How to track movies and TV on your iPhone
Tracking what you watch on an iPhone is worth the small habit: you stop re-watching the first ten minutes of something to check whether you have seen it, you always know which episode is next, and over time you build a record that can actually recommend things back to you. This guide walks through how to do it, what a good tracker should handle, and how to bring an existing library with you. It is written by the makers of I Like Movies, so that app is the worked example, but the steps apply to any tracker you pick.
1. Pick a tracker, not a list
A notes app or a spreadsheet works until it does not: it cannot tell you where a film is streaming, it will not remember which episode you are on, and it does nothing with the record afterwards. A real tracker keeps films and TV in one library, syncs to your account, and turns your history into something useful. On iPhone there are several worth knowing, and they split by what they are for. If you want to compare them, the best movie tracker apps for iPhone lays the field out; if you are leaving Letterboxd specifically, so does the Letterboxd alternatives for iPhone roundup.
2. Mark what you have watched, and what is next
The core of tracking is marking things watched. Add a film and log it in a tap; for a series, mark individual episodes as you go so the app can show you the next one and how much of a season is left. A good tracker distinguishes a show that has ended from one between seasons, so a finished series stops nagging you as if you were behind on it. Keep a watchlist for what you mean to get to, separate from what you have already seen.
3. Rate and take notes while it is fresh
A rating is worth more than a memory. Rate a film right after you watch it, and add a note if you want to remember why: a rewatch, who recommended it, the scene that stayed with you. On iPhone, look for an app where you choose who reads those notes rather than one that publishes them as reviews, unless a public diary is what you are after. In I Like Movies a note goes to your friends or stays just for you, never to strangers, and your ratings and notes are also what the recommendations are built from.
4. Check where it streams before you commit
Deciding what to watch and finding out you can actually watch it should be one step. A tracker that shows streaming availability for your country, on the title itself, saves the detour to a separate search engine. Availability changes by region, so check that the app resolves it for where you are rather than a single global catalogue.
5. Make sure it syncs, and back it up
Before you invest years of history in an app, confirm where it stores your data. An app that syncs to an account or to iCloud will restore everything when you sign in on a new iPhone or open it on an iPad; an app that keeps data only on the device will not. I Like Movies keeps your library on the server, so it follows you to a new phone, and to Android on the same account, which is what makes a shared household library across two different phones possible.
6. Bring your existing library with you
You do not have to start from zero. If you already track on Letterboxd, IMDb or Trakt, export your history (a .zip from Letterboxd or Trakt, a .csv from IMDb) and import it into the new app. I Like Movies reads all three directly, as well as a TV Time export saved before that service closed, and carries your ratings and watchlist across. Not every iPhone tracker supports these imports, so if keeping your history matters, check for it before you switch.
Doing this in I Like Movies
I Like Movies is a free, ad-free way to do all of the above on iPhone: films and TV in one library tracked per episode, ratings and notes for friends, not the public, per-country streaming availability, monthly recommendations built from your own taste and an assistant you can ask in plain language, a library that syncs across your devices and to Android, and a household that can see each other's watchlists. It imports Letterboxd, IMDb, Trakt and TV Time exports so you keep what you already have.
Questions people ask
What is the best way to track movies on an iPhone?
Use a dedicated tracker rather than a note or a spreadsheet, so films and TV, episode progress, ratings and a watchlist all live in one place that syncs to your account. Several good ones exist on the App Store; which fits depends on whether you want automatic tracking, a public diary, or a private library your household shares. I Like Movies, which publishes this guide, is the last of those.
Can I track TV episodes as well as films on iPhone?
Yes. A proper tracker records TV at the episode level, so it knows how far into a season you are and can tell a series that has ended from one waiting between seasons. In I Like Movies, films and TV sit in the same library and marking a whole season watched takes a tap.
Will my tracking sync to my iPad or a new iPhone?
It depends where the app stores your data. Apps that sync to an account or to iCloud restore everything when you sign in on a new device; apps that store only on the handset do not. I Like Movies keeps your library on the server, so it follows you to a new iPhone, to an iPad through the same account, and to Android.
How do I move my Letterboxd or IMDb history to an iPhone tracker?
Export it and import it. Letterboxd gives you a .zip and IMDb gives you a .csv; I Like Movies reads both directly under Imports, bringing your ratings and watchlist across so you do not retype years of history. Not every iPhone tracker imports these, so check before you commit.