Sonarr vs Lidarr: TV Shows vs Music Automation

Sonarr is the *arr stack tool for TV series automation. Lidarr does the same for music. They share the same codebase DNA, UI design, and workflow — but manage completely different media types. This isn't a "pick one" comparison. It's a guide to understanding what each does, how they differ, and whether you need both. Quick Overview Aspect Sonarr Lidarr Media type TV series & anime Music albums & tracks Latest version v4.0.16 v3.1.0 Docker image lscr.io/linuxserver/sonarr:4.0.16 lscr.io/linuxserver/lidarr:3.1.0.4875 Metadata source TheTVDB, TMDb MusicBrainz Download clients qBittorrent, Transmission, Deluge, SABnzbd, NZBGet Same Indexer management Via Prowlarr Via Prowlarr Request management Overseerr , Jellyseerr [Lidarr itself] Default port 8989 8686 RAM usage ~150-300 MB ~150-300 MB Database SQLite SQLite Updated March 2026: Verified with latest Docker images and configurations. Feature Comparison Feature Sonarr Lidarr Automatic searching Yes — by episode/season Yes — by album/track