also, what device is it: a TV with Android TV/Google TV built in (Sony/TCL/Hisense, etc.), or a streaming device (Chromecast with Google TV / Android TV box)?

Good call avoiding a reset. On Google TV / Android TV, account setup can fail for reasons that look unrelated — and a factory reset is the “big hammer” that often creates new problems (lost app logins, subscriptions, parental controls, etc.).

When you see the QR code sometimes and a password screen other times, that usually means the TV is switching between two sign-in methods:
• Phone-based sign-in (scan a QR code / confirm on a phone)
• On-screen sign-in (enter email/password using the remote)

Let’s keep this safe and narrow it down with a few questions, not a long checklist:
1) Does your mom use 2-Step Verification (Google prompt, SMS code, Authenticator, passkey)?
2) Is the TV definitely on the correct Wi-Fi network (same router as the phone you’re using)?
3) Does the TV show the correct date/time? A wrong clock can cause sign-in loops and “can’t connect” style errors even when Wi-Fi looks fine.

And when it says “Something went wrong,” does it happen right after the password, or after the “Verify it’s you” step?

That pattern fits a common “account setup feels confusing” scenario: the password is correct, but the second step is failing or not arriving consistently. And because TVs have limited screens, the message often collapses into “Something went wrong.”

Two important (safe) distinctions before doing anything else:
• “Netflix works” proves the TV has internet for one app, but Google sign-in can still fail if the TV time is off, the Google services connection is blocked, or the account verification step can’t complete.
• Not getting the Google prompt can happen when the phone is on a different network, in power-saving mode, or the account’s security challenge is asking for a different method.

Quick low-risk checks (no account changes, no wipes):
1) Time & date: make sure the TV’s clock is set automatically (wrong time can break secure sign-in).
2) Network match: confirm the phone you’re using for the QR/prompt is on the same Wi-Fi as the TV (especially if there’s a guest network).
3) Second-step fallback: when the TV asks to verify, do you see options like “Try another way” (SMS / Authenticator / backup codes), or does it just fail?

Also: is this a personal Gmail account, or a work/school (managed) Google account? Managed accounts sometimes have restrictions on adding new sign-ins to TV devices.

That’s a very reasonable worry. The “Try another way” screen is designed for security, but on a TV it can feel like a trap menu. The goal isn’t to click everything — it’s to choose the method that your mom can actually complete reliably.

Here’s the safe logic (no step-by-step “do this exact button sequence,” just how to decide):
• If she normally approves prompts on her phone but isn’t receiving them, that’s a signal to pause and confirm basics first (phone online, correct account signed in on the phone, notifications allowed).
• If she has Google Authenticator, that usually works even when prompts are flaky, but only if it’s already set up on her phone for that account.
• If SMS is offered, it’s often the simplest for non-technical users — but only if her phone number is correctly attached to the account and has signal.

Since your dad already has an account on the TV, another safe question: does the TV show your dad’s profile picture/initial in the top corner? If yes, you’re likely in a “profile add” flow (Google TV profiles). If not, you might be in a deeper “device account” screen, and that can feel inconsistent.

One more detail that changes the diagnosis: is the TV remote entry hard (typing long passwords), or are you mostly using the QR code method?

New router / new Wi-Fi name is a big clue — and it explains why QR sign-in can be “almost working” but inconsistent. It’s common for TVs to reconnect, but some services still behave weirdly if the connection is unstable, if the TV is on a guest network, or if the phone is on a different band/network segment.

For a safe, senior-friendly approach, I’d separate the problem into two parts:
Part A: Is the TV’s Google sign-in flow able to reach Google reliably?
Part B: Is the verification step completing reliably on the phone?

Gentle checks that don’t change accounts or remove profiles:
• Confirm the TV is connected to the intended Wi-Fi (not guest) and shows “Connected.”
• If the router has both 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz, keep the phone and TV on the same one during setup (temporary consistency matters more than speed).
• Check the TV’s date/time setting (automatic is best).

Since typing is painful, QR sign-in is usually the best route — but if it fails at the verification step, the next safe move is to identify which second step your mom can complete without stress (prompt vs SMS vs authenticator).

Are your parents using any parental controls or a kids profile (Family Link) on this TV, or is it just normal adult profiles?

That’s a very typical Google TV goal: separate profile = separate recommendations and app/library access. The confusing part is that TVs can have both profiles (who’s watching) and account sign-ins (who is authorized for Google services), and those don’t always feel like the same thing to a user.

A few “confusion triggers” I see a lot, just so you can recognize them:
• Sign-in loop: password accepted, then it returns to the same screen.
• Verification keeps repeating: it asks to “check your phone” again and again.
• Account added but apps still show the wrong person: YouTube is still signed into dad’s account, or Play Store still shows dad’s library.

We won’t solve every layer here (because the exact screens differ by TV brand and software version), but we can keep it safe: the goal is to confirm whether your mom’s account can be added cleanly once, without triggering security lockouts.

Two quick questions to guide the “least risky next step”:
1) When verification fails, does the phone show any Google security alert (sign-in attempt), even if she doesn’t get a prompt?
2) Is your mom trying from a phone that already has her Google account signed in (same Gmail), or are you scanning QR from a phone that’s signed into a different Google account?

That’s actually a great catch — and it’s a safe place to start. When QR sign-in is done from a phone signed into a different Google account, it can cause extra prompts, account switching confusion, or verification failures that look like the TV is “broken.”

The most senior-friendly, low-risk first step is:
Use your mom’s own phone (or a phone temporarily signed into her Google account) for the QR / verification step, so the sign-in attempt and the security challenge are tied to the correct account automatically.

Before any bigger changes, also keep these safety rules in mind:
• Don’t remove your dad’s account just to “try again.” That can disrupt apps that are already working.
• Avoid factory reset unless you’re intentionally starting over and have all passwords/recovery options ready.
• If verification keeps failing, pause and confirm the basics (Wi-Fi match, TV time/date, and which phone/account is approving the sign-in).

If you tell me exactly what the TV shows at the failure moment (error text, whether it returns to a QR code, or whether it says “Couldn’t sign in”), we can classify it as network/time vs 2-Step Verification vs profile-flow mismatch — without doing anything destructive.