TV Time vs Simkl: The Closest Replacement?

Overview

Whenever a TV Time user asks for the closest replacement, one name comes up more than any other: Simkl. It looks and feels the most like TV Time, it imports your data directly, and it handles the parts of TV Time people relied on most — episode progress and a familiar, browsable interface. If you want the smallest adjustment, this is usually the recommendation.

Simkl earns the "closest clone" label for good reasons: a similar look, a direct import of the TV Time export, auto-tracking for streaming services, and dedicated anime support. The one caveat worth setting up front is stability — the wave of TV Time users arriving at once has reportedly strained Simkl's servers. This comparison covers how familiar it feels, how the import works, and how to keep your data portable once you are in.

Key Differences

Familiarity and Feel

The reason Simkl keeps getting recommended is that it asks the least of you. The layout, the way you browse shows, and the episode-progress workflow are close enough to TV Time that most of your habits carry over. It covers the core TV Time experience — logging episodes, tracking where you stopped in each series, and browsing what to watch next — without a steep relearning curve.

What does not carry over is the social side. TV Time's per-episode comments, reactions, and badges were a big part of its appeal, and Simkl is a tracker rather than a social platform. If the community was your favorite feature, no single app fully replaces it. If you mostly used TV Time to keep track of your shows, Simkl will feel like home.

Importing Your History

This is where Simkl stands out among the alternatives. It accepts the TV Time export directly: you download the ZIP from TV Time's export tool, upload it to Simkl, and it maps your shows and episodes without a separate conversion step. That direct path is a big reason it is the go-to recommendation for people who just want their history back quickly.

The order matters, though. Export from TV Time first — the self-service tool is the reliable route this close to the deadline, since email requests can take up to 30 days — then import into Simkl. For the wider set of options and how they compare, see the TV Time alternatives overview.

For many people the deciding factor is episode progress — remembering exactly where you stopped in each series, one of TV Time's most-used features. Simkl preserves that on import, so you are not scrolling through half-finished shows trying to reconstruct your place. Do the export while the service is still live, though: TechCrunch reports TV Time passed 26.4 million lifetime installs, and with many of those users exporting at once, that load is part of why Simkl's servers have felt the strain.

Stability and Portability

Two things are worth knowing before you commit. First, stability: Simkl works well in normal times, but its servers have reportedly strained under the surge of TV Time users signing up at once, so you may run into slowdowns during the migration. Second, portability: Simkl also syncs with Trakt, which means you are not locked in the way TV Time locked you in. If Simkl ever has a rough patch, your history can live on Trakt and move with you. That connection is what keeps this switch from being another dead end.

Which Should You Choose?

If you want the smallest change from TV Time, Simkl is the clear pick. It looks the most like what you are leaving, it imports your history directly, and it keeps the episode tracking and browsing that made TV Time useful. Just go in expecting the occasional slow moment while the migration wave settles, and lean on its Trakt sync so your data is never trapped again.

There is a portable, ad-free path worth knowing if you are on Android. Because Simkl syncs with Trakt — and Trakt is the open hub the whole ecosystem is built around — you can center your history on Trakt and use Moviebase as the daily app on top of it. Moviebase syncs bidirectionally with Trakt and gives you an ad-free interface with episode progress, custom lists, a release calendar, and free viewing statistics, while Trakt keeps everything portable underneath. See Moviebase vs Simkl for how the two apps compare directly, or the guide on how to switch from TV Time to Moviebase if you would rather move straight into a native tracker.

Frequently Asked Questions