How to keep a personal diary of watched movies without Letterboxd in 2026

Learn how to keep a personal movie diary after leaving Letterboxd, compare simple tracking methods, and organize IMDb lists for a home movie library.

By VLClean · 2026-10-23

VLClean is published by the makers of Askarr and Watcharr, which are compared here alongside other tools.

To keep a personal diary of watched movies, choose a place to record each film, note when it was watched, and add a short personal reaction. A spreadsheet, notebook, or movie list can preserve viewing history without relying on a social film diary. Watcharr is another option when public IMDb lists need to supply movies and shows to Radarr and Sonarr. ^[1]

Option	What it does	Cost details
Notebook or text document	Record watched titles, dates, and personal notes in a format you maintain.	not published
Spreadsheet	Keep movie entries in rows that can be sorted by date or other recorded details.	not published
IMDb public lists	Keep public watchlists or lists of movie and show titles. ^[1]	not published
Watcharr	Turn one public IMDb list into a Radarr link for movies and a Sonarr link for shows. ^[1]	The hosted version needs no installation or account. ^[1]

What you need before you start

Start with a clear idea of what the diary should preserve. A personal movie diary can be as simple as a list of titles and viewing dates, or it can include ratings, memorable scenes, short reviews, and notes about who watched each film. Choose the details that matter to you instead of trying to recreate every feature of a previous service.

Decide where the record will live. A paper notebook, a spreadsheet, a text document, or a personal movie collection can each provide a place to keep entries. Consider whether the diary should be easy to search, simple to update from a phone, or available to other people in the household.

Gather any existing records that can help rebuild the history. These might include saved movie lists, old notes, calendar entries, or public IMDb lists. Keep a copy of any information that would be difficult to reconstruct, and check that the titles and dates are correct before transferring them.

Decide what counts as watched. You might record only films watched from beginning to end, or include partial viewings and rewatches as separate entries. A consistent rule makes the diary easier to maintain over time.

Finally, separate the diary from the tools that manage a home media library. Radarr finds and adds movies, while Sonarr finds and adds shows. A personal viewing record has a different purpose: it preserves what you watched and what you thought about it. Choose a method that serves that purpose first.

Step by step

Choose one main place for the diary. Use a notebook, spreadsheet, document, or movie tracking service that you can keep updating. Avoid scattering new entries across several places unless there is a clear reason to do so.

Create a basic entry format. Start with the movie title and the date watched. Add the release year when it helps distinguish films with the same title. Leave room for a rating or a short personal note if those details are useful.

Decide how to handle rewatches. A film watched again may deserve a new entry because your reaction can change over time. Keeping separate viewing dates also helps distinguish the first viewing from later ones. If you prefer a compact record, keep one movie entry and add each viewing date beneath it.

Rebuild the older history that matters most. Look through saved lists, notes, and other records. Add titles in manageable batches, and mark uncertain dates as unknown rather than guessing. If an existing list includes movies that have not been watched, keep those separate from confirmed viewing entries.

Add a short personal reaction after each viewing. A sentence about a performance, a scene, the mood, or the reason the film stood out can make the diary more useful than a list of titles alone. The note does not need to read like a formal review.

Make the diary easy to browse. Sort entries by viewing date when the goal is to remember what happened over time. If you also want to find films by title, director, genre, or personal rating, use fields or tags that support those searches. Only add categories you expect to use.

Set a routine for recording new films. Add an entry after watching, or reserve a regular time to update the diary. If you postpone entries, record only details you can remember reliably. Do not invent a viewing date simply to make the record look complete.

Keep a backup. Save a copy of a digital diary somewhere separate from the main file, or keep a second copy of a paper record if losing it would matter. Check that the backup contains the entries you expect.

Review the format after using it for a while. Remove fields that take effort but provide little value, and keep the details that help you remember films. A diary that is easy to maintain is more likely to remain useful than one that demands a lengthy review after every viewing.

Tools that can do it

A personal diary can be kept without choosing a dedicated movie service. The main question is whether the record should focus on personal viewing history, collecting titles, or moving titles into a home media library.

A notebook or text document provides a straightforward place for dates and personal reactions. A spreadsheet can organize titles into rows and make it easier to sort entries by date, rating, or another detail. Before choosing either format, check how you will search old entries and make backup copies.

IMDb provides public watchlists and lists that can serve as sources of movie and show titles. Watcharr accepts public IMDb watchlists or lists from the desktop site, phone site, and IMDb pages in other languages. ^[1] If you already maintain public IMDb lists, this can help connect those lists to a home media library without making them the same thing as a personal viewing diary.

