Bored of watching Netflix alone? Here’s how you can watch it with your friends

While you cannot meet and hang out with your friends right now, there is a way you can all watch Netflix together

This self isolation and social distancing is hard. And you might have all the time to catch up on shows and movies you have missed, it can get very boring to watch it alone. But not anymore! You must have heard about Netflix Party? Here’s how you set it up (Pixabay)

This self isolation and social distancing is hard. And you might have all the time to catch up on shows and movies you have missed, it can get very boring to watch it alone. Since you cannot meet your friends physically, figuring out a way to watch the same show and talk about it can be difficult.

But not anymore! You must have heard about Netflix Party? If you have now, well, it's a free browser extension that will let you play and pause Netflix shows in sync with your friends and you can also chat on the side.

This tool, made only for the Google Chrome browser, will allow you to have your friends by you, virtually, as you watch a show or two on Netflix.

So, how do you set it up?

1. First, you need to download the Google extension from netflixparty.com.

2. Click on 'Get Netflix Party for free'.

3. You will be redirected to the Google Chrome web store page to download the extension.

4. Click on 'Add to Chrome'.

5. A pop-up box will appear. Select 'Add Extension'.

6. You will then be able to see a grey NP icon on your browser toolbar.

What's next?

For this to work, all your friends need to have a Netflix account. This cannot work without a Netflix account.

How to get started

With both the extension and Netflix access in place, here's what you do next:

1. Open a new tab in your Google Chrome browser and log in to Netflix.

2. Find a show or movie you want to watch and click on it.

3. You'll now see that the NP (Netflix Party) icon has changed from gray to red.

4. Click the icon and select 'Start the party'. That makes you the host. Now, you can select an option for only you to be the host and therefore pause and play as you wish, or you can let others also take control.

5. Copy the URL from the pop-up box and send it to everyone you want to invite.

6. A chatroom will appear on the right side of the screen. From there, you'll be able to see when people join the party.

7. Happy watching and happy chatting!