TV Time alternative
The TV Time alternative that can't shut down.
TV Time goes offline on July 15, 2026, and its users' data goes with it. If you're picking its replacement, pick one where that can never happen again.
What happened to TV Time
In July 2026, TV Time announced it was shutting down: the app leaves the App Store, tvtime.com goes offline, and all personal tracking data is deleted on July 15. The stated reason — a free, ad-supported tracker with servers and staff wasn't sustainable anymore.
That's the real lesson. It isn't that TV Time was a bad app — it's that any tracker that keeps your history on its own servers can take it away, whether by shutdown (TV Time), price hikes (Trakt's VIP went to about US$60/yr) or paywalls (Letterboxd locks streaming filters behind Pro).
Why WhatAMovie is built differently
WhatAMovie has no servers holding your library. Everything you track lives on your device and syncs between your iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple Watch through your own iCloud. That architecture has three consequences:
- It's free forever, believably. No servers to pay for means no ads, no subscription, no “Pro” tier. There is nothing to monetize you for.
- It can't be shut down out from under you. Your library is in your iCloud. Even in the worst case — the app disappearing tomorrow — your data stays yours, and you can export it as JSON anytime.
- It's private by architecture. No account, no analytics, no ad SDKs. What you watch is nobody's business.
TV Time vs WhatAMovie, honestly
| Feature | TV Time | WhatAMovie |
|---|---|---|
| Episode tracking | Yes | Yes — progress per season and show, auto-advance to the next episode |
| Where to watch | Yes | Yes — JustWatch availability for 41 countries, deep-linked |
| New-episode notifications | Yes | Yes — local, at release or up to a day before |
| Ads | Yes | None, ever |
| Account required | Yes | No — open the app and start |
| Your data lives… | On their servers (deleted July 15, 2026) | On your device and in your iCloud |
| Price | Free with ads | Free, all of it |
One honest caveat: WhatAMovie doesn't import TV Time exports (there's nothing to import *into* — no server). Re-adding your current shows takes a few minutes: search, tap, done. Do request your TV Time export before July 15 so your full history isn't lost.
Free forever · No ads · No account · See everything WhatAMovie does →
Keep comparing
- Trakt — Free, no account, no VIP — for people leaving Trakt's paywalls.
- Letterboxd for TV — Letterboxd doesn't track TV episodes. WhatAMovie does.
- Simkl — Simkl without the account, the ads, or the servers.
- Best free tracker — Free, no ads, no account — the honest pick for iPhone.
- Private tracker — No account, no analytics — “Data Not Collected”.
- See every comparison →
Questions people are asking
Why is TV Time shutting down?
Its team said running the service as a free, ad-supported app was no longer sustainable — servers, licensing and staff cost more than ads brought in. The app leaves the stores and tvtime.com goes offline on July 15, 2026, and personal data is deleted.
Can I import my TV Time history into WhatAMovie?
Not automatically — WhatAMovie doesn't have an importer (yet). Request your TV Time data export before the shutdown so you keep a copy, then re-add your current shows in WhatAMovie; search plus one tap per show takes a few minutes.
How is WhatAMovie free without ads? What's the catch?
There's no catch, and this is the part that matters after TV Time: WhatAMovie has no servers storing your data. Your library lives on your device and syncs through your own iCloud, so there's nearly nothing to pay for, no ads to sell — and nothing that can be shut down.