How to see what each person has watched when sharing watchlists in 2026

Learn how couples can compare watched movies and shows, keep shared IMDb lists organized, and choose a method for tracking each person's viewing.

By VLClean · 2026-10-26

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

To see what each person has watched, agree on where each person records completed movies and shows, keep a separate record of individual viewing, and compare it with the shared watchlist. A shared list of titles to watch is not necessarily a record of what each person has finished. Watcharr can turn a public IMDb list into separate links for Radarr and Sonarr, but its approved features do not establish a per-person viewing history. ^[1]

Option	What it can do	What to check
Shared spreadsheet or note	Can be used to keep separate records of completed viewing for each person.	Check editing access, filtering, and how to distinguish planned viewing from completed viewing.
Viewing-history service	May provide a record of watched movies or shows, depending on its documented features.	Check separate profiles, supported sources, episode progress, and shared viewing records.
Watcharr	Turns a public IMDb list into one Radarr link for movies and one Sonarr link for shows. ^[1]	Check whether a separate viewing record is needed, because the approved features describe IMDb list organization rather than per-person viewing history. ^[1]

What you need before you start

Start by deciding what counts as watched. One person might count a movie watched alone, while another might want to track only movies watched together. Agree on whether a partly watched movie, a completed season, or an episode watched separately should count. Keeping the rule consistent makes the shared record easier to understand.

Next, gather the watchlists each person already uses. If the lists are on IMDb, check whether they are public and whether each person can open them from the desktop or phone site. Watcharr accepts public IMDb watchlists and lists from the desktop site, the phone site, and IMDb's other-language pages. ^[1]

Choose a place to record completed viewing separately from the list of titles still being considered. A shared spreadsheet, a shared note, or a service that records viewing activity can serve different purposes, so check what each option actually saves. Keep the person's name, title, viewing status, and any useful date together.

Finally, decide who will update the record and how both people will correct mistakes. If a title appears on several lists, agree on whether it should appear once in the shared list or remain associated with each person's original list. The goal is to tell the difference between a movie someone wants to watch and a movie someone has already watched.

Step by step

Choose a record for completed viewing. Select one place where both people can see which movies and shows have been watched. Keep this separate from the watchlist used to collect future viewing ideas unless the chosen service clearly supports both purposes.

Make a record for each person. Give each person a distinct name or section. Record the title and whether it was watched alone, together, or is still in progress if those details matter to the household. Agree on a consistent way to identify episodes and seasons so similar titles do not become confused.

Gather the existing watchlists. Open each person's lists and identify titles that should be considered for the shared collection. If using IMDb with Watcharr, paste a public IMDb list to get a Radarr link for movies and a Sonarr link for shows. ^[1] These links help organize titles for those library programs; they should not be treated as proof that either person has watched a title.

Compare titles against the viewing records. For every movie or show being considered, check both people's records. Mark whether neither person has watched it, one person has watched it, or both have watched it. If the records disagree or a title is missing, confirm the details with the person who watched it before changing the shared record.

Keep shared and individual choices distinct. A title that one person has watched may still be new to the other. Keep it available as a suggestion when the second person has not seen it. For a show, agree on whether progress is tracked by episode, season, or the whole series. Do not mark an entire show complete just because one episode has been watched.

Update the record after viewing. Agree on a simple routine for recording finished titles. If both people watched the same movie, record the shared viewing in a way that preserves both people's status. If one person watched it separately, update that person's record without automatically changing the other's status.

Review unclear entries together. Check for alternate titles, duplicate entries, unfinished shows, and missing records. If a shared list is used to organize future movies and shows, make sure both people understand that being on the list does not mean a title has been watched. Adjust the process if either person finds it difficult to tell what remains unwatched.

Tools that can do it

A shared spreadsheet or note can hold a separate viewing record for each person. Before choosing one, check whether both people can edit it, whether entries can be filtered by person, and whether it is easy to distinguish completed viewing from future suggestions. These are general approaches rather than claims about a specific service.

A viewing-history service may be another option when the main goal is to see what each person has watched. Check its supported sources, how it records activity, whether both people can maintain separate profiles, and whether shared viewing can be represented accurately. The available facts here do not establish which external services meet those requirements, so confirm the current features before choosing one.

