diff --git a/packages/core/src/db/schemas.ts b/packages/core/src/db/schemas.ts
index 3e7c282b..0ba7ecbb 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/db/schemas.ts
+++ b/packages/core/src/db/schemas.ts
@@ -360,14 +360,28 @@ export const UserDataSchema = z.object({
   requiredStreamExpressions: z.array(z.string().min(1).max(3000)).optional(),
   preferredStreamExpressions: z.array(z.string().min(1).max(3000)).optional(),
   includedStreamExpressions: z.array(z.string().min(1).max(3000)).optional(),
-  disableGroups: z.boolean().optional(),
+  // disableGroups: z.boolean().optional(),
+  // groups: z
+  //   .array(
+  //     z.object({
+  //       addons: z.array(z.string().min(1)),
+  //       condition: z.string().min(1).max(200),
+  //     })
+  //   )
+  //   .optional(),
   groups: z
-    .array(
-      z.object({
-        addons: z.array(z.string().min(1)),
-        condition: z.string().min(1).max(200),
-      })
-    )
+    .object({
+      enabled: z.boolean().optional(),
+      groupings: z
+        .array(
+          z.object({
+            addons: z.array(z.string().min(1)),
+            condition: z.string().min(1).max(200),
+          })
+        )
+        .optional(),
+      behaviour: z.enum(['sequential', 'parallel']).optional(),
+    })
     .optional(),
   sortCriteria: z.object({
     // global must be defined.
diff --git a/packages/core/src/db/users.ts b/packages/core/src/db/users.ts
index 09719ceb..a8429461 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/db/users.ts
+++ b/packages/core/src/db/users.ts
@@ -15,6 +15,7 @@ import {
   verifyHash,
   validateConfig,
   formatZodError,
+  applyMigrations,
 } from '../utils';
 
 const APIError = constants.APIError;
@@ -193,7 +194,7 @@ export class UserRepository {
         Env.TRUSTED_UUIDS?.split(',').some((u) => new RegExp(u).test(uuid)) ??
         false;
       logger.info(`Retrieved configuration for user ${uuid}`);
-      return decryptedConfig;
+      return applyMigrations(decryptedConfig);
     } catch (error) {
       logger.error(
         `Error retrieving user ${uuid}: ${error instanceof Error ? error.message : String(error)}`
diff --git a/packages/core/src/streams/fetcher.ts b/packages/core/src/streams/fetcher.ts
index f42d0aba..fe863080 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/streams/fetcher.ts
+++ b/packages/core/src/streams/fetcher.ts
@@ -168,52 +168,54 @@ class StreamFetcher {
 
     // If groups are configured, handle group-based fetching
     if (
-      this.userData.groups &&
-      this.userData.groups.length > 0 &&
-      this.userData.disableGroups !== true
+      this.userData.groups?.groupings &&
+      this.userData.groups.groupings.length > 0 &&
+      this.userData.groups.enabled !== false
     ) {
       // add addons that are not assigned to any group to the first group
       const unassignedAddons = addons.filter(
         (addon) =>
-          !this.userData.groups!.some((group) =>
+          !this.userData.groups?.groupings?.some((group) =>
             group.addons.includes(addon.preset.id)
           )
       );
-      if (unassignedAddons.length > 0) {
-        this.userData.groups[0].addons.push(
+      if (unassignedAddons.length > 0 && this.userData.groups.groupings[0]) {
+        this.userData.groups.groupings[0].addons.push(
           ...unassignedAddons.map((addon) => addon.preset.id)
         );
       }
-      const groupPromises = this.userData.groups.map((group) => {
-        const groupAddons = addons.filter(
-          (addon) => addon.preset.id && group.addons.includes(addon.preset.id)
-        );
-        logger.info(
-          `Queueing fetch for group with ${groupAddons.length} addons.`
-        );
-        return fetchFromGroup(groupAddons);
-      });
 
+      const behaviour = this.userData.groups.behaviour || 'parallel';
       let totalTimeTaken = 0;
       let previousGroupStreams: ParsedStream[] = [];
       let previousGroupTimeTaken = 0;
 
