Prowlarr — Unified Indexer Manager for the Arr Media Stack

Introduction

Prowlarr is an indexer manager and proxy that centralizes the configuration of search indexers for the entire *arr stack. Instead of configuring indexers separately in Sonarr, Radarr, and Lidarr, you set them up once in Prowlarr and it syncs them automatically.

What Prowlarr Does

• Manages Usenet and torrent indexer configurations in a single dashboard
• Syncs indexer settings automatically to Sonarr, Radarr, Lidarr, and Readarr
• Proxies search requests through a unified API with standardized results
• Tests indexer health and reports connectivity or authentication issues
• Tracks indexer statistics including query counts and response times

Architecture Overview

Prowlarr is a .NET application with an Angular frontend, following the same architecture as other *arr applications. It stores configuration in an SQLite database and communicates with downstream *arr apps via their APIs. Indexer definitions are maintained as YAML schemas that map each indexer's search and result format to the Newznab or Torznab standard.

Self-Hosting & Configuration

• Deploy via Docker: docker run -d -p 9696:9696 linuxserver/prowlarr
• Add indexers through the web UI with credentials and API keys
• Connect downstream apps (Sonarr, Radarr) via Settings > Apps with their URLs and API keys
• Configure sync profiles to control which indexers map to which apps
• Set up Flaresolverr for indexers behind Cloudflare protection

Key Features

• One-time indexer setup that syncs across all connected *arr applications
• Support for 500+ indexers via built-in Cardigann definitions
• Search directly from the Prowlarr UI across all configured indexers at once
• Automatic indexer health monitoring with alerts for failures
• Tag-based filtering to assign specific indexers to specific apps or categories

Comparison with Similar Tools

• Jackett — The predecessor indexer proxy; Prowlarr adds native *arr app sync and a more polished UI
• NZBHydra 2 — Usenet-focused meta-searcher; Prowlarr handles both Usenet and torrent indexers
• Manual indexer config — Configuring each *arr app individually; Prowlarr centralizes and syncs everything
• Cardigann — YAML-based indexer definitions; Prowlarr includes Cardigann support natively
• FlexGet — Plugin-based automation; Prowlarr focuses specifically on indexer management

FAQ

Q: Does Prowlarr replace Jackett? A: For *arr users, yes. Prowlarr provides the same indexer proxy functionality with added automatic sync to Sonarr, Radarr, and other *arr apps.

Q: Can I use Prowlarr without Sonarr or Radarr? A: Yes. You can use Prowlarr standalone as an indexer search tool, but its primary value is the automatic sync with *arr applications.

Q: How do I add a custom indexer? A: Prowlarr supports custom Cardigann YAML definitions. Add your definition file to the indexer definitions folder and restart.

Q: Does Prowlarr support Flaresolverr? A: Yes. Configure Flaresolverr as an indexer proxy in Settings > Indexers > Add > Flaresolverr for sites behind Cloudflare challenges.

Sources

• https://github.com/Prowlarr/Prowlarr
• https://wiki.servarr.com/prowlarr