Netflix is Hiding Your Watchlist

I Built a Tool to Take It Back

Netflix Wants You Lost And Broken

Netflix recently gutted the sorting features on its web interface. You used to be able to sort your “My List” by A-Z or by the date you added a title. Now? Those options are gone. You are stuck with “Netflix Suggestions.”

Photo by Thibault Penin on Unsplash

This wasn’t an accident.

“Be extremely subtle, even to the point of formlessness. Be extremely mysterious, even to the point of soundlessness. Thereby you can be the director of the opponent’s fate.” — Sun Tsu from the Art of War

This is exactly what Netflix is doing. They aren’t attacking you. They are just becoming “formless.” They remove the buttons. They hide the filters. They make the UI a mystery so you can’t navigate it yourself. You feel a little bit off — like you might miss out on something, but you’re not quite sure what.

If you don’t know where the exit is, you stay.

When you can sort your watchlist, you have a sense of the end. You can find exactly what you want and start watching.

Netflix doesn’t want that.

They want you to scroll. The longer you spend looking for something, the more “content” you see. It is the same trick casinos use. They remove the clocks and the windows so you forget how much time has passed. Maybe they think if they hide that documentary you saved in 2019, you will watch their newest reality show instead.

They also recently added a vertical shorts feed — to keep you on the platform as long as possible.

I find this annoying. It is your list. You should own it.

The Algorithm is Not Your Friend

The “Match Score” you see on Netflix is useless. It doesn’t tell you if a movie is good. It tells you if the movie fits the profile Netflix built for you.

They want to push their own original content because it is cheaper for them in the long run. If I want to find a highly rated thriller on my list, Netflix makes me work for it.

They want to keep you in a loop. By removing basic tools like A-Z sorting, they force you to rely on their recommendations. It is a subtle way to limit your choice while pretending to offer everything.

I Fixed the Watchlist

I got tired of scrolling through a disorganized mess. I wanted to see my data clearly. So, I built a tool to fix this.

Here’s the tool you can use for free.

It is a free tool that lets you extract your entire Netflix watchlist. Once you have the data, you can actually use it. I made it so you can filter your list based on what actually matters.

Here is what you can do with it:

• Filter by type (movie, TV show, or documentary)
• Sort by TMDB (or IMDB, Metacritic) ratings to see what is actually worth your time
• Organize by genre without the Netflix “suggestions” getting in the way
• Search your own list instantly
• See your full, entire watchlist

I think we should have more control over the things we pay for. If Netflix won’t give us a search bar that works or a simple sort button, we have to make our own.

Stop letting a machine decide your evening. Grab your data, filter it, and pick something good.

Take control of your Netflix Watchlist with this free tool.

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