Automating Media Downloads via Plex Watchlist

I want a simpler workflow than seeing a good trailer and then having to open each site, find the torrent myself, download it, copy it to the library, and wait for Plex to scan it again. The idea is to just click save the movie to the Watchlist, and let the media server handle the rest.

The complete workflow will be as follows:

1. When you see a movie or series you want to watch on the web, use a browser plugin to quickly add it to your Plex Watchlist, treating it as your personal movie list.
2. Radarr reads the Watchlist to manage movies, and Sonarr reads the Watchlist to manage TV series.
3. Radarr/Sonarr asks Prowlarr if there is a suitable torrent source.
4. When a version of the right quality is found, Radarr/Sonarr sends a download job to qBittorrent.
5. Once qBittorrent finishes downloading, Radarr/Sonarr imports the file into the media library.
6. Plex scans the library and the movie is ready to watch on your TV, computer, or phone.

Note: Please use this system for content you have the right to store or download. This article focuses on how services coordinate with each other in a homelab, and does not encourage downloading copyrighted content.

Services in the system

Plex

Plex is where you watch movies and is also the starting point of this workflow. Normally, you can go to Plex Discover, search for the movie title, and click Add to Watchlist. If you want to be faster, install a browser plugin so that while reading IMDb, TMDb, Rotten Tomatoes, Google Search, or watching a trailer, you can also send the movie to your Plex Watchlist without opening Plex manually.

In this setup, Plex does not download movies directly. Plex only keeps the Watchlist and plays the media after the file has been downloaded, placed in the correct folder, and scanned into the library.

Radarr and Sonarr

Radarr manages movies, and Sonarr manages TV series. These two services are the main coordinators:

• Track the list of movies or series to download.
• Apply quality profiles, for example, 1080p, 4K, lightweight version, high-quality version.
• Automatically find suitable versions via indexers.
• Send torrents to the download client.
• Import files after downloading, rename them, and move them to the correct library folder.

For this article, the Plex Watchlist will be added to Radarr/Sonarr as an Import List. When a new movie is in the Watchlist, Radarr/Sonarr automatically pulls that item into its management list.

Prowlarr

Prowlarr manages torrent indexers. Instead of configuring each torrent source individually in Radarr and Sonarr, we configure them centrally in Prowlarr and sync them to the other apps.

The benefit is that when you want to add, edit, or disable an indexer, you do it once in Prowlarr. Radarr and Sonarr only need to connect to Prowlarr to receive the list of search sources.

qBittorrent

qBittorrent is the download client. Radarr/Sonarr do not download files themselves, but only decide which version to download and then send the torrent or magnet link to qBittorrent. After the download is complete, Radarr/Sonarr will import the file to the library folder for Plex to read.

Preparation before connecting services

Before configuring the Watchlist, you should ensure that the basic media system is running stably:

• Plex already has Movies and TV Shows libraries pointing to the correct media storage folders.
• Radarr is already managing the movies folder, for example, /data/media/movies.
• Sonarr is already managing the TV series folder, for example, /data/media/tv.
• qBittorrent already has a temporary download folder, for example, /data/torrents.
• Radarr/Sonarr can see both the temporary download folder and the media folder.
• Prowlarr has at least one active indexer.

If you don't have a media server stack yet, you can check out this foundational article first: Automatically search for movies and subtitles on the internet and download them silently.

Install a browser plugin to quickly add movies to Plex Watchlist

This part is what makes the whole system worth using. When browsing the web, watching a trailer, or reading a review and you see a good movie, you don't need to note down the title and go home to search for it manually. Just click the browser plugin to add the movie to the Plex Watchlist; this list will become a personal movie queue for Radarr and Sonarr to process in the background.

General steps:

1. Install Plex Wishlist Quick Add on Chrome.
2. Log in or connect the extension to your Plex account.
3. Open the page of the movie or series you want to watch.
4. Click the button to add it to the Watchlist.
5. Check again in the Plex Watchlist to see if the item has appeared.

