Custom Formats and Quality Profiles Explained for Radarr and Sonarr

Rights and lawful use: This profile and scoring workflow applies only to Radarr and Sonarr libraries you own or are authorized to manage. Custom formats, TRaSH-derived rules, and Recyclarr synchronization decide how eligible releases are scored; they do not authorize acquiring copyrighted media or bypassing a provider's terms.

Quick Answer

Use a quality profile to define acceptable qualities and upgrade limits, then use custom-format scores to express preferences within that policy. Start with a separate test profile and inspect accepted and rejected releases in interactive search before applying it broadly. Back up the prior scores and configuration. These checks evaluate selection rules, not the actual picture quality or playback compatibility of an untested file.

Who this is for: Use this guide when a visible release is rejected, upgrades continue beyond your intended target, or codec and language preferences produce unwanted choices. It covers a manual test profile and introduces a Recyclarr container example; it does not supply a complete version-tested synchronization configuration.

The Simple Explanation

Separate the acceptance threshold from preferences. In Radarr, matching custom-format scores are cumulative. With a minimum score of 0, an illustrative -100 penalty combined with +150 of other matches totals +50 and does not reject the result on score alone. Test combinations, not just one format at a time. Use the installed application's rejection reason to confirm the rule; labels such as "bad release" are not independent vetoes.

Quality Is Not Just Resolution

A 1080p file can be excellent or terrible. A 4K file can be a beautiful source or an oversized headache that forces transcoding on every client. Codec, source, bitrate, release group, language, audio, subtitles, HDR format, edition, and naming all matter. Quality profiles and custom formats give the Arr apps a structured way to make those decisions.

The Key Fields

• Allowed qualities: the quality labels Radarr or Sonarr may grab.
• Quality cutoff: the quality level where normal quality upgrades stop.
• Minimum custom format score: the minimum score a release needs to be allowed.
• Upgrade until custom format score: the score where custom format upgrades stop.
• Language: the language behavior expected for the profile.
• Scores: positive or negative values applied when a release matches a custom format.

1. 1. QualityAllowed Quality?

   The release must fit the quality profile before custom format scores can help.

2. 2. LanguageCorrect Language?

   Language rules block or penalize releases that do not match the library goal.

3. 3. RejectHard No Signals

   Strong negative custom formats stop releases you never want.

4. 4. PreferPositive Signals

   Preferred source, codec, group, edition, or audio characteristics add score.

5. 5. MinimumPass Score?

   Minimum score prevents low-value matches even when quality technically fits.

6. 6. UpgradeCutoff Met?

   Upgrade-until and quality cutoff decide when searching should stop.

Technical score, not legal permissionScoring decides fit for your library; it does not grant rights to content.

Avoid upgrade loopsSet realistic cutoffs so the app does not keep replacing files forever.

A Good Cutoff Strategy

A bad strategy upgrades forever because something technically scores slightly higher. A good strategy stops when the release is good enough for the library. For a normal 1080p Plex library, that may be a strong WEB or Bluray source with the right language, no hardcoded unwanted subtitles, and no low-quality flags. For special movies, 4K or remux may make sense. For everyday content, it may not.

HEVC and 10-Bit Preferences

If your final standard is HEVC/H.265 10-bit, you can reward HEVC 10-bit releases in Radarr and Sonarr. But do not let codec preference beat source quality. A good H.264 source can be optimized by Tdarr. A bad HEVC encode may stay bad forever. Prefer good source quality first, then let Tdarr enforce the final storage and codec policy.

Language and Audio Rules

Set language and audio preferences from the household's actual needs, including multilingual and accessibility tracks. Compare the selected file with those requirements before any Tdarr replacement. Preserve commentary, descriptive audio, forced subtitles, and alternate-language streams by default; remove a stream only after an explicit retention decision and a copied-sample review.

Dolby Vision, HDR, and Compatibility

HDR and Dolby Vision need caution. Some clients support them well, some do not, and some files have profiles that create playback issues. Custom formats can penalize or prefer certain HDR/DV patterns, but Tdarr should also have guardrails so risky files are reviewed rather than blindly converted.

Using TRaSH Guides

The TRaSH Guides are a strong starting point because they maintain practical custom formats and profile logic for Radarr and Sonarr. They are not a substitute for understanding your own clients and storage goals. Import the guidance, then tune the scores and cutoffs to fit your environment.

Manual vs Automated Sync

You can add custom formats manually, or you can use tools like Recyclarr or similar configuration managers to keep profiles aligned with TRaSH Guides. Automation is helpful once you trust the configuration. Beginners should first understand what the profile is doing. Technical users should version-control the config and document any local score changes.

Common Mistakes

• Setting custom format upgrade score too high and causing constant upgrades.
• Rewarding HEVC so much that bad encodes beat good sources.
• Mixing 4K and 1080p goals in one profile.
• Ignoring language rules and importing unwanted releases.
• Forgetting that custom formats evaluate releases but do not improve indexer quality.
• Changing file names so much that future custom format matching loses useful information.

How This Ties Into Tdarr

Radarr and Sonarr should choose good source files. Tdarr should optimize final files. If the Arr profile is too weak, Tdarr wastes time polishing bad inputs. If the Arr profile is too aggressive, you waste bandwidth and indexer calls chasing marginal improvements. The sweet spot is good source selection plus controlled post-processing.

