Bazarr Subtitle Manager

beginner

Bazarr companion application for Sonarr and Radarr to manage subtitles.

Overview

Bazarr is an open-source subtitle management application that serves as a companion to Sonarr and Radarr, automatically downloading and managing subtitles for your media library. Originally developed as a Python-based web application, Bazarr integrates directly with your existing media automation stack by monitoring the same directories and communicating with Sonarr and Radarr APIs to identify missing subtitles and download them from various providers like OpenSubtitles, Subscene, and others. The application supports multiple languages, automatic subtitle synchronization, and quality filtering to ensure you get the best subtitles for your content. This Docker stack creates a centralized subtitle management system that works alongside your existing Sonarr and Radarr instances, automatically handling subtitle acquisition without manual intervention. Bazarr monitors your media folders for new additions and missing subtitles, then searches multiple subtitle providers to find the best matches based on your configured preferences and language priorities. Media enthusiasts running home media servers, Plex administrators managing large libraries, and anyone operating a *arr stack ecosystem will benefit significantly from this automated subtitle solution. The combination of Bazarr with Docker deployment ensures consistent subtitle management across different environments while maintaining compatibility with existing media automation workflows and providing a reliable, always-on subtitle downloading service.

Key Features

Automatic subtitle downloading from 30+ providers including OpenSubtitles, Subscene, and TVSubtitles
Direct API integration with Sonarr and Radarr for automated media library synchronization
Multi-language subtitle support with customizable language priority and forced subtitle detection
Subtitle synchronization and offset correction for timing mismatches
Provider blacklisting and quality filtering to avoid low-quality or incorrect subtitles
Manual search interface for finding specific subtitles when automatic downloads fail
History tracking and subtitle upgrade capabilities when better versions become available
Mass subtitle operations for processing entire libraries or specific series/movies

Common Use Cases

1Home media server operators needing automated subtitle management for Plex or Jellyfin libraries
2International content consumers requiring subtitles in multiple languages for foreign films and shows
3Sonarr and Radarr users wanting to complete their automation stack with subtitle acquisition
4Media collectors with large libraries who need bulk subtitle downloading and management
5Family media setups where different members prefer different subtitle languages
6Home lab enthusiasts building comprehensive media automation systems
7Content creators managing media libraries with subtitle requirements for accessibility

Prerequisites

Running Sonarr and/or Radarr instances with accessible API endpoints and valid API keys
Shared media storage accessible by Bazarr container with read/write permissions to subtitle files
Minimum 512MB RAM allocation and 1GB storage space for configuration and subtitle cache
Network connectivity to subtitle provider APIs and your existing Sonarr/Radarr instances
Port 6767 available for Bazarr web interface access
Valid accounts with subtitle providers like OpenSubtitles for increased download limits

For development & testing. Review security settings, change default credentials, and test thoroughly before production use. See Terms

docker-compose.yml

1services: 
2  bazarr: 
3    image: linuxserver/bazarr:latest
4    container_name: bazarr
5    environment: 
6      - PUID=1000
7      - PGID=1000
8      - TZ=${TZ}
9    volumes: 
10      - bazarr_config:/config
11      - /path/to/movies:/movies
12      - /path/to/tv:/tv
13    ports: 
14      - "6767:6767"
15    restart: unless-stopped
16    networks: 
17      - bazarr-network
18
19volumes: 
20  bazarr_config: 
21
22networks: 
23  bazarr-network: 
24    driver: bridge

.env Template

.env

1# Bazarr
2TZ=UTC

Usage Notes

1UI at http://localhost:6767
2Connect to Sonarr/Radarr
3Configure subtitle providers
4Automatic subtitle downloads
5Multiple language support

Quick Start

terminal

1# 1. Create the compose file
2cat > docker-compose.yml << 'EOF'
3services:
4  bazarr:
5    image: linuxserver/bazarr:latest
6    container_name: bazarr
7    environment:
8      - PUID=1000
9      - PGID=1000
10      - TZ=${TZ}
11    volumes:
12      - bazarr_config:/config
13      - /path/to/movies:/movies
14      - /path/to/tv:/tv
15    ports:
16      - "6767:6767"
17    restart: unless-stopped
18    networks:
19      - bazarr-network
20
21volumes:
22  bazarr_config:
23
24networks:
25  bazarr-network:
26    driver: bridge
27EOF
28
29# 2. Create the .env file
30cat > .env << 'EOF'
31# Bazarr
32TZ=UTC
33EOF
34
35# 3. Start the services
36docker compose up -d
37
38# 4. View logs
39docker compose logs -f

One-Liner

Run this command to download and set up the recipe in one step:

terminal

1curl -fsSL https://docker.recipes/api/recipes/bazarr-subtitles/run | bash

Troubleshooting

Provider rate limiting errors: Configure multiple subtitle providers and enable provider rotation in settings
Subtitles not downloading automatically: Verify Sonarr/Radarr API connections and ensure proper path mapping between services
Permission denied writing subtitle files: Check PUID/PGID values match media folder ownership and container has write access
Subtitle sync issues with video files: Enable subtitle offset detection and configure FFprobe path for media analysis
Missing subtitles for specific languages: Verify language profiles are correctly configured and providers support requested languages
Bazarr not detecting new episodes/movies: Confirm path mappings match exactly between Bazarr, Sonarr, and Radarr configurations

Community Notes

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