Sonarr Prefer X265 |top| Jun 2026

To create a proper fallback chain where Sonarr prioritizes x265 but falls back to x264 when necessary, you need to carefully structure your quality profile. One effective approach is to:

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Notes:

Stop manually hunting for x265 torrents or NZBs. Let Sonarr do the heavy lifting. Your hard drive (and your electricity bill) will thank you.

To make Sonarr prefer (HEVC) releases while still allowing it to fall back to other formats, you should use Custom Formats with a positive scoring system. This allows Sonarr to rank releases and automatically upgrade an existing file if a better-scored x265 version appears. Core Implementation Steps sonarr prefer x265

: If you want 4K HDR content, create separate formats that handle Dolby Vision and HDR10+ appropriately, since many 4K releases use these advanced formats.

Sonarr will aggressively grab x265 releases first. If no x265 exists for an old episode, it will fall back to x264. This keeps your automation running smoothly without "stuck" searches. To create a proper fallback chain where Sonarr

Sonarr Prefer x265: The Ultimate Guide to Efficient Media Management

To set up a Release Profile for x265 preference: I'll start with Round One, which includes several