# TV Show Matching
**URL:** https://forums.plex.tv/t/tv-show-matching/931669
**Category:** Metadata & Adding Files
**Tags:** server-netgear, metadata
**Created:** [September 24, 2025, 2:04am UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/tv-show-matching/931669 "2025-09-24T02:04:41Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@ukbo0](https://forums.plex.tv/u/ukbo0)
#### Post date: [September 24, 2025, 2:04am UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/tv-show-matching/931669/1 "2025-09-24T02:04:41Z")
Hi Forum Members
I also have this problem with some TV seasons taking on new erroneous data, such as deleting my data and re-populating the General, Tags, Poster and Background pages with false data and pictures, e.g. one of my TV series became a Japanese (or South Korean) TV series called “19”.
This problem was particularly rough in the early days of my using PMS ver. 0.9x with my Netgear RNDuoV2 server (approx. 13 years ago). However, I solved this problem, back then, by using a free Video.Tag utility, which unfortunately does not (completely) work for PMS ver. 1.4x onward.
Anyway, I am now experimenting by using IMDB references, along with still using the Video.Tag utility, to see if I can curb PMS’s wayward behaviour.
My experiment is as follows:-
My main directory is called “TV Show” followed by a subsequent folder/directory with the series name, e.g. Series-Name - Season 1 (2021) {imdb-tt1xxxxxx9}. I then place each tagged episode (up to the full season) under this folder/directory, so everything looks like the following:-
TV Show
Series-Name - Season 1 (2021) {imdb-tt1xxxxxx9}
```
Series-Name - S01E01 (Episode Name01)-tagged.mp4
Series-Name - S01E02 (Episode Name02)-tagged.mp4
Series-Name - S01E03 (Episode Name03)-tagged.mp4
```
And so on.
So far so good, this iteration of my database entries seems to work but I will need to use this system for a month or two to insure that the auto erroneous data entry problem has been cured.
UK Bob
> **Summary**
>
> This text will be hidden
---
### Author:  [@FordGuy61](https://forums.plex.tv/u/FordGuy61)
#### Post date: [September 24, 2025, 4:26am UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/tv-show-matching/931669/2 "2025-09-24T04:26:18Z")
I moved your post to a new thread, as it was not relevant to the original.
> [@ukbo0](#):
>
> My main directory is called “TV Show” followed by a subsequent folder/directory with the series name, e.g. Series-Name - Season 1 (2021) {imdb-tt1xxxxxx9}. I then place each tagged episode (up to the full season) under this folder/directory, so everything looks like the following:-
[Plex Documentation](https://support.plex.tv/articles/) → [Your Media](https://support.plex.tv/articles/categories/your-media/) → [Naming & Organizing Your TV Show Files](https://support.plex.tv/articles/naming-and-organizing-your-tv-show-files/)
You are lucky that works, as much of it is not supported by Plex Media Server.
- Plex uses TMDB & TVDB IDs for matching TV shows, not IMDB.
- The show folder should be `show_name (year)` with subfolders for each season.
Example:
```auto
/TV Shows <-- folder added to tv show library
../Show_Name (Intro_Year) {tmdb-xxxxx} <-- TMDB/TVDB ID optional
..../Season 01
....../Show_Name (Intro_Year) sXXeYY optional_episode_name.ext <-- ext=mkv/mp4/etc.
```
---
### Author:  [@ukbo0](https://forums.plex.tv/u/ukbo0)
#### Post date: [September 24, 2025, 10:30am UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/tv-show-matching/931669/3 "2025-09-24T10:30:32Z")
Hi FordGuy
You said “_Plex uses TMDB & TVDB IDs for matching TV shows, not IMDB_.” However, I had read in another post in this forum that Plex uses all three databases, i.e. TMDB, TVDB and IMDB, and that this usage was undocumented.
Mind you, it was also this post where I found out how to retrieve and format the IMDB’s TV shows identification numbers and show how the Plex system could use them.
However, it will take time to see if my new database entry method stabilises and retains the TV shows data I enter or if I will continue to get my correct data overwritten by auto-erroneous (Japanese/South Korean) data.
I’ll report back in the next couple of weeks to let you know how I get on.
In the meantime 🤞
(Old Geezer) UK Bob 👴
---
### Author:  [@MovieFan](https://forums.plex.tv/u/MovieFan)
#### Post date: [September 25, 2025, 9:50pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/tv-show-matching/931669/4 "2025-09-25T21:50:32Z")
Plex does use tmdb but only for movies and mostly only theatrical releases.
---
### Author:  [@FordGuy61](https://forums.plex.tv/u/FordGuy61)
#### Post date: [September 25, 2025, 10:37pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/tv-show-matching/931669/5 "2025-09-25T22:37:42Z")
> [@ukbo0](#):
>
> You said “_Plex uses TMDB & TVDB IDs for matching TV shows, not IMDB_.” However, I had read in another post in this forum that Plex uses all three databases, i.e. TMDB, TVDB and IMDB, and that this usage was undocumented.
