Netflix, Sony, and Paramount Skydance are reportedly in early talks to buy Letterboxd, with reporting from Variety putting the valuation around $250 million and roughly 30 million members on the line. That is a good moment to ask a boring question: where does the list of films you keep meaning to watch actually live? If the answer is a mix of screenshots, half-remembered friend recommendations, and a group chat scroll, one of these seven Android apps is a better home for it. The best apps for movie tracking on Android range from a diary-first pick for cinephiles to a discovery engine that only tells you where a film is streaming tonight. Some are free with ads. Some ask for a small subscription. One quietly powers most of the others.
What to look for in a movie tracking app
Before the list, five things matter more than a shiny app icon.
- Fast logging. After the credits, one tap should update the diary. If it takes six screens, it will not happen.
- Watchlist that pulls availability. Knowing what to watch next helps twice as much when the app also says which service has it tonight.
- Social layer. Ratings alone rarely change decisions. A friend rating a film four stars does.
- TV and film in one place. A movie-only or TV-only tracker can be a feature, but most people watch both.
- Data export. The company that owns your list today may sell it or shut it down. Your history should walk with you either way.
Quick comparison
| App | Best for | Free plan | Paid | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Letterboxd | Film diary and social feed | Yes | Pro ~$19/yr, Patron ~$49/yr | 4.6 |
| IMDb | Free tracking on the biggest catalogue | Yes, ad-supported | None | 4.5 |
| Simkl | Free tracker for movies, TV, and anime | Yes | VIP ~$4.99/mo | 4.5 |
| TV Time | Episode tracker with next-up reminders | Yes, ads | Premium ~$25/yr | 4.6 |
| Serializd | Social feed built for TV shows | Yes | Serializd Plus | 4.5 |
| Trakt | Auto-scrobbling from Plex, Kodi, Jellyfin | Yes, capped | VIP ~$30/yr | 4.4 |
| JustWatch | Streaming availability lookup | Yes | None | 4.7 |
The apps
1. Letterboxd, best overall for film logging
Letterboxd for movie tracking is a diary-first app, which is why the same 30 million people keep opening it. Add a film to a list, tap four stars, write a two-line review, done. The feed pulls in reviews from friends and from any account whose taste you follow, closer to a small film Twitter than a database. The Android app also handles rewatch counts, private lists, and imports from IMDb ratings or Trakt.
Where it falls short: TV shows are not tracked at all. Streaming availability inside the app is a Pro feature, not a free one.
Pricing:
- Free: Log films, keep a diary, follow friends, create public lists.
- Paid: Pro at about $19/year removes ads, adds streaming availability, and unlocks stats.
Platforms: Android, iOS, Web.
Download: Aptoide · Google Play
Bottom line: Pick Letterboxd if the point is film, reviews from friends, and the diary. Skip it if TV shows are half the reason for tracking.
2. IMDb, best free tracker with the biggest catalogue
IMDb for movie tracking is the free option with the largest database and the most complete cast credits, and it hides a Watchlist and a private ratings system behind the trailers and news. Tap the star on any title to log a personal 1 to 10 score. Ratings sync with imdb.com, so a rating left on the phone shows up on the desktop later.
Where it falls short: Tracking features live under a busy home screen full of trailers, ads, and news modules. There is no social feed to speak of.
Pricing:
- Free: All tracking features, ad-supported.
- Paid: No paid tier.
Platforms: Android, iOS, Web.
Download: Aptoide · Google Play
Bottom line: Best if you already open IMDb daily. Skip if you want a feed or a quiet log flow.
3. Simkl, best tracker for movies, TV, and anime in one account
Simkl covers movies, TV, and anime with the same login, which the other apps in this list do not. Add a film to Plan to Watch, mark it Watched later, and the same status format applies when a related TV show or anime shows up. Import from Trakt or a CSV, or scrobble from Plex, Emby, and Kodi using the companion browser extension. The Android app opens fast and does not chase engagement.
Where it falls short: The feed is quiet compared to Letterboxd. Some older UI screens are due for a refresh.
Pricing:
- Free: Track unlimited titles, lists, and history.
- Paid: VIP at about $4.99/month or $19.99/year adds custom lists, no ads, and richer stats.
Platforms: Android, iOS, Web.
Download: Aptoide · Google Play
Bottom line: The one to pick if the goal is a single log for movies, series, and anime.
4. TV Time, best for episode tracking with movies as a side dish
TV Time is the app that made checking in after every episode a habit. Movies were added later, and the tracking is capable, but the real strength is episode-level TV logging with next-up reminders and a calendar of upcoming premieres. Ratings, comments, and reactions per episode make the feed feel like a small community rather than a database.
Where it falls short: The app leans hard on notifications and prompts. Data export is not obvious. Ads sit inside the feed on the free tier.
Pricing:
- Free: Ad-supported, all core tracking.
- Paid: Premium at roughly $25/year removes ads and adds icon customisation.
Platforms: Android, iOS, Web.
Download: Aptoide · Google Play
Bottom line: The right pick if TV episodes are the main event and film is a side note.
