For almost 30 years, Netflix has been a leader in entertainment with innovative ideas that bring film and television into homes worldwide. Founded in 1997, the company launched its website as a mail-order DVD rental service in 1998, later evolving to include streaming services in 2007.
Netflix began changing streaming forever in 2012 with "Lilyhammer," a Norwegian crime-comedy that became the platform's first exclusive series. A year later, "House of Cards" arrived as the first series branded a "Netflix Original," igniting a shift across the industry as streaming platforms went from simply sharing films and TV shows created by others to producing their own content. A few early Netflix standouts set the bar high: In 2013, "House of Cards" became the first original streaming series to receive significant recognition at the Emmys, and the following year, "Orange Is the New Black" won three Primetime Emmy awards.
Releasing an entire season of these original series all at once revolutionized how viewers consume television. The term "binge-watch" was so popular by 2017 that it was included in the Merriam-Webster dictionary. While the platform's early shows remain household names over a decade later, the volume of new content continues to grow each year. By the end of 2025, Netflix boasted more than 4,800 original titles in the U.S. alone.
Netflix is as buzzy as ever in 2026. Standouts include the heartwarming movie "Remarkably Bright Creatures," which earned Sally Field an Emmy, the comedy series "Big Mistakes," and the literary adaptation "East of Eden." Meanwhile, the latest seasons of "The Diplomat," premiering Oct. 15, 2026, and "Nobody Wants This," dropping Oct. 22, are all but guaranteed to generate conversation.
As we enjoy these shows and more, Stacker compiled a list of the 20 best Netflix original series, ranked by IMDb user rating as of October 2026, with ties broken by number of user ratings. Although the term "Netflix original" has been debated, this list only includes series that Netflix commissioned or produced for most of their run. To qualify, a show also had to be streaming on Netflix in the U.S. and have at least 25,000 IMDb user ratings.
#20. Sacred Games
- IMDb user rating: 8.5 (99K reviews)
- Seasons: 2
- Genres: Action & Adventure and Crime
- Cast: Saif Ali Khan, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, and Radhika Apte
- On air: 2018-2019
Netflix's first Indian original series, "Sacred Games," adapts Vikram Chandra's 2006 novel into a sprawling crime thriller set in Mumbai. Saif Ali Khan plays police officer Sartaj Singh, who gets a call from notorious gangster Ganesh Gaitonde (Nawazuddin Siddiqui) warning that he has 25 days to save the city. Directors Anurag Kashyap and Vikramaditya Motwane split duties on the first season.
#19. Making a Murderer
- IMDb user rating: 8.5 (109K ratings)
- Seasons: 2
- Genres: Documentary and Crime
- Cast: Steven Avery and Kathleen Zellner
- On air: 2015-2018
This crime documentary, filmed over 10 years, follows the story of Steven Avery. Wrongly convicted of a 1985 sexual assault, Avery was exonerated by DNA evidence and released after 18 years, only to be charged with the 2005 murder of photographer Teresa Halbach while his lawsuit against Manitowoc County was still pending. The series stirred major public interest in the case, as hundreds of thousands of viewers signed petitions on Change.org and the White House website calling for Avery's pardon. The White House responded that it had no power to pardon a state conviction. In 2023, "Convicting a Murderer" was released on the streaming platform DailyWire+ as a rebuttal to the Netflix documentary.
#18. The Last Kingdom
- IMDb user rating: 8.5 (193K ratings)
- Seasons: 5
- Genres: Action & Adventure and Drama
- Cast: Alexander Dreymon, Eliza Butterworth, and Mark Rowley
- On air: 2015-2022
Based on Bernard Cornwell's "The Saxon Stories" novels, "The Last Kingdom" follows Uhtred of Bebbanburg (Alexander Dreymon), a Saxon nobleman raised by Danish invaders, as he fights for—and sometimes against—Alfred the Great in ninth-century England. The series began on BBC Two before Netflix signed on as co-producer for Season 2 and took over entirely for Seasons 3 through 5. Uhtred's story wrapped up with the 2023 Netflix film "Seven Kings Must Die."
Steve Dietl // Netflix
4 / 20#17. The Haunting of Hill House
- IMDb user rating: 8.5 (333K ratings)
- Seasons: 1
- Genres: Drama and Horror
- Cast: Michiel Huisman, Carla Gugino, and Henry Thomas
- On air: 2018
Mike Flanagan's loose adaptation of Shirley Jackson's 1959 novel toggles between two timelines: the summer the Crain family spent in a sinister mansion, and the present day, when the grown siblings are still haunted by what happened there. The sixth episode, "Two Storms," stands out for being built from a handful of long, unbroken takes. The show's success launched a string of Flanagan projects for Netflix, starting with the follow-up anthology "The Haunting of Bly Manor" in 2020.
