CineMan AI — every question, answered
77 detailed answers covering ratings on streaming cards, Taste Match, importing your viewing history, AI recommendations, hidden Netflix genres, privacy and troubleshooting. Can't find your question? Email us.
1. Getting started
What is CineMan AI?
A free Chrome extension that puts IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes ratings directly on the cards as you browse Netflix, Prime Video and Disney+, adds a personal Taste Match score, and generates AI recommendations based on your taste rather than generic popularity.
How do I install it?
Install from the Chrome Web Store listing, then open Netflix, Prime Video or Disney+. Ratings appear on the cards automatically — there is no setup step.
Is CineMan AI really free?
Yes. No premium tier, no rate limits, no credit card. The Google Gemini-powered AI recommendations are free for personal use.
Does it work without a CineMan account?
Yes. Everything is stored locally in the browser. There is no CineMan account to create or sign in to.
Do I need an IMDb or Rotten Tomatoes account?
No. The ratings come from public IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes data and require no login to either service.
Do I need a subscription to the streaming services?
The extension enhances the streaming sites you already browse, so you need whatever access you'd normally need to see the catalogue.
Is there anything to configure after installing?
Ratings work immediately with no configuration. Taste Match needs you to rate or import at least five titles before it activates.
How do I uninstall it?
Right-click the extension icon and choose "Remove from Chrome", or go to chrome://extensions and click Remove. Your locally stored taste profile is removed with it.
2. IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes ratings
Where do the ratings come from?
Public IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes data, refreshed regularly. The extension does not require a login to either service to display them.
Where do the ratings appear?
Directly on every movie and show thumbnail as you browse, so you don't have to open a title or switch tabs to find out whether it's worth two hours.
Will it slow down Netflix or the other services?
No noticeable impact. Ratings are fetched lazily as cards scroll into view and then cached, so the streaming interface stays responsive.
Why is a rating missing on some titles?
Not everything has a public rating — very new releases, regional exclusives and some originals may have no IMDb or Rotten Tomatoes entry yet, or the title matching may not have resolved.
How often are ratings updated?
Refreshed regularly rather than live per view. A rating that moved in the last few hours may not be reflected immediately.
Why does a rating differ from what I see on IMDb right now?
Cached values can lag the live site slightly. For a title where the exact number matters to you, check the source directly.
Does it show the Rotten Tomatoes critic or audience score?
The Rotten Tomatoes rating shown is the public score sourced from their data. For the full critic-versus-audience breakdown, open the title on Rotten Tomatoes.
Can I turn ratings off and keep the rest?
Ratings are the extension's core behaviour on the streaming sites. If you want a quieter interface, disabling the extension for a site is the straightforward route.
Does it change what Netflix recommends to me?
No. The extension overlays information on the interface; it doesn't interact with the streaming service's own recommendation system or send it any signals.
Does it work in every country?
The ratings are global data, so they display wherever you browse. What's in the catalogue varies by region, which is a streaming-service matter rather than an extension one.
3. Taste Match
What is Taste Match?
A percentage shown on each title estimating how likely you are to enjoy it, based on your viewing history or ratings rather than generic popularity.
How do I turn Taste Match on?
Rate or import at least five titles. Below that threshold the extension falls back to globally popular suggestions rather than pretending to personalise.
How many titles should I rate for good results?
Five activates it. Quality scales from there — around twenty rated titles is where it starts to feel meaningfully personal.
How is Taste Match calculated?
From patterns in the titles you've rated or imported — genres, and how your ratings distribute across them — scored against the title in question. It runs locally against your own profile.
Is Taste Match the same as the IMDb rating?
No, and that's the point. An IMDb score tells you what people in general thought. Taste Match estimates what you specifically are likely to think, so a widely-loved film can score low for you and a divisive one can score high.
Why is my Taste Match sometimes wrong?
It's an estimate built from patterns in a limited sample, not a promise. It gets better with more rated titles, and it will still be wrong sometimes.
Where is my taste profile stored?
Locally in your browser. There is no CineMan account and nothing is stored on a server.
Does my profile sync between computers?
No. Because it's stored locally in the browser, it doesn't follow you to another machine.
Can I change a rating I gave?
Yes. Re-rating a title updates your profile, and later scores reflect the change.
What happens to my profile if I uninstall?
It's stored in the browser's local storage for the extension, so removing the extension clears it.
4. Importing your Netflix history
Do I need to upload my Netflix history?
No. The import is optional, and even when you use it the file is read and processed in your browser — it is not uploaded anywhere. You can build the same profile by rating titles manually.
Why import it at all?
Speed. Rating titles by hand works but is slow; an import builds a substantial profile in one step.
Where do I get the file?
Netflix provides your viewing activity as a downloadable CSV from your account's viewing activity page.
What format does the import expect?
The CSV Netflix provides for viewing activity.
Is my viewing history sent to a server?
No. The CSV is read and processed locally in your browser during import.
My imported profile doesn't feel like me. Why?
Viewing history records what was played on the profile, which isn't always what you'd have chosen — shared profiles and half-watched things both add noise. Rating titles manually afterwards corrects it.
Can I import history from Prime Video or Disney+?
The import is built around the Netflix viewing-activity CSV. For the other services, rate titles manually to build your profile.
5. AI recommendations
How does the AI recommendation feature work?
You describe what you want in plain language — a mood, a genre, or a film to use as a reference. The extension sends that query to Google Gemini along with a compact summary of your top genres, and the returned titles are scored against your local taste profile before you see them.
What information is sent to the AI?
