The 40 Best Shows on Netflix to Watch Right Now
From prestige drama to bingeable reality TV, the streamer has exactly what you want to watch next.
It’s been—wait for it—17 years since Netflix came into our lives. Now that the streamer is in its late teens, likely thousands of shows have come and gone from the platform. Remember when The Office was on Netflix? Simpler days.
Since tracking Netflix's arrivals and departures is a chore, we’ve rounded up the 40 Netflix series that you can stream right now. Are you interested in science fiction? Look no further than 3 Body Problem, a sci-fi doozy, which is adapted from Liu Cixin’s novel of the same name. Are political dramas more your thing? Try The Diplomat, starring Keri Russell, Rufus Sewell, and David Gyasi. (Season 2 is coming soon, people.) Looking for a great comedy? This list has you covered with BEEF and Dead to Me. Hopefully, with this many options at your disposal, you’ll find add some new shows for your watchlist.
3 Body Problem
Netflix’s latest sci-fi series, 3 Body Problem, comes from the team behind Game of Thrones—which means you’re in for a treat. (Or not, depending on whether or not you’re still upset about the finale.) The series takes viewers on a whirlwind journey that weaves through the past, present, and future and depicts the aftermath of humans learning about a nearby alien civilization. I won’t get into the weeds here, but 3 Body Problem is a perfectly puzzling adventure for anyone craving a good old-fashioned story of first contact.
Wrestlers
This excellent docuseries spotlights the Ohio Valley Wrestling League, otherwise known as OVW. In each episode, you’ll get a behind-the-scenes look at professional wrestlers who have built their lives around the sport. Of course, that comes with many challenges—and Wrestlers deftly explores the reality of pro wrestling. It’s not all glitz, glam, and spray tans, people.
BEEF
In 2023, we called BEEF one of the best Netflix shows of the year—and it bears repeating. This dark comedy stars Ali Wong and Steven Yeun as two people who get into a road-rage incident. Rather than walking away unscathed, they set out on a mission to ruin each other’s lives. With themes of race and class expertly woven into the story, BEEF became an instant classic that’s both hilarious and profound.
Squid Game
How could we discuss the best series on Netflix without mentioning Squid Game? This show was so good that it inspired an equally fantastic reality series with the same premise. In Squid Game, 456 players have the opportunity to win life-changing money. The catch? They have to survive a series of deadly challenges to win the prize.
Beckham
David Beckham is considered one of the most illustrious football (that’s soccer to us Americans) players of all time—and now, his story has been immortalized in Beckham. The revealing docuseries tracks his rise to stardom, his courtship of Victoria Beckham, and their cultural impact as international superstars.
The Witcher
The Witcher—based on Andrezj Sapkowski's novel of the same name—follows two characters, Geralt and Ciri, who are destined to cross paths. When they finally do, their romantic entanglement has life-changing implications.
Formula 1: Drive to Survive
Formula 1 is all the rage, but how much do you actually know about the drivers who have turned the sport into an international tour de force? Formula 1: Drive to Survive profiles a group of drivers, along with their family members, managers, and team owners, to provide an inside look at the sport. This docuseries is impossible to look away from as you learn about the sacrifices people make to bring Formula 1 to life.
The Diplomat
This Keri Russell-led series puts other political dramas to shame. In The Diplomat, Russell stars as Kate Wyler, a political savant who is sent to London amid an international crisis. Her job is to assist the United Kingdom as an American ambassador, but that mission is muddied when she discovers her new coworkers aren’t as pious as they seem. To make matters worse, Kate’s crumbling marriage threatens to undermine her new role.
Ozark
We’ve seen plenty of drug-cartel dramas over the years, but Ozark is the best of them. In this series, Jason Bateman stars as Marty Byrde, a financier who gets himself mixed up in a shoddy money-laundering scheme. When the ruse fails (of course it does), Marty finds himself in debt to a vicious drug lord and moves his family to the Ozarks for safety. Come for the nail-biting drama—and stay for Bateman’s portrayal of the most desperate man you’ve ever seen.
Painkiller
Depicting the American opioid crisis is no easy feat, but Painkiller manages to do so with grace. The miniseries stars Mathew Broderick as Richard Sackler, the founder of Purdue Pharma, the company is largely responsible for introducing OxyContin to the world.
Lupin
The first French show to break into U.S. Netflix’s Top 10, Lupin follows the adventures of a gentleman burglar with a chip on his shoulder. With all the thrills of a traditional heist show, the backstory and revenge mission of Assane Diop is fueled by true injustice—which gives the series a real heart.
Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
If you’re looking for a light, hilarious show that’ll last you a while, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt is four seasons of pure joy. It follows Kimmy Schmidt (Ellie Kemper), who was kidnapped and kept in a bunker from her adolescence. The series begins as she is rescued in her adulthood and freed in New York City. Totally unsocialized and pure of heart, Kimmy navigates the real world with the help of her new friends (who include Tituss Burgess and Jane Krakowski). Also, we highly recommend the interactive special.
Blown Away
In the arena of modern reality shows, it seems that the more passion its contestants have, the better. Re-creating that Great British Bake Off vibe is difficult, but Blown Away gets very close. Following a group of quirky, artsy glassblowers, each episode comes up with a brief: some specific challenge that requires the artists to turn up the heat, melt down some glass into molten material, and shape it into magical forms. Blown Away is nearly as hypnotic as it is wholesome.
Bridgerton
Period dramas may not be everyone’s thing: We get it. But you have to give this one a shot. Shonda Rhimes’s first big flashy Netflix series follow the Bridgerton family through trials of love, loss, and everything in between. Also, did we mention there’s some voice work from Julie Andrews?
The Queen's Gambit
The Netflix adaptation of Walter Tevis’s 1983 novel was the talk of the (digital) town in 2020, and for good reason. The engrossing miniseries follows orphan Beth Harmon’s journey to become the world’s best chess player.
Cobra Kai
The Great British Baking Show
Truly the world’s gentlest reality show. The music. The muted drama. The kind words each baker offers to one another, no matter how their bake turned out. The Great British Baking Show is the pinnacle of soft-core television that works as a salve for our often conflict-afflicted psyches.
Outlander
This critically acclaimed historical drama (based on books by the same name) originally premiered on Starz in 2014, but now all five seasons are available to binge on Netflix. It follows the adventures of former World War II nurse Claire Randall, who pinballs between her current life in the 1940s and the world of 1740s Scotland, where she lands thanks to a time-travel mishap. Time travel, tragedy, Scottish accents, romance, war, spies—literally what more could you ask for?
Love on the Spectrum
Netflix has been on a roll with its reality shows, including this unique dating adventure that got a whopping 100 percent on Rotten Tomatoes. It follows seven young adults on the autism spectrum as they dive into the world of dating, love, and relationships. Not only is it truly heartwarming to watch, but it also offers important insight into an experience that many people may not consider or understand. The first season is full of awkward encounters and beautiful moments that will have you absolutely wanting to see these journeys through.
Russian Doll
Perhaps the greatest time-loop series ever made, Russian Doll stars Natasha Lyonne as a bitter New York woman who is hit by a cab on her birthday and lives the same day over and over again. In eight breezy episodes, season 1 finds heart and hilarity in reliving the same 24 hours. Sweet birthday baybee!
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