You might notice, while scrolling through Netflix’s library, that the streaming giant’s video categories go well beyond the broad genres of TV and film like Comedy, Action and Adventure, or Horror that you might have found perusing the aisles of a video store back in the day. On Netflix, you’re more likely to see rows of recommendations labeled, “Fight-the-system TV shows” (Black Mirror, The Staircase) or “Critically-claimed irreverent comedies” (BoJack Horseman, Fawlty Towers).
These strangely specific categories aren’t listed in the “Genre” drop-down menu on Netflix. Like cult food brands In-N-Out Burger and Taco Bell, Netflix has a secret menu. And it could revolutionize the way you binge watch.
The company has numeric codes that will take you directly to the subgenres if you tack them onto the end of the web address http://www.netflix.com/browse/genre/
For instance, navigate to http://www.netflix.com/browse/genre/1216 (password protected) in your web browser, and you’ll reach a page of “Witty Mockumentaries,” including the original, British version of the TV show The Office, and the Christopher Guest-directed Netflix movie Mascots. The code “26705” will take you to a list of fight-the-system TV shows.
The site What’s On Netflix has helpfully published a list of thousands of other Netflix subgenres, along with their category ID codes. They can get really precise. Here’s a sampling:
10 strangely specific Netflix subgenres
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