What Makes a Great TV Show Tracker

TV tracking is different from movie tracking. You are not just saving titles. You are managing episode progress, season gaps, returning shows, dropped series, backlog planning, and sometimes multiple weekly releases at once.

The best TV tracker app is the one that helps you answer three questions quickly:

What am I watching right now?
Where did I stop?
What should I start next?

The TV Tracker Lineup

Moviebase

Best for balance

Strong TV progress tracking without forcing you into a TV-only workflow.

SHOWLY

Best TV-first feel

A focused option for seasons, episodes, and returning shows. iOS and Android.

SeriesGuide

Best for speed

Efficient daily tracking with a long-standing TV-first workflow.

trakt

Best for sync

Keeps TV history portable across apps and scrobble-friendly devices.

TV Time

Best social tracker

Episode comments, character voting, badges, and a large community.

CinExplore

Best lightweight option

Clean Material Design tracker with Trakt sync and customizable themes.

SIMKL

Best for auto-tracking

Auto-detects what you watch on Netflix, Hulu, and Crunchyroll.

JustWatch

Best companion

Find which streaming service has the show you want to watch.

App	Best For	Key Strength	Tradeoff
Moviebase	TV and movie tracking combined	Episode progress, lists, discovery, Trakt sync	More full-featured than minimalist
Showly	Cleaner TV-first experience	Focused episode flow, iOS and Android	Less balanced for movie-heavy users
SeriesGuide	Speed and efficiency	Fast tracking workflow, mature TV focus	Less visual, less discovery
Trakt	Portability and scrobbling	Open ecosystem, cross-device history	Mobile UX less polished
TV Time	Social viewing experience	Community comments, badges, reactions	Ads, no Trakt sync
CinExplore	Minimal Trakt-connected tracker	Material Design, 10 themes, lightweight	Basic discovery features
Simkl	Auto-tracking across services	Netflix/Hulu scrobbling, anime support	Mobile app less refined
JustWatch	Streaming availability lookup	Find where to stream, price comparison	Not a full progress tracker

The Best TV Show Tracker Apps Right Now

Moviebase

Moviebase is the best choice for people who want TV tracking without giving up movie tracking. You can follow season progress, manage lists, monitor what is airing, and still keep your movie backlog and ratings in the same place.

That balance is the real advantage. Many users start with a TV-only tracker and later realize they want one history for everything they watch.

Best for: Users who want one app for TV and movies.

Showly

Showly is a strong TV-first app for users who want a focused tracker with Trakt support and a cleaner interface. It is especially appealing if you spend most of your time following returning series, binge-watching older shows, and updating progress quickly.

For users who primarily care about TV, it remains one of the clearest alternatives to Moviebase.

Best for: TV-centered Android users who value a streamlined experience.

SeriesGuide

SeriesGuide remains a dependable choice for users who care more about speed and structure than visual polish. Its official help documentation still emphasizes Trakt connectivity and practical TV progress workflows, which fits users who want a straightforward tool.

If your ideal tracker feels more like a tool than a magazine, SeriesGuide still fits that profile well.

Best for: Utility-first TV fans and longtime Android users.

Trakt

Trakt is the backbone behind a lot of modern tracking workflows. Its official apps now exist on Android and iOS, and its broader ecosystem remains one of the strongest reasons to use it. If you use Plex, Kodi, or other scrobble-friendly tools, Trakt can become the long-term home for your TV history.

The tradeoff is that many users still treat Trakt as both an app and a sync layer rather than only a single destination for daily tracking.

Best for: Users who care about portability and scrobbling across platforms.

JustWatch

JustWatch is useful because its official TV Show Tracking feature and provider filters help users answer a different question extremely well: where can I stream this right now, and which of my services has it? If availability is your main pain point, it is a helpful companion tool.

It is better viewed as a complement to a tracker than a replacement for one if episode progress and long-term history matter to you.

Best for: Users who want streaming availability, not full progress tracking.

TV Time

TV Time has one of the largest tracking communities in the world. After marking an episode as watched, you can read community reactions, vote for your favorite characters, and earn badges. The social layer makes watching feel like a shared event.

The downside is that TV Time has no Trakt sync, meaning your data is locked inside their platform. The free tier also includes ads.

Best for: Users who enjoy the social side of watching TV shows.

CinExplore

CinExplore is a clean, lightweight tracker that syncs with Trakt and supports Material Design 3 with customizable color themes. It handles the basics well without feature bloat. If you want a simple app that logs episodes and stays out of the way, CinExplore is a solid pick.

Best for: Users who want a minimal, customizable Trakt-connected tracker.

Simkl

Simkl's standout feature is automatic tracking. It detects what you watch on Netflix, Hulu, Crunchyroll, and media centers, and logs it without manual input. It also offers dedicated anime tracking with MyAnimeList integration. Available across web, Android, iOS, and browser extensions.

Best for: Users who want hands-free auto-tracking and anime support.

Features That Matter Most

Episode Progress

If the app makes it hard to mark episodes quickly, you will stop tracking. Good TV apps reduce the number of taps between finishing an episode and updating your history.

Notifications and Return Awareness

Returning shows are where most people lose context. Good reminders and season awareness help you stay current without constantly checking release calendars.

List Management

A strong TV app should let you separate active shows, paused series, backlog picks, and future possibilities. Otherwise every show ends up in one overcrowded watchlist.

Sync

If you use multiple apps or devices, sync becomes essential. Trakt compatibility remains one of the biggest advantages in the TV tracking ecosystem.

Our Recommendation

For most people, Moviebase is the best TV show tracker because it covers the daily essentials well while also giving you stronger movie support, better discovery, and more room to grow your system over time.

If you want the cleanest TV-first Android experience, Showly is still one of the best alternatives. If you want a fast, functional tool with a long Android history, SeriesGuide remains a very practical option. And if you care most about data portability, Trakt should still be part of your setup.

To improve your tracking workflow after choosing an app, read How to Track TV Shows Without Forgetting Where You Stopped.

Source Notes

This roundup combines editorial judgment with official product information. Trakt positioning was checked against official Trakt mobile announcements, JustWatch against its official help articles on TV show tracking and provider filters, Showly against its official site, and SeriesGuide against its official help pages.