Getting a playlist into Kodi is the easy part, and nearly every guide stops there. The things that make Kodi worth using over a simpler player come after: a guide that's accurate and quick, pausing live TV, going back to a programme that aired yesterday, and recording. Each works differently, and one of them can't be done with PVR IPTV Simple Client at all.
Short answer: the guide is built into Kodi and only needs good XMLTV data matched by tvg-id. Pause and rewind (timeshift) needs the free Inputstream FFmpegDirect add-on and some storage. Catch-up works only if your provider actually archives programmes. Recording isn't something Simple Client does; for that you need a backend such as Tvheadend or NextPVR between the playlist and Kodi.
At a glance
Kodi live TV features with IPTV
| Grid guide | Built in; needs XMLTV data |
| Pause/rewind live | Inputstream FFmpegDirect + disk space |
| Catch-up | Only if the provider archives |
| Recording | Not in Simple Client; use a backend |
| Reminders | Built in since Kodi 19 |
What each feature needs
This assumes you've already got channels playing through Simple Client. If not, start with our Kodi 21 IPTV setup guide and come back.
| Feature | Simple Client alone? | What else you need | Depends on provider? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Programme guide | Yes | An XMLTV URL that matches your playlist | Partly (guide quality) |
| Reminders | Yes | Nothing | No |
| Pause/rewind live | With a helper | Inputstream FFmpegDirect, storage | No |
| Catch-up / replay | Yes, once enabled | Usually Inputstream FFmpegDirect | Yes, entirely |
| Scheduled recording | No | Tvheadend or NextPVR backend | Terms may forbid it |
Making the guide good
A slow or patchy guide is the most common complaint about Kodi live TV, and it's almost always a data problem rather than a Kodi one.
Match by tvg-id. Simple Client pairs each playlist entry with guide data using the tvg-id attribute, falling back to the channel name. If your provider's playlist and guide come from different places, IDs often don't match and those channels show "No information available". The fix is a guide from the same provider, or editing the IDs. Simple Client's EPG tab also has an option to ignore case when matching, which helps with minor mismatches.
Fix time offsets in the add-on, not the device. If everything is exactly an hour or two out, use EPG time shift in Simple Client's EPG tab. Changing your device's time zone to compensate breaks everything else.
Trim what Kodi has to load. Under Settings → PVR & Live TV → Guide, reduce the number of days displayed. On a playlist with hundreds of channels, three days instead of the default is noticeably quicker on a stick or small box. Hiding channels you never watch (from the Channels view, open the context menu and choose Manage) helps even more.
Use groups. If your playlist has group-title tags, Kodi turns them into channel groups you can switch between in the guide. Create your own "Favourites" group from the channel manager and set it as the one Kodi opens on.
When the guide is stuck with old data, Settings → PVR & Live TV → General → Clear data lets you wipe the guide (and, separately, channels) and re-import. Our EPG not loading guide works through the stubborn cases, and IPTV EPG explained covers how XMLTV works.
Pause and rewind live TV
With a TV tuner backend, Kodi can pause live TV itself. With a plain IPTV playlist, it hands the job to Inputstream FFmpegDirect, a free official add-on that buffers the stream to storage while you watch.
- Install it: Add-ons → Install from repository → Kodi Add-on repository → VideoPlayer InputStream → Inputstream FFmpegDirect. It's often already present; on Ubuntu and Debian it can be a separate package (
kodi-inputstream-ffmpegdirect). - Open Simple Client's settings and go to the Timeshift tab. Turn timeshift on, either for all streams or for specific stream types.
- Optionally open FFmpegDirect's own settings to choose where the buffer lives and set a maximum length in hours.
Storage is the real constraint. The add-on's own documentation estimates about 130 MB per minute of 1080p and 375 MB per minute of 4K, which is generous; most IPTV channels run at lower bitrates. Still, an hour's buffer on an HD channel can need several gigabytes. On a Fire TV Stick or basic onn box with a few gigabytes free, keep the maximum short or point the buffer at a USB drive. The buffer folder is cleared every time Kodi starts.
Expect channel changes to be a little slower with timeshift on, because playback goes through the buffer. If you rarely pause, leave it off.
