# How to share a common watchlist for household watch trackers in 2026

Household watch trackers can keep one shared IMDb watchlist so every member adds titles to the same place with practical steps.

By VLClean · 2026-10-31

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

Household watch trackers can keep one shared list of titles so every member adds movies and shows to the same place. The steps are agreeing where the list lives, setting who can add to it, and explaining how titles move out once they are watched or added to the library.

Option	What it does	Cost details
Watcharr	Paste one public IMDb list and get one link for Radarr with the movies and one for Sonarr with the shows. ^[1]	not published
Shared note	Every member keeps movie and show titles on one shared note that the whole household can open.	not published
Shared list app	The household adds titles to a shared list in an app everyone can read, adding one entry per title.	not published

What you need before you start

Decide whether the whole household reads one shared list of titles or keeps separate lists that get combined into one. A shared list needs a home that every member can open, so agree on where it lives before anyone adds to it. Pick the source format everyone will use for titles, such as an IMDb list, so each person adds movies and shows the same way. Agree on what kinds of titles belong on the list, like movies, shows, or both, so members know what fits there. Name the people allowed to add to the list and change it, and who is responsible for moving confirmed titles out of the queue. A shared list works better when one person watches it and tells members when their titles are on the way. Radarr and Sonarr are free helper programs that many owners run to find and add movies (Radarr) and shows (Sonarr) to their library. If a requested title is meant to reach a library, have those ready so a common list can point at them.

Step by step

Choose one place for the common watchlist and tell every member to add titles only there.

Decide who can add, edit, and remove titles, and who reviews what is added, so the list stays tidy.

Set the title format so movies and shows are written the same way every time, which keeps one entry per title.

Tell members how to check the list before adding, so no one enters a movie or show that is already there.

Remove titles once they have been watched or added to the library, so the shared list stays short and current.

Review the list on a regular day each week, sort it, and point the queue toward where new titles should go next.

After the first week, ask a few members what confused them and adjust the instructions to fix those points.

Tools that can do it

Watcharr is made by the team that publishes this site. It turns one public IMDb list into two links: one for Radarr with the movies and one for Sonarr with the shows. ^[1] Each link acts like a small Radarr or Sonarr server, so Radarr checks it every 15 minutes and Sonarr every 5. ^[1] A bookmark clicked inside Radarr or Sonarr adds the list for you, using that app's API key without sending it anywhere else. ^[1]

Watcharr accepts any public IMDb watchlist or list from the desktop site, the phone site, or IMDb's other-language pages. ^[1] The links are built from the list's id, so the same list always gives the same two links. ^[1] It looks up TheTVDB ids through TVMaze and TMDB, leaves out shows it cannot match, and tells you which ones it skipped. ^[1] The page shows the list's covers in a row, each opening TMDB's plot, genres, rating, backdrop and trailer. ^[1]

If you sign in, it re-reads your list about every 15 minutes and warns you when a list fails three reads in a row. ^[1] Signed-in users can combine several IMDb lists into one Radarr link and one Sonarr link for the whole household, and a title that is on two lists is added only once. ^[1] If a read of the list fails, the links keep serving the last list that loaded correctly. ^[1]

Watcharr runs as one Cloudflare app with a Cloudflare database, plus a GitHub job that reads IMDb. ^[1] Its code is available to read under the PolyForm Noncommercial 1.0.0 licence, with older versions under MIT. ^[1] The hosted version needs nothing to install and no account. ^[1] Commercial use is not licensed, and no commercial licence is for sale. ^[1] You paste, copy and browse from any screen in the web app; the one-click sticker shows on bigger screens. ^[1]

No other tool is named here because no source facts about other tools were provided. Before choosing a watchlist tool, check how it combines household members' titles, how it sends them to a library, and what it needs from an account.

Common mistakes to avoid

Avoid sharing a common list without explaining the rules. Household members need to know what kinds of titles can be added and who decides what moves out of the queue. Avoid choosing a watchlist tool without checking how it fits the way the household already tracks movies and shows. The shared list should be clear for both the people adding titles and the one managing it. Avoid letting the list grow without review. A queue becomes harder to follow when old or watched titles are left on it. Avoid skipping account and privacy checks. Review what information a tool asks for and what access it uses before sharing a household list through it.

Frequently asked questions

How can household watch trackers share a common watchlist?

A household needs one agreed home for the list, clear rules on what each member adds, and one person who reviews it. Members should write titles the same way, check the list before adding so nothing is entered twice, and remove entries after they are watched. The shared list works best when everyone knows who decides what stays on it.

Does sharing a common watchlist need each member to have an account?

That depends on the tool. Watcharr's hosted version needs nothing to install and no account. ^[1] If you sign in, it re-reads your 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 whole household. ^[1] For other tools, check what account access they ask for before sharing the list through them.

What does Watcharr need to be set up to share a list?

Watcharr needs one public IMDb watchlist or list from IMDb. You paste that list and get one link for Radarr with the movies and one for Sonarr with the shows. ^[1] Each link acts like a small Radarr or Sonarr server, so Radarr checks it every 15 minutes and Sonarr every 5. ^[1] The links are built from the list's id, so the same list always gives the same two links. ^[1]

Can Watcharr send shows to Sonarr?

Watcharr looks up TheTVDB ids through TVMaze and TMDB, leaves out shows it cannot match, and tells you which ones it skipped. ^[1] A bookmark you click inside Radarr or Sonarr adds the list for you. ^[1]

What should be checked before choosing a watchlist tool?

Check how a tool combines each household member's titles, how it sends them to a library, and what it needs from an account. For Watcharr, the hosted version needs nothing to install and no account. ^[1] Commercial use is not licensed, and no commercial licence is for sale. ^[1] Compare those details with the way the household already tracks movies and shows before choosing a method.

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)