-      for (let i = 0; i < groupPromises.length; i++) {
-        const groupResult = await groupPromises[i];
-        const group = this.userData.groups[i];
+      if (behaviour === 'parallel') {
+        // Fetch all groups in parallel but still evaluate conditions
+        const groupPromises = this.userData.groups.groupings.map((group) => {
+          const groupAddons = addons.filter(
+            (addon) => addon.preset.id && group.addons.includes(addon.preset.id)
+          );
+          logger.info(
+            `Queueing parallel fetch for group with ${groupAddons.length} addons.`
+          );
+          return fetchFromGroup(groupAddons);
+        });
 
-        if (i === 0) {
-          allStreams.push(...groupResult.streams);
-          allErrors.push(...groupResult.errors);
-          allStatisticStreams.push(...groupResult.statistics);
-          totalTimeTaken = groupResult.totalTime;
-          previousGroupStreams = groupResult.streams;
-          previousGroupTimeTaken = groupResult.totalTime;
+        for (let i = 0; i < this.userData.groups.groupings.length; i++) {
+          const groupResult = await groupPromises[i];
+          const group = this.userData.groups.groupings[i];
 
-          // After the first group, check the condition for the second group
-          if (groupPromises.length > 1) {
-            const nextGroup = this.userData.groups[1];
-            if (!nextGroup.condition || !nextGroup.addons.length) continue;
+          if (i === 0) {
+            allStreams.push(...groupResult.streams);
+            allErrors.push(...groupResult.errors);
+            allStatisticStreams.push(...groupResult.statistics);
+            totalTimeTaken = groupResult.totalTime;
+            previousGroupStreams = groupResult.streams;
+            previousGroupTimeTaken = groupResult.totalTime;
+          } else {
+            // For groups other than the first, check their condition
+            if (!group.condition || !group.addons.length) continue;
 
             const evaluator = new GroupConditionEvaluator(
               previousGroupStreams,
@@ -222,46 +224,64 @@ class StreamFetcher {
               totalTimeTaken,
               queryType
             );
-            const shouldFetchNext = await evaluator.evaluate(
-              nextGroup.condition
-            );
+            const shouldInclude = await evaluator.evaluate(group.condition);
 
-            if (!shouldFetchNext) {
+            if (shouldInclude) {
               logger.info(
-                `Condition not met for group 2 based on group 1 results. Halting further processing.`
+                `Condition met for parallel group ${i + 1}, including streams.`
+              );
+              allStreams.push(...groupResult.streams);
+              allErrors.push(...groupResult.errors);
+              allStatisticStreams.push(...groupResult.statistics);
+              totalTimeTaken = Math.max(totalTimeTaken, groupResult.totalTime);
+              previousGroupStreams = groupResult.streams;
+              previousGroupTimeTaken = groupResult.totalTime;
+            } else {
+              logger.info(
+                `Condition not met for parallel group ${i + 1}, skipping streams.`
               );
-              break; // Exit the loop, returning only group 1 streams
             }
           }
-        } else {
-          // For groups other than the first, check their condition before processing
-          if (!group.condition || !group.addons.length) continue;
+        }
+      } else {
+        // Sequential behavior - fetch and evaluate one group at a time
+        for (let i = 0; i < this.userData.groups.groupings.length; i++) {
+          const group = this.userData.groups.groupings[i];
 
-          const evaluator = new GroupConditionEvaluator(
-            previousGroupStreams,
-            allStreams,
-            previousGroupTimeTaken,
-            totalTimeTaken,
-            queryType
-          );
-          const shouldFetch = await evaluator.evaluate(group.condition);
+          // For groups after the first, check condition before fetching
+          if (i > 0 && group.condition) {
+            const evaluator = new GroupConditionEvaluator(
+              previousGroupStreams,
+              allStreams,
+              previousGroupTimeTaken,
+              totalTimeTaken,
+              queryType
+            );
+            const shouldFetch = await evaluator.evaluate(group.condition);
 