5. Serializd, best social feed built for TV first
Serializd is what Letterboxd would be if it were built around television. The season-level rating flow is the fastest of any tracker tested here, and the feed is where series fans post lengthy reviews on finales nobody else has posted about yet. Movies are supported, but the depth is on TV.
Where it falls short: The catalogue for older international series can be thin. The Android app has fewer notification controls than TV Time.
Pricing:
- Free: Full tracking, ratings, and social features.
- Paid: Serializd Plus adds statistics, custom themes, and an ad-free experience.
Platforms: Android, iOS, Web.
Download: Aptoide · Google Play
Bottom line: The best pick for anyone who wants a social feed built for TV shows, not film.
6. Trakt, best for power users and home-theatre setups
Trakt is the plumbing behind a lot of the apps in this space. It scrobbles from Kodi, Plex, Jellyfin, and Emby, so an evening in bed watching Plex updates the phone log automatically. The Android app has been rebuilt as trakt.TV Time To Watch and now handles history, watchlists, ratings, calendar, and personal lists in one view.
Where it falls short: The free tier caps custom lists and history depth. Design puts control ahead of social, which is either the point or a downside depending on who you ask.
Pricing:
- Free: Tracking, ratings, and calendar with capped custom lists.
- Paid: VIP at about $4.17/month or $30/year lifts caps, adds advanced filters, and unlocks full scrobbling history.
Platforms: Android, iOS, Web, plus scrobbler add-ons for Kodi, Plex, Jellyfin, and Emby.
Download: Aptoide · Google Play
Bottom line: The right one when the phone should log whatever the TV played on its own.
7. JustWatch, best for finding where a film actually streams
JustWatch is not a tracker in the strict sense. It is a search engine for streaming, and the reason it sneaks onto a list about movie tracking is the Watchlist. Add a film once, and the app tells you every time it lands on Netflix, Prime Video, Max, or a rental store. Filter by service, resolution, price, or genre. The Android app added tracking features across the last two years, and they cover the basics.
Where it falls short: No social layer, no reviews, no diary. The rating feature exists but the community is small.
Pricing:
- Free: Everything. Ads sit around the search results.
- Paid: No paid tier.
Platforms: Android, iOS, Web, Android TV, Fire TV.
Download: Aptoide · Google Play
Bottom line: Best used alongside Letterboxd or Simkl. The one that answers “where can this be watched tonight” better than any tracker.
How to pick the right one
- If keeping a film diary and reading reviews from friends is the point: Letterboxd. It is the reason 30 million people already use it.
- If free and biggest catalogue matter more than a nice feed: IMDb. The scores you leave stay on the account for as long as the account exists.
- If movies, TV, and anime should live in one place: Simkl. Its Plex, Kodi, and Emby scrobbling is genuinely handy.
- If TV episodes are the main event and film is a side note: TV Time. Next-up reminders shorten the “which episode was next” pause.
- If Letterboxd energy is what you want, but for series: Serializd. Season-level reviews are the trick.
- If a Plex or Kodi home theatre should log itself: Trakt. The scrobblers do the work while the sofa does the rest.
- If the real question is “where is this streaming right now”: JustWatch. Use it next to another tracker, not instead of one.
One more thing worth saying out loud: every app on this list either offers a data export or was built on standard catalogues like TMDB and IMDb, which means your list survives whichever owner change comes next. If Netflix does buy Letterboxd, export the diary and keep a copy. That is true advice for any tracker, sale rumour or not.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best free movie tracking app for Android?
IMDb and Simkl both track unlimited films at no cost. IMDb has the largest catalogue and sits around a 4.5 rating on Google Play. Simkl adds TV and anime in the same account and works with a browser extension that scrobbles from Plex, Kodi, and Emby.
Is Letterboxd Pro worth paying for?
Letterboxd Pro at about $19 a year adds streaming availability, removes ads on the website, and unlocks personal stats. The free tier already covers the diary, lists, and feed, so most people are fine without it. Pro pays for itself if you follow a lot of accounts, because the filters help, or if you want in-app availability data without opening JustWatch.
What movie tracking app do most people use?
Letterboxd has the largest active community for film logging, with more than 30 million members reported ahead of the current sale talks with Netflix, Sony, and others. For television, TV Time and Trakt hold the two largest tracking audiences.
Can I import Letterboxd data into another app?
Yes. Letterboxd exports a ZIP with ratings, diary entries, watchlist, and lists as CSV files. Simkl imports Letterboxd exports directly. Trakt can import through third-party utilities. IMDb accepts a CSV of ratings uploaded from the desktop site.
Does Trakt work with Plex on Android?
Yes. Trakt integrates with Plex through the Plex scrobbler on the server, so anything played on any Plex client, including the Android app, shows up in Trakt history. The same works for Kodi, Jellyfin, and Emby with the matching add-ons.
Will Netflix buying Letterboxd change how the app works?
No one outside the deal knows yet. Reporting from Variety and others says the process is early, and the talks include Sony, Paramount Skydance, TPG, and Alexis Ohanian’s Seven Seven Six alongside Netflix. If ownership does change, the standard advice applies: export the diary now and keep a local copy.
