Compare Watchlists
Simkl Feature Guide: Compare Watchlists
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Simkl Feature Guide: Compare Watchlists
Last updated
Was this helpful?
On Simkl, Compare Watchlists lets you see how your viewing habits overlap with another SIMKL member’s. You can instantly spot titles you both enjoy, Whether you’re planning a watch party or hunting for new recommendations, comparing lists side-by-side is the fastest way to discover common favorites or hidden gems.
Watching alone is fine. Watching together is better! With Compare Watchlists, you can:
Discover Shared Favorites: Quickly identify shows/movies you both love.
Find New Recommendations: Uncover titles they’ve seen that you haven’t.
Coordinate Binge Sessions: Plan what to watch together next.
Track Progress Differences: See what they’re currently watching vs. what you’re watching.
Discover how your Simkl viewing tastes align with friends or fellow members in just a few clicks.
Under their profile banner, select OVERVIEW in the navigation menu.
This section provides a high-level summary of your shared and unshared content.
Your Compatibility: A percentage that represents how many titles you both have watched.
61.4% means you share 61.4% of your watchlists.
Below the percentage, you’ll find the exact numbers:
355 TV Shows
73 Anime
892 Movies
These counts show how many items overlap in your profiles.
Scroll down to see three distinct sections:
Mutually Watched TV Shows
Mutually Watched Movies
Mutually Watched Anime
Each section displays posters, your rating (blue stars), and their rating (gray stars).
Right below the mutual watchlists, find “You have not seen” lists:
TV Shows
Anime
Movies
These are titles they’ve watched that you still need to catch up on.
Whether planning a binge session, finding fresh titles, or keeping in sync on ongoing series, Compare Watchlists offers powerful filters and layouts to suit every use cas
Click Overview or any section so the filter sidebar appears.
Select Watchlists for Comparing—the dual-list view appears side by side:
(Users) TV Shows List
(My) TV Shows List
Tip: Works for TV Shows, Anime, or Movies—switch tabs at the top.
Select Your List type (e.g., Watching, Completed).
Select Their List type (e.g., Plan to Watch).
Both lists have identical filter panels so you can refine each side independently:
Full List
Watching
Plan to Watch
Completed
On Hold
Dropped
Watching
Plan to Watch
Completed
On Hold
Dropped
Filter by:
Favorites
Not Watched
Not 100% Progress
Not Rated
Has Memos
- Not Watched
- Not in My List
Favorites
Not in My List
Not Rated
Not 100% Progress
Has Memos
Use Case: Show only “Watching” on both sides to find common currently-airing series.
Use Case: Show “Plan to Watch” on your list vs. “Completed” on theirs to locate must-watch recommendations.
For example:
Compare your Completed shows with their Watching to find new recommendations.
Compare your Plan to Watch with their Completed to see if they’ve already seen your picks.
Beyond the basic “Full List” filters, SIMKL’s v2 filter pane lets you drill down across both lists:
Ratings (0–10 stars)
Vote Count (popularity)
Rank (SIMKL’s internal ranking)
Drop Rate
Exclude My Custom Lists (hide Auto-Lists)
Type & Format (TV Show Type, Anime Format, Movie Genre)
Themes/Tags (e.g., “Psychological,” “Sci-Fi”)
Country (e.g., “Japan,” “USA”)
Language (original audio language)
Network (e.g., Netflix, HBO)
Parental Guidelines (US TV ratings)
Release Date / Last Air Date
Season / Episode Count
Running Time
Use Case:
Filter both “Watching” lists to only “Sci-Fi” TV Shows rated 8+.
Compare “Plan to Watch” anime by “Fantasy” tag to find joint viewing possibilities.
Narrow down “Completed” movies from 2020–2022 for a film discussion group.
Once you’ve applied the desired filters (e.g. “Watching,” “Not 100% progress,” specific genres) to both your watchlist and the member’s watchlist and chosen your sorting preferences, you’ll see a unified results view.