-          if (shouldFetch) {
-            logger.info(
-              `Condition met for group ${i + 1}, processing streams.`
-            );
-            allStreams.push(...groupResult.streams);
-            allErrors.push(...groupResult.errors);
-            allStatisticStreams.push(...groupResult.statistics);
-            totalTimeTaken += groupResult.totalTime;
-            previousGroupStreams = groupResult.streams;
-            previousGroupTimeTaken = groupResult.totalTime;
-          } else {
-            logger.info(
-              `Condition not met for group ${i + 1}, skipping remaining groups.`
-            );
-            break; // Stop processing any more groups
+            if (!shouldFetch) {
+              logger.info(
+                `Condition not met for sequential group ${i + 1}, stopping.`
+              );
+              break;
+            }
           }
+
+          const groupAddons = addons.filter(
+            (addon) => addon.preset.id && group.addons.includes(addon.preset.id)
+          );
+          logger.info(
+            `Fetching from sequential group ${i + 1} with ${groupAddons.length} addons.`
+          );
+
+          const groupResult = await fetchFromGroup(groupAddons);
+
+          allStreams.push(...groupResult.streams);
+          allErrors.push(...groupResult.errors);
+          allStatisticStreams.push(...groupResult.statistics);
+          totalTimeTaken += groupResult.totalTime;
+          previousGroupStreams = groupResult.streams;
+          previousGroupTimeTaken = groupResult.totalTime;
         }
       }
     } else {
diff --git a/packages/core/src/utils/config.ts b/packages/core/src/utils/config.ts
index ae81bf6f..c92386fd 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/utils/config.ts
+++ b/packages/core/src/utils/config.ts
@@ -352,8 +352,8 @@ export async function validateConfig(
     }
   }
 
-  if (config.groups) {
-    for (const group of config.groups) {
+  if (config.groups?.groupings) {
+    for (const group of config.groups.groupings) {
       await validateGroup(group);
     }
   }
@@ -456,8 +456,8 @@ function removeInvalidPresetReferences(config: UserData) {
         existingPresetIds?.includes(addon)
       );
   }
-  if (config.groups) {
-    config.groups = config.groups.map((group) => ({
+  if (config.groups?.groupings) {
+    config.groups.groupings = config.groups.groupings.map((group) => ({
       ...group,
       addons: group.addons?.filter((addon) =>
         existingPresetIds?.includes(addon)
@@ -467,7 +467,7 @@ function removeInvalidPresetReferences(config: UserData) {
   return config;
 }
 
-export function applyMigrations(config: UserData): UserData {
+export function applyMigrations(config: any): UserData {
   if (
     config.deduplicator &&
     typeof config.deduplicator.multiGroupBehaviour === 'string'
@@ -495,6 +495,14 @@ export function applyMigrations(config: UserData): UserData {
     };
     delete config.titleMatching.matchYear;
   }
+
+  if (Array.isArray(config.groups)) {
+    config.groups = {
+      enabled: config.disableGroups ? false : true,
+      groupings: config.groups,
+      behaviour: 'parallel',
+    };
+  }
   return config;
 }
 
diff --git a/packages/frontend/src/components/menu/addons.tsx b/packages/frontend/src/components/menu/addons.tsx
index cd9febda..a99ddd0b 100644
--- a/packages/frontend/src/components/menu/addons.tsx
+++ b/packages/frontend/src/components/menu/addons.tsx
@@ -74,6 +74,7 @@ import { IoExtensionPuzzle } from 'react-icons/io5';
 import { NumberInput } from '../ui/number-input';
 import { useDisclosure } from '@/hooks/disclosure';
 import { useMode } from '@/context/mode';
+import { Select } from '../ui/select';
 
 interface CatalogModification {
   id: string;
@@ -1191,7 +1192,7 @@ function AddonGroupCard() {
   // Helper function to get presets that are not in any group except the current one
   const getAvailablePresets = (currentGroupIndex: number) => {
     const presetsInOtherGroups = new Set(
-      userData.groups?.flatMap((group, idx) =>
+      userData.groups?.groupings?.flatMap((group, idx) =>
         idx !== currentGroupIndex ? group.addons : []
       ) || []
     );
@@ -1213,7 +1214,7 @@ function AddonGroupCard() {
   ) => {
     setUserData((prev) => {
       // Initialize groups array if it doesn't exist
-      const currentGroups = prev.groups || [];
+      const currentGroups = prev.groups?.groupings || [];
 