Your query and a compact summary of your top genres — never your raw viewing history.
Is this the only feature that makes a network request?
It's the one that does so by design, because it's a call to a language model. The rest of the extension's personalisation runs locally.
How accurate are the AI recommendations?
Quality scales with how many titles you've rated. After around twenty rated titles they should feel meaningfully personalised. Below five, the extension falls back to globally popular suggestions.
What kind of prompt works best?
Specific ones. "A slow-burn thriller like Zodiac" gives the model much more to work with than "something good". Naming a film you loved is usually the strongest signal you can give.
Can I ask for something by mood rather than genre?
Yes — plain language is the interface. Mood, pacing, era and tone all work as descriptions.
Are the recommendations limited to what I can actually watch?
Results are oriented around the supported services. Availability still varies by region, so check the title in your own catalogue.
Is there a limit on how many recommendations I can request?
No rate limits and no premium tier — it's free for personal use.
Why did it recommend something I've already seen?
Rate it, and your profile improves. Ratings are what tell the scoring step which titles you've already formed a view on.
Which model is behind it?
Google Gemini.
6. Similar titles and hidden Netflix genres
How do I find something similar to a film I liked?
Start from that title and use the find-similar feature. Results are ranked against your taste profile, so you get "similar and likely to suit you" rather than just "similar".
What's the difference between similarity and Taste Match?
Similarity measures how much a title resembles your reference. Taste Match estimates how much you personally are likely to enjoy it. A title can score high on one and low on the other.
What are Netflix's hidden genre codes?
Netflix organises its catalogue into far more categories than the browse interface exposes — highly specific genres that the homepage rows never surface. The extension gives you access to 120+ of them.
How do I browse the hidden categories?
Open the genre browser in the extension and pick a category. Each category's titles are scored against your taste profile, which is what makes a very large category usable.
Does this unlock content I can't normally watch?
No. It surfaces genre categories Netflix already maintains but doesn't expose in its browse interface. Everything shown is content already available in your region's catalogue.
Why is a category empty or very short?
Netflix availability varies by region, so a category that's rich in one country can be sparse in another.
Do the hidden genres work on Prime Video or Disney+?
No, this is Netflix-specific. Prime Video and Disney+ get ratings and Taste Match, but not the genre-code browser.
7. Streaming services
Which streaming services does it work on?
Netflix, Prime Video and Disney+. Ratings appear directly on the cards as you browse.
Will you add HBO Max, Apple TV+ or Hulu?
They're on the roadmap but not available yet.
Does it work on regional streaming services?
Not currently. Support is limited to Netflix, Prime Video and Disney+.
Does it work on the Netflix mobile app?
No. It's a browser extension, so it works on the streaming sites in a desktop Chromium browser, not in the native mobile or TV apps.
Does it work on a smart TV?
No — smart TV apps aren't browsers and don't run extensions.
Do I need a separate profile for each family member?
The taste profile is per browser rather than per streaming profile, so a shared browser produces a blended profile. Separate browser profiles keep them distinct.
Does it interfere with playback?
No. It adds information to the browsing interface and doesn't touch the player.
8. Privacy & data
Does CineMan AI track what I watch?
Your taste profile is built locally from titles you rate or optionally import, and it stays in your browser. There's no account and nothing is stored on a server.
Is my viewing history uploaded?
No. If you choose to import your Netflix viewing history CSV, it's read and processed in your browser — the file itself is not uploaded.
What exactly leaves my browser?
Only when you use AI recommendations: your query plus a compact summary of your top genres. Never your raw viewing history.
Do I have to log into anything?
No. There's no CineMan account, and no IMDb or Rotten Tomatoes login is required.
Does it read my Netflix account details?
It works with the catalogue interface you're browsing. It doesn't collect account information, and there's nothing for it to sign into.
How do I delete my taste profile?
It's stored locally for the extension, so removing the extension clears it, as does clearing the extension's site data in Chrome.
Where can I read the full privacy policy?
CineMan AI's privacy policy is published on its own site, cinemanai.com, rather than alongside the other extensions here.
Does it show ads or sell data?
No. It's free, with no ads and no data sale — the same commitment as the rest of our extensions.
9. Compatibility & troubleshooting
Which browsers does it work on?
Chrome, Edge, Brave, Arc and any Chromium-based browser.
Does it work on Firefox or Safari?
No. The extension relies on Chromium-specific APIs.
Does it work on Mac, Windows and Linux?
Yes, on all three, as long as you're running a Chromium browser.
Ratings aren't appearing at all. What should I check?
Confirm the extension is enabled, that you're on a supported service, and reload the page. Cards render as you scroll, so give it a moment on first load.
Ratings appear on some cards but not others.
Ratings load lazily as cards scroll into view, so give them a moment. Persistent gaps usually mean those titles have no public rating or the title match didn't resolve.
Taste Match isn't showing.
It activates once you've rated or imported at least five titles. Below that, the extension deliberately doesn't show a personalised score.
The AI recommendations aren't returning anything.
This is the one feature that needs a network request. Check your connection, then try a more specific prompt — very broad queries sometimes return little.
It stopped working after Netflix changed its layout.
Streaming sites redesign regularly, which can break the overlay until the extension is updated. Make sure you're on the latest version and report it if it persists.
Will it conflict with other extensions?
Extensions that restyle pages or block content can interfere with the overlay. If cards look wrong, test with those disabled.
How do I report a bug or request a feature?
Use the in-app feedback form or email feedback@actuallyusefulextensions.com. Naming the service and the title where you saw the problem makes it much faster to reproduce.