The most watched show in Netflix history is in Korean. Squid Game drew 265.2 million views in its first 91 days, and the franchise now occupies three of the ten places on Netflix’s all-time list.
Just three titles account for seven of those ten slots, and every returning season has drawn fewer views than the one before it. Here are the most watched Netflix shows of all time, using the company’s own published figures.
Most Watched Netflix Shows at a Glance
| Rank | Show | Views (91 days) | Released | Genre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Squid Game (Season 1) | 265.2 million | 2021 | Survival thriller |
| 2 | Wednesday (Season 1) | 252.1 million | 2022 | Mystery comedy |
| 3 | Squid Game (Season 2) | 192.6 million | 2024 | Survival thriller |
| 4 | Squid Game (Season 3) | 145.8 million | 2025 | Survival thriller |
| 5 | Adolescence | 142.6 million | 2025 | Drama |
| 6 | Stranger Things (Season 4) | 140.7 million | 2022 | Science fiction horror |
| 7 | Stranger Things (Season 5) | 133.8 million | 2025 | Science fiction horror |
| 8 | Wednesday (Season 2) | 119.3 million | 2025 | Mystery comedy |
| 9 | Monster (Season 1) | 115.6 million | 2022 | True crime drama |
| 10 | Bridgerton (Season 1) | 113.3 million | 2020 | Period romance |
The 10 Most Watched Netflix Shows
1. Squid Game Season 1: 265.2 Million
Squid Game arrived in September 2021 with no marketing push in most territories and became the most watched title Netflix has ever released. Its 265.2 million views are 13.1 million clear of second place.
It is a Korean-language production, which makes the record more striking. Netflix had spent years arguing that subtitled content could travel, and this settled the argument in a single season.
2. Wednesday Season 1: 252.1 Million
Wednesday reimagined the Addams Family through Jenna Ortega’s deadpan performance and came within 13.1 million views of the record. It is the most watched English-language show in Netflix history.
Its success ran heavily on short-form video, where a single dance sequence circulated far beyond the show’s own audience and pulled viewers back to the platform.
3. Squid Game Season 2: 192.6 Million
The second season arrived three years later and drew 192.6 million views, 72.6 million fewer than the original. That is still the third-biggest launch in Netflix history.
The gap illustrates a pattern that runs through this entire list. A show can be enormously successful on return and still fall well short of the season that made it.
4. Squid Game Season 3: 145.8 Million
The final season landed in June 2025 with 145.8 million views, completing a steady decline across the trilogy from 265.2 to 192.6 to 145.8 million.
Even so, all three seasons rank in the all-time top four. No other franchise has managed more than two entries anywhere on the list.
5. Adolescence: 142.6 Million
Adolescence is the only limited series in the top ten and the highest-ranked title with no franchise behind it. The British drama, shot to appear as continuous single takes, reached 142.6 million views in 2025.
It is the clearest evidence that the list is not purely franchise-driven. A four-episode drama with no existing audience outperformed returning seasons of established hits.
6. Stranger Things Season 4: 140.7 Million
Stranger Things reached its commercial peak with the fourth season in 2022, drawing 140.7 million views across a split release that Netflix used to extend the conversation over several weeks.
It was the show that established Netflix’s ability to build a global franchise from an original concept rather than licensed material.
7. Stranger Things Season 5: 133.8 Million
The final season arrived in November 2025 with 133.8 million views, 6.9 million below its predecessor. That is the smallest drop between consecutive seasons anywhere on this list.
Holding within 5% of a previous peak after a three-year wait is unusual, and it suggests the audience stayed loyal in a way Wednesday’s did not.
8. Wednesday Season 2: 119.3 Million
Wednesday’s second season drew 119.3 million views, less than half the 252.1 million of the first. It is the steepest season-to-season decline in the top ten.
The three-year gap between seasons is the most likely explanation, since the cultural moment that drove the first season had largely passed by the time the second arrived.
9. Monster Season 1: 115.6 Million
The first Monster season, covering Jeffrey Dahmer, reached 115.6 million views in 2022 and became the platform’s most watched true crime title.