The important point is that the movie must go into the exact Plex Watchlist of the account that will be authenticated by Radarr/Sonarr in the next step. If you use multiple Plex accounts, carefully check the account logged in on the browser and the account authenticated in Radarr/Sonarr.

Because the extension needs to read the content of the movie page and interact with Plex, install it from a trusted source and check its access permissions before using.

Configure Plex Watchlist in Radarr

Radarr will handle movies.

Go to Settings > Import Lists, add a new list of type Plex Watchlist and configure it:

• Authenticate: log into the Plex account with the Watchlist to track.
• Root Folder: choose the folder for saving movies.
• Quality Profile: choose the default profile for movies imported from the Watchlist.
• Monitor: should be set to monitor movie so Radarr automatically finds a suitable version.
• Search on Add: enable if you want Radarr to search immediately as soon as it's added to the Watchlist.

Configure Plex Watchlist in Sonarr

Sonarr will handle TV series.

Go to Settings > Import Lists, add Plex Watchlist similarly to Radarr:

• Authenticate using the same Plex account.
• Root Folder points to the series folder.
• Quality Profile select the appropriate profile.
• Season Folder enable if you want each season in its own folder.
• Monitor choose how to monitor for new episodes, new seasons, or the entire series.

For series, you should carefully check the monitor rule. If you only want to download new episodes from the time it is added to the Watchlist, do not let Sonarr pull all the old seasons if not needed.

Connect Radarr/Sonarr to qBittorrent

In Radarr and Sonarr, go to Settings > Download Clients and then add qBittorrent.

Required information:

• Host or IP of qBittorrent.
• Web UI Port.
• Web UI Username and password.
• Separate categories for Radarr and Sonarr, for example, radarr and sonarr.

You should use separate categories so Radarr/Sonarr recognize which torrent belongs to which app. When qBittorrent finishes downloading, Radarr/Sonarr will rely on this category to import into the correct library.

If Radarr/Sonarr is running in Docker, check the path mapping. A common error is that qBittorrent saves the file to a specific path, but Radarr/Sonarr cannot see that path inside the container.

Connect Prowlarr to Radarr and Sonarr

In Prowlarr, configure the indexers first. Then go to the Apps section and add Radarr/Sonarr using the API key of each service.

When successfully connected:

• Prowlarr syncs indexers to Radarr.
• Prowlarr syncs indexers to Sonarr.
• Radarr/Sonarr use these indexers to search for movies or series.

You can manage public trackers, private trackers, or custom sources in Prowlarr. When a source fails, needs a URL change, an API key change, or needs to be temporarily disabled, handling it in Prowlarr is enough.

Test the end-to-end workflow

After configuring, you should test with a small-sized movie or series:

1. Open the browser, add the movie to the Plex Watchlist using the extension.
2. Go to the Plex Watchlist to check if the item is there.
3. Go to Radarr or Sonarr to see if the item has been imported.
4. Check the Search/History tab to see if the app found a release.
5. Open qBittorrent to see if the torrent was added to the correct category.
6. After downloading is complete, check if Radarr/Sonarr has imported the file.
7. Open Plex, scan the library, and check if the movie has appeared.

If the item is in the Watchlist but not in Radarr/Sonarr, it is usually a Plex authentication error or the Import List hasn't refreshed yet. If Radarr/Sonarr has the item but cannot download it, check the Prowlarr indexers, quality profile, and download client. If the download is complete but Plex doesn't see the movie, check the library path and file read permissions.

Conclusion

When the services are connected correctly, the experience will be very seamless: if you see a good movie, just click to add it to the Watchlist, and the server will take care of searching, downloading, organizing, and bringing it into Plex.

Plex plays the role of the viewing experience and the wishlist. Radarr/Sonarr manage the download logic. Prowlarr manages the search sources. qBittorrent handles the downloads. Clearly separating roles like this makes the system much easier to troubleshoot compared to having to manually find links and download everything yourself every time you want to watch a movie.