Beginner Walk-Through: Why a Release Gets Rejected

When Radarr or Sonarr searches, it scores results against your rules. A release can be visible and still be rejected. Maybe the quality is not allowed. Maybe the language does not match. Maybe a custom format gives it a negative score. Maybe the file is too large or too small. Interactive search is the best teaching tool because it shows rejection reasons.

Technical Scoring Pattern

• For unwanted matches, test that the total score stays below the minimum even when positive preferences also match.
• Use modest positive scores for preferences like HEVC when source quality is still good.
• Use quality cutoffs to stop normal quality upgrades.
• Use custom format upgrade scores to stop detail-based upgrades.
• Avoid tiny scoring differences that trigger churn without visible benefit.
• Keep separate profiles for 1080p, 4K, anime, and special libraries when rules differ.

A Practical Rule of Thumb

Reject what is harmful. Prefer what is useful. Stop upgrading when the real-world viewing experience is good enough. That mindset keeps custom formats from becoming a game where the server endlessly chases a slightly higher score.

Implementation Playbook: Apply Profiles Without Creating Chaos

Manual Radarr/Sonarr Steps

1. Back up Radarr and Sonarr before changing profiles.
2. Create a new test quality profile instead of editing your production profile first.
3. Import or create custom formats.
4. Assign scores to the test profile.
5. Set a minimum custom format score that blocks unwanted releases.
6. Set an upgrade-until score that has a real stopping point.
7. Run interactive search on a few known movies or episodes.
8. Expand rejected results and read the rejection reasons.
9. Only move a production library to the new profile after test searches make sense.

Docker Option: Recyclarr-Style Sync

The Compose block below defines a Recyclarr container, but does not provide its application URLs, protected credentials, or profile configuration. Prepare those for a nonproduction instance and use the documented sync --preview mode to inspect proposed changes before writing them. Preview still contacts the configured APIs to read data; it is not an offline test. No sync was performed for this article.

services:
  recyclarr:
    image: ghcr.io/recyclarr/recyclarr:latest
    container_name: recyclarr
    user: "1000:1000"
    volumes:
      - /opt/recyclarr/config:/config
    environment:
      - TZ=America/Chicago
    restart: "no"

Production Docker note: After a Recyclarr test sync against nonproduction profiles shows only the intended custom-format and quality-profile changes, replace ghcr.io/recyclarr/recyclarr:latest with the tested tag or digest and retain /opt/recyclarr/config with the Radarr and Sonarr application backups. Run synchronization as a deliberate job, review its changes, and keep the previous scores available before applying an upstream guide update to production profiles.

Validation and Evidence

• Interactive search shows clear accepted and rejected results.
• Bad releases are rejected for the reason you intended.
• HEVC preference does not beat a better source release.
• Upgrade-until score does not create endless churn.
• Radarr and Sonarr still rescan files after Tdarr replacements.
• The profile name tells you what it is for, such as 1080p Balanced HEVC Preferred.

These are reader-run acceptance checks, not TechGeeks lab results. A clean interactive search proves that the current profile scores the sampled releases as intended. It does not prove every future release name will match, that an indexer result is authentic, or that every playback client supports the selected codec, audio, subtitle, and high dynamic range combination.

Security, Privacy, Legal, and Recovery Boundaries

Treat Radarr, Sonarr, Recyclarr, and indexer credentials as secrets. Do not place API keys in a public repository, expose an Arr admin interface directly to the internet, or give a profile-sync container broader file access than it needs. Search history, library names, and release metadata can reveal household interests, so limit log retention and access. These tools should only organize media you own or are authorized to use; scoring automation does not change copyright or service terms.

Before a bulk profile change, export the application backups and save the previous custom-format configuration and scores. Apply the new profile to a small test set first. If grabs or upgrades become noisy, stop automation, restore the prior profile, and review the decision history before deleting files. A configuration backup protects settings; it does not replace a separate backup of the media library and application database.

Related TechGeeks

This profiles entry sits between source discovery and post-processing in the media automation series. Radarr and Sonarr apply allowed qualities, language, custom-format scores, and upgrade cutoffs before a grab; Tdarr only optimizes the file after import. Use the linked install, storage, and backup guides to protect the application databases and preserve previous scores before synchronizing policy across a production library.

• Plex Homelab Architecture: Storage, GPU Transcoding, and Library Design
• Media Server Storage Design: NAS, CIFS/NFS Mounts, Permissions, and Local Cache
• Prowlarr Setup Guide: Clean Indexer Management for Sonarr and Radarr
• Sonarr Homelab Setup Guide: Install, Update, Optimize, and Connect to Tdarr
• Radarr Homelab Setup Guide: Install, Update, Optimize, Lists, and Tdarr Integration
• SABnzbd Performance Tuning for a Homelab Media Server
• Custom Formats and Quality Profiles Explained for Radarr and Sonarr
• Radarr Import Lists That Do Not Fill Your Library With Junk
• Plex + Tdarr GPU Strategy: Sharing NVIDIA GPUs Without Hurting Playback
• Reverse Proxy for Media Apps: Nginx Proxy Manager, SSL, Access Lists, and Security
• Backup and Disaster Recovery for Plex, Sonarr, Radarr, Tdarr, Prowlarr, and SABnzbd
• Monitoring and Health Checks for a Plex and Arr Homelab
• The Complete Plex, Arr, and Tdarr Homelab Media Automation Series

Related foundation: Building a Production-Grade Tdarr GPU Transcoding Stack for a Homelab.

References

• TRaSH Radarr quality profiles
• TRaSH Radarr custom formats
• TRaSH Guides for Sonarr
• Radarr Settings
• Sonarr Settings