Do you have a link? Maybe Plex need to update their docs.
If you are using the “Plex TV Series” agent, you can optionally include the TMDB or TVDB show ID in the folder name to improve matching. If you choose to do that, it must be inside curly braces: `ShowName (2020) {tmdb-123456}` or `ShowName (2020) {tvdb-123456}`, where `123456` is the show ID. An example can be found at the end of the article.
---
### Author:  [@ukbo0](https://forums.plex.tv/u/ukbo0)
#### Post date: [September 26, 2025, 11:15am UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/tv-show-matching/931669/6 "2025-09-26T11:15:07Z")
Hi FordGuy61
At the moment, I am using the show ID, in curly brackets, in the following manner:
ShowName - Season X (2025) {imdb-tt12345678}
where “X” is any number, (2025) is any year and 12345678 is any IMDB show ID.
And I can honestly say that so far, using my method, all my TV data seem to have stabilised and Plex has stopped overwriting my TV Shows with erroneous data and false posters. But I will admit, I have only been using “my method” for a short time, a matter of two weeks, and to insure everything is working as it should will take a few more weeks.
As for the post that led me to start using IMDB ID’s, I will post a link to it as soon as I can find it again.
UK Bob
---
### Author:  [@dokuro](https://forums.plex.tv/u/dokuro)
#### Post date: [September 26, 2025, 12:17pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/tv-show-matching/931669/7 "2025-09-26T12:17:58Z")
> [@ukbo0](#):
>
> ShowName - Season X (2025) {imdb-tt12345678}
>
> where “X” is any number, (2025) is any year and 12345678 is any IMDB show ID
Plex does not match shows off imdb ids. For shows have to use tmdb or tvdb matching ids.
---
### Author:  [@pl85704](https://forums.plex.tv/u/pl85704)
#### Post date: [September 26, 2025, 12:54pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/tv-show-matching/931669/8 "2025-09-26T12:54:22Z")
That’s not what the documentation says.
As a tip it suggests searching “imdb-tt[insert id]” to match a specific title if keyword search does not bringing up the result (didn’t work in my case)
---
### Author:  [@dokuro](https://forums.plex.tv/u/dokuro)
#### Post date: [September 26, 2025, 12:56pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/tv-show-matching/931669/9 "2025-09-26T12:56:59Z")
You sure you are looking at the TV Show documentation [https://support.plex.tv/articles/naming-and-organizing-your-tv-show-files](https://support.plex.tv/articles/naming-and-organizing-your-tv-show-files) and not the movie one [https://support.plex.tv/articles/naming-and-organizing-your-movie-media-files](https://support.plex.tv/articles/naming-and-organizing-your-movie-media-files) ?
---
### Author:  [@pl85704](https://forums.plex.tv/u/pl85704)
#### Post date: [September 26, 2025, 1:56pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/tv-show-matching/931669/10 "2025-09-26T13:56:34Z")
The Fix Match documentation
> ### Tips
>
> There are a couple of neat tricks you can use to help with matching.
>
> - When in a Movie library, you can enter the IMDB ID in the title and search for that. For instance, the IMDb entry for “Brave” is [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1217209/](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1217209/). If you enter `imdb-tt1217209` as the search term, it will search for that exact movie to try to match.
---
### Author:  [@dokuro](https://forums.plex.tv/u/dokuro)
#### Post date: [September 26, 2025, 2:01pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/tv-show-matching/931669/11 "2025-09-26T14:01:02Z")
Sure, which clearly says `When in a Movie library` 🙂
Anyhow, we are splitting hairs. You cannot use imdb ids for TV shows.
---
### Author:  [@pl85704](https://forums.plex.tv/u/pl85704)
#### Post date: [September 26, 2025, 2:25pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/tv-show-matching/931669/12 "2025-09-26T14:25:45Z")
It also works in the TV Library.
I just tested it (fix matched existing show →searched imdb-tt13718450 → Search result was tt13718450 aka 86)
---
### Author:  [@dokuro](https://forums.plex.tv/u/dokuro)
#### Post date: [September 26, 2025, 2:46pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/tv-show-matching/931669/13 "2025-09-26T14:46:56Z")
Good to know but I’d certainly not rely on it.
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### Author:  [@FordGuy61](https://forums.plex.tv/u/FordGuy61)
#### Post date: [September 26, 2025, 6:31pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/tv-show-matching/931669/14 "2025-09-26T18:31:13Z")
I asked Plex for clarification.
- IMDB IDs work for matching TV shows.
- Plex does not use IMDB for episode ordering, naming, etc. Only TMDB & TVDB are supported.
I’ll update the thread if I receive additional information.