Watcharr is made by the team that publishes this site, VLClean. It takes one public IMDb list and provides one link for Radarr with movies and another for Sonarr with shows. ^[1] Each link acts like a small Radarr or Sonarr server, with Radarr checking every 15 minutes and Sonarr every 5 minutes. ^[1] Those links help move list titles into the relevant library software, but they are not a substitute for recording viewing dates and personal reactions.

Watcharr's hosted version requires no installation or account. ^[1] If you sign in, it rereads the IMDb list about every 15 minutes and warns you when a list fails three reads in a row. ^[1] Signed-in users can also combine several IMDb lists into one Radarr link and one Sonarr link for the household, with duplicate titles added only once. ^[1]

Watcharr's code is available under the PolyForm Noncommercial 1.0.0 licence, while older versions remain under MIT. ^[1] Commercial use is not licensed, and no commercial licence is for sale. ^[1] If the goal is a private record of films already watched, choose a diary format first and treat any library list as a separate source of titles.

Common mistakes to avoid

Avoid treating a watchlist as proof that a movie has been watched. A saved title can be something you plan to see, something someone recommended, or a film you already finished. Keep watched entries separate from future viewing ideas.

Avoid relying on memory for every viewing date. Add dates while they are fresh, and leave a date blank or mark it as uncertain when there is no reliable record. An honest gap is more useful than a false date.

Avoid making every entry a lengthy review. If recording a movie takes too much effort, the diary can become difficult to maintain. A title, date, and brief reaction may be enough, with longer notes reserved for films that leave a stronger impression.

Avoid putting the only copy of the diary in a place that is difficult to export or back up. Check whether the chosen method lets you keep a separate copy of your entries, and make sure the copy can still be read.

Avoid assuming that a library automation tool records your personal viewing history. Watcharr turns public IMDb lists into links for Radarr and Sonarr. ^[1] That purpose differs from maintaining a diary of dates, rewatches, and reactions. Keep the viewing record in a format that preserves the details you want to remember.

Avoid choosing a tool without checking its privacy, account, and sharing arrangements. If entries contain personal reactions or details about household viewing habits, decide who should be able to see them before sharing the diary.

Frequently asked questions

How can a personal movie diary be kept without Letterboxd?

Choose a notebook, spreadsheet, text document, or another record you can maintain over time. Record the movie title and viewing date, then add a short reaction if it helps preserve the memory. Keep unwatched titles in a separate list, and decide how to record rewatches. Back up digital records so the diary does not depend on a single copy.

What should a personal movie diary record?

A basic diary can record the title and the date watched. Adding the release year can help distinguish films with similar names. Optional details include a personal rating, a short review, favorite scenes, or notes about rewatches. Choose a format that preserves the details that matter to you without making every entry take too long to complete.

Can IMDb lists replace a personal movie diary?

IMDb public watchlists and lists can preserve collections of titles. ^[1] A collection of titles does not by itself establish when each movie was watched or what you thought about it. Keep viewing dates and personal reactions in a diary, and use a title list separately for films you want to watch or organize.

What does Watcharr do with IMDb lists?

Watcharr takes one public IMDb list and creates one link for Radarr containing movies and another for Sonarr containing shows. ^[1] Its links are intended to supply titles to those library programs. ^[1] A personal diary still needs its own record of viewing dates and reactions if those are the details you want to preserve.

Can Watcharr record movies already watched?

Watcharr uses public IMDb lists to provide links for Radarr and Sonarr. ^[1] That function is different from a diary entry containing a viewing date and personal reaction. For a viewing history, maintain a separate record that captures when a film was watched, whether it was a rewatch, and any notes worth keeping.

Does Watcharr require an account to use the hosted version?

The hosted version of Watcharr requires no installation and no account. ^[1] If you sign in, Watcharr can reread your IMDb list about every 15 minutes and warn you when a list fails three reads in a row. ^[1] Consider whether list management or a personal diary is the main task before deciding which features matter.

What should be checked before choosing a movie diary tool?

Check whether the tool can preserve viewing dates, personal notes, and separate entries for rewatches. Consider how easy it is to search the history, make a backup, and move the record elsewhere. If the tool also organizes titles for a home media library, check how that process works separately from keeping a personal record of films watched.

Its code is available to read under the PolyForm Noncommercial 1.0.0 licence; older versions remain under MIT. ^[1]

Try Watcharr

Sources

Watcharr's own description of itself (the product of this site's publisher)