Frequently Asked Questions

ThumbScore is the percentage of everyday Google users who liked a movie. Anyone who searched for a movie on Google could give it a thumbs up or thumbs down, until Google removed the feature in 2026; ThumbScore keeps those votes as a single, easy-to-read percentage. For the films Google never scored (about 8,300 of them, new and older), it shows an estimate from TMDB user ratings and critic scores, calibrated to the same scale. A ThumbScore of 92% means 92 out of 100 regular people enjoyed the film. Rate a few films yourself and ThumbScore also predicts your own score for any movie, free.

We were tired of critics telling us that the movies we love are "bad." ThumbScore was built to show what real, everyday people actually think — not just professional reviewers. The audience's opinion matters.

Anyone who wants to find a good movie to watch tonight. Whether you're looking for a date night pick, a free movie to stream, or just want to see if a movie is actually worth your time — ThumbScore has you covered.

Rotten Tomatoes primarily reflects professional critic reviews (the Tomatometer) or verified ticket holders (the Audience Score, called the Popcornmeter since 2024). ThumbScore reflects everyday Google users, anyone who searched for a movie and voted (Google ended the votes in 2026; newer films carry an estimate from TMDB user ratings and critic scores and critic scores, calibrated to the same scale). No account required, no review to write, no ticket to prove. We also average Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic together into one Critics Score for easy comparison.

The Review Gap is the difference between the ThumbScore (audience approval) and the Critics Score (RT + Metacritic average). A large positive gap means audiences loved it more than critics. A large negative gap means critics loved it more than audiences. The most interesting movies often have the biggest gaps.

Yes, completely free, including your personal predictions. No subscription, no paywall. Browse 19,000+ movies across over 50 languages and 12 decades without paying anything.

Not to browse. You can search, filter, compare scores and rate films in one tap without an account (your taps wait in your browser). To keep your ratings, sign up with Google or an email address; it is free. Your predicted scores need the Google sign-in (Google confirms your email address), so an email-only account can rate but not get predictions. Watchlists are saved in your browser.

Not yet, but the website is fully mobile-responsive and works great on phones and tablets. An app may come in the future if there's enough demand.

Use the search bar on the homepage or any movie page. You can search by title, director, or actor name. Results appear instantly as you type.

Hidden Gems are movies with high audience approval (85%+) but relatively low vote counts — meaning fewer people have discovered them. These are the under-the-radar films that the people who do find them absolutely love.

Tap the heart on a film's poster on the homepage. Your watchlist is kept in your browser, no account needed; the list button beside the homepage's filters shows it.

Yes! The homepage has filters for genre, decade, language, country, and minimum vote count. You can also sort by ThumbScore, Critics Score, year, popularity, and more.

Every movie page shows where you can watch it — including free platforms (Tubi, Roku, Pluto TV, YouTube), subscription services (Netflix, Disney+, HBO Max), and rental/purchase options (Amazon, Apple). Data comes from JustWatch via TMDB.

Nearly every movie page links that film’s subtitles on OpenSubtitles, in English and in Spanish (Latin America and Spain). If a file you download is full of ads or out of sync, open it in Fix my subtitles: it takes the ads out, fixes the timing and saves a clean .srt, all in your browser, with nothing uploaded.

ThumbScore currently has more than 19,000 movies. If a movie is very new, very obscure, or primarily a TV movie, it may not be in our database yet. We're constantly adding more.

The movie scores are global. On the homepage you can choose the US, UK, Canada, Australia, Germany, France or Japan, and its streaming filters show what streams there; the film pages show where to watch in the US.

Yes, and it is free. Rate a few films you have seen, from 0 to 100 or in one tap (Loved it, Liked it, It was OK, Not for me). After 5, ThumbScore predicts your own score for any film in the catalogue, with a short reason in plain words. The predictions are written by an AI model (Claude, from Anthropic) that reads your ratings and the reasons you gave. Sign in with Google to get them.

Tap a thumb under any film: on its page, on the lists, on the homepage cards and on the free-movie pages. A tap saves at once and the page stays put. Or open thumbscore.net/rate to give an exact score from 0 to 100 and, if you like, a sentence on why. If you are not signed in, your taps are kept in your browser and saved to your account when you sign up.

Your own scores and the words you wrote about them, plus facts about each film (its title, year, genres, director and running time). It does not use your browsing, and it does not use the crowd's audience score: tested on real ratings, the crowd's score did not predict one person's taste. Your name and email address are never sent to it.

You can check for yourself. Every prediction is saved before you watch, and when you later rate that film the two are compared, so nothing is adjusted after the fact. Your Accuracy page shows the average error in points and the films where your taste surprised it most.

A sentence on why you liked or disliked a film tells the predictions much more about your taste than the score alone. The most useful films to explain are the ones a prediction got wrong: your Accuracy page lists them, and the rate page suggests the next one.

Rate it anyway. Under More detail on the rate page, set How well do you remember it to Barely, and the predictions treat that score as rough. A rough score still says more about your taste than no score at all.

On the lists, Pick for me asks three quick questions and suggests one film, with the reason it fits and where to watch it. No sign-up needed.

Yes. On the import page you can upload your ratings from Letterboxd, IMDb, TMDB, Criticker or Trakt, exactly as those sites export them.

No. Your ratings and what you write about them are yours. When you rate a film with a reason, the box that posts it as a public review under the film starts ticked; untick it and the reason stays private. Reviews are checked before they appear, and you can delete yours at any time.

ThumbScore lists thousands of movies you can watch free and legally: on ad-supported services like Tubi, The Roku Channel, Pluto TV, Plex and Fandango at Home, films that studios put up in full on YouTube, and Kanopy and Hoopla, which are free with a library card.

Yes, 100% legal. We only link to official, licensed sources. These are ad-supported streaming platforms (like free TV) and public domain archives. No piracy, ever.

Most do: they are ad-supported, like free TV, and YouTube's free films have ad breaks. Kanopy and Hoopla have no ads; they are free with a card from many public libraries.

No. Each Watch button opens the film on the service that streams it (Tubi, YouTube and so on). Only trailers play on ThumbScore itself.

Streaming availability changes frequently. If a movie is no longer free on a platform, let us know via the contact page and we'll update it.

ThumbScore uses three sources: (1) Google audience ratings for the ThumbScore percentage, (2) Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic for the Critics Score, and (3) TMDB for movie metadata, posters, and streaming availability via JustWatch.

The Audience Score (ThumbScore) is the percentage of Google users who gave a movie a thumbs up out of total votes, as Google showed it before removing the feature in 2026; a film Google never scored shows an estimate from TMDB user ratings and critic scores, calibrated to the same scale. If 920 out of 1,000 people liked it, the ThumbScore is 92%.

Currently more than 19,000 movies across over 50 languages and 12 decades. We add new releases regularly.

Movies need a minimum number of votes to appear with a ThumbScore. You can adjust the minimum vote filter on the homepage to see more or fewer movies.

Different sites ask different people. Rotten Tomatoes uses critics and verified ticket buyers, IMDb its registered users. ThumbScore's score comes from everyday Google users, the broadest audience there was, who voted until Google ended the votes in 2026. That often gives very different results.

ThumbScore is non-commercial. It runs no affiliate links and earns nothing from the links it shows.

No. ThumbScore is completely independent. We have no affiliation with any movie studio, streaming service, or review aggregator. Our only allegiance is to the audience.

Visit our contact page to send us a message about business inquiries, partnerships, bug reports, or general feedback.

Absolutely! Use the contact form and select "Feature Request" from the dropdown. We read every submission.