Catch-up: watching what already aired
Catch-up lets you pick a programme from earlier in the guide and play it from the start. Kodi can only do this if the provider records its channels on its servers and exposes those archives in a way Simple Client understands. If your provider doesn't, no setting will create it.
When it is supported, the playlist usually says so with tags like catchup, catchup-days and catchup-source on each channel. Simple Client understands several schemes, including default, append, shift, Flussonic and Xtream Codes, and picks the right one from those tags. To turn it on:
- In Simple Client, open the Catchup tab and enable catch-up.
- If the playlist lacks catch-up tags but your provider confirms support, set the mode and number of days manually.
- In the guide, programmes inside the catch-up window can now be played. Some setups also let you rewind a live channel back into the archive.
Licensed operators that offer replay often limit it by channel because of rights deals, so seven days on one network and none on another is normal. We go through how catch-up differs between services in IPTV catch-up TV explained.
Recording: the backend route
Simple Client is a client. It plays and it guides, but it doesn't schedule or store recordings. If you see a red record button greyed out in Kodi's guide, that's why.
To record, put a PVR backend between your sources and Kodi. The backend reads the playlist, keeps the guide, records on schedule to a drive, and serves everything to Kodi through its own PVR client.
| Backend | Runs on | IPTV playlists | Kodi client |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tvheadend | Linux, NAS, Raspberry Pi, Docker | Yes ("IPTV automatic network" from an M3U) | Tvheadend HTSP Client |
| NextPVR | Windows, Linux, macOS, Docker | Yes (M3U source) | NextPVR PVR Client |
| MythTV | Linux | Possible, more work | MythTV PVR Client |
NextPVR is the friendlier of the first two; Tvheadend is more powerful and very popular on NAS boxes. Both can also take an antenna tuner such as an HDHomeRun, so local channels and IPTV channels share one guide and one recording schedule. Recordings then show up under TV → Recordings on every Kodi in the house. Our IPTV recording and DVR guide compares this with cloud DVR from live TV services.
One honest note: many paid services' terms don't allow you to record their streams with third-party software, and some streams are encrypted precisely so you can't. Recording free-to-air antenna channels for personal viewing is the clear-cut case. If you mainly want a DVR for a big US live TV service, its own cloud DVR is the simpler route.
Small settings that make daily use better
- Reminders. In the guide, open the context menu on a future programme and choose Add reminder. Kodi pops up a notice before it starts and can switch to the channel automatically (set under Settings → PVR & Live TV → Reminders).
- Remember last channel. Settings → PVR & Live TV → Playback has an option to continue the last channel at start-up, which feels like a normal TV.
-
Channel numbers. Type numbers on the remote to jump straight to a channel. Simple Client can take numbers from the playlist's
tvg-chnotag. - Audio and subtitles. While a channel plays, the on-screen menu lets you pick audio tracks and set a default language for all TV.
Older devices struggle with timeshift and large guides at the same time. If you want all of this on one box, our comparison of devices that run Kodi best suggests what's worth buying.
Quick answers
Can Kodi record IPTV? Not with PVR IPTV Simple Client alone. You need a backend such as Tvheadend or NextPVR, which records to a drive and serves recordings to Kodi.
How do I pause live TV in Kodi? Install Inputstream FFmpegDirect and enable timeshift in Simple Client's Timeshift tab. Make sure the device has enough free storage for the buffer.
Why doesn't catch-up work in Kodi? Catch-up needs the provider to archive programmes and supply catch-up tags or a compatible format. Without that, enabling it in Simple Client does nothing.
Why is my Kodi guide empty for some channels? The tvg-id values for those channels don't match the guide data. Use a guide from the same provider or correct the IDs.
How much storage does Kodi timeshift use? The FFmpegDirect documentation estimates up to about 130 MB per minute for 1080p. Real IPTV channels are often lower, but an hour can still take several gigabytes.
Can Kodi set reminders for programmes? Yes. Since Kodi 19, you can add a reminder from the guide and have Kodi switch to the channel automatically.
How do I reset the Kodi TV guide? Go to Settings → PVR & Live TV → General → Clear data, choose the guide, and let Simple Client re-import it.
Kodi add-on settings and names change between releases, and Kodi 22 "Piers" was in beta when this was written. Catch-up and recording rights depend on each provider's terms. Checked October 2026.