The 10 Best Sci-Fi Shows on Netflix, Ranked

Raquel Lekic

November 29, 2023 at 1:02 AM·5 min read

Looking to immerse yourself in an alternate universe of creepy creatures, different dimensions and supernatural beings? Look no further! Netflix is your source for all things science fiction. From mini-series that pack the action into a few short episodes to storylines that span across multiple seasons — and universes — take a deep dive into gripping, thrilling, blow-your-mind storylines in our list of 10 best sci-fi shows on Netflix.

10. Roswell, New Mexico (2019 — 2022)

Liz Ortecho (Jeanine Mason) returns to her alien-hunter tourist-trap hometown of Roswell, New Mexico, where stories and myths of extra terrestrials have haunted the city for decades. Upon her arrival, she reconnects with her old crush, Max Evans (Nathan Dean Parsons). However, Max has been hiding a major secret: he is not from Earth and has special powers of his own. A violent attack to earth threatens to expose his true identity, endangering those he cares about most in the process. For fans of alien lore, Roswell, New Mexico is one of the most ideal sci-fi shows on Netflix.

Watch Roswell, New Mexico now.

9. Altered Carbon (2018 — 2020)

Based on the eponymous novel by Richard K. Morgan, Altered Carbon is set over 300 years in the future in a world where human consciousness is digitized and stored in discs called "stacks", able to be implanted in the necks of a new body. Takeshi Kovacs was a warrior previously part of a rebel group who was caught and put in prison. Suddenly Takeshi's stack is put into a new body by the wealthy Laurens Bancront in the hopes that Takeshi can solve Bancront's own murder. If he succeds, Takeshi will achieve resurrection and implantation into another body.

Watch Altered Carbon now.

8. Sense8 (2015 — 2018)

Eight strangers from around the world find themselves connected — linked to one another both mentally and emotionally. While figuring out how this connection came to be, they're being aided by some and hunted by others, on a quest for the truth. Sense8 is one of the most unique sci-fi shows on Netflix to date.

Watch Sense8 now.

7. The 100 (2014 — 2020)

In the wake of a nuclear apocalypse that wipes out the earth's population, people have found refuge in a space station orbiting around the earth. When the life support systems in the space station start to fail, in an effort to both preserve resources and determine whether the Earth is once again habitable, 100 juvenile delinquents are sent down, where they encounter dangerous conditions and even more dangerous groups of people who have remained. The 100 is one of the quintessential young adult sci-fi shows to be found on Netflix.

Watch The 100 now.

6. Maniac (2018)

Jonah Hill and Emma Stone star in Neflix's Maniac, as two people grappling with various struggles within their lives who choose to participate in a pharmaceutical trial, in which they're promised that all of their problems will be solved with the absence of any side effects. As expected, this is not the case.

Watch Maniac now.

5. The OA (2016 — 2019)

In The OA, Prairie Johnson reappears after having been missing for the past seven years. Blind when she first disappeared, she is now able to see upon her return and refers to herself as "the OA," meaning the "original angel." Refusing to disclose her whereabouts to her parents and the FBI, Prairie reveals the truth to a group of five locals, whose help she enlists to save other missing people trapped in an alternate dimension.

Watch The OA now.

4. Alice in Borderland (2020 — Present)

Alice in Borderland follows Arisu, a video game obsessed man who finds himself in Tokyo — just not the one he's familiar with. Instead, this version puts him and his friends in survival mode as they compete in dangerous games to live. The more they play, the more their "visas" are extended, and once they run out, certain death awaits them.

Watch Alice in Borderland now.

3. The Umbrella Academy (2019 — Present)

The Umbrella Academy begins in 1989, when 43 children were born to women who showed no signs of pregnancy — seven of whom were adopted by the wealthy Sir Reginald Hargreeves, who prepares these children to one day save the world. As the children grew older, the group of them essentially fell apart, going their separate ways — that is until the death of their father brings them back to one another, and together, they discover a new threat on the horizon.

Watch The Umbrella Academy now.

2. Black Mirror (2011 — Present)

Black Mirror consists of individual standalone episodes, pretty much all of which make a commentary on modern social issues through the lens of media and technology, specifically, the advancement of both and the impacts it has on our lives. The series has featured major actors and actresses such as Bryce Dallas Howard, Jon Hamm, Miley Cyrus and Salma Hayek, to name a few.

Watch Black Mirror now.

1. Stranger Things (2016 — Present)

Stranger Things took the world by storm beginning in 2016, and the world of sci-fi shows hasn't been the same, both on Netflix and beyond. The series begins in the fictional town of Hawkins, Indiana where four friends, Mike, Dustin, Lucas and Will, are going about their adolescent lives, engrossed in a game of Dungeons & Dragons.

As their night comes to an end and the boys make their way back to their respective homes, we witness the abduction of Will Byers by an unknown force. As Will's disappearance becomes public knowledge, the community as well as his friends go out searching for him, where one day, the boys come across a girl in the woods in a hospital gown with a shaved head. As the episodes go on, they come to learn that this girl, known as Eleven, has special powers, and their friend Will's disappearance might be much bigger than they thought it was.

One of the most successful and celebrated sci-fi shows on Netflix, Stranger Things has drawn in fans season after season with its developing plot-lines, 80s nostalgia and beloved characters. And with familiar faces of our youth like Winona Ryder, Sean Astin and Matthew Modine sprinkled in the cast, how can you not be obsessed?

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