Shadow is a popular Kodi addon that allows you to stream movies and TV shows using premium sources. Shadow has been around for a while now and is in fact the foundation for many other popular add-ons.
This add-on has many features like support for Trakt, next Up dialog, customizable menus, integrated subtitles, and more. A Real Debrid, Premiumize, All Debrid, EasyNews, or Furk account is required to use Shadow.
In this guide, we’re going to install Shadow on Kodi. Let’s begin!
1. How to install Shadow on Kodi
If this is your first time installing add-ons on Kodi, you will need to allow the installation of unofficial add-ons. Please read How to allow 3rd-party add-ons on Kodi and come back here when you’re ready.
1.1 Install Magnetic repository
Let’s create a link to the magnetic repository, this will allow us to download the repository zip file directly on Kodi.
Note: Shadow is also available on the Narcacist repo [http://www.narcacist.com/repo].
1. Press the cog icon near the top left corner of the screen.
2. Select File Manager.
3. Press Add Source.
4. Enter https://magnetic.website/repo on the top box and magnetic repo on the bottom one. Press OK to add the source. 
Now that we added the link, let’s use it to install the repository.
5. Go back to the Settings menu and this time select Add-ons.
6. Click on Install from zip file.
On Kodi 19, you’ll see a message about the auto-update feature. Press Yes to proceed.
7. Select magnetic repo.
8. Click on repository.Magnetic-x.x.x.zip to install the repository.
1.2. Install Shadow Kodi add-on
Now that the repository is installed, let’s use it to download and install the Shadow add-on.
9. Press Install from repository.
10. Click Magnetic repo.
11. Press Video add-ons.
12. Select Shadow.
13. Press the Install button.
Wait a couple of seconds while the add-on is downloaded, you’ll see a notification when the installation process is done.
14. Go back to the Home Screen, you should now see a shortcut to Shadow on the Add-ons tab. Press it to open the add-on.
We installed Shadow on Kodi but we still need to authorize a premium account in order to get sources. You can use your Real Debrid, Premiumize, All Debrid, EasyNews, or Fury account.
2. Using Real Debrid with Shadow
Shadow requires a premium account from Real Debrid, Premiumize, All Debrid, EasyNews, or Furk to function properly.
File hosting sites often limit file availability and bandwidth for free users. Using premium accounts gives you unrestricted access to several file hosters and cached torrents, it can greatly improve the quality and quantity of available sources.
In this example, we’ll use Real Debrid. A popular service to get unrestricted access to various file hosters and cached torrents for a very low price.
Before starting, we recommend logging into your Real Debrid account using a web browser.
1. Open Shadow and select Settings.
2. On the Debrid tab, make sure Choose debrid service is set to Real-Debrid and press Re-auth Real-Debrid.
3. Copy the authorization code.
4. Use a web browser to visit https://real-debrid.com/device/ and enter the authorization code. (You must be logged in with your Real Debrid account).
5. Set the name for the connection, write Shadow and press Set that name.
All done! You’re now ready to use Shadow. Navigate the main menu to select a movie or TV show.
Once you made your choice, Shadow will show you a list of available sources, pick one to start playing.
6. You’ll see a selectable list of available sources before playing a movie or episode.
When using cached torrents, your device won’t connect to the p2p network directly, instead, Real Debrid will fetch the files on their servers and it’ll let you get them as a normal download encrypted by HTTPS.
Shadow has an automatic subtitles feature but if you need more control over the subtitles selection process please read How to enable subtitles on Kodi.
3. Using Trakt with Shadow
Trakt.tv is a free service that helps you organize and keep track of your favorite movies and shows. Using a Trakt account is optional but it is very helpful if you want to sync your watched status across devices.
Shadow can integrate with your Trakt account giving you access to your Collection, lists, and bookmarks.
To use Trakt with Shadow, visit the Trakt.tv website, log in with your account, and follow these steps.
1. Open Shadow and select Trakt.
2. Press any item on the menu. We’ll select Progress.
3. You’ll be prompted to authenticate with Trakt, press Yes to continue.
4. Copy the authorization code.
5. Using a web browser visit https://trakt.tv/activate and enter the authorization code. (You must be logged into your Trakt account)
6. Press Yes to link Shadow to your Trakt account. 
You can now use your Trakt account with Shadow. Go to Trakt on the add-on’s main menu to access your collections, lists, recommendations, and other Trakt features.
Looking for more add-ons? These are some of our favorite Kodi add-ons for May 2022.
Please visit our list of the best Kodi add-ons for more information.
 | The Promise: Free and Premium sources. Based on The Oath, has all the features from its predecessor. |
 | The Crew: Free and premium sources. Great all-in-one add-on with many extra features for kids, sports, live TV, and more. |
 | Scrubs v2: Free sources. Great add-on specialized in free sources. |
 | Nightwing: Free and Premium sources. Popular add-on similar to The Oath with extra features. |
 | Seren: Premium sources. Excellent add-on with great user interface and many innovative functions. |
 | Ezra: Premium sources. Based on Fen, this add-on has all the great features of its predecessor. |
 | Elementum: P2P sources. An exceptional add-on that offers high-quality streams using torrents. |