The Best Netflix Limited Series of 2025

Picture Credits: Netflix

Netflix makes some of the most acclaimed limited series of any streaming platform. Which shows stood out the most in 2025?

2025 has been a big year for limited series on Netflix, with the streamer launching its most successful yet in Adolescence. Out of the glut of offerings, we’ve compiled our top 10. Series range from action-packed westerns to political dramas to chilling real-life stories. While these might be our picks, we’re currently holding our awards, which include limited series among other categories. You can cast your vote here.

Sirens

Milly Alcock and Meghann Fahy play sisters Simone and Devon in Netflix’s lavish drama Sirens. A dark comedy with seductive, alluring tones and a mysterious cult, Sirens grips you from the opening scene and refuses to let go. It’s the perfect alternative for fans of The White Lotus.

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The 5-episode limited series follows Devon (Fahy), who travels to see her sister, Simone (Alcock), where she works as a live-in assistant to the Kell family on their lavish island estate, to request assistance in caring for their ailing father Bruce (Bill Camp). The couple who own the ornate Cliff estate, Michaela (Julianne Moore) and Peter (Kevin Bacon), are an elite, socialite, and cultish couple — harbouring secrets of their own. The show explores themes of family, loyalty, and cultism — all wrapped up in a script that is very witty. In our review, we rated Sirens a very solid 4 stars.

Toxic Town

From a lavish comedy to one of Netflix’s most heartbreaking shows of the year. Toxic Town tells the true story of mothers in the English town of Corby, who fight for justice when their babies are born with disabilities as a direct result of industrial neglect. The pregnant women were exposed to waste from a demolished steelworks. After their realisation, they fight for justice in a long-standing legal battle.

Toxic Town is headlined by Jodie Whittaker (Doctor Who), Claudia Jessie (Bridgerton), Aimee Lou Wood (The White Lotus), and Rory Kinnear (Bank of Dave). Because of its very British-focused storyline, it sadly didn’t break out quite like it should’ve. It’s not a fun watch, but it’s a necessary one.

Black Rabbit

Headlined by Jude Law (The Talented Mr. Ripley, Sherlock Holmes) and Jason Bateman (Ozark), Black Rabbit explores New York City nightlife through the lens of two brothers. The series takes place when a rising-star restaurateur and owner of the Black Rabbit is unwittingly thrust into New York’s dangerous underground after loan sharks chase his brother. The series is perfect for those who love dark and gritty drama.

Despite being marketed as a limited series, the show’s creator, Kate Susman, is keen to continue telling more stories set in the Black Rabbit world. “There are so many storylines I still want to follow,” she told The Wrap. Currently, it seems unlikely that Netflix will renew.

Death by Lightning

Based on the 2011 novel ‘Destiny of the Republic’ by Candice Millard, Death by Lightning is an4-episode political drama chronicling the story of James Garfield (Michael Shannon), who rose from poverty to become president of the United States. He went from self-educated teacher, to collect president, to U.S. congressman, and eventually the 20th President. The series documents his journey, as well as that of Charles Guiteau (Matthew Macfadyen), the man that assassinated him.

Death by Lightning is one of Netflix’s top-rated limited series of 2025, currently boasting a terrific 91% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

Zero Day

Acclaimed filmmaker Noah Oppenheim has endured a stellar year at Netflix. Of course, he wrote thriller A House of Dynamite, which we loved. He also co-created Zero Day with Eric Newman, a 6-part political thriller headlined by Robert De Niro. He plays former US President George Mullen, who is unwittingly brought out of peaceful retirement to spearhead a team investigating a cyber attack. As Mullen gets entangled in a web of conspiracies, it becomes a race against time when he learns that a further cyberattack is imminent.

While a little bloated, Zero Day still presents a thrilling narrative, told through its top tier cast. Other than Robert De Niro, it also stars Jesse Plemons, Lizzie Caplan, Dan Stevens, and Joan Allen.

Apple Cider Vinegar

Based on the book The Woman Who Fooled the World by Beau Donelly and Nick Toscano, Apple Cider Vinegar is set just after the release of the social media phenomenon platform Instagram. Described as a “true-ish story based on a lie,” the 6-part series follows two women who set out to create a social media stir by advocating wellness remedies and techniques to cure illnesses… only to discover that it was all one big elaborate hoax.

The series stars Kaitlyn Dever (The Last of Us), Ashley Zuckerman (Fear Street), Aisha Dee (Watching You), and Alycia Debnam-Carey (Fear the Walking Dead).

The Beast in Me

A psychological thriller, The Beast in Me chronicles a story of neighbourly curiosity that spirals out of control. Star Claire Danes delivers one of her most intense roles yet as Aggie Wiggs, a grieving author who gets embroiled in a cat-and-mouse battle with her neighbour Nile Jarvis (Matthew Rhys), a wealthy real estate tycoon with an enigmatic background. Once suspected of killing his wife, Wiggs takes it upon herself to investigate the case, discovering dark secrets the she dives deeper into his story.

The quality of The Beast in Me is reflected in its excellent 83% Rotten Tomatoes score.

Monster: The Ed Gein Story

Created by Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan, Netflix’s ‘Monster’ series is a biographical crime drama that follows the stories of infamous real-life ‘monsters’ each season. In the shows breakout season, it followed serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer (hauntingly played by Evan Peters). Season 2 covered the chilling Lyle and Erik Menendez story.

Season 3 chronicled the story of Ed Gein, also known as the Butcher of Plainfield. Gein was a body snatcher and serial killer who inspired some of cinema’s most iconic villains, from Norman Bates to Leatherface. Played by Charlie Hunnam, the series explores Gein’s mental issues, his obsession with his mother, his crimes, his relationships, and more. Although in true Ryan Murphy fashion, it stretches the truth to the point of controversy, it’s still a binge-watch that captivated the US and the world upon its release.

American Primeval

Netflix debuted a couple of westerns in 2025, from contemporary western Ransom Canyon, to The Abandons. However, the 6-episode limited series American Primeval saw the most success and ultimately was the best of the bunch.

Created and written by Mark L. Smith, American Primeval is set in 1857 during the Utah War, following a mother (Betty Gilpin) and son, Devin, fleeing from their past, where they form a found family. But before anything else, they must survive the harsh, dangerous, and brutal American West. It’s a near-perfect, all-round western with a single-season narrative that leaves you satisfied, not left hanging on loose ends.

Adolescence

What is there to say about Adolescence that hasn’t already been said? From Stephen Graham, the crime drama became in instant phenomenon on Netflix. It was even cited as important viewing by the UK government. The series tells the story of 12-year-old schoolboy Jamie (Owen Cooper), who’s accused of killing a girl in his school. As he’s taken into custody, the investigation behind the murder gets underway. The story itself is fictional, but it feels very real. It’s a realistic exploration of the real issue of knife crime in the UK.

Additionally, episodes were filmed entirely in one take by director Philip Barantini. There’s no cuts, making it feel so much more intense and intimate than your typical drama.

If you watch one limited series from 2025, it absolutely has to be Adolescence.