This Is the Smartest Netflix Trick We’ve Ever Seen

“So, what do you want to watch tonight?” Despite recommendation engines and streaming services aplenty, those eight words have killed many nights of Netflix binging before they’ve even begun. We’re living in a golden age of television, with plenty of great shows to choose from. But that means the problem is finding what you’re in the mood for right now.

One intrepid Netflix user solved that problem with a clever workaround. Netflix lets users build five separate profiles on each account. Those profiles are intended to be used by different family members or roommates, ensuring that your boyfriend’s Jessica Jones obsession doesn’t mess with Netflix’s recommendations for you. But Seattle-based Twitter user Mike Ginn figured out — with a hat-tip to Gizmodo — that you can instead use Netflix profiles to yield specific kinds of recommendations based on mood.

To do this, when you get to the “Who’s watching?” option on Netflix, you should make profiles based on your television-watching moods. Ginn, for instance, has two setups: Mike and Drunk Mike. But you don’t have to hit Netflix with a beer in hand to enjoy this clever trick. You can set up an action movie-oriented profile and a romantic comedy login, keeping While You Were Sleeping from popping up among your Jason Bourne flicks. Likewise, if sometimes you’re down for a Western and other times you’re up for slapstick, make a couple profiles with those bents — just don’t be disappointed when Blazing Saddles shows up in both.

This trick can be parsed any number of ways, not just by mood but by your viewing partner. For instance, if you spend quality time in front of the tube with a significant other, you probably watch different things than you would with your kid. And let’s not forget the Netflix favorites you prefer to watch when you’re alone — like Sherlock, because no one better say a word while Mr. Holmes is explaining away a case.

Try it yourself see how it works for you. Netflix gives each account up to five profiles, which is plenty of ways to make the service your own, whomever you happen to be that day.