This post gives pairing instructions for the JBL Flip 5 speaker that apply mainly to iOS devices, such as the iPhone, iPod Touch, and the iPad Air line of Apple phones and tablets. But minor changes of these also work when pairing this speaker with Android devices.
JBL Flip 5 Pairing Instructions, Step by Step
With your Flip 5 JBL powered off (Power button is dark), run through this routine for pairing it to your BT source device. We’re using an iPad Air tablet in this example.
1. Bring Up the Home Screen on your Source Bluetooth Tablet or Phone
Press the Home button to reveal the mobile device’s Home screen.
2. Find the Settings App
We found ours on the second page of the Home screen on our iPad Air, as shown next.

3. Bring up the Settings App
Tap the Settings app icon.
The iPad then displays the first page of its settings, as shown in the next step.
4. Go to Bluetooth Settings to Continue with JBL Flip 5 Pairing
Our Bluetooth settings screen displays as follows. Note that our Bluetooth is enabled here. But since Flip 5 JBL speaker is currently switched OFF, it does not show up in the Bluetooth devices list. Also, we don’t see it since we’ve never linked this speaker with this tablet before. See this as shown in this list of previously paired Bluetooth devices, shown next.

5. Turn On your JBL Flip 5 Speaker
Turn on the unit by quickly pressing its Power button. See this pointed at by the green arrow in the next picture.

The unit then powers up.

But since our iPad does not know about this speaker, the Flip 5 does not Bluetooth pair with it automatically. The speaker denotes this not-paired state by leaving the Bluetooth lamp dark, as shown in the last picture.
6. Put the Speaker into Pairing / Discovery Mode
Now, to see your JBL Flip 5 speaker on your source device, place it into discovery / pairing mode. To do that, press and release the Bluetooth button, as shown in the next picture.

When you press this Pairing Mode button, the speaker makes a repeating single pluck guitar note sound several times. Also, the Bluetooth buttons starts flashing white.
7. Find your Speaker on your Source Device to Continue with JBL Flip 5 Pairing
See the screen shot next. We found our speaker, as pointed at by the purple arrow.

8. Pair with your JBL Flip 5
Tap the listed speaker in the Other Devices section of the BT devices list.
Our device then pairs with the JBL Flip 5 (“Tom’s Flip 5” in this demo).
The source device’s Bluetooth Settings screen then changes to look something like the following.

9. Done with JBL Flip 5 Pairing Instructions !
Finally, we have now successfully paired our JBL Flip 5 wireless speaker with our mobile device.
Other Posts About the JBL Flip 5 Speaker
- JBL Flip 5 Charge Time, How Long for Full Charging
- How to Connect JBL Flip 5 to iPhone
- How to Hard Reset JBL Flip 5 Speaker
- JBL Flip 5 Battery Life, How Long the Battery Should Last
- Connecting JBL Flip 5 to Alexa
Related Posts to JBL Flip 5 Pairing
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References for JBL Flip 5 Pairing
Revision History
- 2020-11-24: First released.