Its performance prompted criticism from victims’ families over the retelling of recent crimes, and it remains the most contested entry on this list on ethical rather than commercial grounds.
10. Bridgerton Season 1: 113.3 Million
Bridgerton is the oldest title in the top ten, released on Christmas Day 2020, and the only period romance. It reached 113.3 million views and launched a franchise that has since produced multiple seasons and a spin-off.
Its release timing was deliberate, arriving into a holiday period when much of its audience was at home with unusual amounts of viewing time.
Three Titles Hold Seven of the Ten Places
Squid Game has three entries, Wednesday two, and Stranger Things two, so seven of the ten slots belong to just three shows. Squid Game’s three seasons total 603.6 million views, more than double the Stranger Things total of 274.5 million.
Only Adolescence, Monster, and Bridgerton appear without a second season alongside them. The concentration explains why Netflix commissions sequels so aggressively, since a returning season starts with an audience that a new title has to build from nothing.
Every Returning Season Declined
This is the most consistent pattern in the data. Squid Game fell from 265.2 to 192.6 to 145.8 million across three seasons. Wednesday dropped from 252.1 to 119.3. Stranger Things went from 140.7 to 133.8.
Not one returning season on this list beat its predecessor. The size of the drop tracks the gap between releases: Stranger Things lost only 6.9 million after three years, while Wednesday lost more than half over a similar span. Squid Game’s decline was steadier because its seasons arrived closer together. Momentum appears to decay whether or not the new season is well received.
The Biggest Show Is Not in English
Three of the ten entries are Korean-language, and the single most watched title on Netflix has never been an English-language production.
That was not true a decade ago, when non-English titles rarely travelled beyond their home markets. Subtitles and dubbing at scale changed the economics, and a Korean drama produced for a fraction of an American prestige budget outperformed everything the platform had commissioned in English. The same reversal has happened in cinema, where the highest-grossing animated movie of all time is now a Chinese production rather than a Hollywood one. Our comparison of the best streaming services covers how competitors have responded to that shift.
Four of the Ten Arrived in 2025
The list skews heavily recent. Four titles were released in 2025 and only one, Bridgerton, dates from before 2021.
Some of that is genuine growth, since Netflix’s subscriber base is far larger now than in 2020, so a modern hit reaches more households by default. But it also reflects how the metric works. A show measured over its first 91 days benefits from today’s larger audience, which makes direct comparison across years less meaningful than the ranking suggests.
How Netflix Counts a View
Netflix defines a view as total hours watched divided by the title’s total runtime, measured over the first 91 days after release and rounded to the nearest hundred thousand. A single household watching an entire season counts as roughly one view.
The method has a built-in bias worth understanding. Shorter titles convert hours into views more efficiently, so a four-episode limited series like Adolescence needs far fewer total hours than a ten-episode season to record the same view count. Comparing a short series against a long one on this metric is not quite like for like.
How We Ranked Netflix Shows
Rankings use Netflix’s own published view counts for the first 91 days after release, current as of July 2026. Only original series are included, so licensed content and films are excluded.
Seasons are counted separately because Netflix reports them separately, which is why three Squid Game seasons appear individually rather than as one combined entry. This list changes as new titles release, and recent seasons of major franchises are the most likely to enter it. The wider shift toward streaming television is what makes these figures possible to measure at all, since no comparable data existed in the broadcast era.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the most watched Netflix show of all time?
Squid Game Season 1, with 265.2 million views in its first 91 days. It is a Korean-language production and leads Wednesday by 13.1 million.
What is the most watched English-language Netflix show?
Wednesday Season 1, at 252.1 million views, ranking second overall behind Squid Game.
Did any second season beat its first?
No. Every returning season in the top ten drew fewer views than its predecessor. Stranger Things Season 5 came closest, falling 6.9 million short of Season 4.
How does Netflix count views?
Total hours watched divided by the title’s runtime, measured over the first 91 days after release. One household finishing a full season counts as approximately one view.
Which show has the most entries on the list?
Squid Game, with all three seasons in the top four. Its combined total is 603.6 million views.