A few simple Netflix tricks could revolutionise the way you watch the TV streaming service.

With more than 81 million users, Netflix is one of the most popular ways to watch shows and films.

But it can be a laborious exercise finding what you want to watch, or navigating your way around the site to tailor the experience to your own tastes.

Here are 15 different insider tricks that will help you get the best out of watching Netflix, including the secret codes you need to unlock hidden content and hundreds of new movies and shows.

Among its most popular series are Peaky Blinders and Stranger Things, with Netflix recently revealing Forgetting Sarah Marshall and Ghostbusters will be among more than 50 films arriving on the app this month, the Liverpool Echo reports .

(Image: Publicity Picture)

1. You can make movie requests

Yes really.

All you need to know is head to the request page by clicking Help Centre.

Once there, go to to ‘Request TV shows or movies’.

According to the company, they will go out and see if the license is available.

If it is, the content will be uploaded.

2. Upflix

With the Upflix app, you can sort movies by their IMDb, Flixster, or Rotten Tomatoes rating which is easier than browsing titles by genre; and even let fate decide what you’re watching with a roulette feature.

If you plan to watch on your phone, you can also tap in the app, and it’ll take you straight to Netflix to watch your movie of choice.

3. How to find out if your favourite show is leaving Netflix

Netflix displays expiration dates on TV shows and movies to help make sure you don’t miss out on great content.

You’ll be able to see an expiration date if that title is leaving the site in the next 30 days.

You can find that expiration date in the details page of the TV show or movie.

4. See what others recommend

You can head to r/netflixbestof on Reddit to see what other Netflix diehards think about new titles, and long lost gems you’ve never heard of.

5. Fast forward without using the mouse

Just tap Shift and the Right Arrow if you want to fast forward, or Shift and the Left Arrow to rewind.

6. The hidden settings menu

While a Netflix movie is playing on your computer, hold down Shift+Alt (Shift+Opt on Macs) and left click.

You’ll be granted a pulldown menu where you can help fix buffering issues and adjust other settings.

7. Shortcuts

If you’re watching on computer, you need to know these handy shortcuts:

Space - Toggle Play/Pause

Enter Toggle Play/Pause

PgUp – Play

PgDn – Pause

F – Full-screen

Esc – Exit full-screen

Shift+Left arrow – Rewind

Shift+Right arrow – Fast Forward

Up arrow – Volume Up

Down arrow – Volume DownM – Mute toggle

8. Customise your subtitles

If you’re watching Pan’s Labyrinth or another incredible foreign-language film, then you’ll probably rely heavily on subtitles.

But did you know you can adjust them?

You can alter the colour, size, font, and more.

All you need to do is go to Your Account & Your Profile & Subtitle Appearance.

9. Use the Netflix ID Bible

Neflix is great but sometimes it can’t be a bit difficult tracking down something you want to watch if all you use are categories like ‘action’ or ‘thriller’.

But it turns out there are a load of odd subgenres such as ‘Film Noir’ and ‘Social Issue Dramas’ that can be accessed.

Visit the Netflix ID Bible to find out how.

10. Stay on top of your data usage

You can use the Netflix App or website to control your data usage.

Open the App and select the following: Menu > App Settings > Cellular Data Usage.

There, you can decide how many GB per hour you’d like to use.

You can also control your data through a browser by going to Your Account and then to Playback Settings.

Netflix says that streaming on mobile won’t exceed this setting.

11. You can watch in Ultra HD

Everybody knows Netflix boasts HD content.

To set it up, simply navigate to Your Account, select playback settings, click ‘High’ on data usage and click the save button.

Alternatively, your television may support Ultra HD - and clicking high will give you the best possible picture.

Users should only use this is you’re on a Wi-Fi network.

Why? Because otherwise you could end up using all your mobile data incredibly quickly.

12. Alter your viewing history

Titles you’ve viewed on Netflix can be found by visiting Netflix.com/WiViewingActivity while signed in to your account.

All titles that you watch will appear on the viewing activity page, unless you choose to hide them.

Individual titles or series can be hidden by clicking on the ‘X’ next to that title or series. After hiding a title from your viewing activity page, the title will no longer show in your Recently Watched or Continue Watching row, Netflix will no longer use your viewing of this title to make recommendations to you, and your viewing progress will be removed.

Once a title has been hidden from your viewing activity, it cannot be re-added unless you play that title again.

13. Stop auto-play

If you’re really trying not to waste hours of your life watching a new must-watch series, you can turn auto play off the the next episode doens’t automatically start playing.

To disable this feature (called Post-Play) head to Your Account - Playback Settings, and untick the box which says ‘Play Next Episode Automatically’

14. Say no to being involved in a test

If you don’t like the occasional changes Netflix sometimes roll out, you can stop them happening.

Head to Your Account, and under Settings, select Test Participation. You can switch that button from On, to Off.

15. Secret Netflix codes

Not all content appears on the Netflix home screen or when you search, but you can access a whole new world of entertainment by typing a code into the URL.

By changing the digits of the code at the end of URL, you can browse through many more categories.

From Disney movies to vampire horror movies - there’s something for everyone.

The codes do not work everywhere though - depending on your location and IP address you may be limited to only some of the genres.