You paste, copy and browse from any screen in the web app; the one-click sticker shows on bigger screens. ^[1] It accepts public IMDb watchlists and lists and provides one Radarr link for movies and one Sonarr link for shows. ^[1] Each link acts like a small server for the corresponding library program, with Radarr checking every 15 minutes and Sonarr every 5 minutes. ^[1] Those checks help the library programs revisit list contents, but they do not establish who watched each title.

Watcharr also lets signed-in users combine several IMDb lists into one Radarr link and one Sonarr link for a household, with a title on multiple lists added only once. ^[1] Its hosted version needs no installation or account. ^[1] This makes it an option for organizing public IMDb lists used with a movie and show library, rather than a verified record of each person's viewing history.

The choice depends on the job. Use a separate viewing record when the key requirement is knowing which person watched a title. Consider Watcharr when the job is to organize public IMDb lists for Radarr and Sonarr. If one tool is expected to do both, confirm that it explicitly records viewing history by person instead of assuming that a shared list provides that information.

Common mistakes to avoid

Avoid treating a watchlist as a viewing history. A title can be saved because someone wants to watch it, even if nobody has started it. Keep planned viewing and completed viewing distinct.

Avoid using a single shared status for both people. If one person has watched a movie, the other person may still want to watch it for the first time. Store each person's status separately and preserve the difference between watching together and watching individually.

Avoid assuming that a library contains only titles that have been watched. Movies and shows can be available to watch without either person having finished them. Likewise, a title appearing in an IMDb list does not prove that it has been added to a library or watched by anyone.

Avoid choosing a tool before checking how it handles individual profiles, viewing dates, episodes, and corrections. If those details matter, confirm that the tool records them and allows both people to see the relevant information.

Avoid leaving duplicate titles and incomplete entries unresolved. Agree on how to handle alternate names, unfinished series, and titles that appear on several lists. A short shared set of rules can prevent disagreements about what each person's record actually means.

Things to check before you choose

Check whether the tool stores completed viewing or only keeps lists of titles. Confirm that each person's viewing can be tracked separately, and find out whether the record distinguishes an individual viewing from a movie watched together.

Check how shows are represented. If episode-level progress matters, verify that the tool records episodes rather than just listing the series. Also check whether viewing dates, unfinished titles, and corrections can be recorded in a way both people understand.

For Watcharr, check whether its IMDb list organization solves the library-management part of the task. It can provide separate movie and show links for Radarr and Sonarr from a public IMDb list. ^[1] Its approved features do not establish a viewing-history report for each person, so a separate record may still be needed.

Finally, decide whether both people need to edit the record, whether it should be private to the household, and how existing watchlists will be kept up to date. Choose according to the information that needs to be recorded, not just the ability to collect titles in one place.

Frequently asked questions

How can couples see what each person has watched?

Keep a separate viewing record for each person and compare it with the shared list of movies and shows. Record completed viewing separately from titles saved for later. If both people watched a movie together, make that clear in the record. Before choosing a service, check whether it tracks viewing by person rather than simply storing shared titles.

Can Watcharr show which person watched a movie?

Watcharr turns a public IMDb list into one Radarr link for movies and one Sonarr link for shows. ^[1] Its approved features describe list organization for those library programs, not a report of each person's viewing history. ^[1] Check whether a separate viewing record is needed to track which person watched each title.

Can a shared IMDb watchlist show whether a movie has been watched?

A shared list can help people collect titles they want to consider, but the presence of a title in a list does not by itself establish who has watched it. Watcharr accepts public IMDb watchlists and lists from the desktop site, the phone site, and IMDb's other-language pages. ^[1] Keep viewing status in a separate record unless the chosen service explicitly documents that it tracks completed viewing.

Can Watcharr combine watchlists for two people?

Signed-in Watcharr users can combine several IMDb lists into one Radarr link and one Sonarr link for the whole household, with a title that appears on two lists added only once. ^[1] This organizes the lists for the household's movie and show library workflow. ^[1] Check separately how to record each person's viewing status, because combining lists does not establish that history.

What should a couples watchlist tool track?

Check whether the tool records each person's completed movies and shows separately, distinguishes shared viewing from individual viewing, and supports episode progress if that matters. It should also make it clear whether a title is planned, in progress, or completed. If the tool only organizes lists, keep a separate viewing record and agree on who updates it after watching.

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)