#16. The Queen's Gambit
- IMDb user rating: 8.5 (679K ratings)
- Seasons: 1
- Genre: Drama
- Cast: Anya Taylor-Joy, Thomas Brodie-Sangster, and Harry Melling
- On air: 2020
Anya Taylor-Joy stars as Beth Harmon, an orphaned chess prodigy battling addiction as she climbs the ranks of the male-dominated chess world in the 1950s and '60s. The limited series, adapted from Walter Tevis' 1983 novel, became a pandemic-era phenomenon and won 11 Primetime Emmys, including Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series. It also sparked a real-world chess boom, with sales of chess sets surging after its release.
#15. Anne with an E
- IMDb user rating: 8.6 (84K ratings)
- Seasons: 3
- Genres: Family and Drama
- Cast: Amybeth McNulty, Geraldine James, and R.H. Thomson
- On air: 2017-2019
A new take on L.M. Montgomery's 1908 novel "Anne of Green Gables," "Anne with an E" follows an orphan named Anne (Amybeth McNulty) as she adapts to her new life on Prince Edward Island in the 19th century. Co-produced with Canada's CBC, the series twice won the Canadian Screen Award for best drama series. Its cancellation after three seasons sparked a passionate fan campaign to bring it back.
#14. The Crown
- IMDb user rating: 8.6 (285K ratings)
- Seasons: 6
- Genres: History and Drama
- Cast: Claire Foy, Olivia Colman, and Vanessa Kirby
- On air: 2016-2023
Spanning decades, "The Crown" follows the political rivalries, romances, and events that shaped the United Kingdom during Queen Elizabeth II's reign. Created by Peter Morgan ("The Queen," "Frost/Nixon," "The Last King of Scotland"), the series recast its royals every two seasons, with Claire Foy, Olivia Colman, and Imelda Staunton each playing the queen. Its sixth and final season premiered in two parts, in November and December 2023.
#13. Mindhunter
- IMDb user rating: 8.6 (349K ratings)
- Seasons: 2
- Genres: Crime and Drama
- Cast: Jonathan Groff, Holt McCallany, and Anna Torv
- On air: 2017-2019
In this crime thriller set in the late 1970s, FBI agents interview convicted serial killers in an effort to understand their motives and help solve open cases. Based on the book by former FBI profiler John Douglas and Mark Olshaker, the series counts "Fight Club" director David Fincher as an executive producer and the director of seven episodes. Netflix put the show on indefinite hold after Season 2, and Fincher confirmed in 2023 that it would not return.
#12. House of Cards
- IMDb user rating: 8.6 (564K ratings)
- Seasons: 6
- Genre: Drama
- Cast: Robin Wright, Michael Kelly, and Kevin Spacey
- On air: 2013-2018
When "House of Cards" ended its run after six seasons, it had earned 56 Primetime Emmy nominations and seven wins. The show originally starred Kevin Spacey as Frank Underwood, a congressman on a mission to get revenge against those who betrayed his trust. After Netflix cut ties with Spacey in 2017, the final season shifted its focus to his wife, Claire, played by Robin Wright.
#11. Stranger Things
- IMDb user rating: 8.6 (2M ratings)
- Seasons: 5
- Genres: Drama, Mystery, and Horror
- Cast: Millie Bobby Brown, David Harbour, and Joe Keery
- On air: 2016-2025
The fantasy-horror series created by the Duffer brothers takes place in the small town of Hawkins, Indiana, where a boy goes missing in 1983, and his family and friends must confront supernatural forces to get him back. The fifth and final season arrived in three installments, ending with the series finale on Dec. 31, 2025.
#10. Blue Eye Samurai
- IMDb user rating: 8.7 (108K ratings)
- Seasons: 1
- Genres: Animation and Action & Adventure
- Cast: Maya Erskine, Masi Oka, and Darren Barnet
- On air: 2023-present
Set in Edo-period Japan, when the country was closed to foreigners, this adult animated epic follows Mizu (Maya Erskine), a mixed-race sword master who disguises her identity as she hunts the four white men who could be her father. Created by husband-and-wife team Michael Green and Amber Noizumi, the series won the Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Animated Program in 2024. A second season is set to arrive in January 2027.
#9. Narcos
- IMDb user rating: 8.7 (537K ratings)
- Seasons: 3
- Genres: Drama and Biography
- Cast: Pedro Pascal, Alberto Ammann, and Wagner Moura
- On air: 2015-2017
Centered at first on Colombian cocaine kingpin Pablo Escobar, the biographical drama "Narcos" chronicles the true story of international drug cartels and law enforcement's efforts to stop them. After Escobar's story wrapped in Season 2, Season 3 turned to the Cali cartel. The series was nominated for three Primetime Emmys and two Golden Globes over its three-season run and spawned the follow-up series "Narcos: Mexico."
