How to send approved requests to Radarr and Sonarr for Emby server owners in 2026

Emby server owners can gather approved movie and show requests from friends and family and pass them to Radarr and Sonarr.

By VLClean · 2026-10-31

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

To send approved requests to Radarr and Sonarr, Emby server owners ready the library, pick one request method, and review each title before it moves into the helper programs.

Option	Request method	Cost details
Askarr	Viewers request a movie or show on Askarr, and your own Radarr or Sonarr adds it. ^[1]	The Free plan costs $0 and allows 10 requests a month. ^[1]
Request form	Viewers submit movie or show titles through a form you choose.	not published
Shared request list	Viewers add movie or show ideas to a shared list you choose.	not published

What you need before you start

Confirm that the Emby library already holds the movies and shows viewers can watch, and settle which friends or family members may send requests.

List the titles or the kinds of content that are allowed, so viewers know what fits the server. Keep the rules simple, such as whether people may ask for any title or only certain types of movies and shows.

Radarr finds and adds movies to a library, and Sonarr does the same for shows. If you use them to add requested titles, have them ready, and name who reviews a request before anything enters the library.

Pick the place where viewers send requests. It can be a request tool, a form, or another method that gives viewers a clear spot to submit titles.

Step by step

Choose a single place for requests, such as a request website or a shared message thread, and ask everyone to use only that spot.

Write down who reviews each request and whether a title needs your approval before it passes into Radarr or Sonarr.

Write a short note for viewers covering who can request, what kinds of titles are accepted, and how they hear that a title was added.

Send the note and the request location to the friends and family you want to allow, plus two lines on how to search for a title and how to submit it.

Set one regular day each week to review new requests, approve the ones you want, pass those approved titles into the library tool, and drop the ones you do not want.

Ask a few viewers after the first week what confused them, and adjust the note to fix those points.

Tools that can do it

Askarr is a hosted website that works with your existing Radarr and Sonarr. ^[1] A viewer searches for a movie or show on Askarr and requests it, and the owner's own Radarr or Sonarr then adds it. ^[1]

Askarr is added to Radarr and Sonarr once as an import list, and the two helper programs read your requests from it from then on. ^[1] Askarr does not connect to your Radarr or Sonarr and does not receive their API keys. ^[1]

Radarr and Sonarr tell the site when a title is added and downloaded. ^[1] A title can also be found by pasting a TMDB, IMDb or TVDB link. ^[1]

Before choosing a tool, check how it handles title searches, approvals, updates, and the way requests move into the library workflow.

Common mistakes to avoid

Avoid sending requests into Radarr or Sonarr without a clear approval step. Name who reviews each title first, so the library does not fill with titles nobody wants.

Avoid sharing a request method without explaining the rules. Viewers need to know which kinds of titles can be requested and who decides what gets added.

Avoid picking a tool without checking how it fits the way movies and shows are added to the Emby library. The process should be clear to the people sending titles and to the person managing the server.

Avoid leaving requests unreviewed after setup. A request list gets harder to manage when old or unwanted requests pile up.

Avoid skipping account and privacy checks. Review what information a tool asks for and what access it uses before sharing it with other people.

Frequently asked questions

How can Emby server owners send approved requests to Radarr and Sonarr?

An Emby server owner picks a request method, decides who submits titles, and reviews each request before it moves into Radarr or Sonarr. The key parts are giving viewers a clear place to request movies and shows and keeping a review step so only approved titles reach the library.

Can a request tool work with Radarr and Sonarr on an Emby server?

Check how each request tool handles Radarr and Sonarr before choosing one. Askarr is a hosted website that works with your existing Radarr and Sonarr. ^[1] Askarr is added to Radarr and Sonarr once as an import list, and the two read your requests from it from then on. ^[1]

Does Askarr require changes to the Emby server?

Askarr is a hosted website that works with your existing Radarr and Sonarr. ^[1] There is no app to install; you add Askarr to Radarr and Sonarr as a list they read your requests from. ^[1] Askarr does not connect to your Radarr or Sonarr and does not receive their API keys. ^[1]

How do friends find movies and shows to request with Askarr?

Viewers search for a movie or show on Askarr and request it, and the owner's own Radarr or Sonarr adds it. ^[1] A title can also be found by pasting a TMDB, IMDb or TVDB link. ^[1]

What should be checked before choosing a request tool for Emby?

Check how a tool handles requests, title searches, updates, and the process for adding movies and shows. Check which Askarr plans include request history with live status. ^[1] Compare those details with how the Emby server is managed before picking a request method.

The Free plan costs $0 and allows 10 requests a month. ^[1]

Try Askarr

Sources

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