**UPDATE:** [Naming & Organizing Your TV Show Files](https://support.plex.tv/articles/naming-and-organizing-your-tv-show-files/) has been updated. It now says IMDB, TMDB, & TVDB IDs can be used to match TV shows.
> [@ukbo0](#):
>
> Series-Name - Season 1 (2021) {imdb-tt1xxxxxx9}
>
> ```auto
> Series-Name - S01E01 (Episode Name01)-tagged.mp4
>
> ```
That is still unsupported naming/organization.
- The ID belongs on the show folder
- Use season folders
- “-tagged” is only for [episode extras](https://support.plex.tv/articles/local-files-for-tv-show-trailers-and-extras/). Other uses may interfere with Plex correctly recognizing episodes.
```auto
/TV Shows <-- folder added to tv show library
../Show_Name (Intro_Year) {tmdb-xxxxx} <-- ID optional
..../Season XX
....../Show_Name (Intro_Year) sXXeYY optional_episode_name.ext <-- ext=mkv/mp4/etc.
....../Show_Name (Intro_Year) sXXeYY optional_episode_name-featurette.ext
```
---
### Author:  [@ukbo0](https://forums.plex.tv/u/ukbo0)
#### Post date: [September 27, 2025, 12:58am UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/tv-show-matching/931669/15 "2025-09-27T00:58:07Z")
Hi FordGuy61
You are indeed right, my data entry method does indeed use the IMDB ID as part of my top level Directory/Folder name, e.g. SeriesName - Season 1 (2021) {imdb-tt1xxxxxx9}.
And the individual episodes, in the Directory/Folder, are **not** identified by using IMDB IDs but by using a tagging utility, which I have been using for more than 12 or so years, called VideoTag (which may no longer be available).
Anyway, whether by accident or design, I now find that this Plex data entry method works very well for me (so far). My entries seem to be stabilised, i.e. no more auto-entry of false data, my individual shows data and pictures provided by my tagging utility most of the time go into the correct fields.
I can’t recommend my method for everyone but it does work for me and does, above all, solve the erroneous auto-data entry problem, which has always been around for the 12+ years I’ve been using Plex.
(Old Geezer) UK Bob
PS. I’ve been unable to find the post that led me to use IMDB show IDs but I’ll keep looking.
---
### Author:  [@FordGuy61](https://forums.plex.tv/u/FordGuy61)
#### Post date: [September 27, 2025, 2:15am UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/tv-show-matching/931669/16 "2025-09-27T02:15:48Z")
Glad your system is stable.
Don’t worry about the post regarding IMDB IDs.
Cheers
---
### Author:  [@FordGuy61](https://forums.plex.tv/u/FordGuy61)
#### Post date: [September 27, 2025, 5:38pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/tv-show-matching/931669/17 "2025-09-27T17:38:44Z")
Plex updated the docs to include IMDB for TV show matching.
[Plex Docs](https://support.plex.tv/articles/) → [Your Media](https://support.plex.tv/articles/categories/your-media/) → [Naming & Organizing Your TV Show Files](https://support.plex.tv/articles/naming-and-organizing-your-tv-show-files/)
- If you are using the “Plex TV Series” agent, you can optionally include the TMDB, TVDB, or IMDb show ID in the folder name to improve matching. If you choose to do that, it must be inside curly braces: `ShowName (2020) {tmdb-123456}`, `ShowName (2020) {tmdb-123456}`, or `ShowName (2020) {imdb-123456}`, where `123456` is the show ID. An example can be found at the end of the article.
---
### Author:  [@robin58](https://forums.plex.tv/u/robin58)
#### Post date: [October 4, 2025, 9:17pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/tv-show-matching/931669/18 "2025-10-04T21:17:05Z")
Just going to point out that tmdb is mentioned twice in that linked article instead of thetvdb / tvdb where appropriate.
---
### Author:  [@walker63](https://forums.plex.tv/u/walker63)
#### Post date: [October 8, 2025, 3:49am UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/tv-show-matching/931669/19 "2025-10-08T03:49:44Z")
> [@FordGuy61](#):
>
> {imdb-123456}
I discovered this change tonight, and also noticed the typo where the tmdb source ID was listed twice, instead of the second example showing the tvdb example. I wonder if the {imdb-123456} isn’t a second typo, seeing that the tt from IMDB’s source ID is included when using an IMDB source ID in a movie library, like {imdb-tt123456}. To include the tt in a movie library and to then exclude it in a TV Show library doesn’t make sense to me.
---
### Author:  [@FordGuy61](https://forums.plex.tv/u/FordGuy61)
#### Post date: [October 8, 2025, 6:05pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/tv-show-matching/931669/20 "2025-10-08T18:05:58Z")
Thanks for catching the typo. I just checked and the document has been updated to include ` tt` in the IMDB ID.
[Next page](https://forums.plex.tv/t/tv-show-matching/931669.md?page=2)