#8. Dark
- IMDb user rating: 8.7 (563K ratings)
- Seasons: 3
- Genres: Crime and Drama
- Cast: Louis Hofmann, Lisa Vicari, and Andreas Pietschmann
- On air: 2017-2020
Netflix's first German-language original series, "Dark," begins with children disappearing from the small town of Winden in 2019. A turn toward the supernatural soon ties the case—and four families—to the same town in 1986, 1953, and beyond, as the series unravels a time-travel mystery spanning generations.
#7. Black Mirror
- IMDb user rating: 8.7 (751K ratings)
- Seasons: 7
- Genres: Drama and Sci-Fi
- Cast: Anthology series with a different cast in each episode
- On air: 2011-present
Charlie Brooker's dystopian anthology imagines how technology could go wrong, with each episode telling a standalone story. "Black Mirror" began on the U.K.'s Channel 4 before Netflix took over with Season 3 in 2016. Its Netflix era won three consecutive Emmys for Outstanding Television Movie, for "San Junipero," "USS Callister," and the interactive film "Bandersnatch." Season 7 premiered in April 2025.
#6. When They See Us
- IMDb user rating: 8.8 (162K ratings)
- Seasons: 1
- Genres: Crime and Drama
- Cast: Asante Blackk, Caleel Harris, and Ethan Herisse
- On air: 2019
Ava DuVernay's four-part limited series dramatizes the story of five Black and Latino teenagers wrongly convicted in the 1989 Central Park jogger case, following them from their coerced confessions through their exoneration in 2002. Jharrel Jerome won the Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie for playing Korey Wise, the only one of the five tried as an adult.
#5. BoJack Horseman
- IMDb user rating: 8.8 (240K ratings)
- Seasons: 6
- Genres: Comedy and Drama
- Cast: Will Arnett, Amy Sedaris, and Alison Brie
- On air: 2014-2020
Netflix's first original adult animated series follows BoJack (Will Arnett), a washed-up horse who starred in a hit 1990s sitcom, as he stumbles through fame, addiction, and self-destruction in Hollywood—or "Hollywoo," after he steals the "D" from the famous sign. Created by Raphael Bob-Waksberg, the show evolved from a goofy showbiz satire into one of television's most acclaimed portraits of depression before wrapping up after six seasons in 2020.
#4. When Life Gives You Tangerines
- IMDb user rating: 9.0 (43K ratings)
- Seasons: 1
- Genres: Drama and Romance
- Cast: IU, Park Bo-gum, and Moon So-ri
- On air: 2025
This Korean drama traces the lifelong love story of Ae-sun, a headstrong aspiring poet, and Gwan-sik, the steadfast boy who adores her, from their youth on Jeju Island in the 1950s into old age. IU and Park Bo-gum play the couple's younger selves, while Moon So-ri and Park Hae-joon take over in later years. Netflix released the 16 episodes in four weekly batches in March 2025.
#3. Kota Factory
- IMDb user rating: 9.0 (94K ratings)
- Seasons: 3
- Genres: Comedy and Drama
- Cast: Jitendra Kumar, Mayur More, and Ranjan Raj
- On air: 2019-2024
Presented in black and white, this Indian drama follows teenagers in Kota, Rajasthan, a city packed with coaching centers where students cram for the grueling entrance exams to the country's elite engineering colleges. Jitendra Kumar plays Jeetu Bhaiya, a beloved teacher who guides students like Vaibhav (Mayur More) through academic pressure and growing pains. The first season premiered on The Viral Fever's YouTube channel in 2019 before Netflix picked up the series, releasing Seasons 2 and 3 in 2021 and 2024.
#2. Arcane
- IMDb user rating: 9.0 (457K ratings)
- Seasons: 2
- Genres: Animation and Action & Adventure
- Cast: Hailee Steinfeld, Ella Purnell, and Kevin Alejandro
- On air: 2021-2024
Set in the "League of Legends" video game universe, "Arcane" tells the origin story of estranged sisters Vi (Hailee Steinfeld) and Jinx (Ella Purnell), caught on opposite sides of a conflict between the gleaming city of Piltover and its oppressed undercity, Zaun. Riot Games and French animation studio Fortiche spent six years developing the first season, and the series became the first streaming series to win the Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Animated Program in 2022. The story concluded with Season 2 in November 2024.
#1. Our Planet
- IMDb user rating: 9.2 (64K ratings)
- Seasons: 2
- Genre: Documentary
- Cast: David Attenborough
- On air: 2019-2023
Narrated by Sir David Attenborough, "Our Planet" pairs breathtaking wildlife footage with an urgent message about climate change and habitat loss. Producers behind the BBC's "Planet Earth" made the series for Netflix in partnership with the World Wildlife Fund, filming over four years in 50 countries. Attenborough won a Primetime Emmy for his narration, and the 2023 follow-up "Our Planet II" turned to the epic migrations animals make across the globe.