Here’s how to understand and use the comparison data:
Icon
Meaning on Your List
Example Use-Case
Watching
You’re currently watching this show (e.g. mid-season).
On Hold
You’ve paused the show—for instance, taking a break after a cliffhanger.
Dropped
You stopped watching it permanently.
Plan to Watch
You’ve added it to your “to-watch” queue.
Completed
You’ve finished every released episode.
Your Rating
You rated the show (e.g. 8/10).
Note: All of the above icons appear in blue when associated with your own watchlist.
When you look at the TV SHOWS LIST (another user’s list), you’ll see icons rendered in grey or on a white background. Those indicate their statuses, not yours:
Icon
Meaning on Their List
Example Use-Case
They’re Watching it
They’re in the middle of the show.
They’ve put it On Hold
They paused viewing for now.
They’ve Dropped it
They decided not to continue watching this series.
They plan to watch it
It’s in their “Plan to Watch” section.
They’ve Completed it
They’ve seen all episodes.
Their Rating
Their score for the show (e.g. 7/10).
Filter Both Lists to the Same Status
Select Watching in both “TV SHOWS LIST” and “MY TV SHOWS LIST.”
You’ll see which shows you and they are both actively watching.
Spot Your Differences
Let’s say Game of Thrones has a blue check (✓) on your list (you completed it), but on their list it has a grey star (☆) (they’re planning to watch).
This tells you that you finished the series, but they haven’t started yet.
Compare Ratings
Next to each title you’ll see a blue number (your rating) and a grey number (their rating).
If you rated it 9/10 but they rated it 6/10, you might discuss why your opinions differ.
Find Common Ground & Gaps
Shows marked with ✓ on both lists (blue on yours, grey on theirs) are mutually completed—talk about those shared favorites.
Shows that are ✓ (completed) for you but ☆ (plan to watch) for them are great recommendations.
Use the Detailed Filters for Deeper Comparison
Scroll down to Filter Options and Maximize the panel to reveal advanced filters (genres, parental rating, release year, etc.).
Combine those with your watch statuses to find, for example, completed sci-fi shows you both watched.
Compare your personal watchlists (TV, anime, movies) with friends to discover overlaps and find new shows you both (or all) want to watch.
You can quick filter by
Released on DVD/Digital
No DVD
In Theaters
Last 2 Years
All Time
“Watch a Movie With Your Friends” tool isolates only Plan to Watch items among up to 4 friends to help you pick your next group watch.
You: Completed “Game of Thrones”
Friend: Completed “Game of Thrones” → Mutual!
Friend: Completed “Breaking Bad.” → Add “Black Mirror” to your Plan to Watch and schedule a marathon.
Filter your list to Anime → Plan to Watch.
Filter theirs to Anime → Completed.
Any titles appearing only on their side? Instant recommendations.
Filter both to Watching.
Identify series you’re both currently following: perfect for live-tweeting or weekly catch-ups.
Filter your Completed vs. their Dropped.
Spots where they dropped a show you finished? Offer insights or decide on a rewatch.
Multiple Comparisons: Repeat for each media type (TV, Anime, Movies) to get a full picture.
Save Filter Presets in Layouts ( Creating New View Layout ) for your most common comparisons (e.g., “My Watching vs. Friends’ Watching”).
Privacy Reminder: Only public profiles can be compared. Users with Private watchlists will not display data.
SIMKL’s Compare Watchlists feature transforms watching TV, anime, and movies into a social experience.
From scheduling shared binges to uncovering hidden gems, powerful filters, clear side-by-side layouts, and detailed progress insights keep you and your friends in sync.
Try out different list combinations, save your favorite filters, and make your next watch party a breeze!
Go to the Simkl website and search for a friend or member (e.g., ).
Go to the user’s profile whose lists you want to compare. (e.g., )
Eye
Pause
Thumbs Down
Star
Check
Number
Eye (grey)
Pause (grey)
Thumbs Down (grey)
Star (grey)
Check (grey)
Number (grey)
