The 10 Best Shows of 2025

I know, I know. It’s been a long year—but it’s also been a jam-packed one, streaming-wise. 2025 gave us some of the best new shows, from edge-of-your-seat thrillers to comedy dramas. But with so much stellar content streaming on Netflix, Apple TV and more, they can’t all come out on top (sorry, Ironheart, The Better Sister, The Residence, Nine Perfect Strangers, Squid Game, The Last of Us, The Four Seasons, Cobra Kai, The Night Agent…).

My colleagues and I have consumed our fair share of binge-worthy content these past 12 months, and have narrowed things down to a list of 10 top-notch selects. So, without further ado, here are the 10 best shows of 2025, from Netflix's bone-chilling Adolescence to the mind-bending second season of Severance.

1. Adolescence 

• Cast: Stephen Graham, Ashley Walters, Faye Marsay, Mark Stanley
• Number of seasons: 1

This gripping series took the internet by storm and soared to the top spot on Netflix after its release in March. It revolves around Jamie Miller, a 13-year-old student who gets arrested on suspicion of murdering his classmate. And according to PureWow Executive Editor Alexia Dellner, a mom of two young boys herself, it’s a must-watch for parents.

She wrote in her review, “Watching this show with my husband sparked some of the deepest conversations we’ve had in a long time. Even though our sons are only 5 years and 5 months old, the series made us examine how we communicate with our kids, how we spend time together and how much we really know about what is going on in his head.”

Oh, and it won the Emmys for Outstanding Limited Series, Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series and Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series (plus, four others).

2. Severance

• Cast: Adam Scott, Zach Cherry, Britt Lower, Tramell Tillman, Jen Tullock
• Number of seasons: 2

After a three-year hiatus, the Emmy-winning sci-fi thriller returned for season two in January, and it’s safe to say that things got way more interesting at Lumon Industries. It picks up right where season one leaves off, with Mark Scout's "outie" embarking on an important mission after his shocking discovery.

I wrote in my rave review, “The plot itself, while slow moving, creates an intentionally claustrophobic feel that is reminiscent of the early episodes in season one. It's a reminder that Severance at its best isn't always full of fast-moving action. It's more of an onion slowly being peeled with layer upon layer revealing just how complicated and deep the whole conspiracy goes.”

The show also leaves us with another major cliffhanger, meaning I’ll be counting down the days until Severance season three arrives.

3. The Pitt 

• Cast: Noah Wyle, Tracy Ifeachor, Patrick Ball, Katherine LaNasa
• Number of seasons: 1

The intense medical drama follows a team of emergency department staff as they juggle their personal lives with the job, while also dealing with setbacks like limited resources and staff shortages. 

In my full review, I describe it as gritty, fast-paced, entertaining and emotional. I write, “The quick and quippy dialogue serves the actors well and delivers the same speed that made shows like ER and Chicago Hope so successful. However, in the best way possible, Grey's Anatomy this is not. It's much more grounded and realistic than Shonda's soapy series. There's a time and place for both kinds of hospital dramas, but in this case The Pitt smartly goes the realism direction.”

The new show has a season two on the way, which should come as no surprise given its incredible Rotten Tomatoes score and its multiple Emmy wins (Outstanding Drama Series, Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series and Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series).

4. Hacks

• Cast: Jean Smart, Hannah Einbinder, Carl Clemons-Hopkins, Megan Stalter
• Number of seasons: 4

Hacks, which explores the complex relationship between a comedy writer and a seasoned stand-up comedian, boasts 62 Emmy nods and 12 wins, and it isn’t hard to see why.

“Season 4 of Hacks came in like a lion, breathing new and fiery depth into the partnership between Deborah Vance and Ava Daniels—and leaving me loathing the week-by-week rollout of episodes,” writes PureWow Senior Director of Special Projects & Royals, Rachel Bowie, in her glowing review. “Everything is the same, but also nothing, and Deborah and Ava are power tripping their way through their new and high-stakes gig in a way that’s equal parts hilarious and hard to watch. (The humor is somehow supercharged by the conflict, too.)”

In terms of standout performances (besides Smart and Einbinder), it’s a three-way tie between Meg Stalter (as the bonkers and extremely loyal Kayla), Robby Hoffman (as the strange and sardonic personal assistant Randi) and Michaela Watkins (as the HR rep on the verge of a breakdown, Stacey). Oh, and Dance Mom Julianne Nicholson comes in a close fourth place.

5. The White Lotus 

• Cast: Leslie Bibb, Carrie Coon, Walton Goggins, Sarah Catherine Hook
• Number of seasons: 3

Season three follows a fresh set of guests and employees at the White Lotus location in Thailand, including the Ratliff family, who begin to spiral as they face financial challenges. Per usual, a mysterious death occurs, and countless fans flooded social media with their theories on what went down. But according to PureWow Executive Editor Dara Katz, it's not just the mystery element that makes this show compelling.

She writes, "The murder/crime hook might reel viewers in, but it's the fully fledged—and fully flawed—characters in new environments that keep us watching...I find myself wanting to just watch Parker Posey's Victoria 'Lorazepam' Ratcliff interact with her bickering children all day because the character is so fully formed. I don't need to see how the Ratcliff family responds to a murder on-site, but I do love to see what they do when their cell phones and anxiety meds are taken away."

But speaking of that murder, anyone have palpitations throughout that wild finale? No, just me?