       // Create a new array with all existing groups
       const newGroups = [...currentGroups];
@@ -1231,7 +1232,10 @@ function AddonGroupCard() {
 
       return {
         ...prev,
-        groups: newGroups,
+        groups: {
+          ...prev.groups,
+          groupings: newGroups,
+        },
       };
     });
   };
@@ -1259,21 +1263,46 @@ function AddonGroupCard() {
         for a detailed guide to using groups.
       </div>
       <Switch
-        label="Disable Groups"
-        value={userData.disableGroups ?? false}
+        label="Enable"
+        value={userData.groups?.enabled ?? false}
         onValueChange={(value) => {
-          setUserData((prev) => ({ ...prev, disableGroups: value }));
+          setUserData((prev) => ({
+            ...prev,
+            groups: { ...prev.groups, enabled: value },
+          }));
         }}
         side="right"
-        help="If enabled, groups will be ignored and all addons will be used."
       />
-      {(userData.groups || []).map((group, index) => (
+      <Select
+        label="Behaviour"
+        value={userData.groups?.behaviour ?? 'parallel'}
+        onValueChange={(value) => {
+          setUserData((prev) => ({
+            ...prev,
+            groups: {
+              ...prev.groups,
+              behaviour: value as 'sequential' | 'parallel',
+            },
+          }));
+        }}
+        options={[
+          { label: 'Parallel', value: 'parallel' },
+          { label: 'Sequential', value: 'sequential' },
+        ]}
+        disabled={userData.groups?.enabled === false}
+        help={
+          userData.groups?.behaviour === 'sequential'
+            ? 'Streams are fetched from the first group only to begin with. If the condition for the next group is met, streams are fetched from the next group, and so on.'
+            : 'Streams are fetched from all groups at the same time. When a condition is not met, results from its group onwards are simply not shown.'
+        }
+      />
+      {(userData.groups?.groupings || []).map((group, index) => (
         <div key={index} className="flex gap-2">
           <div className="flex-1 flex gap-2">
             <div className="flex-1">
               <Combobox
                 multiple
-                disabled={userData.disableGroups}
+                disabled={userData.groups?.enabled === false}
                 value={group.addons}
                 options={getAvailablePresets(index)}
                 emptyMessage="You haven't installed any addons yet or they are already in a group"
@@ -1287,7 +1316,7 @@ function AddonGroupCard() {
             <div className="flex-1">
               <TextInput
                 value={index === 0 ? 'true' : group.condition}
-                disabled={index === 0 || userData.disableGroups}
+                disabled={index === 0 || userData.groups?.enabled === false}
                 label="Condition"
                 placeholder="Enter condition"
                 onValueChange={(value) => {
@@ -1299,16 +1328,16 @@ function AddonGroupCard() {
           <IconButton
             size="sm"
             rounded
-            disabled={userData.disableGroups}
+            disabled={userData.groups?.enabled === false}
             icon={<FaRegTrashAlt />}
             intent="alert-subtle"
             onClick={() => {
               setUserData((prev) => {
-                const newGroups = [...(prev.groups || [])];
+                const newGroups = [...(prev.groups?.groupings || [])];
                 newGroups.splice(index, 1);
                 return {
                   ...prev,
-                  groups: newGroups,
+                  groups: { ...prev.groups, groupings: newGroups },
                 };
               });
             }}
@@ -1321,13 +1350,16 @@ function AddonGroupCard() {
           size="sm"
           intent="primary-subtle"
           icon={<FaPlus />}
-          disabled={userData.disableGroups}
+          disabled={userData.groups?.enabled === false}
           onClick={() => {
             setUserData((prev) => {
-              const currentGroups = prev.groups || [];
+              const currentGroups = prev.groups?.groupings || [];
               return {
                 ...prev,
-                groups: [...currentGroups, { addons: [], condition: '' }],
+                groups: {
+                  ...prev.groups,
+                  groupings: [...currentGroups, { addons: [], condition: '' }],
+                },
               };
             });
           }}
diff --git a/packages/frontend/src/components/menu/save-install.tsx b/packages/frontend/src/components/menu/save-install.tsx
index bc3e8be5..ee260c7e 100644
--- a/packages/frontend/src/components/menu/save-install.tsx
+++ b/packages/frontend/src/components/menu/save-install.tsx
@@ -27,7 +27,7 @@ import {
   ConfirmationDialog,
   useConfirmationDialog,
 } from '../shared/confirmation-dialog';
-import { UserData } from '@aiostreams/core';
+import { applyMigrations, UserData } from '@aiostreams/core';
 
 export function SaveInstallMenu() {
   return (
@@ -164,7 +164,9 @@ function Content() {
     const reader = new FileReader();
     reader.onload = (event) => {
       try {
-        const json = JSON.parse(event.target?.result as string);
+        const json = applyMigrations(
+          JSON.parse(event.target?.result as string)
+        );
         // const validate = UserDataSchema.safeParse(json);
         // if (!validate.success) {
         //   toast.error('Failed to import configuration: Invalid JSON file');