6. The Studio

• Cast: Seth Rogen, Ike Barinholtz, Kathryn Hahn, Chase Sui Wonders, Catherine O’Hara
• Number of seasons: 1

For those who had already binged the first season of the Rogen-led The Studio on Apple TV, it was hardly a shock that the show won the Emmy for Outstanding Comedy Series (or that Rogen won for Outstanding Lead Actor). The laugh-out-loud comedy isn’t just brilliantly written and acted, it’s also beautifully filmed (see the episode, “The Oner”).

The celebrity-packed series follows a new studio head (Rogen) as he and his team attempt to keep his movie studio afloat amidst a barrage of wacky celebs, demanding bosses and jealous fellow and former employees.

Bowie writes in her review of the show, “I haven’t felt this jazzed about a series since I stumbled upon Ted Lasso, also on AppleTV+, back in early 2020.” She continues, “Its half-hour format, all-star cast (hello, everyone from Bryan Cranston to Catherine O’Hara appear), and meta effort to infuse art into episodes about industry-related stress and cost-cutting (such as episode two’s plotline about a movie production that’s running grossly over budget while the actual episode is shot elegantly in one take), makes it such a fun—and funny—watch. It’s a smart series full of witty one-liners that come at you so quickly, you don’t want to look away.”

And, yes, it has a 92 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

7. Boots 

• Cast: Miles Heizer, Liam Oh, Max Parker, Brandon Tyler Moore, Vera Farmiga
• Number of seasons: 1

Boots is one of those shows that took viewers and critics completely by surprise. Though it lacks the star-power associated with so many other shows on this list, the dramedy packs a true emotional punch (no wonder it spent so long on Netflix’s Top 10 Shows list).

Inspired by former U.S. Marine Greg Cope White’s memoir The Pink Marine, the eight-episode series is a coming-of-age story set in the “tough, unpredictable world of the 1990s US Marine Corps when being gay in the military was still illegal,” as Tudum puts it.

After the buzz began to build around Boots following its early October premiere on Netflix, I finally sat down to see what all the hype was about—and I was immediately enthralled and entertained. As I raved to everyone I knew about the moving and (at times) hilarious new show, plenty of others have joined in. USA Today calls it “one of the best new series Netflix has produced in years,” while Us Weekly gushes that it’s “one of my favorite 2025 shows.” wait until you get to that jaw-dropping twist in season two.

8. Paradise

• Cast: Sterling K. Brown, Julianne Nicholson, James Marsden
• Number of seasons: 1

No spoilers here, but for those who have yet to watch Paradise, it is not what you initially expect. In fact, the official Hulu description for the show reads, “A security service team gets assigned to safeguard a former president.” That’s it. But what ensues is a twist-filled and fascinating series featuring some major star power (Brown, Nicholson and Marsden are all fabulous).

Another sign of just how good the show is? How excited everyone is for the second season to arrive. We sat down with Brown the discuss the upcoming installment and he tells us, “The scope of the show sort of gets bigger. We get a chance to do a lot of new locations because we are exploring the world outside of [spoiler redacted]. And we get a chance to see, like, aspects of humanity that are sort of positive and very reassuring, and those that can be sort of scary as well.”

Shailene Woodley is also joining the cast for season two in a mysterious new role. She tells PureWow, “I can't tell you anything about it. I definitely can't. But I’m just so excited.”

Unsurprisingly, the show received four Emmy nominations for its first season. And though it didn’t win (as you can see, it was a very competitive year), trust me it is worth the watch.

9. Pluribus

• Cast: Rhea Seehorn, Karolina Wydra, Carlos Manuel Vesga, Miriam Shor
• Number of seasons: 1

IMHO, this bonkers, under-the-radar thriller is the best new show to arrive in the second half 2025. And my colleague Katz agrees, saying, “One show has completely caught me by surprise: Apple TV's Pluribus. And I think, it's the best show of the year.”

As I write in my review of the new show from Breaking Bad’s Vince Gilligan, “If you like any or all of the following, I promise you'll enjoy this show: surprise thrillers, twisty mysteries, apocalyptic scenarios, not-too-scary horror, incredible acting (star Rhea Seehorn who you likely remember from Better Call Saul is crazy good).”

Sorry, I won’t give spoilers here (and it’s better to go into this one blind), but the show’s description reads: "The most miserable person on Earth must save the world from happiness." Vague? Yes. Worth the binge? Absolutely.

And fear not. This isn’t slow-moving fare. A ton happens in the very first episode (one might even argue too much), with a surprising number of questions being answered right off the bat. Gilligan and Seehorn really have done it again.

10. Overcompensating

• Cast: Benito Skinner, Wally Baram, Adam DiMarco, Mary Beth Barone
• Number of seasons: 1

This new hit series may have flown under your radar at first, but chances are you’ve since seen it all over TikTok. The show follows Benito Skinner (aka Benny Drama), a closeted queer college student who is clearly overcompensating (read: exaggerating his masculinity) in an effort to stay in the closet.

As PureWow’s Assistant Editor of News and Entertainment Danielle Long writes in her review, “The show is smart, hilarious and surprisingly heartfelt. What really sets Overcompensating apart, in my opinion, is that it doesn’t try too hard. So many shows struggle to hit the sweet spot for millennials, Gen Z or even Gen Alpha without coming off as forced or cartoonish. But this one nails it. The humor feels organic and the characters are grounded (even in their ridiculousness)—probably because it’s loosely based on Skinner’s actual college experience.”

The cast is seriously solid, and the guest stars include a slew of famous faces such as Bowen Yang, Megan Fox and Connie Britton. And with its fast-paced humor, Overcompensating is very bingeable, meaning you might just finish all eight episodes in one sitting.